You are here: Home : Education : kidZone
kidZone
Open March 29 - October 31
Hours 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Protect the earth for tomorrow by playing in nature today!
Join the N.C. Zoo and its education division in the movement to reconnect children with nature. kidZone is the perfect place to start. Here children and families alike can connect with the natural world through play. Building forts, digging in the garden and drawing with chalk are just a few of the activities in our play spaces. kidZone is not an animal exhibit area.
Note to parents: Children may get dirty and want to spend lots of time playing.
Live animal presentations Thursday through Sunday at 1:30 p.m. at the kidZone "Front Porch". This is not an animal exhibit area.
Learn more about connecting children and nature with these resources:
Tips for Using kidZone During Your Visit
kidZone can engage children quickly, so take a look at the tips below...
-
kidZone at the beginning of your trip: Sometimes, the long trip to the zoo can leave kids feeling tired and unmotivated. Spending 15 - 20 minutes in kidZone at the beginning can re-energize your children and primw their minds for getting the most out of their experience. Be sure to let them know ahead of time the plan to prepare them to leave.
-
kidZone in the middle of your trip: Just like its used in the beginning of your visit, kidZone serves as a rejuvenating experience for kids. When taking on a large park like the NC Zoo, attention and interest in walking from exhibit to exhibit might begin waining after a couple of hours. Running around kidZone and choosing their own play experiences is just what kids need to continue on the zoo exploration.
-
kidZone at the end of your day: kidZone is a lot of fun for children. By saving an hour at the end of your day* for play at kidZone, kids leave the zoo trip feeling positive, energetic and ready to come back for another day.
-
kidzone for fun: Many parents come through kidZone and allow their kids to explore and play indefinitely. This is a wonderful and rewarding time for the kids. They are able to really become invested in their play, which leads to greater cognitive, social, emotional and physical development.
*kidZone closes at 4:30 p.m.
Summer Pre-School Programs
Help your little ones learn more about wild animals in our pre-school programs.
Family Fun Days
Join us once a month to make your mark in kidZone as a family. Learn more about the activities and how to get involved.
kidZone kritters Browse Garden
The browse garden grows vegetables to help enrich the lives of many zoo animals. Keep an eye on the garden just outside the entrance to kidZone. When the garden is open, join in and lend a hand in weeding, harvesting and other activities to care for the garden. If you would like a thirty minute program on gardening for a group of 15 or less,
e-mail.
Learn more about Play Leader training
Playful Pedagogy, part of NC Zoo's Education Division, offers professional development opportunities for practitioners working in children's learning and play environments. The Play Leader seminars are two day intensive workshops that focus on play theories, play's role in a child's development and the importance of the adult in service of playing children. The activities and discussions will give participants a chance to share experiences, learn new skills and generate ideas to bring back to their programs.