Mud Pies Museum

Mud Pies Children's Museum
Buffalo, New York

Welcome to the Mud Pies Children's Museum

Please Note: Our site is currently undergoing a re-design and make over. Please check back for future updates. Thanks!

About Mud Pies

History of Mudpies

In many cities and towns worldwide, children’s museums have improved our quality of life by building equity in our most valuable asset - our children! By fostering a life long love of learning and inquiry, they lay the foundation for vital, growing communities.  Mudpies was eager to act on its collective vision of a world class children’s museum for Buffalo. It envisioned a place for children to be “up to their elbows in fun”, with exhibits and programs examining life through the prism of Western New York’s people, places and heritage.
Recognizing the need for an entertaining and educational family venue in the Buffalo Niagara region, a Buffalo school teacher and a group of energized and creative citizens founded Mudpies in 1997. The group later merged with The Children’s Museum of Buffalo to form the present Mudpies Children’s Museum of Buffalo.

The paramount objective of Mudpies has been to deliver high quality enriching and educational programming to children and their families. A unique outreach initiative, the “Museum Without Walls”, was launched while awaiting the opening of a permanent location in downtown Buffalo. Since 1997, the traveling museum has introduced over 100,000 children and their families to a smorgasbord of objects and artifacts from the museums interpretive collection. At schools, community centers, festivals, businesses and parks, eager young people have been introduced to “please touch” experiences that encourage hands on participation and multi-sensory learning.

Mission Statement

Mudpies Children’s Museum provides exciting, informal educational opportunities for children and their caretakers to learn and grow through engaging exhibits and programs embracing the arts, civics, science, history, and culture. The museum serves as a fun, hands-on “encyclopedia of the imagination” that invites wonder, stimulates curiosity and encourages life-long learning.

Objectives

  • To encourage children to develop the skills, knowledge, and to encourage children to develop the skills, knowledge, and attitudes that will enable them to become life long learners and productive members of society;
  • To encourage children, though multi-sensory discovery and inquiry, to learn and practice the process skills and critical thinking skills that will help them to make sound decisions in all areas of their lives;
  • To provide an accessible parent resource center where parents and caretakers will have the opportunity to obtain and share information with other parents and child advocates;
  • To serve as a nucleus for activities, demonstrations, and presenters from other cultural institutions and organizations, thereby facilitating children’s access to a wide range of experiences and individual talents while building community partnerships;
  • To link child-oriented programs and spaces in the adjacent neighborhoods and communities in ever widening circles through outreach programs, loaned materials and public forums;
  • To collaborate with community stakeholders to revitalize local neighborhoods and business corridors, through jointly-sponsored exhibits, events and volunteer projects;
  • To collaborate with local institutions of higher learning by providing opportunities for pedagogy and professional development through internships; and
  • To collect, catalog and maintain objects and artifacts to support the Mudpies Children’s Museum collection.

Museum Without Walls

For nearly 10 years, The Museum Without Walls has delighted over 100,000 children of all ages! This impressive fact was made possible through the commitment of community members who realize the great value of these experiences for children. The traveling museum also serves as a public relations and marketing tool, generating income to support operating costs. These programs are planned to be appropriate and engaging for a wide range of community members. The “hands-on, minds-on” interactions with objects, artifacts and individuals is key to our success. Participants are encouraged to handle objects and examine them closely. Questions are expected, and self-generated solutions found. Helpful “explainers” provide details, pointers and tools so that the participant becomes the explorer, researcher, collections manager, artist or curator. One need not be an “expert” to enjoy the Mudpies experience. All senses are engaged through each of our five education collection domains: the arts, history, science, culture and civics. Learners of all ages come away from Mudpies experience with a new appreciation of their world.