Create-A-Saurus Program

Create-A-Saurus is back at The Children's Museum of Indianapolis on Friday, November 20, 2026. It runs in the Dinosphere Art Lab, and the whole session is geared toward children aged 3 to 5 and their families. The setup is pretty straightforward: kids step into the role of paleontologists, investigating dinosaur bones to learn how these creatures lived millions of years ago, and then they use a variety of art materials to make their own paleo art sculptures. Families get exclusive time to play inside Dinosphere and a chance to touch and explore real dinosaur fossils.

One thing that makes this version of Dinosphere different from the usual visit is the atmosphere. It runs without the intense sound and light show of the exhibit's full immersive environment, which makes it a gentler way for younger children to explore fossil and tooth sizes without all the sensory noise. It's a good fit for the 3-to-5 age group, where the focus is more on the hands-on part than the spectacle.

For context, Dinosphere has been a mainstay at the museum since 2004. It's home to sauropod skeletons roughly 70 feet long, the juvenile Tyrannosaurus rex 'Bucky' and his fully grown counterpart Stan, and Kelsey the Triceratops. The museum itself is a nonprofit with a mission to ignite joy, wonder and curiosity by creating powerful learning experiences for children and adults.

The session is at The Children's Museum of Indianapolis, 3000 North Meridian Street, Indianapolis, IN 46208-4716. Tickets are $5.50 for adults and $27.25 for youth, with a member discount available.