Looking for an engaging, fun, and wonderful environment and staff to encourage your child's love of STEM subjects, then this is the right place!! My three-year-old and I travel almost a hundred miles weekly from PA to engage in the activities here.The management and staff are exceptional! My son is learning about Non-Newtonian fluids, circuits, and measurement while playing, and he retains what he learns! We love coming here! The Staff is attentive, knowledgeable, and for a three-year-old the most important fun! The atmosphere and educational value make this center worth the drive! read more

I would have to honestly say that this place was a BIG bummer. After reading some bummer reviews, we thought we would try it and make our own opinion. We got there on Sunday when it opened and the staff were all milling about not sure what to do. About 5 high school and adult volunteers (aka non-kids) were at the "bar" getting a tutorial on the experiments, I guess to teach the other kids with two "instructors" manning behind the bar. One of the instructors was super busy giving the volunteers tutorials. While one volunteer was mildly interested in doing the experiments with the other kids sitting around the table. My daughter was patiently waiting for someone to notice her to give her the experiment "stuff". The one person manning the experiment bar gave her a half hearted discussion and instruction about what to do, but then went back to the 5 volunteers to give them more instruction. There was absolutely NO "learning" about the chemical reactions and why things turned out the way they did. Luckily my hubby read the kindle himself to figure out what to do, and why things turned out the way they did. BIG BUMMER! There were 3 experiments (making "snow", some sort of "snow goop", and invisible ink). We tried doing the fan thing, but that hardly moved and nobody seemed to pay attention to us to teach us why things did what they did. We were outta there in about 20 minutes. BIGGGGG waste of $$$$. I can't believe we spent $36 for our family on this place. This place had potential (sorta), but fell wayyyy flat. Save your $ and do the same experiments on pinterest. For the same price other science museums are way better. This was pathetic and very disappointing. read more

It was okay. We have been to many science/discovery centers across the country, and this was a solid C+. I liked the informative and wonderful staff, signage, and concepts. What is is seriously lacking is the entire sensory-art based portion of science learning. Disappointed. I hope that they figure that out because this place has potential. There are so many wonderfully-done, volunteer-based nature centers in the area that are offer a far-greater science education, in the immediate area, and this was not as good as them, in my opinion (my son is almost 5 and loves science...also, I am a scientist). read more

My wife is always looking for new ways to entertain our 3 little ones 9,7, 2 , and she is a tough critic when it comes to kids entertainment places. When she took the kids to the science center at fair oaks, she couldn't stop raving about how much fun the kids had! The place was very clean , the staff was friendly and best of all our kids had a great time and learned a lot . This is the go to place for fun learning!! I would definitely recommend the children's science center to anyone with kids. read more

Amazing experience at the Children's Science Center. Great experiments (wind tunnel, marble run, make glow-in-the-dark goo, mimic volcano explosions, use invisible ink, send instructions to the new robotic arm & more), super knowledgeable staff and kid-friendly environment. The sea horse feeding was the highlight! Great job! Our kids (8 & 10yrs) didn't want to leave! read more

Something's changed in the preschool programming. It's gotten much more "school-like" versus what I'd normally describe as "playful, fun learning." My daughter hasn't been interested in attending in the past month or so. We were also disappointed in the new experiment bar activity--my older son has done this same activity at school on a couple of occasions. Hopefully, our little museum will find its "groove" again! read more

Great place. My two year old and seven year old both had a great time. Loved the experiments and the sea animals. They have a separate area for the toddler set, which is nice. We were there for a few hours and still would have things to go if we went back. read more

This is the smallest museum I've ever seen. We have an associate membership but that only allows 4 of our 6 person family at this establishment. I had to pay $12 to get 5 of us in. There is also a field trip going on so we can use one main section and a small block corner. Had I known size ahead of time we would have gone somewhere else. In general $12 a person (rate for kids and adults) is CRAZY! Not worth it!!! read more

It is worth the money and it's a better deal to purchase the membership vs. paying for each person for each visit. This is a great place to take your young one(s) to have fun while learning about simple to complex science. Periodically change up the lab activities near front entrance. Foam block room with some books. Create your own in the next room. The robot arm doing 3D printing among other things. You should visit their website or stop by and watch what is going on through the glass window in the mall hallway. The staff, every single time is TOP A+ grade when interacting and being patient with everyone including the kids. Any mess or spills including kid accidents; use house hold products to clean up. No chemicals. Restrooms are extremely clean. Our kids go here once/ twice a week if not a little bit more. read more

One of our favorite places. We joined in June and we continue to visit all the time. My 4 year old never gets tired of it. We have yet to spend less than 2 hours per visit. The membership has more than paid for itself. The experiment bar is always our favorite. My daughter loves "ordering" her experiments. They are so well organized that they hand you everything you need in a box. The staff will provide as much or as little help as needed. The best part is the staff cleans up. We leave the mess behind. Also I don't have to buy a box of borax for a tablespoon needed for the experiment. We will definitely be renewing our membership! read more

This place is great but it is a huge turnoff that I had to pay just to sit in the corner and wait for my kids. They should at least offer a reduced rate for adults. I literally did nothing but write this review and I paid 12 dollars. I think that is fine for the kids but they should be allowed 1 parent free or for like 5 dollars. This is ridiculous. Not crowded because no one can afford to go. Much like many places in the area, with multiple children the cost is prohibitive when the parents pay just to sit there. read more

My son had his ninth birthday party at the science center. Of all of the birthday parties we've had over the years, it was by far the worst. A bad experience. Their schedule is to only allow the kids 35 minutes in the science center and almost an hour for the super boring experiment and food in the smallish party room. We had 15 but they allow up to 22, I can't imagine that. It was packed with 15 kids. The party helpers were not at all helpful and complained almost constantly at the kids for their behavior - too loud, not paying attention, not sitting in their seats, etc. I set everything up myself, served almost all of the food myself and had to specifically ask them to do any small thing they pitched in with. They did help clean-up, but probably just to get us out. It's a shame. I thought this was a great idea for a kid's party and it was awful. read more

Even though it is January, I am beginning to think about camps for this upcoming summer. Talking with my sons they both want to do camp at the Children's Science Center. Last summer my 10 year old (rising 5th grader) did a "build it better" camp. They had to design, build, and present a Science Museum. As part of the project they had to think about location, pricing, features to attract every age, and various strategies for creating a business. The class size was small enough that he was able to work in a small group of three campers, and they received individual attention from the fantastic instructors. At the end of the week the students presented their Science Centers. It was a wonderful opportunity for the students to practice presenting and it gave me, the parent, an opportunity to see what they had learned. Also, while at camp, they got to explore the Science Center. My son loved all of the hands-on activities and looks forward to doing more this summer. read more

My daughter Sara (10 at the time), enjoyed the build it better camp over the summer. She had fun building, working with others and her awesome teacher! She also got to improve her presentation skills. read more

I simply can't say enough good things about the Children's Science Center! After spending an afternoon there, we realized it was a very special place! We immediately signed up for a family membership and remain SO impressed with both the staff and the Center. Our children are pre-school / early kindergarten and they LOVE it. It's really nice to spend the day doing something educational together. We've been so impressed, and then decided to host our Kindergartener's birthday party there. WOW! That took our experience off the charts. The level of detail, and partnership they provided us was amazing. The challenging / interesting projects, the skilled staff, the sense of curiosity and exploration is just perfect for our family. We are so grateful for the Children's Science Center and look forward to spending many days enjoying (and learning about!) the fun of science. read more

This was a disappointment. I took my 3 and 6 year old here and I expected a more interactive experience. We started with the experiment section to make our own slime - which really excited my kids, but even with having the place to ourselves - the staff person behind the counter pointed me to a tablet on the counter and said I would have to read the instructions. Then left us to our own devices! I would have expected more engagement for $12 per person and especially with the place being empty! There were other areas for the kids to play with mechanical systems and build things but they were bored within minutes and the staff (again they had a lot of staff and practically no customers at the time) just stood around and did not do much to engage the children or demonstrate any of the stations. read more

Great Summer Camp! My son (10) really enjoyed his week at CSC. He built bridges, designed a model museum and really enjoyed the staff. He always asks to stop by and see his former camp counselor when we are at the mall. read more

We are so lucky to have a facility like this in our area finally! It is amazing to think that a group of people got together with a dream and raised the funds to make this happen. We just had our ten year old's birthday party here and did it at 6PM when they closed. The boys got to do two experiments, goo and lava lamps, feed the sea horses and have the run of the experiment exhibits. It was an amazing event and everyone loved it. Kudos to the professional staff! We will be back! read more