Four-year-old Jake Basseches went to the Harvard Museum of Natural History yesterday dressed as Superman. The son of Joshua P. Basseches, the museum's executive director, Jake was just one of the many children who put off their trick or treating for a few hours to discover the wonders of the museum at its Halloween Open House.

For the second year, the museum was festooned with cobwebs, skeletons and orange and black streamers, attracting over 300 people to the Halloween festivities.

"We're always looking for ways to bring more people to the museum," Basseches said. "This is a great way to do it that's both fun and educational."

Parents led their costumed children through the winding rooms of exhibits, all filled with hands on activities for all to participate in.

More than 25 volunteers were scattered throughout the museum, providing answers to questions about different exhibits and helping children to make crafts.

Nancy A. Murphy, the museum's education coordinator, had a large part in organizing the activities.

"It took a lot of planning," Murphy said. "But it's definitely worth it if the kids have fun and we can show them that museums don't have to be stuffy."

Children were first greeted with a "Creepy Critters" exhibit, featuring scorpions, millipedes and tarantulas, some of which the visitors could hold.