children's museum of south dakota

I've been to quite a few children museums. and this one stands up with the rest of them. Highly recommended. I'm guessing age 8 or 9 is the cut off for enjoyment.

It was neat museum for my younger kids. The older ones had fun too. This is very hands on but I was not overly impressed with their staff, marketing or their groupon offer- I totally got hosed. Good museum- employee / customer communication improvement needed. Overall ok

Loved it. So fun. Makes me wish I was young again. Many fun exhibits and interesting things to do. Kids will not get bored. There is something for all ages

The Children's Museum of South Dakota in Brookings is a wonderful and highly-recommended place for kids, but mostly for younger kids--I'd say less than 10 yrs old. I live in Brookings and took my kids there a couple of times a month when they were younger, but about the time they turned 10 they quit wanting to go.For those unfamiliar with it, the Children's Museum of South Dakota is housed in an old elementary school building that was converted to museum duty when the school was retired from service. The museum includes a large number of hands-on activities that combine fun and learning. There's a water room in which kids experiment with water flows over, through and around objects, including many that make noise, and using water to power different machines. There's a painting room in which the kids can go wild painting on the wall. There's a grocery store, TV studio, auto repair shop, restaurant, and a farm, all connected by a working postal system and telephones, and all run by the kids on-the-fly. There's a massive climbing structure in the big main room (with all kinds of safety features). And all of this is just the indoor part. Outside, there are many more fun activities, if the weather is nice (and if you don't mind being overseen by a life-size animated T-rex and her baby!). At other facilities of this type that I have visited, cleanliness and maintenance were constant problems, but I have not seen that here; the facility is exceptionally well run and maintained.There are other amenities as well. The Coteau Cafe has good food at reasonable prices, including on Sunday mornings after church. There are conference and teaching facilities there, both of which I have used and found to be excellent.

The children's Museum is rare in that there isn't one like it in the Midwest. The learning experience is great for all children, and the adults. There is a family friendly café in the museum as well as an outdoor park featuring fountains, tunnels and "mama" - a life size animated T-rex. Can't say enough about this place!

If you are looking for a fun place to visit, come to the Children's Museum! If you live 20 or 200 miles away, it is worth the drive! There are so many activities for your children to do. My children go and we can be at one exhibit for 10 minutes or 2 hours! Each time we go and are ready to leave, they will say pretty much every time, we didn't go to the _______! So I always say, "We will do it next time first!" You can visit here all year round!

My kids have always enjoyed coming here. There are so many different and interactive things for them to do here. It can get quite busy at times so I suggest going when school is in session if your kids are young.

This is just a wonderfully fascinating place for kids! Even my 13 year old finds it interesting - though it's better for younger kids. I'd say 3 and up. My toddler is 2 and too short to enjoy some of it, but still finds plenty of things to do. Less crowded on weekdays during the school year, of course. Also, check out the restaurant. Pretty fancy and delicious!

I love taking my young niece and nephew to the Brookings Children's Museum. This is a top notch attraction. This is a very expansive and interactive museum that is fun for the entire family, including adults! No matter what their interests are, kids are bound to have hours of fun here from the water play area to the grocery store or the giant light bright board!This is a must do if you are in the area!

The CMSD just celebrated its 4th birthday. It only gets better with each visit. We have grandchildren in Minneapolis, Boston, and Connecticut. They all have Children's Museums near their homes, but every one of them insist that the SDCM is the best! The staff are very friendly, the museum is always clean, the displays are creative and interactive. The only time the children complain is when we need to leave.

There is something for children of age and cognition here. There are dozens of exhibits, mostly requiring active participate from children. The items are kept up well and the staff did an excellent job of ensuring things were put away and toys were available in appropriate places. I was pleasantly surprised that although it was jam packed with kids and parents, everyone was respectful. The kids were upset that we were tired after two hours of playing, and probably could have spent all day in here! We will definitely be returning!

Love the food served at the children's museum. It is so well lit that I go there for lunch with my friends even when the kids aren't with on weekdays.

Venue was wonderful, food was outstanding, service was great! That's all I know, but if you need a unique place for a reception, this is it. we hosted one, and have been to 2 others and all have been wonderful.

We visited for a day before heading to the Laura Ingalls site in DeSmet. What a fabulous museum! Unique and interesting interactive displays for the kids (ours loved the water area, the farming and sod house) along with some traditional children's museum favorites (art area, grocery store). Our girls (10, 8 & 4) were entertained for 4 hours and wanted to stay longer. We loved the beautifully landscaped outdoor area - our kids spent a lot of time splashing in the water and exploring the grounds. We ate in the onsite restaurant - delicious! It was relatively inexpensive ($34 for a family of 5) and the food was freshly prepared instead of the standard reheated hot dogs, chicken strips, etc. I would highly recommend the museum and cafe.

The recent trip I made to Brookings was fantastic, The museum was busy with kids visitingfrom everywhere ( Me from Texas). I was especially interested to find how they remodledthe building which included my OFFICE for ten years. I was teaching Jr. High girls and elementary physical education in Brookings (1953-64). Those were good years. My officeWAS downstairs under the big windmill now. Thank you Mr. Larson for this great remodeling idea - to keep kids playing. My suggestion for a better name--The Dinosaur Play House and Museum in South Dakota.