Visitors often comment on how beautiful and unusual Treehouse Museum is. They tell us Treehouse isn’t like other museums, even other children’s museums they have visited, and they want to know why.

What’s fundamentally different about Treehouse is our focus, which came from discussions with local educators and parents regarding what children really need in order to become creative, artistic, empathic, and contributing adults. These brainstorming sessions took place before Treehouse opened in 1992. Our mission statement is a response to those sessions: Treehouse Children’s Museum invites children and their grown-ups to “Step into a Story”® through interactive programs and exhibits.

Research confirms that all children, even older children ages 8 to 12, need storytelling and imaginative play in their lives. Treehouse can provide unique opportunities for children to create their own stories around exhibits that serve as backdrops and sets with props to create child-directed action. Treehouse exhibits introduce stories from other cultures and from history, and include information and activities for older children and parents to read and share. Exhibits even incorporate displays of objects, art, sculptures, dolls, instruments, and historical artifacts that have their own stories to tell.

Treehouse offers both exhibits and programs that are rich in storytelling and conversational opportunities between children and staff and volunteers of the Museum, and between family members. Treehouse staff love sharing stories and showing visitors exciting and engaging ways they can create their own original stories.