Add the National Museum of Mathematics to your New York City Travels
When you’re on vacation, you don’t really think of hitting up a school subject that most people dread. I was decent at math, but I chose a career in something that wasn’t math. But when I was looking at non-typical spots to visit during a long weekend in New York City with my school-teacher wife, we couldn’t pass up the National Museum of Mathematics (MoMath).
MoMath is not like taking a math test. It’s a great way to learn and even explore how math is something we interact with on a daily basis. Math is more than trying to solve for x or figure out the area of a hexagon.
Let me tell you about some of the hands-on, interactive exhibits that look at different aspects of math. Whether you’re visiting with your toddlers or teenagers, or are visiting on a couple’s long weekend, there’s something to learn at the museum.
Tickets and Directions to the National Museum of Mathematics
Tickets can be purchased online and used up to nine months after purchase. But there are some caveats to purchasing online tickets. The tickets don’t guarantee an entry time. They are general admission tickets and can be used any time, as long as there’s capacity in the museum. Sometimes the museum closes (or closes early) due to special events. Other times, you may find out that admission fees have been waived for the day. If you’ve already purchased your tickets online, then you can simply save them for another day. There are no refunds given for tickets purchased online.
Tickets can be purchased at the door. However, there’s a $1 surcharge for “At the door” ticket purchases.
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NOTE: Masks are required for entry into the National Museum of Mathematics and must be worn the entire time.
The subway is a great way to get around New York City, and a fabulous way to get to the National Museum of Mathematics. The N, Q, R and W lines pass through the 23rd Street Station – which is right near the Flat Iron Building and Madison Square Park. From the subway stop, head north through Madison Square Park and you’ll see the MoMath entrance along 26th Street, between Fifth Avenue and Madison Avenue. The door handle is a Pi symbol, so it shouldn’t be hard to find.
Once you arrive, show your tickets or purchase them at the door and you’re ready to start exploring.
Experience Math from the Moment You Enter
After checking in and showing your tickets, you’ll enter a large room full of multiple math exhibits. There isn’t a specific order, so simply wander from area to area and test your skills. The website has a list of all the exhibits, but here’s a rundown of some (not all) of the exhibits you can experience on the first floor:
- Hyper Hyperboloid – Sit in the chair and start twisting it. You’ll see one color of ropes twist one way, while the other color of ropes twist the other way. It’s cool to watch from both inside and outside of the exhibit itself.
- Shapes of Space – Pick one of the three stands on the circle. Push the start button, which turns on a vacuum to help the foam shapes stay put on the shape. Then see how you can attach the foam shapes to the larger shape. Do they fit together well?
- Tracks of Galileo – One of my favorite exhibits was a test to see how the shape of your track (hills and valleys) could improve the speed your cart traveled. There’s one track on each side of the exhibit, so challenge one of your group members to see who can clock the quickest time.
- Square-wheeled Trike – One of the most iconic exhibits is the square-wheeled trike. Who’da thunk that a tricycle with square wheels would travel so seamlessly, but it’s the unique design of the track that makes it possible.
- Motionscape – This exhibit gets you moving. You’ll learn the relationships between velocity and acceleration by seeing if you can guide the dot through a few gates. Like the “Tracks” exhibit, see who in your group can earn the most points for accuracy.
There are 20 exhibits for you to explore on this first floor, so don’t rush. It’s a great way to engage with your kids about math so they can see how it’s all around.
Games and Brain Teasers in the Basement
If you were having a blast in the exhibits upstairs, just wait until you venture to the basement. There are several more exhibits and games, all aimed at teaching you math concepts. You (and your kids) could easily spend a couple hours playing with these games and brain teasers. Here are a few of the ones we enjoyed during our visit:
- Human Tree – Have you ever wanted to see what you’d look like as a tree? Well, this augmented reality exhibit will take you there. Simply stand in front of the screen and raise your arms out. You’ll quickly see yourself growing branches of yourself until you become a majestic oak.
- Mind Over Measure – How are you at problem solving? Can you add and subtract balls from tubes to filter down to a certain count? My wife and I gave it a try for about 10 minutes and couldn’t solve it. Maybe you’ll be smarter than we were during your visit.
- Math Square – One of the highlights for kids is the Math Square. It’s a large section of floor with different activities, which you control by walking around. There were a lot of younger kids playing on it, so we didn’t venture out onto the interactive floor.
- Enigma Cafe – We loved this place. There were several small tables with different puzzles. As you can see from the photo above, I tried my brain power to free the red car from a jammed parking lot. There are several other games and brain teasers, so give em a try.
- Tessellation Station – It’s amazing how different shapes can mesh together. At this exhibit, you can build your own creation by placing the magnetic shapes on the wall. I spelled a word or two with several octagons. Others built a repeating pattern that would make some fantastic wallpaper. It’s a fun way to test your imagination.
The basement features 22 individual exhibits. So if you thought spending an hour or two on the first floor was long, just wait until you or your kids start engaging in the exhibits in the basement. There’s definitely a lot to learn and some fun ways of doing so.
Engaging Events and the Special Exhibits Area
Before you venture back up stairs, don’t miss any special exhibits that may be on display in the back rooms. I was intrigued by the light painting photographs on display. As a photographer myself, I’ve loved exploring long exposure light paintings. While I’ve yet to venture too far down that road, I loved seeing the creativity in the photos and gathering a few ideas for my own photos in the future.
The National Museum of Mathematics has a pretty robust event schedule. You can find it online, and then plan your visit accordingly.
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The activities are geared toward certain age groups. For example, in the event listing, it indicates which grade levels it’s targeting. And some of the events are available online if you aren’t able to make it in-person. Here’s a list of some of the classes, to give you an idea of what’s offered:
- Folding Fridays: Learn origami in these free online classes. You simply bring some square sheets of paper and the instructors show you how to make dogs, aliens, vampire teeth and more.
- Math Discovery: A series of in-person instruction to teach different math-related topics.
Be sure to check them out and see what fun you can find online or in-person at MoMath.
Bring Fun Math Home via the Gift Shop
On your way out of the National Museum of Mathematics, be sure and browse the gift shop. There are several fun games, books or trinkets that can continue teaching math at home. I found a couple of board games that I thought would be fun to try with the kids. There are dice games, brain teasers and even books to help you better understand math in our everyday world.
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My wife and I enjoyed our visit to the National Museum of Mathematics. I think some of our kids would’ve enjoyed checking it out, too. There are so many interactive exhibits that kids won’t even realize they’re learning math – they’ll just see how things work and with a little guidance, understand that math can be fun.
The Details
Address: 11 E 26th St, New York, NY 10010
How long to spend: You can spend anywhere from one hour to 3-4 hours, depending on how much time you want to spend at the various exhibits.
Cost: Adults are $25; Children (ages 2-12 years old), students and seniors (60+) are $20.
Hours: Open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Closed on Thanksgiving Day. Once per month, the museum closes at 2:30 p.m. for some Math Encounters events.
Website: https://momath.org/
Phone: (212) 542-0566
DISCLOSURE: I received two complimentary passes to the National Museum of Mathematics (MoMath) for the purpose of review. All opinions are my own.
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