Newsletter: Events

Winter 2008 Calendar

Stargazing at Vermont Academy
Date: Saturday, January 5th
Time: 7:00 PM-8:00 PM
Place: Meet at the Vermont Academy Observatory
Cost: A Free Public Program

Meet at the Vermont Academy Observatory on Shepard Lane, off Pleasant Street. The Observatory is located in the field beyond the Chiver’s Center, Saxtons River, VT

Rain/Cloud Date, the following Sunday night.

Join Bob Anderson, Science and Astronomy teacher at Vermont Academy, and other local amateur astronomers for observations of the winter sky. Experience the awe of seeing the night sky through Vermont Academy’s large telescope, as well as several smaller telescopes. You are welcome to come for all or any part of the event.

Alaskan Adventure
Date: Tuesday, January 15th
Time: 7:00 PM-8:00 PM
Place: Meet at The Nature Museum
Cost: Donations Welcome

Join Stan and Pat Mack for an illuminated travelogue about their two week trip to Alaska. The trip brought them from Anchorage to Denali National Park to Prudhoe Bay on the Arctic Ocean. The second week included a cruise from Seward to Ketchikan. Along the way the Mac’s visited glaciers from a helicopter and took on the class III and IV river rapids in Denali National Park.

Mighty Acorns Explorers Club (Preschool Nature Day)
Animal Tracks - Ages 3 - 5
Date: Wednesday, January 16th
Time: Session 1: 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Time: Session 2: 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM
Place: Meet at The Nature Museum
Cost: Members - $5
Cost: Non-members - $7 (prices are for all participating children)

Pre-registration preferred

Once a month, The Nature Museum will offer this fun-filled time for preschoolers and their caregivers. Participants will explore outside and visit different habitats. This hands-on time will foster creativity and allow them to connect with the natural world. Participants will also enjoy the many resources that the museum has to offer through the exhibits, puppet shows, and dramatic play.

Bat Program and Starlit Ice Skating
Date: Saturday, January 19th
Time: 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM
Place: Meet at Grafton Ponds Nordic Ski Center, Townshend Rd, Grafton
Cost: Member Adults - $5; Member Kids - $3
Cost: Non-member Adults - $8; Non-member Kids - $5

Celebrate the night with an inside program about Bats and a glide across a pond under the stars. This is a great way to get out and enjoy the beauty of a winter’s eve, and learn a little something about those fascinating furry, flying creatures. Ice skates are available to rent from Grafton Ponds for a fee.

Stargazing at Vermont Academy
Date: Saturday, February 2nd
Time: 8:00 PM-10:00 PM
Place: Meet at the Vermont Academy Observatory
Cost: A Free Public Program

Meet at the Vermont Academy Observatory on Shepard Lane, off Pleasant Street. The Observatory is located in the field beyond the Chiver’s Center, Saxtons River, VT

Rain/Cloud Date, the following Sunday night.

Indoor Tracking Workshop
Date: Wednesday, February 6th
Time: 7:00 PM-8:30 PM
Place: Meet at the Rockingham Free Public Library, Bellows Falls, VT
Cost: A Free Public Program

In the winter, animals leave clues about where they’ve been, who they are, and what they’ve been doing. Participants will learn the basics about the track patterns animals leave and learn to identify them through slides, specimens, and casts of tracks. This program will serve as a great introduction to the outdoor tracking afternoon at Minards Pond the following weekend. This program is part of the “Exploring Rockingham: Nature Out Our Backdoor” series, which is made possible by a grant from TransCanada.

Minards Pond Wildlife Tracks and Traces
Date: Sunday, February 10th
Time: 1:00 PM-3:00 PM
Place: Meet at Minards Pond
Cost: A Free Public Program

Meet at Mindars Pond, just north of Bellows Falls. Take Rte 5 to Pond Road (across from Dr. Johnson's office). Park outside the gate at the top of the hill, on the side of the road. Please do not block the gate.

Gather up your friends and family for a fun filled walk around Minards Pond, the reservoir for Bellows Falls. Join a Nature Museum naturalist to search for tracks and other signs left by our woodland neighbors. Snowshoes are recommended if the snow cover warrants it.

This program is part of the “Exploring Rockingham: Nature Out Our Backdoor” series which is made possible by a grant from TransCanada.

The Great Dinosaur Hunt
Date: Saturday, February 16th
Time: Session 1: 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM, Ages 5 - 6
Time: Session 2: 1:30 PM to 3:30 PM, Ages 7 - 9
Place: Meet at Chester Andover Elementary School, Chester, VT
Cost: Members - $22
Cost: Non-members - $26

Pre-registration required by February 10th
An adult partner is required for each child
10 student limit for each session

Try your hand at being a paleontologist! Join the Museum in welcoming Nancy Walker of Dinosaur Discovery, who will lead an engaging program on dinosaurs. Participants will conduct a hands-on “fossil dig” by learning about how fossils develop, are uncovered, analyzed and reconstructed. Children and their adult partners will find their own hidden dinosaur or marine reptile skeleton, put it together and create a reconstructed life-sized mural to take home. During the two hours of the program, participants will go through a process similar to that which takes paleontologists 3-5 years to complete.

Mighty Acorns Explorers Club (Preschool Nature Day)
Animals In Winter - Ages 3 - 5
Date: Wednesday, February 20th
Time: Session 1: 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Time: Session 2: 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM
Place: Meet at The Nature Museum
Cost: Members - $5
Cost: Non-members - $7 (prices are for all participating children)

Pre-registration preferred

Vacation Camp: Exploring Winter Through Bookmaking
Ages: For students in grades 3 - 5
Date: February 18th - 22nd
Time: Monday - Friday, 9:30 AM-12:00 PM
Place: Meet at Great River Art Institutes' studios at 33 Bridge St, Bellows Falls, VT
Cost: Tuition for students from the Fall Mountain Regional School District public school system is $25. Tuition for all others is $50.

For More Information or to register, contact Jackie at 802-463-3330 Jackie@greatriverarts.org

In this week-long workshop students will learn basic bookmaking techniques and then fill their books with explorations of nature in winter. Students will sketch, learn crayon resist techniques, create their own tracking field guide and learn about winter adaptations for animals. This workshop will also include trips to the Fish Ladder Visitor Center to see the exhibits.

This program is in collaboration with Great River Arts Institute in Bellows Falls, VT

Family Camp: Snowshoe Hike
Date: Thursday, February 21st
Time: 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Place: Meet at The Nature Museum
Cost: Members - $4
Cost: Non-members - $7 (prices are for all participating children)

Pre-registration preferred

Join a Nature Museum naturalist for a fun trek through the woods of Grafton. Weather permitting, participants will snowshoe on trails, looking for tracks and other interesting natural notables. The Nature Museum has a limited number of snowshoes that can be borrowed, so call ahead to reserve them.

Night Time Snowshoe Ramble
Date: Saturday, February 23rd
Time: 7:00 PM to 8:30 PM
Place: Meet at Grafton Ponds Nordic Ski Center, Townshend Rd, Grafton
Cost: Member Adults - $5; Member Kids - $3
Cost: Non-member Adults - $8; Non-member Kids - $5

Get out and experience the peace and the mystery of the night forest after dark. After an introduction inside everyone will put on snowshoes and walk through Grafton Pond’s moonlit trails. This is a magical time to experience the woods. We will return to the building to warm up by the fire and sip hot chocolate. Snowshoes are available to rent from Grafton Ponds for a fee.

Vacation Camp: Snow Games - Ages 6 - 8
Date: Tuesday, February 26th
Time: 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM
Place: Meet at The Nature Museum
Cost: Members - $15
Cost: Non-members - $20

Pre-registration preferred

February vacation is a great time to play in the snow and cold. While participants play group games they will learn how wild animals make use of the snow in the winter and live in the cold temperatures. This will be an active day outdoors so bring your warmest clothes, boots, a snack, and a bag lunch.

Vacation Camp: Winter (Snowshoe) Treks
Date: Wednesday, February 27th
Time: Session 1: 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM, Ages 6 - 8
Time: Session 2: 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM, Ages 9 - 12
Place: Meet at The Nature Museum
Cost: Members - $7
Cost: Non-members - $10

Pre-registration preferred

Bring warm clothes, lunch and snack and a spirit of adventure for a trek through winter’s wild terrain. Participants will snowshoe (weather permitting) down a trail and look for signs of tracks of animals like turkeys, deer and foxes. They’ll also play games along the way.

Vacation Camp: Wild Tracking
Date: Thursday, February 28th
Time: 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM, Ages 6 - 10
Place: Meet at The Nature Museum
Cost: Members - $15
Cost: Non-members - $20

Pre-registration preferred

Learn the basics of tracking wild animals in the snow. Combining indoor skill building and outdoor field skills, we’ll cover the fundamentals of tracking. Participants will tromp through fields and forest on snowshoes (weather permitting) to search for signs of animals. At the end of the day together there will be s’mores over a campfire in the woods.

Garden Design Series
Date: Thursdays, February 28th - March 27th
Time: 6:30 AM to 8:00 PM, last session goes until 9:00 PM
Place: Meet at Terrigenous Landscaping in Chester above the Moon Dog Cafe
Cost: $105 including materials

Please Pre-register

March is the perfect time to dream about gardens. Join us for an informative and inspiring series as we explore how to create a garden that reflects our individual visions. Laurie Danforth, president of the Nature Museum, long time gardener and greenhouse owner will be joined by Jana Wunderle, designer at Terrigenous Landscaping and Laurie Bolotin of Morningstar Perennials in teaching this popular studio format class. This series will incorporate lecture, practical hands-on design work and professional responses to each student’s individual garden design. Come converse with other garden Lovers as we get ready for Spring. Class limited to 12 students.

Bookbinding Workshop for Educators
Date: Saturday, March 1st
Time: 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM
Place: Meet at Thetford Academy, Thetford, VT
Cost: $65 including materials

Pre-registration Required

Join Susan Bonthron for this practical and inspiring workshop designed for educators. Susan has studied book arts with teachers such as Linda Lembke, and many others, and at the Center for Book Arts in New York City. She runs the Otter Pond Bindery which you can find out more at otterpondbindery.com She has spent many years working with teachers to integrate book arts into curriculum. During this workshop we will build two books that could be recreated with a group of classroom students. The first book is an accordion style book about habitats and the second is a book pertaining to clouds and cloud identification. This class is limited to 15 students.

For More Information Please Contact The Nature Museum at 802-843-2111.

Stargazing at Vermont Academy
Date: Saturday, March 1st
Time: 8:00 PM-10:00 PM
Place: Meet at the Vermont Academy Observatory
Cost: A Free Public Program

Meet at the Vermont Academy Observatory on Shepard Lane, off Pleasant Street. The Observatory is located in the field beyond the Chiver’s Center, Saxtons River, VT

Rain/Cloud Date, the following Sunday night.

Tibetan Travelogue
Date: Tuesday, March 4th
Time: 7:00 PM-8:00 PM
Place: Meet at The Nature Museum
Cost: Donations Welcome

Join Sally Warren, a Grafton resident, for a program describing her trip to Tibet in September of 2007. She, along with five other Vermonters, joined a large group of Argentineans, Brits and Tibetans on a pilgrimage to the Sacred Mt. Kailas. This slide show of Tibet will include shots of Lhasa, the Western plateau, the path around Mt. Kailas and a group of joyful pilgrims. There will be time for lots of questions.

Snowshoe Trek
Date: Saturday, March 8th
Time: 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Place: Meet at Grafton Ponds Nordic Ski Center, Townshend Rd, Grafton
Cost: Member Adults - $5; Member Kids - $3
Cost: Non-member Adults - $8; Non-member Kids - $5

Join a naturalist-led exploration for late winter wildlife signs as you explore the New England Landscape. Depending on the conditions, participants will either hike or snowshoe through a diversity of habitats. We will learn to read the stories in the snow told by animal tracks and traces. Snowshoes are available to rent from Grafton Ponds for a fee.

Mighty Acorns Explorers Club (Preschool Nature Day)
Owl Exploration - Ages 3 - 5
Date: Wednesday, March 19th
Time: Session 1: 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Time: Session 2: 12:30 PM to 2:30 PM
Place: Meet at The Nature Museum
Cost: Members - $7
Cost: Non-members - $9 (prices are for all participating children)

Pre-registration preferred

Once a month, The Nature Museum will offer this fun-filled time for preschoolers and their caregivers. Participants will explore outside and visit different habitats. This hands-on time will foster creativity and allow them to connect with the natural world. Children will also make use of the many resources that the museum has to offer through the exhibits, puppet shows, and dramatic play.

Spring Has Sprung Annual Egg Hunt
Date: Saturday, March 22nd
Time: 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM
Place: Meet at The Nature Museum
Cost: Members - $3 each; family rate $8 maximum
Cost: Non-members - $5; family rate $12 maximum

Celebrate the beginning of Spring with the Nature Museum’s annual egg hunt. As migrating birds begin to return to our local landscape, take some time to think about the wonders of eggs. After an indoor introduction to a variety of bird’s eggs and nests, participants will head outside and search for hidden eggs. Inside the eggs will be secret puzzle clues which, when solved, will lead the group to its prize. Everyone will come out a winner at this egg hunt!

For more information please contact The Nature Museum at 802-843-2111 or e-mail staff@nature-museum.org, or check our website at http://www.nature-museum.org.

Betsy Bennett Stacey
The Nature Museum at Grafton
186 Townshend Rd
Grafton, VT 05146
staff@nature-museum.org
802-843-2111

Check out our new website! http://www.nature-museum.org