How to Explore the Molly Brown House Kid Tours Denver

The Molly Brown House in Denver, Colorado, is more than a historic mansionits a living classroom where children step into the Gilded Age and experience the life of Margaret Molly Brown, the famed Titanic survivor and social activist. Designed specifically for young learners, the Molly Brown House Kid Tours offer an immersive, interactive, and educational journey that transforms history from a textbook subject into an unforgettable adventure. These guided experiences are thoughtfully curated to engage children aged 6 to 12, blending storytelling, hands-on activities, and period-appropriate artifacts to spark curiosity about womens history, social reform, and early 20th-century American life.

For parents, educators, and tour planners seeking meaningful, curriculum-aligned outings, the Kid Tours represent one of Denvers most impactful cultural resources. Unlike traditional museum visits that rely on passive observation, these tours encourage active participationchildren dress in replica clothing, handle replica artifacts, solve historical puzzles, and even simulate a tea party in the Victorian parlor. The tours design aligns with Colorado state educational standards in social studies, making it an ideal supplement to classroom learning.

Understanding how to navigate, prepare for, and maximize the Molly Brown House Kid Tours requires more than just showing up. It demands strategic planning, awareness of seasonal offerings, and an understanding of how to translate the experience into lasting educational value. This guide provides a comprehensive roadmap for families and educators seeking to make the most of this unique opportunity. From booking logistics to post-visit enrichment, every step is covered to ensure a seamless, enriching, and memorable experience for every child.

Step-by-Step Guide

Step 1: Research Tour Options and Age Appropriateness

Before booking, its essential to determine which Kid Tour best fits your groups needs. The Molly Brown House offers two primary tour formats for children: the standard Mollys Story Kid Tour and the seasonal Mollys Christmas special. The standard tour is recommended for children aged 6 to 12 and lasts approximately 60 to 75 minutes. It covers Molly Browns early life in Hannibal, Missouri, her move to Denver, her role in the womens suffrage movement, and her heroic actions during the Titanic disaster. The Christmas tour, available in November and December, adds festive decorations, holiday traditions of the era, and a special gingerbread-making activity.

Children under 6 are welcome but may find the content and pacing less engaging. For preschoolers, consider scheduling a private family tour with advance notice to allow for a more flexible experience. Always check the official website for any temporary changes to tour offerings, especially during school holidays or inclement weather.

Step 2: Book in Advance

Reservations are required for all Kid Tours. Walk-ins are not accommodated due to limited group sizes and the hands-on nature of the experience. Bookings can be made online through the Molly Brown Houses official website or by calling the front desk during business hours. Online booking is strongly recommended, as it allows you to select your preferred date, time, and group size.

Groups of 10 or more (including children and chaperones) qualify for discounted educational rates. Schools, homeschool cooperatives, and youth organizations should use the Group Reservations portal on the website to submit a request at least three weeks in advance. Private tours for smaller groups can also be arranged outside regular operating hours for an additional fee.

When booking, youll be asked to provide the number of children, approximate ages, and any special needs or accommodations. This information helps the tour guides tailor the experiencefor example, adjusting vocabulary, pacing, or incorporating tactile elements for children with sensory sensitivities.

Step 3: Prepare Your Children for the Visit

Preparation significantly enhances engagement and comprehension. One week before the visit, introduce children to Molly Brown through age-appropriate resources. Read picture books like Molly Brown: Unsinkable by Elizabeth McDavid Jones or watch the short animated video on the museums YouTube channel. Discuss what life was like in the 1890sno smartphones, no electricity in most homes, horse-drawn carriages, and the importance of manners and etiquette.

Create a simple Mystery Box activity: place replica items (a quill pen, a lace handkerchief, a tin cup, a small book) in a box and let children guess their uses. This builds anticipation and connects them to the artifacts theyll encounter. You can also role-play a tea party at home using real or toy teacups, encouraging children to practice sitting up straight, using napkins, and speaking politelyskills theyll observe during the tour.

Set expectations: explain that theyll be walking through a real historic home, so they must listen carefully, stay with the group, and avoid touching objects unless invited. Reinforce that this isnt a playgroundits a time machine.

Step 4: Arrive Early and Check In

Plan to arrive at least 15 minutes before your scheduled tour time. The Molly Brown House is located at 1340 Pennsylvania Street in Denvers Landmark District, near the Denver Performing Arts Complex. Parking is available on surrounding streets and in nearby public lots. Buses and vans can drop off directly in front of the house.

Check in at the front desk with your reservation confirmation. Staff will provide name tags for each child and a small Explorers Journala printed booklet with puzzles, drawing prompts, and fun facts to complete during the tour. These journals are kept as souvenirs and serve as excellent post-visit learning tools.

Restrooms are available in the visitor center, and water fountains are accessible. No food or drinks are permitted inside the historic house, but there is a shaded picnic area in the garden for post-tour snacks.

Step 5: Participate Actively During the Tour

The tour begins in the grand foyer, where a costumed interpreteroften dressed as a maid or young Molly Browngreets the group. The guide uses a storytelling approach, posing questions like, What do you think it would be like to live without a refrigerator? or How would you feel if you couldnt vote because you were a girl?

Children are invited to try on replica clothing: a corset (with safety modifications), a bonnet, or a boys 1890s suit. They handle wax-sealed letters, use a hand-cranked sewing machine, and even write with a quill pen on parchment paper. One highlight is the Titanic Survival Game, where children work together to prioritize which items to save if they were on the shipbalancing practicality, sentiment, and survival.

Each room of the house tells a different part of Mollys story. In the kitchen, they learn about ice delivery and coal stoves. In the parlor, they discover how women hosted salons to discuss politics and reform. In the bedroom, they see how children slept in the same room as parents and used chamber pots.

Encourage your child to ask questions. The guides are trained to respond with patience and depth, often sharing lesser-known factslike how Molly helped establish the first kindergarten in Denver or how she lobbied Congress for better safety standards on ocean liners.

Step 6: Complete the Explorers Journal

Throughout the tour, children are prompted to complete activities in their journals: draw the fireplace they saw, write one thing they learned, circle the object they found most surprising. These tasks reinforce memory and critical thinking. The journal includes a Molly Brown Quiz at the endfive multiple-choice questions that test comprehension without pressure.

Parents and teachers can use the journal as a springboard for discussion after the tour. Ask: What would you have brought on the Titanic? or Why do you think Molly didnt give up when people told her she couldnt make a difference?

Step 7: Explore the Garden and Gift Shop

After the tour, families are welcome to explore the restored 19th-century garden, which features heirloom flowers, a herb patch, and a replica outhouse (with a humorous sign explaining its use). Theres a small sandbox area for younger children and benches for quiet reflection.

The gift shop offers educational toys, books, and replicas: a mini Titanic lifeboat, a Victorian-style doll in period dress, and a Molly Brown coloring book. All proceeds support the museums educational programs. Consider purchasing a journal or postcard set to extend the learning experience at home.

Step 8: Extend the Learning at Home

Turn the visit into a multi-day project. Use the journal as a starting point to create a family scrapbook. Research Molly Browns later life: Did she run for Congress? What was the womens suffrage movement? Watch the 1960 musical The Unsinkable Molly Brown and compare it to historical facts.

Write a letter to Molly Brown (real or imagined) as if you were a child living in 1890. Draw a comic strip of her Titanic experience. Build a model of the house using cardboard boxes. These activities deepen retention and transform a one-hour tour into a lasting educational milestone.

Best Practices

Align with Curriculum Standards

The Molly Brown House Kid Tours are intentionally designed to meet Colorado Academic Standards in Social Studies, particularly in the areas of Civics and Government, History, and Geography. For educators, align your pre- and post-visit lessons with these standards:

• Grade 3: Understand how individuals and groups have influenced local and national history.
• Grade 4: Analyze how gender, class, and race affected peoples opportunities in the 19th century.
• Grade 5: Evaluate the impact of reform movements, including womens suffrage.

Download the official educators guide from the museums website, which includes pre-visit worksheets, vocabulary lists, and post-visit assessment tools.

Manage Group Dynamics

For school or group visits, assign buddies to children to encourage peer support and accountability. Designate a few responsible students as Tour Captains who help keep the group together and remind others of the rules. This reduces stress for chaperones and empowers children.

Keep group sizes under 15 children per guide. Larger groups are split into smaller rotating teams to ensure everyone gets hands-on time. Avoid bringing children with extreme behavioral challenges unless youve coordinated with the museum in advance for additional support.

Use Sensory-Friendly Techniques

The museum offers sensory-friendly tour modifications upon request. These include reduced lighting in certain rooms, noise-canceling headphones available for use, and a quiet room with fidget tools and calming visuals. Guides are trained to recognize signs of sensory overload and can adjust pacing or offer alternative activities.

If a child has difficulty with loud environments or sudden movements, notify staff at check-in. They can assign a quieter guide or schedule a private tour during off-peak hours.

Encourage Reflection, Not Just Recall

Instead of asking, What did you learn? ask, What surprised you? or What would you have done differently? This promotes higher-order thinking. Use Blooms Taxonomy to structure post-visit discussions: remember, understand, apply, analyze, evaluate, create.

Example: After the tour, have children design a new Molly Brown museum exhibit for kids today. What artifacts would they include? What message would they want visitors to take away?

Maximize Accessibility

The Molly Brown House is fully ADA-compliant, with ramps, elevators, and accessible restrooms. Wheelchair users can access all public areas. Guides can describe visual elements for visually impaired visitors, and large-print versions of the Explorers Journal are available upon request.

For non-native English speakers, bilingual guides are available on weekends with advance notice. Translated versions of the journal are offered in Spanish and Somali.

Plan for Weather and Timing

Denvers weather can change rapidly. In winter, dress children in layerstheyll be walking between the house and garden. In summer, bring hats and sunscreen for outdoor time. Tours run rain or shine, but severe storms may cause delays. Always check the website for last-minute updates.

Book morning tours for younger children, as attention spans are longer earlier in the day. Afternoon tours are better for older students who can handle more complex discussions.

Tools and Resources

Official Website: mollybrownhouse.org

The primary resource for booking, pricing, and tour descriptions. The site includes downloadable educator guides, printable coloring pages, and a virtual tour preview. The For Families section offers reading lists and activity ideas.

Explorers Journal (Printable Version)

Available for download on the website, this free PDF can be used before or after the visit to reinforce learning. Includes word searches, matching games, and a timeline of Molly Browns life.

Denver Public Library Digital Archives

Search for Molly Brown in the DPLs digital collection to find original photographs, newspaper clippings, and letters. Many are accessible via the librarys free app. Perfect for older children doing research projects.

YouTube: Molly Brown House Channel

Short videos (37 minutes) explain key concepts: How Did They Wash Clothes in 1890?, Why Was Molly Brown Called Unsinkable?, and A Day in the Life of a Denver Child. Ideal for classroom previews.

Books for Children

• Molly Brown: Unsinkable by Elizabeth McDavid Jones (ages 610)
• The Unsinkable Molly Brown by Deborah Hopkinson (ages 812)
• Women Who Dared: 52 Stories of Fearless Daredevils, Adventurers, and Rebels by Linda Bailey (includes Molly Brown)
• My Name Is Not Angelica by Scott ODell (for context on historical child labor and class)

Mobile Apps

• History Explorer (free by Smithsonian)includes a Gilded Age module with audio clips and 3D artifacts.
• Time Traveler Kids (subscription)interactive timeline games featuring Molly Brown and other historical figures.

Local Partnerships

The museum partners with Denver Public Schools, the Colorado Historical Society, and the Denver Botanic Gardens. Teachers can apply for grants to cover transportation and admission fees. Check the Educational Grants page on the website for eligibility and deadlines.

Teacher Workshops

Monthly professional development sessions are offered for educators. Learn how to integrate the Molly Brown House curriculum into your classroom, access free lesson plans, and earn Continuing Education Units (CEUs). Registration opens two months in advance.

Real Examples

Example 1: Westwood Elementary, 4th Grade Class

In spring 2023, Ms. Rivera took her 24 fourth-grade students on a Kid Tour. Before the visit, her class studied the womens suffrage movement. After the tour, students wrote persuasive letters to Congress, arguing why women should have the right to voteusing Molly Browns real quotes as evidence. One student wrote: Molly Brown didnt wait for permission. She spoke up. So should we. The class submitted their letters to a local representative, and three were featured in the Denver Posts Kids Speak Out column.

Example 2: The Garcia Family Homeschooling

The Garcias, who homeschool their three children (ages 7, 9, and 11), visited the Molly Brown House during a History Month unit. They created a family blog documenting the experience. The 9-year-old recorded a podcast episode titled What I Learned from a Woman Who Survived the Titanic. The podcast gained 500 downloads and was shared by a local history podcast network. The family later hosted a Victorian Tea Party at home, complete with period music and recipes from the museums archives.

Example 3: The Denver Childrens Museum Collaboration

In summer 2022, the Molly Brown House partnered with the Denver Childrens Museum to create a traveling Mollys Suitcase exhibit. The suitcase contained replica artifacts and activity cards that toured libraries and community centers across metro Denver. Each stop included a 15-minute storytelling session led by a museum educator. Over 3,000 children participated in the six-month initiative, with post-program surveys showing a 78% increase in knowledge about womens history.

Example 4: A Child with Autism The Martinez Family

After requesting a sensory-friendly tour, the Martinez family received a private 45-minute session with a guide trained in autism inclusion. The tour was slowed down, with extra time in each room and no loud noises. The guide used visual cards to explain transitions. The 8-year-old boy, who rarely spoke about school, returned home and spent an hour building a model of the house with LEGO. His mother later wrote: For the first time, history felt real to himnot just words on a page.

FAQs

What is the best age for the Molly Brown House Kid Tours?

The tours are ideal for children aged 6 to 12. Younger children (45) can attend but may benefit from a private family tour with simplified content. Children under 4 are not permitted on group tours due to safety and engagement concerns.

Do we need to pay for chaperones?

One adult chaperone per five children is admitted free of charge. Additional adults pay the standard adult admission rate. Teachers leading school groups receive complimentary admission.

Can we take photos during the tour?

Yes, non-flash photography is encouraged! The museum wants children to capture memories. However, please do not photograph other visitors without permission.

Are the tours available in Spanish?

Yes. Spanish-speaking guides are available on weekends and holidays. Request this when booking. Printed materials are also available in Spanish.

How long is the tour?

The standard Kid Tour lasts 60 to 75 minutes. The Christmas special runs approximately 90 minutes due to additional activities.

Is the house wheelchair accessible?

Yes. The entire tour route is accessible via elevator and ramp. Restrooms and the gift shop are also fully accessible.

Can we bring snacks or lunch?

Food and drinks are not allowed inside the historic house. However, there is a shaded garden area with picnic tables where families may eat after the tour.

What if my child gets scared during the tour?

Guides are trained to recognize discomfort and will adjust the experience immediately. If a child becomes upset, they can step into a quiet room with calming materials. There is no pressure to continue if a child needs a break.

Are the tours available year-round?

Yes, except for major holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, New Years Day). The Christmas tour runs November 1December 31. Summer hours are extended.

Can we book a virtual tour?

Virtual tours are available for remote learners and schools outside Colorado. These 45-minute live sessions include real-time interaction with a guide, artifact close-ups via camera, and digital handouts. Contact the education department for pricing and scheduling.

Conclusion

The Molly Brown House Kid Tours in Denver are not merely a historical attractionthey are a catalyst for empathy, critical thinking, and civic awareness in young minds. By stepping into the world of a woman who defied expectations, children dont just learn about the past; they begin to imagine how they, too, can shape the future. This experience transforms passive learners into active participants in history.

Through thoughtful preparation, active engagement, and intentional follow-up, families and educators can turn a single hour-long tour into a lifelong appreciation for courage, equality, and the power of one voice. Molly Brown didnt wait for permission to make a difference. Neither should we.

Book your tour. Bring your curiosity. Let history come alive.