The PumpHouse offers learning opportunities, programs, and special events for visitors of all ages. From exhibitions to site-based and neighbourhood-based walking tours, from baby/toddler programs to school visits, from adults-only evenings to family-focused programs, the PumpHouse has something for everyone!

PumpHouse Play Day for Parents and Children

PumpHouse Play Days

Every Tuesday | 10 am–12pm
PumpHouse Museum, Discovery Centre | Drop-in

Need a play option that doesn’t involve overthinking, overpacking, or overcommitting?

PumpHouse Play Days are a weekly, drop-in play time designed to feel simple from start to finish. No booking, no instructions, no schedule to follow. Just show up, let the kids play, and take a breath.

Every Tuesday morning, the Discovery Centre is your place for unstructured, open-ended play. Kids can explore hands-on activities, build, create, socialize, and move freely. Each week features a new self-guided craft set out for anyone who wants to try it, alongside all our regular Discovery Centre favourites—like the giant Lite-Brite, blocks, K’NEX, and more.

While your kids are busy, you don’t have to be. Bring a coffee. Relax with waterfront views. Chat with other parents. Read a few pages of a book. Stay close—or sit back and let them do their thing.

Come for ten minutes or stay the whole morning. PumpHouse Play Days are meant to fit into your day, not take it over.

Why it works:

  • Drop-in, open play—no planning required
  • Included with museum admission and the Annual Pass
  • A different self-guided craft each week
  • Space for kids to play independently
  • Time for adults to relax, reset, and just exist
  • Explore other parts of the museum too, including the Exhibit Hall, Pump Room, and the kid-and-adult favourite Swyrich Train Room

Guidelines

  • Caregivers must remain onsite at all times. PumpHouse Play Days are a shared play experience, not a drop-off program.
  • Small snacks and drinks are welcome, but please enjoy them outside of exhibition areas. 
  • Museum staff are present and available, but play time is unguided and self-directed. Caregivers are responsible for supervising their children.
  • There is no age limit, but activities are best suited for children ages 0-4. Younger or older siblings are welcome to join in at their own pace.
  • Strollers are welcome, and the Discovery Centre is fully accessible for families using mobility devices or strollers
  • Come and go as you please.

If you’re looking for a low-stakes outing where everyone gets what they need, this is it.

How to join:

 

School Programs

 

You can book any of our school and group programs through our online form 

We are currently offering the following programs at the PumpHouse Museum:

Check out our City Hall program:

Check out our MacLachlan Woodworking Museum Programs:

Thank you to our Velociraptor Visionary Sponsor: Loopstra Nixon LLP for supporting our Dinosaurs Among Us educational programming.

Loopstra Nixon LLP