The Science Museum of Virginia's Newest Exhibit: MathAlive!

The Science Museum of Virginia's newest exhibition MathAlive! is open now through January 12, 2025.

This kid-friendly, hands on exhibit will make your Science Museum of Virginia visit count! Showcasing fun and unique ways that math shapes sports, weather & more, your family will learn so many new aspects of "math" and have a lot of fun. For example, you can ride down a snow-covered mountain on a 3D snowboard race, race your friends on a bicycle, sequence robots on Mars, and study weather data like a meteorologist.

The best part? Admission into this exhibit is included in your daily ticket and membership, so you don't have to purchase or reserve an extra ticket to experience it!

Heads up: This exhibit is designed for children ages 7 to 14 years old. If your kiddos are under 7, scroll to the bottom for the age-appropriate and entertain exhibits at the Science Museum of Virginia that are perfect for younger kids!

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Where is The Science Museum of Virginia?

The museum's address is 2500 West Broad Street, Richmond, VA 23220.

You can find free parking in the parking deck between The Children's Museum of Richmond and The Science Museum of Virginia.

When is The Science Museum of Virginia open?

The museum is open Tuesday through Sunday from 9:30am to 5pm.

MathAlive! is on display September 28, 2024–January 12, 2025.

How much does it cost to visit The Science Museum of Virginia?

It costs $17.50 per adult (13-59), $14.50 per senior (60+), $14.50 per youth (6-12 years old), and $10 per preschooler (3-5 years old) to visit daily. Children 2 years old and younger can visit for free.

Teachers can visit the museum for free with their teacher ID.

The Science Museum of Virginia also participates in Museums for All. This means the Science Museum offers a discounted daily admission  & reduced-rate membership for limited-resource families. Present you Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card at the front desk to qualify for this program.The Museums for All daily admission cost is $1 or $2, and for $25, two adults and all children under 18 in the household can visit for one year.

If you are interested in a membership, check here for more details!

Everything YOU need to know about MathAlive!

This new touring exhibition highlights how math plays into our daily world through kid-friendly, hands on stations. You will find over 30 interactive stations on fractions, scales, shapes, volume, and more. Each more brings math to life in a new way by showcasing real world math problems in sports, games, music, and even in space!

Some of the feature stations:

1. A 3D snowboard race where strategic board angles help guests win a race

2. A bicycle race where you learn about average deviation

3. A build-your-own-skateboard station

4. A 360-degree freeze photo station in the style made famous in contemporary action movies

5. A binary dance party and giant musical instruments

6. A robot rally where guests can navigate planets

7. A cyber security game that navigates the realm of probability and statistics

8. An extreme weather forecasting station

   
   

Best Sections of MathAlive for Children under 7:

While this exhibit is geared towards children 7 and older, there are still some really cool experiences and learning opportunities for younger children. MathAlive! is included in your daily admission or membership, so definitely don't skip out just because your kiddo is under 7 years old.

The Snowboards: Even if your child doesn't understand angles yet, he will love getting on the snowboard and racing down the mountain. In order to stay on the mountain, he will have to balance himself, putting his weight forward or backward to keep on the course. During our visit, children as young as 2 years old were trying to navigate down the mountain!

The Tessellations: This station is all about creating patterns. On the illuminated table, your kiddo can make patterns or make designs with the various shapes. This one is really perfect for children 2 years old and older - children can help identify the pattern (even if the grownup created it) and predict what should come next.

The Binary: This station creates a colorful shadow of your moving body. While it shows you how a computer assigns binary numbers to your silhouette, you don't have to understand how that works to enjoy the real-time animation. During our visit, children of all ages were dancing and watching the colors change.

Style Revolution: If your kiddo loves taking silly pictures, he will love this one! This exhibit has you stand in the center, pose, and a camera goes all the way around you, capturing the image at every angle.

Things to do at the Science Museum of Virginia with kids under 7:

I've been bringing my children to this museum since they were babies, and there's so many things to see and do with them here. The entire museum is stroller friendly, so it's easy to bring little ones here.

LightPlace: This section of the museum is designed specifically for children 5 and younger. LightPlace filled with preschool-sized hands-on activities like the oversized Lite Bright, puzzles, building blocks, and a climbing area. It has floor-to-ceiling windows, so the room is filled with light and views of the trains. There is also an area just for children 18 months and younger, so even the smallest explorers can crawl to sensory experiences!

The Speed Exhibit: This exhibit has over 50 stations for you to learn about motion and time! You can race an Olympic athlete (or dinosaur), practice throwing like a baseball player, feel hurricane force winds or challenge a robot in air hockey.

The Outside Exhibits: You will find restored train cars outside, a giant chess board and a submarine. You can see this area from LightPlace, too.

More Information about The Science Museum of Virginia:

Can I bring food and water into the museum?

Yes! You can bring in snacks and water to the museum, and there are designated eating areas in the museums. You'll also cafe with seating that sells coffee, snacks, box lunch items, chips, etc. The gift shop has bottled drinks, candy and snacks. Outside The Dome, the theater, you can purchase fresh popcorn, drinks and candy -- this is our favorite place to grab snacks!

Is the museum stroller friendly?

Yes! The entire museum is ADA accessible. You will find both stairs and elevators around the property.

For more things to do with kids around Richmond, follow @thewestendmom on Instagram!