The Children's Discovery Center in Kaka'ako is expanding to offer more experiences for toddlers, new traveling exhibits, space for kids' day camps and teacher workshops and a cafe so families don't have to head elsewhere for a bite.

The $5.4 million project is designed to improve the benefits school-age children and preschool groups alike get out of field trips to the center, while also upping the appeal of the hands-on facility to families.

Work on the expansion kicked off this month, though the official groundbreaking is set for Wednesday, and construction is expected to wrap up by the end of the year.

The expansion is the first major capital improvements project for the Children's Center since it moved into its current quarters — a gutted trash incinerator — 10 years ago. Once construction is finished, the existing 38,000-square-foot center will have an additional 9,000 square feet of space.

While the work is under way, the center is also sending out a new plea for donations to help cover the costs of construction. So far, center officials have been able to garner about $3 million for the project. They are asking for support from the community and businesses to raise the remaining $2 million so they don't have to dip into endowment funds, which are needed for maintenance.

'LEARN ... THROUGH PLAY'

The children's center is a one-of-a-kind facility in the state where kids can learn through play. The facility has three floors of exhibits — from a replica of a bus and an airplane to models of a courtroom, a supermarket and a doctor's office. Kids can pretend to be everything from car mechanics to computer technicians to police officers, or they can wander through a floor with rooms representing far-off countries, trying on costumes and perusing the culturally specific decor.

"The most natural and important way for a child to learn is through play," said Loretta Yajima, the volunteer chief executive officer and chair of the center's board. "As adults, we think of playing as frivolous, but it is the child's primary way of learning. We really need to reinforce these opportunities."

The project comes as the center is seeing more kids than ever.

Yajima said the center's board of directors decided to start the construction project — even without all the money in hand — because they knew the cost of the work would continue to increase as the price of fuel rose. Petroleum is used in asphalt and also runs construction equipment, so the total price tag for the project has already risen since the center started raising money for the expansion two years ago.

The center, which has not received any state funding for the expansion, charges admission, but that does not cover all the costs of operations.

Yajima said the center will remain open during the construction work.

ATTENDANCE UP

Last year, more than 11,000 kids visited the center through its school visit program, an increase of about 700 kids from the year before. Yajima said she has especially seen a significant increase in field trips from preschools.

Meanwhile, total visits are also going up. The center is expecting to see about 100,000 visitors in all this year. In 2007, its total attendance shot up 13 percent from the year before.

Yajima said she believes some of the increased interest in the center is because of No Child Left Behind federal mandates, which track student learning benchmarks through testing. In its pamphlets, the center shows teachers how its exhibits fit in with state Education Department curriculum standards.

She also said there is much more emphasis nationally and locally on early childhood education, which is why more preschools could be visiting the center.

Elisabeth Chun, executive director of Good Beginnings Alliance, said several studies have shown that young children "learn by doing and the more they can have hands-on experiences, the better."

She said the expansion of the center is exciting news for schools and families looking for a way to fit learning into a fun day.

"It's very experiential," Chun said of the center.

In addition to offering new exhibits through the expansion, the work will allow the center to get more space for day camps, which are very popular in the summer. It will also mean more room for traveling exhibits and for workshops, which are often held at the facility. Yajima said the expansion includes the installation of a kitchen, where kids will be able to take cooking classes.

The new cafe will be on the first floor and will be open to all.