Is your kid interested in science? How about history? Art? Then there’s a metro Detroit and Ann Arbor museum for them!
Southeast Michigan is packed with educational hubs that explore all kinds of things — and many offer traveling exhibitions throughout the year to keep kids coming back.
Here, you’ll find a list of exhibits coming to our area in the upcoming weeks. From a larger-than-life dinosaurs experience to an immersive experience featuring Disney music, there’s something for everyone at our southeast Michigan museums.
Take a look at the list for something that aligns with your child’s interests and enjoy your outing!
Don’t see an exhibit your kid will love? Check out our online calendar for even more exhibits and fun events!
Lillian Schwartz: Whirlwind of Creativity
March 25, 2023-March 2024
- Address: Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, 20900 Oakwood Blvd., Dearborn
- Cost: Free w/museum admission and for members
See the works of multimedia artist, Lillian Schwartz at this career-retrospective exhibition. It features over 100 artifacts and explores three core themes including, “Moving Forward,” “Making Art in a Science Lab” and “The Limits and Possibilities of Machines.
SUE: The T. rex Experience
Through April 30, 2023
- Address: Cranbrook Institute of Science, 39221 Woodward Ave., Bloomfield Hills
- Cost: $10/non-member adults, $9/members, $8/non-member children ages 2-12 and seniors, free/enhanced members and children under 2. (non-members must pay general admission, too)
This traveling exhibit comes from the Field Museum in Chicago and features an exact cast of SUE’s skeleton, measuring in at 40 feet from snout to tail and 13 feet tall at the hip.
Disney Animation: Immersive Experience
Through May 14, 2023
- Address: Lighthouse ArtSpace Detroit, 311 E. Grand River Ave., Detroit
- Cost: $27.99-plus
Sing along and experience your favorite Disney songs and movies in an all-new immersive experience.
Julia Child: A Recipe for Life
May 20-Sept. 10, 2023
- Address: Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, 20900 Oakwood Blvd., Dearborn
- Cost: Free w/museum admission and for members
In this exhibit, you’ll experience sounds and smells from Julia’s kitchen, videos, audio, photography, interactive The French Chef TV set and more.
“Level Up”
Through May 29, 2023
- Address: Michigan Science Center, 5020 John R St., Detroit
- Cost: Free w/museum admission: $18/adult, $14/ages 2-15, free/under 2
Check out this 8,000 square-foot interactive installation that demonstrates the acquired skills behind video and analog games. The traveling exhibit, Electric Playhouse Travels will be there until May 28, 2023.
Trilobite Treasures: Arthropods of the Ancient Seas
May 31-Sept. 10, 2023 (Wednesdays-Sundays)
- Address: Cranbrook Institute of Science, 39221 Woodward Ave., Bloomfield Hills
- Cost: $3/ages 13-plus, $2/standard members, $1/ages 2-12 and ages 65-plus, free/enhanced members and under 2 years old (not including museum admission)
This family-friendly exhibit takes a journey through the prehistoric life of the ancient seas when arthropods were plentiful.
Sonya Clark: We Are Each Other
June 17-Sept. 24, 2023 (Wednesdays-Sundays)
- Address: Cranbrook Art Museum, 39221 Woodward Ave., Bloomfield Hills
- Cost: $10/non-members general admission, $8/non-member seniors 65-plus, $6/students with ID, free/ages 12 and under and members
Clark often undertakes this exploration through everyday fiber materials—hair, flags, found fabric—and craft practices to show issues on race, history and reconciliation.
Real Bodies: The Exhibition
July 7, 2023-Jan. 14, 2024 (Tuesdays-Sundays)
- Address: Sloan Museum of Discovery, 1221 E. Kearsley St., Flint
- Cost: $8-$21/ages 12-59, $7-$17/ages 60-plus, $6-$14/ages 2-11, free/under 2
This exhibition explores life by displaying real, perfectly preserved human bodies and more than 200 anatomical specimens.
Miniature Moments: A Journey Through Hallmark Keepsake Ornaments
Through Nov. 20, 2023
- Address: Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, 20900 Oakwood Blvd., Dearborn
- Cost: Free w/museum admission and for members
See the museum’s extensive collection of nearly 7,000 Hallmark ornaments made between 1973 and 2009. This is a permanent exhibit.
Rosa Parks Bus
Through Dec. 31, 2023
- Address: Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, 20900 Oakwood Blvd., Dearborn
- Cost: Free w/museum admission and for members
Visit the “With Liberty and Justice for All” area to see the bus where Rosa Parks took a stand for the Civil Rights Movement by refusing to give her seat up to a white man.
This post is updated regularly.
