At SoCal newest childrens museum, kids can dig for mammoth bones or face a giant Lite-Brite

This is read by an automated voice.Please report any issues or inconsistencies here.

Talk to the passionate team behind KidSTREAM, a new children’s museum in Ventura County, and they’ll tell you about the many lofty goals they have for the 21,000-square-foot space which opened to the public Thursday.They’ll describe how the museum is the first of its kind in Ventura County and how they hope to make it accessible to as many local children as possible through outreach, discounts and free programming.They’ll explain how the immersive exhibits highlight the county’s unique industry and geography, including an agriculture area where young visitors can pick pretend fruits and sell them at a farmers market and an ocean exhibit where miniature replicas of the Channel Islands emerge from the bouncy blue “Pacific Ocean.”They’ll share that the STREAM in KidSTREAM is an acronym for Science, Technology, Reading, Engineering, Arts and Math, and talk about the activity carts and art projects that will enhance and support learning for young visitors.But they are also well aware that for some families, the still-evolving space will serve a less highfalutin, if just as important, goal.“Parents are looking for a good nap on the way home,” said KidSTREAM founder Kristie Akl.“And we can give them that too.” Travel & Experiences Scale a skyscraper! Jump into slime! Read to a dog! The city is filled with memorable activities to fit every age, interest and attention span.Akl, along with KidSTREAM board chairman Bryan Yee and guest experience director Dani Hildreth, were giddy with excitement as they took me on a tour of the museum in the days before it opened.This moment had been a long time coming, they said.A high-energy former high school biology teacher with a make-it-happen spirit, Akl first began dreaming about a children’s museum in Ventura County in 2013 after taking her three daughters to KidSpace, a children’s museum in Pasadena founded by memb...