Design Lab is a series of five activity areas recently opened to the public at the New York Hall of Science. Each of these five spaces: Sandbox, Backstage, Studio, Treehouse and Maker Space are distinct in scale and character and are designed to host a diverse array of STEM and project-based learning activities. Conceived of as sites to foster and promote problem ideation, tinkering, testing, displaying results, as well as housing necessary tools and materials for supporting its ever present staff of explainers - the architecture of Design Lab is intended to be integral to the types of critical discovery and making that is so central to NYSCI’s mission.