Published On: December 7th, 2020

Nature Story and Discovery Time

Starting at 11am on Tuesdays in July at the Blue Heron House at 236 Huntress Bridge Road in Effingham

We are bringing back Nature Story and Discovery Time for a four week summer series in July! Join us at the Blue Heron House at 11 every Tuesday in July for a new and exciting program. Each week we’ll welcome a staff member or guest to lead the story and activities. Certain programs will be tailored to specific age groups to take a look at the descriptions below to see what events best suite your child(ren).

July 6th: Seeds and Flowers

Ages 4-8

For our first event we will be welcoming Jo Williams! A recently retired librarian from Kingswood Middle School, Jo will do a program on seeds and flowers, starting the hour by reading “The Tiny Seed” by Eric Carle. We will plant our own seeds, play a game, and look for seeds around the conservation center.

July 13th: Vernal Pools

Ages 4-8

Our Education and Outreach Assistant EB will be leading a program on vernal pools! We will begin by reading “The Secret Pool” written by Kimberly Ridley and illustrated by Rebekah Raye. We will explore the vernal pool looking for frogs, salamanders, insects, and plants. We will then have children design a comic strip featuring their favorite vernal pool super hero.

July 20th: Pollinators

Ages 4-8

Our Outreach Coordinator Moselle Spiller will be leading a program on pollinators! She will read “From Caterpillar to Butterfly” by Deborah Heiligman and illustrated by Bari Weisman. We will do a butterfly craft and look for pollinators around the conservation center. 

July 27th

Ages 6-10

Long-time board member and volunteer Peter Zack will be leading a program on Solar energy! Join us to hear him read “My Light” by Molly Bang. The story will be followed up with two activities, the first involving mini wind turbines and the second involving solar fan kits! Solar energy is a powerful force in our ecosystem and this event will help introduce children to it and allow them to work with it.

Other Programs to attend

Our Education and Outreach Assistant EB has partnered with five local libraries to bring “Frog Discovery Time,” a program on frogs, to the community. In conjunction with the summer reading theme of “Tales and Tails,” children will learn about metamorphosis, what kinds of frogs live here, their calls, and we’ll read a book, play a game and make a craft.

Locations and Dates:

  • The Freedom Public Library at 10am on June 30th
  • The Fryeburg Public Library at 2pm on July 14th
  • The Effingham Public Library at 1pm on July 15th
  • The Conway Public Library at 3:30pm on July 28th
  • The Jackson Public Library at 3 on August 4th