Mississippi Children's Museum | Jackson

The Mississippi Children’s Museum is one of Mississippi’s most engaging and family-friendly attractions, designed entirely around learning through play. Its main campus sits in Jackson’s LeFleur Museum District, with a second branch in Meridian, each offering a mix of interactive galleries, outdoor spaces, and educational programs.

Origins and Mission

The museum opened in Jackson in 2010 after years of planning and community fundraising. Its guiding mission is to spark a lifelong love of learning in children by blending play with meaningful education. Five pillars shape everything inside: literacy, STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, mathematics), health and nutrition, cultural arts, and Mississippi heritage. A second campus opened in Meridian in 2021, extending the museum’s reach across the state.

Layout and Atmosphere

The Jackson campus covers about 40,000 square feet indoors, with an additional outdoor garden. The space feels alive with color, movement, and sound-children racing between exhibits, laughter echoing off bright walls, and staff members guiding activities with a teacher’s patience. The museum avoids the look of a traditional gallery; instead, everything is at a child’s height, touchable, and immersive.

Major Exhibits

The Enchanted Land of Story: An imaginative outdoor garden where storybook scenes come to life. Children walk through oversized book pages, crawl into playhouses shaped like fairytale cottages, and discover hidden paths that encourage storytelling and reading.

WonderBox Makerspace: A hands-on workshop where kids build, tinker, and experiment with simple machines, electronics, and crafts. It’s a hive of creativity, with paint, blocks, and recycled materials scattered across tables.

Health and Nutrition Gallery: Interactive exhibits let children shop for food in a play-grocery store, cook in a kid-sized kitchen, and learn how the human body works through giant models and games.

Mississippi Heritage Exhibits: Displays highlight the state’s culture, music, and natural landscapes, from blues heritage to the importance of the Mississippi River.

Puppet Theater and Reading Nooks: Quiet corners balance the activity, with soft seating, books, and stages where children can create their own performances.

Programs and Events

Beyond static exhibits, the museum thrives on special programs: storytelling sessions, science demonstrations, art workshops, summer camps, and seasonal events such as “Storybook Christmas” or “Park After Dark.” Educators partner with local schools to integrate museum learning into classroom curricula. The Jackson campus also hosts “Magic Mondays,” giving families a quieter, more focused day of exploration.

Visitor Experience

A day here usually stretches longer than planned. Families often start inside, then spill outdoors into the garden to run, climb, and rest under shady pavilions. There’s a small café for snacks, a gift shop filled with books and puzzles, and wide hallways that make moving strollers easy. Admission is modest, with free entry for babies under a year old, and annual memberships are popular with local families. On weekends, the museum hums with energy, drawing visitors not only from Jackson but also from rural counties and neighboring states.

Recognition

The museum has gained national attention, receiving one of the highest honors for museums in the United States in 2021 and being consistently ranked among the best children’s museums in the country. It’s become a point of pride for Mississippi-both a learning center and a family gathering place.

Meridian Campus

The newer Meridian location mirrors the Jackson experience but on a slightly smaller scale, with 25,000 square feet indoors and an equal amount outdoors. Its galleries are just as hands-on: literacy corners, STEAM labs, climbing structures, and cultural exhibits tied to Mississippi’s identity. Families in eastern Mississippi now have a vibrant children’s hub closer to home, with the same playful spirit.

Visiting either campus feels less like a formal museum visit and more like stepping into a child’s imagination-colorful, noisy, full of energy, and brimming with opportunities to discover something new.