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Building Zone

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Welcome to the Building Zone, a hands-on introduction to the building arts designed especially for the Museum’s youngest visitors, ages two to six.

In this exploratory gallery, children can:

• Build a tower or brick wall.
• Curl up with an architecture picture book in the Book Nook.
• Drive bulldozers and other construction play trucks in the Construction Zone.
• Imagine being a craftsperson complete with a hard hat, tool belt, and goggles.
• Explore the National Building Museum's Project Playhouse, a life-size custom built "green" house sponsored by HomeAid and built by Pardee Homes.

Why Play at the National Building Museum?

Just as a building’s foundation lays the groundwork for a structure, child-initiated play lays a foundation for learning. Through imaginative play, children learn to interact with others, to recognize and solve problems, and to gain confidence. Play helps children make sense of their physical and social worlds and their place within them. We invite our youngest visitors and their families to enjoy this space as they explore the world we build for ourselves.

Book of the Month Club

Each month, this series features a new book with activities that your family can explore together at the Museum and at home.

Research shows that reading with pre-school-aged children can enable youth to:

• Practice effective expression of needs, wishes, and ideas
• Increase their vocabulary and use language to relate to experiences, thoughts, and feelings
• Create stories, dramas, and songs
• Use language to resolve conflicts
• Use symbolic representation of language

On the first Tuesday of each month, we will introduce a new book during a read-aloud in the Building Zone’s Book Nook. The books explore themes such as patterns, city planning, construction, and celebration of other cultures. Families will then be invited to participate in corresponding hands-on play activities in the Building Zone.

 

Please remember:

• This gallery is designed for children ages 2-6
• An adult must accompany children at all times
• No food or drink is permitted in the gallery
• Maximum capacity is 40 visitors
• Photography is permitted

Sponsors

The National Building Museum’s Building Zone is funded, in part, by the Hattie M. Strong Foundation.

Sponsors & Partners