If you are on a visit to Salt Lake City. Utah and are interested to explore the natural history of Utah, the ideal place to do so is Utah Museum of Natural History. Set up in 1963, the museum is considered to be one of the best in the country in terms of its uniqueness in collections in the areas of earth sciences, anthropology, biology and cultural diversity.

Official Site for Utah Museum of Natural History

http://umnh.utah.edu/

Utah Museum of Natural History

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utah_Museum_of_Natural_History

The Utah Museum of Natural History has a collection of about 1.2 million exhibits. A number of these exhibits are used for educational and research purpose. The majority of the exhibits are from the inter-mountain areas of the U.S. the museum's exhibits also focus on the history of living beings and diversity of culture in the region.

The museum houses several murals that depict the dinosaurs and other creatures of the prehistoric era. There are fossils of extinct mammals, plant and living creatures of that time. Besides, there are model mining areas and precious mineral exhibits depicting the mining heritage of the region.

A new museum building is coming up at Research Park, close to the main natural history museum. Known as the Rio Tinto Center, the building is still under construction. There will be seven exhibit galleries to offer visitors a better understanding to explore natural science and promote the heritage of the state.

New building updates

http://umnh.utah.edu/newmuseum

A number of educational programs are conducted at the museum premises all round the year. These include educational programs for school going students, youth programs and various research and outreach activities. Located within the University of Utah campus premises near the President's Circle, it remains open from Monday to Saturday between 9:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m.

Utah Museum of Natural History (UMNH) strives to educate children and adults on the importance of nature. The museum conducts many programs throughout the year to make people understand the role of humans and why is it vital to respect nature. However, the programs targeted or children are really impressive and educative, let us see how the museum imbibes passion for natural history on the young minds.

Utah Museum of Natural History website

http://www.umnh.utah.edu/

UMNH at Wiki

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utah_Museum_of_Natural_History

Children are allowed to participate in the Science for Kids program, where they are trained and edified about the various aspects of a scientist, studying different perspectives of nature. Later, the kids are let to work on some hands on activities in anthropology, biology, geology and paleontology.

Focus of Natural History

http://www.city-data.com/articles/Utah-Museum-of-Natural-History-Salt-Lake.html

The girl scouts program includes badge activities on nature and it may also include overnight stay at the museum. Nevertheless, the overnight programs will require a booking in advance. The boy scouts program includes studying fossils, minerals and rocks, about dinosaurs etc. After completely exploring the museum, a Boy Scout patch is earned.

Summer camps and spring break camps are also held at the Salt Lake City UMNH for students from kindergarten to ninth graders. In these camps, a variety of things about nature are taught to the students, from outer space to backyard ecosystems.

Camps at UMNH

http://www.umnh.org/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=umnh&Category_Code=SpringBreakB

The motives of the camps are to educate children on the basics of science, engineering, technology and math; this also includes a study on aeronautics. The camps also include adventure activities and interactive events where the kids can work with the artifacts of the museum.