Learn how people everywhere are more alike than different by making connections between your own home and how people live around the world.

In The Building Square, you create your very own Construction Zone and design the interior of a house.

Throughout Imagine a House, children engage in cooperative play and explore properties of building, such as shape, size, weight, and quantity. Children will gain a sense of how one’s self-identity is shaped through the culture — music, food, games — and traditions of where they live.

Meet a family that’s moving into a Habitat for Humanity house in Guatemala and help make their home sturdy by using the proper materials and construction.

Did you know earthquakes are fairly common in Guatemala? How does this change the way homes must be built? From big earthquakes in the past, builders have learned how homes must be constructed to stay standing even when earthquakes occur.

In Imagine a House Guatemala, workers are needed to side the walls with concrete blocks. To make the house strong, be sure to:

• Load the wheelbarrow to carry materials
• Stack the blocks to build the house
• Test the shake table and see if your structure stays standing

Houses look different in every part of the world. Mozambique houses are built completely round, using thatch, mud, and reeds.

In Imagine a House Mozambique, immerse yourself in the culture of Mozambique by:

• Hiding out in the baobab tree
• Dressing up in Mozambique costume
• Preparing a feast of fish and vegetables
• Playing the marimba

Listen to other people share about where they live and where they have traveled and then share your story.

At Tell Us Your Story, you can listen to videos of other guests sharing where they are from and what makes it special. But you can also leave your mark on the exhibit and share your story as well.

What is your favorite part of the Children’s Museum of South Dakota?