The State Museum, in collaboration with the NJ State Police, has instituted enhanced security measures at the Museum. Personal items and bags are subject to search upon entering the Museum. Security may consist of electronic, physical and/or visual inspection of individuals and/or personal items. We suggest leaving backpacks/large bags in your vehicle. Passage through magnetometers and wanding procedures will be conducted at entry for all visitors. Video surveillance is in use throughout the Museum.
Thank you for your cooperation.
12:00 pm We Are Guardians!
1:00 pm Magic Tree House: Space Mission
2:00 pm To Space and Back
3:00 pm Destination Mars
3:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Learn about Cyanotypes! Sun prints, known as Cyanotypes, use the sun to make prints from objects. It’s photography without a lens! For ages 13+
9:30 am
It’s the last session of the year and we can’t wait to go to the shore! Families will explore a variety of boats and what you might find on the beach or in the sea. We’ll read “Boats Float!” and enjoy some fun hands-on activities. At this session, we will also “graduate” our 5 year-olds.
Advance registration required: https://collections.humanitix.com/small-explorers-learning-together-programs
12:00 pm We Are Guardians!
1:00 pm Magic Tree House: Space Mission
2:00 pm To Space and Back
3:00 pm Destination Mars
12:00 pm - 12:45 pm
Join us in the Riverview Court to hear Dr. Synatra Smith, Project Manager, Black Heritage Trail, explore the dynamic history of African Americans in New Jersey during the Revolutionary War period. She will share an overview of the historical marker program and discuss specific Black Heritage Trail sites throughout New Jersey that are doing phenomenal work to share the contributions of Black soldiers, the establishment of early Black communities, and the way Black women created public and private spaces for themselves.
9:30 am
It’s the last session of the year and we can’t wait to go to the shore! Families will explore a variety of boats and what you might find on the beach or in the sea. We’ll read “Boats Float!” and enjoy some fun hands-on activities. At this session, we will also “graduate” our 5 year-olds.
Advance registration required: https://collections.humanitix.com/small-explorers-learning-together-programs
10:00 am
This month we’re reading “Snippets: A Story About Paper Shapes” by Dian Albers. The story reveals the power of kindness and the beauty of being unique. Following the story will be a related craft.
4:15 pm
Join us in the Planetarium for this free talk with Ronan Hix, Princeton University.
Stars are amongst the most important and interesting objects in astronomy. Our own sun supplies the energy that makes life on Earth possible, distant stars make up the constellations in our night skies, and ancient, long-dead stars created almost all the atoms in our bodies. Our Milky Way contains 100 Billion stars, but where do they all come from, and how are they born? Ronan will discuss our best answers to these questions and more, and explore the exciting research underway to find out more. Join us to learn about the exciting lives and times of the stars, and how it all impacts our own lives on Earth.
Reserve your seat with this link: https://forms.office.com/g/0vJ0yXMrBC
12:00 pm We Are Guardians!
1:00 pm Magic Tree House: Space Mission
2:00 pm To Space and Back
3:00 pm Destination Mars
12:00 pm We Are Guardians!
1:00 pm Magic Tree House: Space Mission
2:00 pm To Space and Back
3:00 pm Destination Mars
1:00 pm The Great Solar System Adventure
2:00 pm Messengers of Time and Space
2:30 pm One Sky Project
1:00 pm The Great Solar System Adventure
2:00 pm Messengers of Time and Space
2:30 pm One Sky Project
12:00 pm We Are Guardians!
1:00 pm The Great Solar System Adventure
2:00 pm Messengers of Time and Space
3:00 pm One Sky Project
1:00 pm The Great Solar System Adventure
2:00 pm Messengers of Time and Space
2:30 pm One Sky Project
11:00 am
Discovery Den
“Bird Builds a Nest” by Martin Jenkins, Illustrated by Richard Jones
Follow along with a story about Bird finding food and building a nest, pushing and pulling worms and twigs along the way. After the story, we will create our own bird with a nest in a fun craft.
3:00 pm - 4:15 pm
Free art making for teens (ages 13+). Print making with Gelli plates using natural items for multiple prints on one paper.
9:30 am - 11:30 am
For children ages 1 – 5 and their caregivers. Join us for space science activities and crafts, a star-themed scavenger hunt, pretend and sensory play, and a Planetarium show! Fee: $20 for child, caregiver is free. Advance registration required: https://collections.humanitix.com/small-explorers-learning-together-programs
12:00 pm We Are Guardians!
1:00 pm The Great Solar System Adventure
2:00 pm Messengers of Time and Space
3:00 pm One Sky Project
1:00 pm The Great Solar System Adventure
2:00 pm Messengers of Time and Space
2:30 pm One Sky Project
11:00 am
Discovery Den
“Ablaze with Color- A story of painter Alma Thomas,” by Jeanne Walker Harvey and illustrated by Loveis Wise
This book beautifully illustrates the life of the educator and painter Alma Thomas, who was the first Black woman to have a solo show at the Whitney Museum in New York City. Her simple and repetitive style will be the inspiration for a mosaic style collage after the story.
10:00 am – 12:00 noon
Join us for a fossil collecting trip at Big Brook Fossil Preserve in Colts Neck, NJ! $15 per person, discount for Museum Members.
Complete details and registration with this link: https://events.humanitix.com/2026-fossil-collecting-with-the-new-jersey-state-museum
12:00 pm We Are Guardians!
1:00 pm The Great Solar System Adventure
2:00 pm Messengers of Time and Space
3:00 pm One Sky Project
1:00 pm The Great Solar System Adventure
2:00 pm Messengers of Time and Space
2:30 pm One Sky Project
11:00 am
Discovery Den
“Players in Pigtails” by Shana Corey, Illustrated by Rebecca Gibbon
This story is about Katie Casey, a girl who was “baseball mad,” and became one of the first girls to play in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League. Did you know that the song Take Me Out to the Ballgame was about Katie Casey? Following the Story will be a related baseball threading craft
12:00 pm We Are Guardians!
1:00 pm The Great Solar System Adventure
2:00 pm Messengers of Time and Space
3:00 pm One Sky Project
1:00 pm The Great Solar System Adventure
2:00 pm Messengers of Time and Space
2:30 pm One Sky Project
11:00 am
Discovery Den
“BowWow PowWow” by Brenda J. Child, illustrations by Jonathan Thunder
This imaginative story is told from the perspective of Windy Girl who attends a powwow with Uncle and her dog Itchy Boy. She falls asleep after dancing and food, and dreams about dogs in a powwow, celebrating in song and dance. After the story will be a related powwow drum craft.
11:00 am
Discovery Den
“The Sun is Kind of a Big Deal,” by Nick Seluk
Meet the sun, and its family of planets in this fun and fact filled story. The Sun works nonstop for the planets and the solar system and we wouldn’t be around if it weren’t for the Sun. Following the story we will make a super star Sun craft.
11:00 am
Discovery Den
“Fossil” by Bill Thomson
This story is a wordless journey of a boy and his dog on a hike and three fossils. See what kind of adventure they discover hidden in these rocks. Follow the images with the story teller as it tells a story and sparks discussion. Following the story will make our own air dry clay fossils imprints.
3:00 pm - 4:15 pm
Free art making for teens ages 13+. Learn how to make your own sketchbook using different papers, cardboard and simple bookmaking methods.
10:00 am – 12:00 noon
Join us for a fossil collecting trip at Big Brook Fossil Preserve in Colts Neck, NJ! $15 per person, discount for Museum Members.
Complete details and registration with this link: https://events.humanitix.com/2026-fossil-collecting-with-the-new-jersey-state-museum
11:00 am
Discovery Den
“Splatter” by Diane Albers
This story is about three splatters; red, blue and yellow. At first they do not want to work together, but they soon discover that working as a team can end up being so much more. Following the story, we will create a painting using just three colors to mix and make green, orange and purple.
11:00 am
Discovery Den
“We March” by Shane W. Evans
Sixty three years ago on August 28, 1963, there was a March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The march started at the Washington Monument and ended at the Lincoln Memorial where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous speech, “I Have a Dream.” This book brings together the thrill of the day in simple statements and beautiful illustrations. After the book will be a related craft.
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