The Lutz Children’s Museum: Your Partner in Learning

 Calling all junior entomologists! Get ready to explore the amazing world of insects and bugs as we discover what makes them different.  Meet real insect and bug ambassadors, investigate hands-on discovery stations, and use your imagination to design and create an insect of your own. It is the perfect adventure for curious preschoolers who love to explore the tiny creatures all around us. 

Circles, spirals, triangles, and more—shapes are everywhere in nature! Preschoolers will become nature detectives as they search for shapes in leaves, flowers, animals, shells, and other natural treasures. Through hands-on exploration, sorting, art, and animal encounters, children will practice shape recognition, observation, and early math skills while discovering the amazing patterns all around us! 

Stomp, splash, swish, and squelch your way through this interactive preschool adventure. As we read “We're Going on a Bear Hunt”, children will build early literacy, listening, sequencing, and gross motor skills through movement and imaginative play. Young explorers will search for animal clues, create their own bear hunt map, and meet live animal ambassadors while discovering the wonders of nature through hands-on learning. 

 Stomp, roar, and explore the world of dinosaurs! Little paleontologists will dig for dinosaur discoveries, explore fossils, and learn about the amazing dinosaurs that once roamed the Earth. Through hands-on play, movement, and creative activities, children will have a dino-mite time learning through discovery. They will meet some of our animal ambassadors that are relatives of dinosaurs too.

 Join us for a story-filled journey through the changing seasons. In this four-part series, children will explore fall, winter, spring, and summer through stories, hands-on activities, creative play, and visits with our animal ambassadors. Along the way, we will discover how animals grow, change, and adapt as the world around them changes too. Ask about our discount for booking all 4 classes in the series. 

• Autumn: “The Leaf Thief” will help us spot the signs and colors of fall.  
• Winter: “Bear Snores On” teaches about hibernation.  
• Spring: “How a Seed Grows” demonstrates how plants and animals wake up to new life.  
• Summer: “Waiting for Wings” details how insects transform through metamorphosis.  

 What are animals up to in the wild? Using all our skills as wildlife biologists, students will embark on an indoor simulated trail, identify animal tracks, fur, skulls, and scat to uncover clues about how animals live along with hands on interaction with our animal ambassadors. Who survives? What do they eat? After the guided walk, students will mold their own animal track and piece together their discoveries to tell the story of each animal’s daily activities.

Grades K-2, 3-5

 Do mammals, birds, and reptiles share similar physical features, and how do we tell them apart? Our program features live animal ambassadors, one from each group, along with biofacts from the museum’s natural history collection. Younger grades will sort and classify animals & make a craft. While 3rd-5 will create a Biome Critter Creation of their own. 

Grades K-2, 3-5

 Become a history detective! Students will examine mystery artifacts from the Lutz Children’s Museum collection, search for clues, and make predictions about what each object is and how it was used. Through hands-on investigation, teamwork, and a little mystery-solving, students will discover how everyday objects can reveal fascinating stories about the past. 

Grades 3-5

 Get ready to slither into the sensational world of reptiles! In Radical Reptiles, students will meet real reptile ambassadors up close and discover what makes these cold-blooded creatures so cool. From scaly skin to unique habitats and feeding habits, we will dive into the world of reptiles using the eco-facts from our museum’s collections. Through hands-on exploration and engaging activities, young herpetologists will learn how reptiles survive, adapt, and thrive in the wild. This interactive adventure is full of science, surprises, and scaly fun. 

Grades K-2, 3-5

 Animals have some amazing and unique ways of adapting to their environments, so they grow, survive, and thrive. In Wildlife Illustration, students become both scientists and artists as they explore the world of animal adaptations. Using their observation skills, they will study biofacts from the museum’s natural history collection and meet live animal ambassadors up close! Younger students will create colorful mosaic art inspired by wildlife and the older students will learn drawing techniques to illustrate their own imaginative animal with fantastical adaptations. This class blends creativity and science into a wildly artistic adventure. 

Grades K-2, 3-5

Grab your magnifiers; it is time to explore the incredible world of insects! In this hands-on class, students will become junior entomologists as they investigate what makes an insect different from a bug. Through close observation and interactive learning, they will meet real insects and bug friends, discover the important roles these creatures play in our environment, and use their creativity to design their very imaginative insects to take home. Grab your magnifiers; it is time to explore the incredible world of insects! In this hands-on class, students will become junior entomologists as they investigate what makes an insect different from a bug. Through close observation and interactive learning, they will meet real insects and bug friends, discover the important roles these creatures play in our environment, and use their creativity to design their very imaginative insects to take home. 

Grades K-2

 Join us on a story-filled journey through the changing seasons where we will read a seasonal story, meet our animal ambassadors, and have fun! In this four-part class, Seasons and Stories: Animals Through the Year, children will discover how animals grow and change right along with the world around them. 

• In autumn, The Leaf Thief will help us spot the signs and colors of fall.  
• We will explore winter while reading Bear Snores On and learning about hibernation.  
• Spring will bloom with How a Seed Grows as we learn how plants and animals wake up to new life.  
• We will flutter into summer with Waiting for Wings to see how insects transform through metamorphosis. Through hands-on activities, art, and exploration, young learners will connect nature’s rhythms to their favorite stories! 

Grades K-1