Chicago Sights: Children’s China at Kohl Children’s Museum

Sir Twizzler found ourselves the only people in our home for a couple of days at the end of last month, and we decided to get out and enjoy the city. The girls were spending some time with my mom (Mor Mor Baby for those of you new to the blog) after the sudden passing of my Uncle Randy, and Mr. Houseful was at work while Nathaniel had school duties. So, with just the two of us to keep each other company, we decided to head to Glenview, Il to check out Kohl Children’s Museum newest exhibit, Children’s China,  in celebration of the Chinese New Year. 

Children’s China: Celebrating Culture, Character and Confucius, opened just in time for Chinese New Year. The west met the east in this immersive exhibit that transports families to a country where a quickly changing modern lifestyle intersects with ancient values. “Children’s China” integrates the time-honored teachings of Confucius with a focus on the importance of education and family values. Sir Twizzler enjoyed running through the exhibit and exploring all of the manipulatives throughout. One of his favorites were these tanagram puzzles that he could make all of the Chinese zodiac signs from. Here he is with a horse. Seeing his little brain work out which shapes would fit into the stencil was awesome. 

We also got to take a spin on some playground equipment. Let me tell you right now, if you’ve never seen a 6 year old try to work hand, eye, and leg coordination on something like what’s pictured below, you’re in for a treat. He giggled, and focused until he was able to walk as normally as can be expected. 

After we finished exploring the exhibit, we headed back out to have his name written in Mandarin. It’s currently hanging up on my cork board in my office area, but we discussed how our names look different in other languages. This was a treat for me as well since I’m currently practicing my skills with brush calligraphy – except in English. The strokes are so beautiful, and I happened to ask about reading traditionally, and was told that instead of reading from top to bottom, left to right, it’s now standard to read all of the characters from left to right. Neat fact, right?

Of course, after touring the temporary exhibit, we spent some time wandering through the museum in general. It was really nice to be able to walk through and see all of the great stuff they have to offer. We’ll make sure to head back North soon! Children’s China will be at Kohl Children’s Museum until April 24, 2017! 

Kohl Children’s Museum – 2100 Patriot Boulevard 
Admission
Adults & Children: $12
Grandparents & Seniors (55+): $11
Infants (under 12 months): FREE
Members: FREE
EBT Cardholders: $3 per person (up to 4 guests. Photo ID required. Electronic Benefit Transfer card cannot be accepted for payment)
Military Discount: Buy one, get one free admission for entire party

I attended the Children’s China exhibit as media.