Mighty Acorns Preschool Educational Programs
The program sessions offer creative, open-ended, exploratory programs developed for children ages 3 to 6 and their caregivers. Our goal is to foster an early love of the natural world and an eagerness to explore and have fun outside! Additionally, these sessions provide a great introduction to the learning environment we cultivate for our Wee Explorers camp experiences, our entry-level camp experience for kids ages 4 & 5.
Program sessions will be held monthly from October - December and February - June. Programs occur outdoors as much as possible. We invite young adventurers to explore the natural world through interactive and hands-on lessons, activities, outdoor adventures, and play. This program is held at The Nature Museum and typically involves exploring and learning in nearby-nature that include forest, meadow, pond, river, the Magic Forest Playscape, and our native plant garden.
Although these sessions are developed for students ages 3-6, older students are welcome if interested. Accompanying siblings/children under the age of 3 are also welcome and free with the registration of a primary child.
Program sessions, 9:30-10:30, one Friday per month
Drop-ins are welcome, but registration is strongly encouraged.
Cost: $20 per singular session; $15 for 3 or more sessions.
Is cost or access a barrier to your participation? Email jay@nature-museum.org.
Playgroup sessions, 10:30-11:30, same day
Drop-in welcome. No registration required.
Cost: Free for day-of program session participants. By donation for drop-ins.
2026 Spring Schedule
February: Winter Animal Wonders. Friday 02/14/25
Program: 9:30AM - 10:30AM. Playgroup: 10:30AM - 11:30AM
Animals have amazing adaptations to deal with Vermont’s wild winters. Some leave, some stay, and some go about their business! In this program we’ll learn more about how many of our wildlife neighbors survive winter and how we can discover clues about some of their winter wanderings! We’ll investigate animal bio-facts (pelts, feathers, track molds, scat, and feet), wildlife maps, and learn what clues we can find in the snow of our active animal winter wanderers. Conditions permitting, we’ll head out on an exploration to discover clues of what some animals have been up to. Bring your detective skills, outdoor winter clothes/gear, and a sense of adventure!
Playgroup Session:
If snow conditions allow, snow play is encouraged! Continued wildlife tracking, sledding, snowshoeing (snowshoes available for kids and adults!), snow fort building, and free play in the playscape will be available. The museum has a limited number of snowshoes and sleds. Feel free to bring your own!
March: Majestic Maple Trees. Friday 03/20/26
Program: 9:30AM - 10:30AM. Playgroup: 10:30AM - 11:30AM
Vermont is home to 8 species of maple with the sugar maple being the state tree! Trees are important neighbors that we have all around us. Many of our maple species are especially important. We’ll learn about or common maple tree species and about how sugar maple trees are used to make special tasty treat, maple syrup! So, where does maple syrup come from? What happens to get it from tree to pancake? There is a lot of science and effort that happens to make this special sweet syrup. If the time is right, we’ll visit a local sugar shack to see maple sugaring in action! (Approx. 5 minute drive away to Plummer’s Sugar House). Alternatively, we’ll head out to discover nearby maple tree species and taste some maple syrup.
Playgroup Session:
If snow conditions allow, snow play is encouraged! Continued wildlife tracking, sledding, snowshoeing (snowshoes available for kids and adults!), snow fort building, and free play in the playscape will be available. The museum has a limited number of snowshoes and sleds. Feel free to bring your own!
April: Bird Beak Buffet. Friday 04/10/26
Program: 9:30AM - 10:30AM. Playgroup: 10:30AM - 11:30AM
Our feathered wildlife neighbors come in all shapes and sizes, including their beaks! Bird beaks are an amazing tool that help birds do many things including eating food. Beyond the beak, birds have other amazing adaptations and features that help them survive and thrive. We’ll learn all about birds, highlighting their diversity of beaks and other features.
May: Wiggling Worms. Friday 05/15/26
Program: 9:30AM - 10:30AM Playgroup: 10:30AM - 11:30AM
Worms are incredibly interesting and important critters that live in all kinds of habitats and have a story all their own! You’ve probably discovered an earthworm when digging in the soil or after a heavy rain. Although these animals look different, they have amazing adaptations that help them survive and play an important role in our environment. We’ll get to observe and touch earthworms up close to get to learn more about these small and important invertebrates.
June: Who Lives In A Pond? Friday 06/06/25
Program: 9:30AM - 10:30AM. Playgroup: 10:30AM - 11:30AM
Pond habitats provide important resources to all kinds of critters, big and small! We’ll discover more about this important habitat and who relies on it by taking a closer look at a few pond-loving species, explore a nearby pond environment, and maybe even capture some pond creatures to investigate with our own eyes! Be sure to come prepared with rainboots or water shoes and clothes that can get wet and dirty.
About Mighty Acorns Playgroups
Playgroup sessions will be immediately after program sessions on the same day.
There is no cost if registered for the educational program on that morning. If attending just the playgroup, the cost is by donation. Suggested museum admission donation: $5 per person or $15 per family.
Mighty Acorns Preschool Club: Playgroup Sessions offer a welcoming environment for structured and unstructured nature-based free-play, and a space for connecting with others kids, caregivers, and families. A skilled Environmental Educator will be present to continue curious learning after the program through additional activities, and help foster play through the museum’s great learning resources, indoor spaces, and outdoor spaces. Our goal: To foster an early love of the natural world and eagerness to explore and have fun, especially outside! Playgroup sessions will occur after each program. Participants will be free to explore inside the museum, the Chapman Meadow, the Magic Forest Playscape, and the nearby Grafton Village Park.