Science

Solar Eclipse Celebration

Photo: NASA image of moon’s shadow over the South Pacific

Come be a part of the “Great American Eclipse.” A partial solar eclipse will be visible in Massachusetts on August 21, and we’ll celebrate by building solar-eclipse viewers to safely watch the event. We’ll also learn a little about astronomy and discover why eclipses happen. Our next solar eclipse won’t be visible until 2024, so don’t miss this chance! 

When: 
Monday, August 21, 2017 1-3pm

Ocean Food Web Cruise

This Beach Creature Cruise aboard the Yankee Clipper is about the estuary

Join Mass Audubon's Joppa Flats Education Center on a 'Beach Creature' cruise aboard Newburyport Harbor Tours Inc.'s Yankee Clipper through the Merrimack River Estuary! Teacher Naturalist, Lisa Hutchings will provide her expert pair of eyes to help your family find all the exciting sights and sounds of the marshes and varied habitats of Plum Island as you cruise along the Merrimack River.  This cruise will focus on the food web of the ocean, marine mammal facts and live beach creatures!

When: 
Sunday, August 13, 2017 8:45-10:45am

Adventures on the Wild Side

Kids can get outsoors andf explore the wilds of the North Shore with Kestrel Educational Adventures during February Vacation

Spend February vacation learning to survive in the wilds, track animals, and create your own adventure story. Our group will meet each day in an incredible heated greenhouse, and will venture out onto the many nearby trails to find clues left behind by wildlife about how they survive the winter, and practice our own survival skills. We will learn to become keen winter naturalists; figuring out what animal’s path we are following and how it eats and protects itself. As humans, we will build warm shelters, find food and water, perform basic first aid, make fires, and cook treats over the flames. At the end, use words, photographs, or drawings to create the story of your adventures. Hosted by Kestrel Educational Adventures at Glen Urquhart School.

Imagine, Sing, & Learn: Moths, Caterpillars and Butterflies

Learn about butterflies, where they are going and what they eat at Joppa Flats.

This parent/child program is designed for the creative, curious, and active preschooler who loves animals. Each 90-minute session offers a structured series of activities including original songs, movement, dramatic play, hands-on science, and a thematic snack. You'll receive coloring pages, song lyrics, vocabulary, a fun fact sheet, and a suggested reading list in an electronic goody bag!

When: 
Wednesday, July 26, 2017 9:30-11:30am
Friday, July 28, 2017 9:30-11:30am

Imagine, Sing, & Learn: Shorebirds, Sand & Tides

Kids will learn about shorebirds and how they use the beach habitat at ISL

Do you have a child who likes to learn and enjoys one-on-one activities with you? Does your child like to sing and use their imagination? This parent/child program is designed for the creative, curious, and caring preschooler who loves animals. Each 90-minute session offers a structured series of activities including original songs, movement, dramatic play, hands-on science, and a thematic snack. You'll receive coloring pages, song lyrics, vocabulary, a fun fact sheet, and a suggested reading list in an electronic goody bag! This is an indoor/outdoor program. Limited to 12 preschoolers and a grown-up. This week we'll focus on shorebirds and the beach habitat!

When: 
Wednesday, July 12, 2017 9:30 - 11am

Beach Discovery Program

Learn about beach creeatures and their habitats at the Parker River Wildlife Refuge in Newburyport. Photo: ©2013

Your family loves spending time at the beach at Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, so do many wildlife families!  Come join refuge staff and volunteers to learn who else makes the refuge beach their home, and all the shoreline treasures that help support their food, water, shelter needs. This is a drop-in program.  Come for 15 minutes or a few hours.  Kids and families will play games, make crafts, and learn about wildlife and beach habitats using discovery kits.  Earn prizes.  Look for our tent on the beach at Lot #1.  NO preregistration for this program.

When: 
Saturday, July 15, 2017 10am-Noon

Piping Plover Peeping

Learn about piping plovers of the Parker River Wildlife Refuge on this ranger guided tour.

Join park staff from the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge to learn about the federally – threatened Atlantic coast piping plover nests and how it raises its young on Plum Island’s beaches from April through August. Join a refuge ranger for a chance to glimpse this native species in its wild habitat and to hear the story of how biologists work to conserve the plover under the Endangered Species Act.

When: 
Friday, July 21, 2017 9-11am

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Adirondack Leadership Program at Gordon College’s La Vida Center

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

Bruins Pajama Drive

Drop off new pajama donations at libraries across the North Shore as part of the Boston Bruins PJ Drive.
From February 1 through March 15, Cradles to Crayons®, the Boston Bruins, Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners, and Wonderfund are coming together with organizations in your community to collect new pajamas for local children living in low-income and homeless situations. Together, we are...
7:00 am to 9:00 pm

Music Together - Tuesday in Marblehead

Marblehead, Beverly Farms, Hamilton, Salem, Peabody Music Together
Music Together® is a research-based music & movement program for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and the grown-ups who love them. Music Together® of Salem classes make it easy for parents/primary caregivers to play a crucial role in activating their child's music development. Classes are 45...
10:00 am to 10:45 am

Wenham Museum Spring/Summer Sports Sale

Spring & Summer Sports Sale at Wenham Musseum in Massachusetts
Back by popular demand! After a successful inaugural sale in 2024, Wenham Museum’s Spring & Summer Sports Sale returns for its second year. In keeping with the Museum’s former Attic Treasures Sale tradition, the Spring & Summer Sports Sale brings the community together for a fun and...
10:00 am to 6:00 pm

Barnyard Story Hour at Appleton Farms

Kids can meet the barnyard animals and hear a story at Appleton Farms in Ipswich Massachusetts.
Barnyard stories really come alive when you get to see the main characters in real life! Bring the kids down to Appleton Farms for our farm-fresh version of story time. Explore the farmstead, visit our learning garden, see our cows and rabbits, and find a spot to play under a shady tree in our...
10:30 am to 11:30 am

Guided Tour | When Granite Was King!

Find out the story behind the history of granite quarrying at Halibut Point State Park in Rockport, Massachusetts!
Halibut Point State Park is also a granite quarry with a history that goes back billions of years! Over one hundred years ago, the Rockport Granite Company quarried granite stone here.
11:00 am to 12:30 pm

Saturday, March 22

All Family Field Trips - Coastal Winter Wildlife

Joppa Flats Education Center host an outing at the Salisbury Beach State Reservation in Massachusetts
Come explore what nature has in store at some of our most amazing wild places on the north shore. Our engaging and experienced staff will introduce families to local beaches, forests, and wetlands to make observations in nature, identify wildlife, and enjoy hands on science activities outdoors....
10:00 am to 12:00 pm

First Aid, CPR & AED Training at ESM

Get First Aid, CPR or AED Certified in this workshop at Essex Shipbuilding Museum in Massachusetts
Take a CPR, First Aid, and AED Certification Course hosted by the Essex Historical Society and Shipbuilding Museum at the charming Museum School House. Gain essential life-saving skills and the confidence to handle emergencies with ease.
10:00 am to 2:00 pm

Guided Tour | When Granite Was King!

Find out the story behind the history of granite quarrying at Halibut Point State Park in Rockport, Massachusetts!
Halibut Point State Park is also a granite quarry with a history that goes back billions of years! Over one hundred years ago, the Rockport Granite Company quarried granite stone here.
11:00 am to 12:30 pm

CraneOutdoors: Family Winter Wildlife Walk

Come explore the dunes on Castle Neck and Crane Beach in Ipswich Massachusetts to learn about winter wildlife.
A CraneOutdoors Family Winter Wildlife Walk will take you on a stroll through the Crane Beach dunes while learning about the plants and animals that call this special place home. You may be familiar with Crane Beach, but have you ever visited the dune trails? The dunes of Castle Neck are a much...
1:00 pm to 3:00 pm

Sunday, March 23

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

Wenham Museum Spring/Summer Sports Sale

Spring & Summer Sports Sale at Wenham Musseum in Massachusetts
Back by popular demand! After a successful inaugural sale in 2024, Wenham Museum’s Spring & Summer Sports Sale returns for its second year. In keeping with the Museum’s former Attic Treasures Sale tradition, the Spring & Summer Sports Sale brings the community together for a fun and...
10:00 am to 6:00 pm

CraneOutdoors: The Castle Hill Hike

CraneOutdoors: The Castle Hill Hike at the Crane Estate in Ipswich Massachusetts
Come explore the lesser-visited corners of Castle Hill and its surroundings with us this season. This hike is a CraneOutdoors guide favorite because it’s got a little bit of all the things that make the Crane Estate such a special place…
10:00 am to 12:00 pm

Amesbury Winter Market

The Amesbury Winter Market happens every other Sunday indoors at Barewolf Brewing in Amesbury, Massachusetts.
Welcome to Amesbury Market Daze at BareWolf Brewing, a bi-weekly vendor market where local surrounding Amesbury talent and community spirit converge. We take pride in curating a consistent marketplace that showcases local art and food from talented local artisans, chefs, farmers, creators and...
12:00 pm to 4:00 pm

Monday, March 24

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

Wenham Museum Spring/Summer Sports Sale

Spring & Summer Sports Sale at Wenham Musseum in Massachusetts
Back by popular demand! After a successful inaugural sale in 2024, Wenham Museum’s Spring & Summer Sports Sale returns for its second year. In keeping with the Museum’s former Attic Treasures Sale tradition, the Spring & Summer Sports Sale brings the community together for a fun and...
10:00 am to 6:00 pm
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