Stepping Stones Museum for Children
Stepping Stones Museum for Children is a hands-on children's museum for ages 10 and under located at 303 West Avenue, in the Central section of Norwalk, Connecticut.
The museum's interactive exhibit areas include: "Energy Lab"; a "Multimedia Gallery" with a theater, a state-of-the-art broadcast studio, and an 35-foot (11 m)-by-12-foot (3.7 m)-foot high-definition screen;[1] "Healthyville", with exhibits about bodies and healthy living; "Tot Town", an exploration area just for toddlers; "Family and Teacher Resource Center" where parents, caregivers and teachers have access to the latest and best information and programs about learning through play, early literacy, 21st century learning skills and the developmental needs of young children, helping them to facilitate a child’s learning – at home or at school.
The entrance lobby houses ColorCoaster, a 27-foot (8.2 m) kinetic sculpture designed by artist George Rhoads.
The museum is located in Mathews Park, adjacent to the Lockwood-Mathews Mansion, the Center for Contemporary Printmaking, a gallery and studio for printmaking, and Devon's Place, a playground designed for all children to play together, including those with physical, sensory and mental challenges.
History
Stepping Stones was founded in 2000 by Gigi Priebe.[2] In its first 10 years of operation, the museum received two million visits.[1]
The museum underwent a $17 million renovation in 2010, which closed Stepping Stones from August 17 to late November (with a "grand reopening" on November 20) and resulted in a 22,000-square-foot (2,000 m2) expansion, roughly doubling the indoor space of the facility. The project added to the museum the "Energy Lab" exhibit (which replaced the "Water Scape" exhibit), as well as a multimedia room, and removed the "Rainforest Adventure" exhibit.[3] After the refurbishing, the museum building is LEED Gold certified and features a wind turbine, solar panels, and a "green" roof planted with vegetation.[2] The renovation also resulted in improvements to the Tot Town and Healthyville exhibits.[1]
See also
- The Children's Museum
- Children's Museum of Southeastern Connecticut
- Connecticut Children's Museum
- Connecticut Science Center
- Discovery Museum and Planetarium
- Eli Whitney Museum
- List of museums in Connecticut
- Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Hennessy, Christina, "Renovated Stepping Stones Museum for Children in Norwalk is bigger, better", November 18, 2010, Connecticut Post and Danbury Times and Stamford Advocate, retrieved from the Connecticut Post website on November 21, 2010
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Web page titled "About Us" at the Stepping Stones Museum for Children website, retrieved November 21, 2010
- ↑ Kobak, Steve, "Children's Museum reopens to public", pp 1, A6, The Sunday Hour, November 21, 2010