Great Valley Museum of Natural History

Great experience! Kids will definitely love coming to see the museum and shows. For $5 per show, that's a great deal. I'm not sure if the actual museum is free because we just walked in after the show. They show tons of animals in their habitat and a gift shop. I can't wait to bring my little guy.

Great Valley Museum is located on Modesto Junior College's West Campus in the Science Community Center. Our search for planetarium shows brought us here to the William R. Luebke Planetarium, one of many amazing features of the center.While waiting for the show, From Earth to the Universe to start, we explored some of the museum's exhibits. We learned about animal defenses, local extinctions, Central Valley habitats, and watched a pretty cool projection of planet earth in real-time on a 1.5 meter sphere.The planetarium show was spectacular! The 40-foot dome ceiling brought parts of the earth and universe to us in a way that I have never seen before. This show was geared for ages Jr. High and above. There are also shows suited for younger groups starting at age 4.We happened to come on Science Night and two of MJC's clubs, Federation of Engineers and Anatomy Club, were set up in the lobby with some awesome demonstrations and hands-on exhibits. Favorites were the motorized skateboard and a human brain specimen.Wonderful place to bring the family for fun learning. We look forward to it opening back up to walk the helical staircase and maybe viewing the stars if they offer another Telescope Night. Tickets were very cheap and can be purchased in the museum's Nature Shop.

This is a very interesting place! A group I was with toured the Great Valley Museum, Planetarium, and got to check out the skies by telescope in the same night. The entire thing only cost $10 per person. Hard to beat that. The museum had some incredible exhibits and very knowledgeable Docents to guide you through a very informative tour. There was areas of the museum representing the different types of habitats found in this area. Super interesting! They also had a kids exploration area complete with some various reptiles and even a few tarantulas that we were fortunate enough to be able to get very close to for a really great look. The planetarium was exceptional. If you haven't tried it you really should. The icing on the cake was the telescopes on the roof. We got to see a few planets, and a galaxy or two.

This is another Valley gem that modernized but still maintains a relatively low-screen & low fluorescent aesthetic. Medium sized but unparalleled exhibits on the local flora and fauna. Play area with magna-tiles etc. for the kids. Bring food, there are only vending machines. There is an inside eating area that can be loud sometimes but no different than the cavernous sounds of the Lawrence Hall of Science eating area etc. Prepare for a potential parking hassle. Since it's on the MJC campus either the lot is packed with student/staff cars or not. Not much to be done just be aware. Kiosk pay parking.Also- planetarium and First Friday's activities.I wish they were open Sundays.

Great little museum with excellent presentation of area wildlife. Diorama displays show both backyard birds and wilderness animals we almost never see. Wonderful place to take your kids to show them how important it is to protect our environment. Everyone can benefit for an hour looking at these displays. Very highly recommended.

I've been to many a museum both stateside and abroad. Of course I wasn't expecting too much when I found out about this museum which of course pays homage to the natural history of the Central Valley.I ordered tickets online and for some reason I was expecting them to be shipped due to the weirdly worded email that they had been. I guess I didn't notice a small disclaimer in the email that they wouldn't be shipped and that I needed to go to will call but that fact was pointed out to me by the museum manager who so kindly emailed me back.My date and I arrived and went to will call as instructed. They asked for my last name and voila there were the tickets, go figure! :) We began to proceed into the museum and walked through the many winding displays and a few of them were interactive so it was somewhat entertaining. It seems like they really did try to make it educational as well as entertaining. I would've liked more to see but alas it was adequate for the area. It was also nice to learn more about the indigenous species that once called the area home in addition to those that still do. I'm also glad I was able to finally put my curiosity to rest concerning a certain bird call I always hear on my walk to work.They also have a planetarium next door but be advised that is a separate admission and is not guaranteed with your general museum admission of $10. I think I would like to go back to see what the planetarium is all about, perhaps a much more enthralling experience?

Very nice place. Great for kids. Awesome learning experience for everybody and the planetarium shows are just fantastic!

We had lots of fun at this museum. Mr. Thomas Mangelason was featured and his photos are beautiful. Only $5 for admission. It is a smaller museum but it was super fun with lots to see. There are horses and cows around the campus as well.

My children love coming here, learn, explore, go on a nature walk, dig up fossils, visit the gift shop and planetarium.... This place has it all

Good place to go. Nice Exhibit and there's a very nice park across the street for kids