Stockton Children's Museum Delights and Inspires Children

Two giant toy soldiers welcomed us to the Stockton Children's museum, an educational, hands-on museum that is geared towards children of all ages. Over twenty exhibits spark the imaginations of visiting children while teaching them about the world they live in.

The main part of the museum is an enchanting, kid-sized town featuring a dozen businesses equipped with real-world objects. At the bank, visitors can open safe deposit boxes, count money, and play with an ATM machine. Next door at the post office, they can weigh letters, sort the mail, stamp envelopes, and drop their mail off in the blue mailbox outside. In the fast food restaurant, sandwiches can be made and boxed and served to waiting customers at the kid-sized counter or tables. There is even a hospital with real x-rays to view and a hospital bed to tuck patients into. But the children's favorite was the grocery store where they could push mini grocery carts around and pick up realistic looking plastic produce and baked goods along with their boxed and canned goods. Another child runs the conveyer belt at the check out and scans the items at the cash register with a satisfyingly real beep. Conspicuously empty was the mini-movie theater where theatergoers can watch a big screen TV.

On the "street", children climb onto and inside a real fire truck, bus, police car, motorcycle, and ambulance. To the delight of the little drivers, every switch can be flicked and every button can be pushed. The flashing red and blue lights can even be turned on.

Imagination is further promoted in the art room, a wide variety of art supplies and projects are provided and at the puppet show theater where there is a box full of puppets to choose from. When it is time for a break from active play, there is a reading area stocked with picture books and a table with hundreds of Legos to build with.

At sixteen months old, our son is too young to play imaginatively, but he was all smiles when he realized that nothing was off limits to him. He happily brought plastic bananas to the six year old working the checkout in the grocery store exhibit, pushed every button he could reach from the driver's seat of the ambulance, and spun the newscasters chairs in the newsroom round and round.

The Stockton Children's Museum is located at 402 W. Weber Street in Stockton, California. For hours of operation and admission prices call (209) 465-4386 or visit www.stocktongov.com/childrensmuseum.