Lawrence Hall of Science is in the hills above U.C. Berkeley. Whether you are from the San Francisco Bay Area or just visiting, LHS is well worth spending part of a day.
Kids will be amazed (and little ones might be a bit frightened) by the audio-anamatronic-style dinosaurs right in the lobby at the Hall. Spend some time preparing your child so they know what they're going to see before you go so that they won't be frightened. "We're going to see some really big dinosaur puppets that move and look real."
The exhibit includes a simulated archeological dig area, where kids can see what it is like to have to carefully brush the dirt away from fossils in the field:
There's an entire room filled with more of the large audio-anamatronic dinosaurs, which are really impressive. In the museum's backyard, which features a large exhibit on fluvial systems (kids can manipulate small walls in a large fountain to direct and dam up the current of the water), there's a huge T-Rex that moves and roars every few minutes. This is a big hit for the kids who are prepared to see this sort of thing.
Two caveats if you have never been to LHS just to be prepared: First, you'll have to drive up into the hills, which can be an adventure if you're used to driving in the flat-lands. Second, LHS is part of U.C. Berkeley and so you'll have to pay to park using one of the kiosks at the exit of the parking lots. If you arrive mid-day on a weekend, that may mean you have to park at one of the lots high up on the hill, walk down, get a parking permit at the automated kiosk, and then hike back up to put the permit on the dashboard.
--TC Daddy
