Skill Building

Youth Umpire Training for Teens

Beverly Recreation Department in Massachusetts is hosting baseball/softball umpire training for teens

BevRec invites teens to learn the basics necessary to umpire Little League and Girls Softball games. Open to anyone who will be 13 years old by March 28th. Training includes rules of the game, on-field situations and umpiring mechanics for youth games. All participants receive a rule book.

When: 
Monday, March 25, 2024 7:15-8:45pm
Monday, April 1, 2024 7:15-8:45pm

Youth Outdoor Winter Survival Skills Program

Kids and Tweens will learn outdoors survival skills at Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary!

This new three-day drop-off program is for youths who want to learn what it takes to survive in the wild. Each day will have a different theme around an outdoor skill. We will explore the sanctuary, look to our local wildlife for inspiration, and complete an outdoor skill challenge each day. Our last day will end with a carefully made campfire and toasted marshmallows!

When: 
Daily, December 28-30, 2022 10am-Noon

Afternoon Adventures Drop-In Spring Series

Appleton Farms' popular Afternoon Adventures program now has a drop-in option on Wednesdays in Ipswich Massachusetts.

New this spring, the Trustee's popular Afternoon Adventures program now has a drop-in option on Wednesdays! Bring a friend, pick and choose the days you’d like to attend, or try it out for the first time. This 2.5-hour drop-off program on Wednesday afternoons provides your child with immersive, farm-based play and chores that foster social-emotional learning, wellbeing, and a love of nature. Skilled educators with a flair for fun and a knack for outdoor skills supervise your young farmers as they explore the barnyard, garden, and trails. This entirely-outdoors program uses our historic Carriage Barn (where the goats live!) for shelter in severe weather.

When: 
Wednesdays, May 4 - June 8, 2022 2-4:30PM
Location: 

Embracing Family History at Sawyer Free

Learn skills that you can use to discover your own family history at Sawyer Free

Sawyer Free Library and the Cape Ann Museum invite families to a presentation on personal family history.  Learn how to use family records to research your own family and history and learn what life was like for your ancestors! Children will see examples of old-fashioned Cape Ann Samplers and family trees, and then create their very own sampler, and paint their own family tree.

When: 
Saturday March 8, 2014 10:30am-Noon

Youth Outdoor Survival Challenge: Shelters

Teens will learn outdoors survival skills at Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary!

In this outdoor survival skills program, older children will learn the basics of the ancient outdoor skill of shelter building. We will look at real examples of animal homes for inspiration, learn some different shelter types and their pros and cons, discuss shelter safety, and make our own full-size shelters on the sanctuary. If there is snow we will make cozy quinzhee huts and if there is no snow we will make leafy lean-to huts. No experience necessary--just a desire to survive and thrive in the wild!

When: 
Saturday, February 1, 2020 1:30-3:30pm

Outdoor Skills Survival Challenge for Teens

Teens will learn outsoodr survival skills at Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary!

Think you have the skills to survive in the wild? Come learn about finding food, water, and shelter in the forests and wetlands of the sanctuary and then put your new knowledge to the test. We will split into two teams and compete to identify and locate resources, build and test shelters, and sneak up on one another in a tag-style game that take places over a large part of the sanctuary. Can you and your team complete all of the outdoor skill challenges before it's too late? No previous experience necessary, just teamwork and a strong survival instinct!

When: 
Saturday, May 28, 2016 1:30-3:30pm

Jewlery Workshop Sign-up

Build on your jewelry making skills at Newburyport Public Library!

Whether you're a beginner who'd like to learn to make their own jewelry and complete basic repairs, or simply need to practice your skills, this is the class for you! Join local artisan and re-maker Pam Farren (naturemadescents.com) and learn how to use basic tools, understand and source materials, and complete four different projects over four Sundays in January and February.

When: 
Sunday, January 8, 2012 1:30 pm – 2:30 pm
Appleton Farms offers great farm-based Vacation Week Programs for kids ages 5-11

Saugus Iron Works Park Grounds & Estuary Walk

Take a hike along the Saugus River Estuary ande explore the Saugus Iron Works Park grounds in Massachusetts
Learn about the natural world in Saugus while ecploring the park ground ast the Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site in Massachusetts.
7:00 am to 7:00 pm

Babson Farm Quarry Self-guided Walking Tour at Halibut Point

Kids will enjoy this tour of the Halibut Point State Park and Quarry with a focus on its stone-cutting history!
Take a self guided tour at one of Massachusetts most beautiful locations!
7:00 am to 6:00 pm

Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit at Pingree School

Pingree School in Hmailton Massachusetts hosts their annual Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture exhibit each Fall. Sculpture: Phoenix by Robin Tost.
Pingree School hosts the 16th annual Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit on their campus in South Hamilton, Massachusetts .
8:00 am to 6:00 pm

Crescent Farm Corn Maze

Crescent Farm corn maze in Haverhill Massachusetts
Imagine the biggest puzzle you’ve ever seen. Now imagine a day in the sunshine with your friends or family. Now add an adventure that takes teamwork and memory skills. All these things and more can be found at Crescent Farms Corn Maze. Crescent Farm Corn Maze trails cut into 9 acres of corn. Inside...
9:00 am to 9:00 pm

Salem Witch Hunt Walking Tour

Learn about the true reality of the Salem Massachusetts Witch Trials Salem Massachusetts on a self guided walking tour with Essex Heritage
This self-guided walking tour is designed to help explain the true history behind the Salem Witch Trials. After more than three centuries of storytelling through countless books, movies, and television shows, the line between historical fact and dramatic fiction has become increasingly blurred....
9:00 am to 5:00 pm

Step Inside the Historic Custom House

Take in the views of this prominent building where Nathaniel Hawthorne once worked and the U.S. Custom Service operated. This Custom House was built in 1819 and housed offices for the officers of the U.S. Customs Service, as well as an attached warehouse, the Public Stores, used for the storage of...
9:30 am to 4:30 pm

Discover the Highest Point on the Essex Seacoast!

Take a Trails & Sails hike to the top of Powow Hill in Amesbury Massachusetts!
Come join Amesbury Trails for a guided hikeup Powow Hill, at the summit of the highest peak on the Essex County Seacoast! This narrated hike will include the historical background of the area and descriptions of the features and landscapes encountered along the hike. Enjoy exploring a variety of...
10:00 am

Sing & Dance with the Music Man

Sing & Dance with the Music Man Brian Doser in Hamilton visit Massachusetts
Come join the fun at Community House Of Hamilton & Wenham Monday, Thursday and Saturday mornings at 10am for 30 - 45 minutes of great music with Brian Doser! Sing and dance with the Music Man during a family concert, featuring familiar and original tunes, performed by local dad and musician,...
10:00 am to 10:45 am

Saugus Iron Works House Tours

Free Ranger guided tours of the Saugus Iron Works House in Massachusetts
Join National Park staff at Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site for a 30-minute tour of The Iron Works House.
11:00 am

Step Aboard the Friendship of Salem

Permission to come aboard the Friendship of Salem is granted at Derby Wharf in Salem Massachusetts!
Explore the FRIENDSHIP OF SALEM, a replica tall ship based on a 1796 Salem vessel at Salem Maritime National Historic Site.
1:30 pm to 4:30 pm

Saugus Iron Works Tours

Free Ranger guided tours at Saugus Iron Works Colonial Industrial Site in Massachusetts
Join the National Park staff at Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site for a tour of the colonial industrial site. On select days, you may be able to stick around and witness pop-up molten iron pour, blacksmithing, waterwheel demonstrations, and take part in hands-on river stewardship activities.
2:00 pm

The Backyard Growcery

Join Backyard Growers at Burnham's Field in Gloucester Massachusetts for a weekly Farmer's Market
Stop by Gloucester’s new weekly farmers market, the Backyard Growcery, managed by Backyard Growers. The Backyard Growcery is located at Burnham's Field, an urban park near Gloucester’s thriving waterfront, and features small-scale North Shore farmers, bakers, a seafood vendor, an artisanal pizza...
2:30 pm to 6:30 pm

Topsfield HomeGrown Market

Come to Topsfield Massachusetts Common for a homegrown market on the Wednesdays through July
The mission of the HomeGrown Market is to provide the Topsfield community with a series of family-friendly events that emphasize supporting local and offer the opportunity for Topsfield and surrounding North Shore farmers, gardeners, artisans, creators, performers, musicians, nonprofits, young...
4:00 pm to 7:00 pm

Stargazing at Mendel Observatory

Mendel Observatory, with the support of volunteers from the North Shore Amateur Astronomy Club, hosts public stargazing every Wednesday night
The Observatory, with the support of volunteers from the North Shore Amateur Astronomy Club, hosts public stargazing every Wednesday night (weather permitting) starting at dusk or 7:30 pm, whichever is later.  When special astronomical events of interest occur (total lunar eclipses, etc.) the Obs
7:00 pm

Paddle Around Historic Rockport Harbor

Paddle around Rockport Massachusetts Harbor for FREE as part of Trails and Sails
Come join North Shore Adventures and Outdoor Center for some fun on the water! No experience necessary. Depart from our private beach in one of our safe, stable kayaks or paddle boards and paddle around the historic Rockport Harbor for 30 mins. See lobster boats, Motif #1, the Rockport Break water...
10:30 pm

Trails & Sails

Explore the North Shore with over 150 Free Events in Essex National Heritage Area's Trails & Sails celebration in Massachusetts.
Essex National Heritage Area sites will offer over 150 free family fun events from September 14-29, 2024 for the annual celebration of TRAILS & SAILS. Discover special places in your backyard and be guided through unique landscapes on land and sea, explore historic properties, and take in...
7:00 am to 10:00 pm

Thursday, September 25

Saugus Iron Works Park Grounds & Estuary Walk

Take a hike along the Saugus River Estuary ande explore the Saugus Iron Works Park grounds in Massachusetts
Learn about the natural world in Saugus while ecploring the park ground ast the Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site in Massachusetts.
7:00 am to 7:00 pm

Babson Farm Quarry Self-guided Walking Tour at Halibut Point

Kids will enjoy this tour of the Halibut Point State Park and Quarry with a focus on its stone-cutting history!
Take a self guided tour at one of Massachusetts most beautiful locations!
7:00 am to 6:00 pm

Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit at Pingree School

Pingree School in Hmailton Massachusetts hosts their annual Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture exhibit each Fall. Sculpture: Phoenix by Robin Tost.
Pingree School hosts the 16th annual Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit on their campus in South Hamilton, Massachusetts .
8:00 am to 6:00 pm

Salem Witch Hunt Walking Tour

Learn about the true reality of the Salem Massachusetts Witch Trials Salem Massachusetts on a self guided walking tour with Essex Heritage
This self-guided walking tour is designed to help explain the true history behind the Salem Witch Trials. After more than three centuries of storytelling through countless books, movies, and television shows, the line between historical fact and dramatic fiction has become increasingly blurred....
9:00 am to 5:00 pm

Crescent Farm Corn Maze

Crescent Farm corn maze in Haverhill Massachusetts
Imagine the biggest puzzle you’ve ever seen. Now imagine a day in the sunshine with your friends or family. Now add an adventure that takes teamwork and memory skills. All these things and more can be found at Crescent Farms Corn Maze. Crescent Farm Corn Maze trails cut into 9 acres of corn. Inside...
9:00 am to 9:00 pm

Step Inside the Historic Custom House

Take in the views of this prominent building where Nathaniel Hawthorne once worked and the U.S. Custom Service operated. This Custom House was built in 1819 and housed offices for the officers of the U.S. Customs Service, as well as an attached warehouse, the Public Stores, used for the storage of...
9:30 am to 4:30 pm

Kidleidoscope

Kidleidoscope at Maudslay State Park is a chance for preschoolers to explore the park, enjoy a story and make a craft!
Maudslay State Park has created this program for their youngest crowd! The park interpreter will lead a weekly nature themed preschool aged program that involves a story time and outdoor exploration of Maudslay trails and gardens! 
10:00 am to 11:00 am

Saugus Iron Works House Tours

Free Ranger guided tours of the Saugus Iron Works House in Massachusetts
Join National Park staff at Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site for a 30-minute tour of The Iron Works House.
11:00 am

Step Aboard the Friendship of Salem

Permission to come aboard the Friendship of Salem is granted at Derby Wharf in Salem Massachusetts!
Explore the FRIENDSHIP OF SALEM, a replica tall ship based on a 1796 Salem vessel at Salem Maritime National Historic Site.
1:30 pm to 4:30 pm

Saugus Iron Works Tours

Free Ranger guided tours at Saugus Iron Works Colonial Industrial Site in Massachusetts
Join the National Park staff at Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site for a tour of the colonial industrial site. On select days, you may be able to stick around and witness pop-up molten iron pour, blacksmithing, waterwheel demonstrations, and take part in hands-on river stewardship activities.
2:00 pm
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