FAQs
who
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The SYV The Santa Ynez Valley Children’s Museum is a 501c3 non-profit, providing educational, open ended play in an outdoor setting for children in our community and beyond. We are building an all outdoor children's museum in Buellton, CA to provide opportunities for children and their families to learn while playing outside.
The SYVCM is unique in providing a local site that is convenient for schools and families to engage in enriching, nature-based play. The SYVCM gets kids playing outdoors and learning without being restricted to a traditional classroom setting. Visitors will be able to engage all senses as they splash through our river-like waterway, touch and smell native plants, and use their imaginations and bodies to physically interact with our exhibits.
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Everyone! Schools, families, home school groups, all are welcome. Underserved youth are a huge priority and we will create partnerships with Foster programs, CASA, Boys and Girls Clubs and other organizations that will help us get all kids playing outside.
The SYVCM is unique in providing a local site that is convenient for schools and families to engage in enriching, nature-based play. The SYVCM gets kids playing outdoors and learning without being restricted to a traditional classroom setting. Visitors will be able to engage all senses as they splash through our river-like waterway, touch and smell native plants, and use their imaginations and bodies to physically interact with our exhibits.
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We have wonderful existing partnerships with several local organizations and individuals, sharing support and a common passion for enriching the lives of children and their families.
We also have a strong board of active members from Buellton, Santa Ynez, Solvang, Ballard, Los Olivos and Lompoc giving us widespread community support.
Click HERE for a full list of our donors.
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While we are not currently open to the public, we do plan to make every reasonable accommodation we can so that our whole community can enjoy this space.
We will have wide firm walkways appropriate for wheelchairs and strollers, ample seating and many activities at lower heights for easy access.
We also have a quiet corner so that kids with any sensory processing issues have a place to retreat and relax.
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Babies are welcome. While they need to be fully supervised, many of our activity areas can be used by families with littles. We also have a designated baby zone in a shaded area.
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We have designed our exhibits for ages 1-10, however as they are all based on the idea of giving open access to materials, kids and parents of all ages are welcome to get involved in any way appropriate for them.
Older kids and adults are welcome to dig, build, and play on all our exhibits. We are always looking for volunteers and welcome kids 6th grade and older to contact Ashley Jenkins, our director, to volunteer.
what
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We are committed to serving our community even as we build our permanent site. While we fundraise and build out our exhibits, we are providing summer bridge programs, free to our community, to help kids and families learn and play outside. In Summer of 2021 we held 6 months of activities at the SYV Botanic Garden including, nature art, adobe brick making, fairy gnome homes, giant bubbles, painting in the garden and an engaging 5 senses scavenger hunt. Attendance ranged from 50-200 people per event, with a total attendance of over 600 families. Check out our Event Photos!
In June of 2023, we held another free Discovery Day event at the Museum site making mosaic tiles with 120 people in attendance. In our July event, over 85 participants made fairy doors to take home and fairy houses to decorate the Museum’s future Fairyland. With the support of the Buellton Arts and Culture Committee, the Museum will host another giant paint day at the end of August.
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When all our exhibits are complete, we plan to open to the public approx 4 days a week with one day reserved for school groups. We will start by offering access to all our exhibits and materials for open ended play and exploration. Our second phase will include offering tours incorporating curriculum connected to common core standards for TK-5th grade. Our goal is for all schools to come twice per school year so students can interact with the land in different seasons, enhancing their understanding of our environment. We have met with principals and teachers at schools in Santa Ynez, Buellton and Solvang to discuss field trips and how to maximize our value. We will soon branch out to speaking with schools in Lompoc, Santa Maria, Goleta and Santa Barbara, with the aim of getting each school to come at least twice a year to experience the museum. We also have approached 3 homeschool groups about meeting the specific needs of homeschoolers.
Once our program is up and running smoothly, we will develop an afterschool program for 6th-9th grades, providing materials and mentors for student-led club based learning. We will then develop spring and summer day camps as another revenue stream.
Other long term goals include developing our 6th-9th grade after school club program, starting an artist residency pairing young and professional artists for on site exhibitions, and planning a summer day camp program. We plan to add or change a major exhibit annually, as well as host monthly themes throughout the year to keep patrons interested.
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We are currently raising $500,000 to build all our phase one exhibits. Our long term goals include fundraising in 2023 and 2024, building in 2024 and 2025 and opening our Phase One exhibits to the public in 2025.
Within two years of opening we will start a capital campaign for Phase 2, developing our bottom half acre of slides, forts, hiking trail and climbing structures. We will also develop a common-core based curriculum to maximize the value for visiting school groups.
We are planning a partnership with Explore Ecology and Art from Scrap to help serve North County students.
If you would like to make a contribution visit our Ways To Give or DONATE here
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There are no plans to have food available for purchase. You are welcome to bring your own food and are encouraged to use our designated picnic areas. Alcohol is not permitted except during special events.
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We are currently under construction and are not yet open to the public.
We host open house play days as well as Summer Discovery Days. Please join our MAILING LIST to find out more.
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Yes, we plan to offer 10 visit passes and annual memberships when we open.
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While we are under construction we are offering limited rentals for birthdays etc. Please email our director, Ashley Jenkins, to see if we can accommodate your request.
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Our exhibits are designed for kids 1 to 10, with an additional baby zone for littles.
Children 6th grade and older are encouraged to volunteer, please contact our director, Ashley Jenkins, for current volunteer opportunities.
WHEN
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While we are fundraising and under construction, we have no regular open hours. We will be hosting Summer Discovery Days with fun outside activities as well as open houses. Please join our MAILING LIST to find out more.
We are currently on track to open phase one of our site in late 2025. We plan to be open approx 4 days a week during daytime hours from approx 10am-3pm.
WHEre
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The SYV Childrens Museum is located at 202 Dairyland Road in Buellton CA. We are above River View Park and approximately at the corner of Valley Dairy and Dairyland Road.
We are under construction and are not currently open.
WHy
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We are building this locally, to fill a much needed gap in local services and activities in North Santa Barbara County for families with young children. Many fabulous educational opportunities available in Santa Barbara are less accessible for lower income families with working parents living in North County. We hope to bring an affordable, fun family activity space into our community that will benefit families as well as schools in Santa Ynez, Buellton, Los Olivos, Ballard, Solvang, Lompoc, Santa Maria, Goleta and Santa Barbara.
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When all our exhibits are complete, we plan to open to the public approx 4 days a week with one day reserved for school groups. We will start by offering access to all our exhibits and materials for open ended play and exploration. Our second phase will include offering tours incorporating curriculum connected to common core standards for TK-5th grade. Our goal is for all schools to come twice per school year so students can interact with the land in different seasons, enhancing their understanding of our environment. We have met with principals and teachers at schools in Santa Ynez, Buellton and Solvang to discuss field trips and how to maximize our value. We will soon branch out to speaking with schools in Lompoc, Santa Maria, Goleta and Santa Barbara, with the aim of getting each school to come at least twice a year to experience the museum. We also have approached 3 homeschool groups about meeting the specific needs of homeschoolers.
Once our program is up and running smoothly, we will develop an afterschool program for 6th-9th grades, providing materials and mentors for student-led club based learning. We will then develop spring and summer day camps as another revenue stream.
Other long term goals include developing our 6th-9th grade after school club program, starting an artist residency pairing young and professional artists for on site exhibitions, and planning a summer day camp program. We plan to add or change a major exhibit annually, as well as host monthly themes throughout the year to keep patrons interested.
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For the 3,000 or more children living in the Santa Ynez Valley, there are many lovely outdoor parks, however there are no Museums specifically for children. There are no movie theaters, bowling alleys or skating rinks. We will provide a much needed outdoor gathering space for families with children as well as all the schools in the local area.
As we bring children into nature to explore with native plants, art, growing food, natural history and STEAM based sensory activities, we provide opportunities to form healthy relationships with the outdoors and their own bodies. All children benefit from a connection to the environment around them. When given the opportunity to self direct their engagement, children build the internal motivation that is essential to pursue further educational goals.
Many families complain of children absorbed by screens, unwilling to engage. Music and art program budgets have been slashed in many state education programs. Santa Ynez Valley is a group of small commuter towns geared heavily towards tourism, with a shrinking number of places for families to do wholesome activities together without driving 30-60 minutes. Families turn to screens and structured activities for lack of options.
As a completely outdoor space, our Children’s Museum aims to bring a unique opportunity to children of all income levels to explore the mud, get answers about worms, plant seeds in an organic garden, explore the water cycle first hand, and feel in charge of their learning process. The Santa Ynez Valley and SB County desperately need these spaces.
How
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Our challenge is to transform a dirt lot into an educational oasis for our community. While we have overwhelming community support, we are in need of core support funding to help us build a strong foundation in terms of staffing, and administrative needs.
We need capital to hire contractors to bring our designs to life, and pay part time staff to help with social media, administration, donor development, videography, graphic design, construction and architectural planning.
Without the capital to pay a diverse team, this museum can not be built.
You can give online HERE
If you would prefer to give by check you can mail it to us at :HERE
40 Hwy 246 #665 Buellton CA 93427
There are naming opportunities for organizations and families that fully sponsor an exhibit.
Additionally, we have curated an Amazon Wish List for our museum that can be viewed HERE.
Questions? Please contact Ashley to discuss naming opportunities and in kind donation of goods and services.
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There are so many ways to get involved:
Join our Team- Our Museum team meets twice a month in Buellton and keeps our projects rolling by planning exhibits and community events. Contact us HERE for more info.
Volunteer at an event - we have plenty of opportunities to help us spread the word through community events, or help with our one day open houses or Summer Discovery Days. Contact us HERE for more info.
Set up a Volunteer day - We have so many things to build, get a group of friends or coworkers and come help build our garden, pathways, arbors, handwashing stations and more
Donate Goods or Services - We are building so many fun exhibits and our needs are endless. We are happy to take donations of toys, arts and crafts materials, building materials and help building
We also appreciate monetary contributions. These options include
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We are currently raising $500,000 to build all our phase one exhibits. Our long term goals include fundraising in 2023 and 2024, building in 2024 and 2025 and opening our Phase One exhibits to the public in 2025.
Within two years of opening we will start a capital campaign for Phase 2, developing our bottom half acre of slides, forts, hiking trail and climbing structures. We will also develop a common-core based curriculum to maximize the value for visiting school groups.
We are planning a partnership with Explore Ecology and Art from Scrap to help serve North County students.
If you would like to make a contribution visit our Ways To Give or DONATE here
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We are not currently open, however we offer many free community events open to the public.
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No. When we open for regular public hours, all children will need to be accompanied by an adult at all times.
If you have a 6th grade or oder student that is interested in volunteering please email our director, Ashley Jenkins.
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Yup. Absolutely. 100%. Children must wear shoes and be supervised at all times. We have a mud kitchen and a large painted object. While you have complete control over what your children have access to, most kids love messy play and we have all the fun things for them to get messy with.
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Yes, we have a temporary restroom and a handwashing station.
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Risky play is essential for children’s development. Access to hills, slides, climbing, tools etc help children define their own limits, develop judgement and critical thinking skills.
Children must wear shoes and be supervised at all times.
After that, we have a pretty broad philosophy of ‘ sure you can do that/climb that/paint that” as long as no people or property is being harmed.
Letting young children use real tools for example, teaches them cause and effect and we have carefully curated the accessible materials so that kids have access to a yes space.
”Yes, please nail those boards together”“Yes, please paint that truck”
“Yes you can dig there”
“Yes you can climb that”