• January 30 – Our Backyard Birds – Let’s learn a little something about our most colorful winter residents. We’ll be looking at the beaks and feet of our various winter avian residents.
• February 13 – Animals in Winter – Sarah Porter, naturalist with the City of New Bedford, will be helping us discover how our local animals survive the long cold winter.
• March 20 – The Chemistry of Tie-Dye with Dr. William Dills of UMass Dartmouth’s Chemistry Department. Let’s learn about the chemical reaction that takes place when a chemical in solid form turns to its liquid one. Please wear old clothes and volunteers are appreciated. This program is best for first grade and up. The cost for the program is $8 for non-members, $6 for members. A t-shirt is provided as part of the program.
• April 3 – Hunting for Fossils – Come learn about hunting and collecting fossils with amateur paleontologist Jim Pierson. Jim will be bringing examples from his own extensive collections of rocks, minerals and fossils. This program is partially funded by a grant from the Marion Cultural Council.
• April 24 – Bird Island Trip with the Harbormaster’s office. Let’s get a look at the tern nesting sites before they get back from their travels. This trip is extremely limited, so please register early.
• May 8 – Vernal Pools – Let’s explore these temporary nurseries for some of our most secretive forest dwellers; featuring salamanders, wood frogs and insect larvae for close-up inspection!
• June 5 – Lookin’ at Lichens – Is it a plant? A fungus? How can so many different looking “things” be related? What can they tell us about the health of the environment we live in?
The cost for all programs is $4 for members, $6 for non-members. PLEASE NOTE: after-school registration forms are to be mailed to the Marion Natural History Museum, P.O. Box 644, Marion, MA 02738. Please do not bring the forms to the school or the library, thank you!
Because the cleanup and repair efforts are continuing at the Museum, our after-school programs are being held at Sippican School, except for the Bird Island trip. We will be meeting students that do not attend Sippican School at the Spring Street entrance between 3:00 and 3:20 pm to walk them to the program.