Visiting the Museums with children?! Our Teaching, Reading, Exploring Knapsacks, or TREKsacks, are full of activities, books, and games for kids and their families. They're free and easy to check out from the front desk in Iowa Hall. 

Borrow a TREKsack and embark on an adventure across the Museum of Natural History! Fun for the whole family, the TREKsacks are themed around you and your child’s favorite museum exhibits. TREKsacks comes with an assortment of engaging books and easy hands-on activities that are educational and fun while at the Museums.   

TREKsacks

  • Agriculture 

  • Archaeology and Native Cultures 

  • Birds 

  • Bones 

  • Bugs 

  • Ecology 

  • Ecosystems 

  • Geology 

  • Mammals 

  • Nocturnal Animals 

  • State of Iowa 

  • Weather 

TREKsacks are free to borrow and do not need to be booked. TREKsacks are available on a first come, first-serve basis. They are available every day and can be checked out for up to three hours from our Gift Shop, beginning at 10 a.m. A form of ID such as a valid driving licenses or debit card is required as a deposit at check-out along with a signed user agreement. TREKsacks must be returned in their original condition after the ‘rental’ period at which point ID’s and/or debit cards are returned. 

All TREKsacks must be returned by the 5 p.m. closing time. 

The TREKsacks are brought to you free of charge by the Target Foundation – Early Childhood Reading Grant.