Local families looking for a hands-on learning space for young children got a taste of what’s to come during the free Mobile Museum Day hosted by the Kitsap Children’s Museum May 3.

The event offered drop-in activities that combined creativity, science and interactive play.

The nonprofit organization, operating as a 501(c)(3) since 2020, aims to build a centrally located brick-and-mortar children’s museum within the next five to 10 years. In the meantime, its mobile events serve as a playful, educational bridge for families who might otherwise need to travel to museums in Tacoma, Olympia or Bainbridge Island.

“This is a real need in our community,” said Rebecca Born, board president of KCM. “There’s almost no one we’ve talked to who doesn’t say, ‘We need this here.’”

Saturday’s event featured both indoor and outdoor stations. Outside, children explored fire trucks, police vehicles and visited booths from community partners, including the Kitsap Regional Library, which brought its full preschool catalog. A large composting exhibit showed families various sustainable practices for handling waste.

Inside, children engaged in gross motor activities like obstacle courses, soft play areas for toddlers, and STEM-focused experiences, including programmable robots called Cubetto. Exhibits ranged from large building logs and magnetic tiles to seed-planting stations. The Bremerton High School Robotics Club was also present, offering demonstrations and hands-on activities.

“There was something for every age,” Born said. “From soft play and dirt planting to robot programming — everyone found something they loved.”

The museum has held several pop-up events throughout the year at festivals, schools and health fairs, but this was one of its most expansive offerings to date.

“It’s really about building momentum and making this museum visible,” Born said. “If we can go from twice a year to quarterly, then monthly — we can really create excitement and build support.”

Born, a military parent herself, said the lack of indoor play spaces in Kitsap became clear when she moved to the area. Now, she uses her nonprofit and museum background to help lead the initiative toward a permanent location.

“We have amazing parks and libraries here, but there hasn’t been a safe, consistent indoor option for experiential learning,” she said.

Research shows that unstructured play contributes to cognitive, physical and social-emotional development in young children, Born added.

“Play is not extra — play is the main thing,” she said. “Children need that meaningful, hands-on interaction with their environment and other kids to thrive.”

The Kitsap Children’s Museum is an official member of the Association of Children’s Museums and has partnerships with KRL, Kitsap County Public Works, Olympic College and the local YMCA.

Though mostly supported by local donations, the museum is seeking strategic partnerships and additional board members to support fundraising and long-term planning. A capital plan is currently in development, and the board is exploring land or existing building options for a future museum site.

“We’re looking at millions of dollars to make it happen, unless there’s an existing building the city or county owns,” Born said. “Some museums rent space from cities for a dollar a year. That would be ideal.”

Until then, the mobile museum remains the community’s museum — showing up at schools, fairs and public events to ensure educational play is accessible to all.

“We’re growing, and we want families to grow with us,” Born said. “This museum is for them.”

Bremerton High School Robotics Club was in attendance at the mobile museum event May 3.