Back in September 2013, when we were visiting Mark’s family in Utah, my little sister in law told us about going to the Children’s Museum at the Gateway shopping center. She bigged it up, telling us how much fun it was and how awesome it would be to take the kids.
So we went to downtown Salt Lake and gave it a go. I have to say, it was one of the best places we’ve EVER taken the kids! Dexter and Daniel both LOVED it, and there was so much to do and see for all of us.
According to their site:
Discovery Gateway children’s museum is located in the Gateway Mall in downtown Salt Lake City. Discovery Gateway offers 60,000 square feet of interactive, hands-on fun. Come explore our engaging workshops, programs, and exhibits that invite the whole family to create, learn, and play together!
It was such an awesome mix of art, music, science, technology and more. If we lived there, I would definitely look into getting an annual membership and taking the kids there every week!
There was a great focus on imaginative play, utilizing props and scenes all over. There were random musical instruments, video cameras, puppets, costumes and more!
Dexter spent ages inside the pretend grocery store, where he was able to shop for all his favorite foods. He then put on his grocer’s apron and pretended to work there, helping to make sandwiches in the deli or pick out the ripest fruit in the produce section. Then, he played cashier and checked us all out before finally putting everything away.
There were loads of physical activities to do – climbing walls, indoor tree houses, etc.
Wearing a hard hat, Dexter practiced using a crane to lift and stack giant foam blocks. It was such an education in engineering.
There were sections to teach you about building things, and there was a fab counter full of blocks that allowed you to build a house and then push a button to start an “earthquake” that would then knock it all down. There were air canisters that would allow you to create paper helicopters and airplanes to test their worthiness.
Daniel had such a grand time just watching it all.
It was so much fun, and I can’t wait to take them there again next time we are in SLC.