San Diego Childrens Discovery Museum

SAN DIEGO CHILDREN'S DISCOVERY MUSEUM SPARKS A LOVE OF LEARNING SO ALL CHILDREN CAN DISCOVER THEIR WILDEST DREAMS. OUR VISION FOR THE FUTURE IS TO BE THE LEADERS IN INVENTIVE EARLY CHILDHOOD LEARNING. OUR VALUES: WE ASPIRE TO SERVE ALL CORNERS OF SAN DIEGO COUNTY. WE BELIEVE IN LEARNING THROUGH HANDS-ON PLAY. WE BELIEVE IN NURTURING KIND HEARTS AND CURIOUS MINDS. WE BELIEVE IN EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES THAT ARE INCLUSIVE AND OPEN TO ALL.

FOR OVER TWO DECADES, SDCDM HAS SHARED OUR MUSEUM SPACE WITH ALL CHILDREN AND FAMILIES, MANY OF WHOM WOULD HAVE LITTLE TO NO ACCESS TO SUPPLEMENTAL EDUCATIONAL ENRICHMENT EXPERIENCES WITHOUT US. THE MUSEUM'S 13,000 SQUARE FEET OF INDOOR AND OUTDOOR VITAL GUIDED PLAY AREAS, HANDS-ON LEARNING ACTIVITIES, AND TWICE- DAILY EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS CREATE AN IDEAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENT FOR DEVELOPING AND REINFORCING CHILDREN'S EARLY FOUNDATIONAL FLUENCIES AND STEM LEARNING. OUR MOBILE MUSEUM ADDRESSES DISPARITIES OF EQUITABLE LEARNING OPPORTUNITIES BY BRINGING SUPPLEMENTAL ENRICHMENT OPPORTUNITIES TO YOUNG CHILDREN WHERE THEY ARE. THE PROGRAM BUILDS OVER 50 FOUNDATIONAL FLUENCIES AND HELPS DEVELOP CHILDREN'S COGNITIVE SKILLS, SOCIAL ABILITIES, AND PHYSICAL WELL-BEING FROM THE EARLIEST CHILDHOOD YEARS WHEN IT MATTERS THE MOST. MOBILE WORKSHOPS FOCUS ON STEM AND SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL SKILLS AND ALIGN WITH PRESCHOOL LEARNING FOUNDATIONS. RESEARCH SHOWS THAT CHILDREN WHO ENGAGE IN HIGH-QUALITY EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATIONAL ENRICHMENT ACTIVITIES LIKE THOSE OFFERED BY SDCDM ARE MORE LIKELY TO ACHIEVE POSITIVE OUTCOMES IN THE LONG RUN. SDCDM EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS AIM TO HELP CLOSE THE ACHIEVEMENT GAP, PREPARE TODDLERS FOR KINDERGARTEN, REMOVE TRANSPORTATION BARRIERS, AND IMPROVE HEALTH OUTCOMES FOR ALL PARTICIPATING CHILDREN.OVER THE YEARS, SDCDM HAS COLLECTED TESTIMONIALS, FEEDBACK, AND SURVEYS FROM THE COMMUNITY WHO CITE THAT OUR FUN, SAFE, AND INCLUSIVE MUSEUM HAS BEEN LIKE A SECOND HOME FOR LOCAL FAMILIES. RESPONDENTS FREQUENTLY MENTION THAT THEY ARE VERY IMPRESSED WITH OUR STAFF AND FEEL STRONGLY THAT SDCDM IS HIGHLY ACCESSIBLE, FOCUSED ON COOPERATIVE PLAY, AND CONTRIBUTES TO EARLY SKILLS AND BRAIN DEVELOPMENT. TEACHERS OFTEN EXPRESS THEIR GRATITUDE FOR SDCDM EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS AND NOTE THAT WITHOUT US, STUDENTS AT THEIR SCHOOLS WOULD NOT RECEIVE ACCESS TO MUCH-NEEDED STEM RESOURCES AND SUPPLEMENTAL EDUCATIONAL EXPERIENCES.DURING AN ALREADY CHALLENGING TIME WHERE FAMILIES HAVE EVEN FEWER RESOURCES THAN EVER AND ARE AT GREATER RISK OF MARGINALIZATION, SDCDM SEEKS TO BRIDGE THE GAP IN EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT AND ACCESS BY PROVIDING STUDENTS IN SAN DIEGO WITH HIGH-QUALITY, HANDS-ON EARLY STEM ENRICHMENT EXPERIENCES.THIS PAST FISCAL YEAR, THE MUSEUM SERVED OVER 57,000 CHILDREN AND FAMILIES ONSITE AND OVER 7,000 CHILDREN THROUGH OUR MOBILE CHILDREN'S MUSEUM. WE PROVIDED ACCESS FOR ALL ADMISSIONS OR MEMBERSHIP TO 668 PATRONS, HOSTED 37 ONSITE SPECIAL EVENTS, INCLUDING FUN ANIMAL FRIDAY, BABY STORYTIMES, AND KPBS KIDS EVENTS, AND DISTRIBUTED 7,520 STEM ACTIVITY KITS. 1,109,901 PEOPLE WERE REACHED THROUGH DIGITAL PLATFORMS: 642,497 THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA, 342,608 THROUGH WEBSITE INTERACTIONS, AND 124,796 THROUGH VIRTUAL PROGRAMMING. THREE NEW EXHIBITS WERE OFFERED, INCLUDING MAGNIFICATION STATION, HEALTHCARE HEROES, AND LEARNING GROUNDS. ADDITIONAL ACCOMPLISHMENTS IN THE PAST FISCAL YEAR INCLUDE:-SUCCESSFULLY RE-OPENING THE MUSEUM FOLLOWING A LENGTHY PANDEMIC SHUTDOWN.-GROWING AND DIVERSIFYING OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS.-COMPLETING A COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS WITH OUR BOARD OF DIRECTORS.-REBUILDING THE VISITOR SERVICES AND EDUCATION TEAMS.-INTENTIONALLY REGROWING OUR DEVELOPMENT TEAM TO INCREASE OUR CONTRIBUTED REVENUE. -PROMOTING SEVERAL TALENTED AND TENURED STAFF TO MANAGEMENT POSITIONS.-INTENTIONALLY OFFERING PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR STAFF.-GREATLY EXPANDING OUR MOBILE CHILDREN'S MUSEUM PROGRAM THAT BRINGS CURRICULA-LED STEM AND ART WORKSHOPS AND EXHIBITS TO CLASSROOMS AND THE COMMUNITY.-DEEPENING OUR RELATIONSHIPS WITH CITY OF SAN DIEGO LIBRARIES.-CULTIVATING RELATIONSHIPS WITH NEW POTENTIAL DONORS.