American Museum of Natural History:

Discover in the Discovery Room

City-Kid Review:

I don’t want to leave.

The Discovery Room at the American Museum of Natural History is an off-the-charts fantastic place for City Kids. When you enter, the staff explain that the room is designed for exploration, that they are free to touch anything and open any drawer.

I know that might sound too good to be true, but it is all true. Sometimes, if you are lucky and so inclined, you can even touch a Madagascan Hissing Cockroach.
Yes, City Kid did that.
(I did not)
I did not even know such things existed until the Discovery Room. Now, I think they are beautiful, once I got over my own ‘ick’ factor. I mean….a GIGANTIC ROACH??? For a New Yorker, that is not something to be relished. And yet…

It’s a small-ish space but they have truly packed so much in there. It is extremely well thought out. There is so much for City Kids to explore on their own and in organized activities – such as a self-directed scavenger hunt around the central tree – or free play with all of the thoughtfully fun activities.

The room is roughly divided into three areas of study: Paleontology, Anthropolgy and Biodiversity. The paleontology has a dinosaur skeleton, and your City Kids can take bones from a drawer and find their correct place on the dinosaur. They can, also, dig for bones and dinosaur eggs, based on an actual AMNH find.

The biodiversity has a range of information on different animals and insects (including the Madagascar Hissing Roach, above). The anthropology section includes puppets and books from around the world, as well as other interesting facts about human cultures.

Need to Knows:

Entry to the Discovery Room is free, with entrance to the Museum. Museum entrance is a suggested fee and is free with the NYC-ID card, if you have not previously been a member.

Location: Central Park West & 79th St, New York, NY 10024

At the weekends, and on busy days, time in the Discovery Room is restricted to 45 minute segments. You show up, they give you a time card and you enter at your allotted time. At other times, during the week, you can enter and stay without any restriction.

Top Tip:

Ssssh….There is a chart on the wall by the tree telling you where all the animals are hidden. You can look like a brainiac to your scavenging City Kid.

Have you visited the AMNH Discovery Room? Any Top Tips? Please share in the comments section, below.

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