Preparing For Your Visit - Social Stories

Social Stories help prepare for a visit and cover important things to remember, such as Museum rules. Social narratives are directed toward school-age children and adults who are neurodivergent, whether they are coming for a tour or a visit with their families. Download the kids or adult social narratives below to help you prepare for your visit to the Timken:

SOCIAL STORIES FOR KIDS

SOCIAL STORIES FOR ADULTS

What to Expect

Due to the light sensitivity of many works of art, some galleries require low lighting.
Backpacks and oversize bags are not allowed in the galleries and must be checked at the complimentary Check Room at the Front Desk. Exceptions are made for medical devices and supplies.
Trained service animals are welcome anywhere inside the Museum.
All Museum galleries have permanent benches which visitors may use while enjoying the galleries.

Physical Accessibility

All public areas in the Museum are accessible to visitors using wheelchairs or mobility equipment. The access ramp entrance is located to the left of the entrance. The Timken welcomes all mobility aids such as personal walkers, wheelchairs, and scooters.

Visitor Amenities

The following items are available, free of charge, for use on a first come first served basis while visiting the Museum. Use of some amenities may require leaving an ID at the Front Desk. Items are cleaned and disinfected after every use. Please return all amenities to the Front Desk when you leave the Museum.

Sensory Kits

Each sensory kit contains a variety of fidget sensory tools and items to help lessen sensory overload.

Noise Canceling Headphones

To reduce ambient and background noise, headphones filter out distractions and increase calm, while still allowing visitors to hear those around them.

EnChroma Glasses

To enhance color perception for those who are color blind. Adult and kid glasses are available.

Visual Timers

To show the passage of time using a visual countdown.

Weighted Lap Pads

Available in three different weights: small, medium, and large.

Wheelchairs

A limited number of wheelchairs are available for use within the Museum building. At this time, we are not able to reserve wheelchairs in advance.

Communication Tablets

Assistive communication tablet with pictures and sounds.

Tours in American Sign Language

Every first Saturday of the month, the Timken offers FREE ASL-Enhanced Museum Tours, allowing visitors to experience the Museum's world-renowned collection of Old Masters, American art, and Russian icons in American Sign Language (ASL). Led by knowledgeable docents and accompanied by ASL student interpreters from Palomar College, the tours highlight the art's rich history and fascinating stories. Everyone is welcome, including ASL students - no reservation required.

See when our next ASL tour will be using our events page.

Art in Touch

Art has the power to foster connection, understanding, and well-being, yet traditional museum experiences have not always been accessible to visitors who are blind or have low vision. In response, the Timken has reimagined how art can be experienced through a groundbreaking touch program, Art in Touch: Fashion. Working with San Diego State University's School of Theatre, Television, and Film, the Museum developed half-scale costume replicas that invite tactile exploration of select works from the collection. For more information about the program and to book an Art in Touch: Fashion tour, please contact tours@timkenmuseum.org.

"It was so educational to feel those wonderful costumes, I had so much fun that day, I really did. It is a feast for the fingers!”
– Leslie Miller

Attribution

In 2021, the Timken launched a nationwide virtual listening tour with peer arts institutions to explore innovative approaches to accessibility. The insights gained continue to inspire our commitment to creating a more welcoming, inclusive, and accessible museum experience for all. We are very grateful to the following museums and organizations which have so generously shared their knowledge and best practices with us:
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