Jane Brown of North Charleston recently took her son Evan, 1, to the Children’s Museum of the Lowcountry for the first time.

He played in the toddler room, checked out some plants in the garden and drew a scribble or two in the art room – but his favorite activity by far was the Raceways exhibit, aka “The Golf Ball Room.”

“He really enjoyed putting the golf balls into the buckets,” she says. “He’s such a boy!”

Evan was worn out and went right to sleep when they got home. She told her friends, who all have sons around Evan’s age, about their experience and they are planning a play date to the museum in lieu of taking the kids to the playground.

Brown says parking was easy, and admission is very affordable.

Visiting children’s museums is an educational and interactive experience that teaches families a little more about the communities they are visiting. One way families in the Lowcountry can get more bang for their buck while traveling is to join the Association of Children’s Museums reciprocal program, which offers memberships not only the children’s museum in Charleston, but to 165 children’s museums throughout the nation.

Diane Kopasz, ACM program officer, says families who purchase ACM memberships through their local children’s museum receive admission to other museums in the network for a year.

“If a family is visiting relatives that live in California or say Texas, they can check to see which museums are part of the network in those states.”

ACM membership guarantees at least four family members from the same household receive free admission, but Kopasz warns that any additional family members might not be included. Each museum’s policy is different. The ACM however encourages participating museums to honor the entire family.

ACM reciprocal membership is offered at the Children’s Museum of the Lowcountry. The Explorer Membership option is $125 for year or $235 for two years and includes a family membership, as well as network privileges.

Visit www.childrensmuseums.org for more information and a list of participating museums.

Even though each is different in its own way, every children’s museum’s main goal is to provide a safe environment for interactive learning and fun for families. There are currently five museums located in South Carolina and two in the works.

The Children’s Museum of the Lowcountry

The Children’s Museum of the Lowcountry is geared toward children up to 10 years old. The 7-year-old museum reflects the Charleston community, says Executive Director Denis Chirles.

WaterWise, one of eight interactive exhibits, is based on the Cooper River bridge. In the Pirates exhibit children use their imaginations while learning useful skills such as knot tying – all while playing on a pirate ship. And the garden includes many edible plants and herbs and butterflies, too.

This summer, the toddler room is getting a new beach theme. And the museum will soon unveil a new exhibit based on the Angel Oak, Chirles says. An artist in residence, along with students and museum visitors, is creating an art-based, hands-on tree made out of natural materials. Students will learn about ecosystems, recycling and reusability, and more. “We stress families come here and learn together,” Chirles says.

The Sandbox

The 4-year-old Sandbox in Hilton Head is the brainchild of three moms who gathered a group of experts together to create a place for children to learn while having fun. It is geared toward children ages 9 and younger.

“A lot of thought and planning was put into the design and initial setup,” says Executive Director Carol Pfeffer.

The Adventure with William Hilton exhibit is locally themed and tied in with the history of Hilton Head. Children can play dress up, hear and try to identify sounds including thunder, seagulls, fog horns and more.

The Passport to the World exhibit allows children to dress up like pilots or astronauts and experience the feel of a real cockpit, complete with sounds, buttons and lights.

“We have the actual steering wheel from a Gulfstream plane and the actual pilot seat and first class seats behind it,” she says.

A rock wall allows visitors a safe way to experience climbing and develop gross motor and decision-making skills without going too high.

“Sometimes you’ll see three generations all playing together, the grandparents, parents and the little ones … it kind of brings out the kid in adults.”

This summer, the Doctor’s In exhibit will teach children about veterinary medicine. An X-ray box will feature real X-rays, and kids can learn about taking care of pets. This exhibit switches between teaching human and animal anatomy depending on the season.

A new gear exhibit will allow children to structure their own gears and learn the basics of motors and how energy works.

The Children’s Museum of the Upstate

The Children’s Museum of the Upstate in Greenville has been open about seven months and already has welcomed more than 80,000 visitors. Julie Accetta, director of development, says the museum is designed for all ages, and every family member will find something interesting to enjoy during the visit.

“I think what makes our children’s museum different than other ones is it’s been designed so that anyone – age toddlers through elementary school, middle school, through parents – will all walk away having had a blast,” Accetta says. “Really everyone can do everything and find something to have fun.”

The Children’s Museum of the Upstate offers 20 interactive exhibits. Children can learn about anatomy in the children’s hospital exhibit or pretend to be a news reporter in front of a green screen in the WCTM Studios exhibit.

A new exhibit about cultural diversity and awareness,“Five Friends from Japan,” starts in June and lasts throughout the summer.