Drop-in

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 bonded and impounded cargo.

When: 
Wednesday-Sunday, September 13-28, 2025 9:30am-4:30pm

Make a Car or Boat Craft at APL

Kids are invited to come the Amesbury Public Library to a Car or Boat to take home!

Bring the family to create a 3D car or an origami boat in a bottle. All supplies will be outside and enjoyed during the Annual Car Show in downtown Amesbury in the quiet of the Library programming area. Build, decorate, and enjoy some books about transportation! After you’re done with your craft, be sure to check out the Carriagetown Car Show!

When: 
Saturday, September 27, 2025

Animal Adventures Series: Inside & Out

Come learn about your favorite animals and their habitats at the Joppa Flats Center in Newburyport Massachusetts! Photo: Kathy Crane, NOAA Arctic Research Program

Joppa Flats Education Center invites families for family fun about your favorite animals with hands-on science, songs, a take-home craft and outdoor time, weather permitting. This is a three-week series for young "naturalists" and their adventure-loving adult to learn about animals together. Please note there are no live animals in these programs.

When: 
Friday, January 24, 2025 1:30-3pm
Friday, February 7, 2025 1:30-3pm
Friday, March 7, 2025 1:30-3pm

Balch House | Kids Summer Drop-ins

Kids are invited to Balch House in Beverly Massachusetts to play with and make colonial era toys!

Historic Beverly's Hale Farm is host to a fun and interactive series of drop in activities for kids of all ages, available any time the property is open Fridays and Saturdays from 11am to 3pm. Kids are encouraged to try some colonial games and then make their own to take home!

When: 
Mondays & Saturdays, July 3-29, 2023 12-4pm
Location: 

Nature Fractals with Mixed Media at PEM

Come experiment with mixed media and stenciling based on the natural phenomenon of fractals.

Come experiment with mixed media and stenciling based on the natural phenomenon of fractals. A fractal is a pattern in nature that repeats at different scales. If you look closely at nature, you’ll see fractals in everything from snowflakes and seashells to broccoli and branching lightning bolts!

When: 
Fridays, May 5, 12, 19 & 26, 2023 from 3-4:30pm

February Vacation at Joppa Flats: Open Ocean Odyssey

Kids are invited to a drop in session at Joppa Flats Education Center

Joppa Flats Education Center vacation programs offer a wide variety of indoor and outdoor activities while we keep minds active and hands busy during school break. Each session offers a different theme, with art activities, experiments, group games, and scheduled family presentations for everyone. It's free-flow learning for the whole family. Come once or make it a multiple-day adventure; drop in for an hour or stay all day for a vacation activity that suits your family schedule.

When: 
Thursday, Feb 21, 2012 10am - 3pm

February Vacation at Joppa Flats: Wildlife of the World

Come learn about the animals of the world at the Mass Audubon Joppa Flats Cen

Joppa Flats Education Center school vacation programs offer a wide variety of indoor and outdoor activities while we keep minds active and hands busy during school break with free-flow learning for the whole family. Each session offers a different theme, with scheduled family presentations and something to engage hearts and minds for all ages and interests. For ages 7 and up, there are STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, and math) activity stations featuring experiments, challenges, data sheets, maps, and charts. For ages 2 to 6, there are stories, crafts, table top games, coloring pages, and science activities. Family presentations will be offered at 11:00 am and 1:00 pm.

When: 
Monday, February 15, 2016 10am - 3pm

Pages

Landmark Summer Program at Landmark School in Beverly Massachusetts

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

Annual ECTA Equine Expo & Tack Sale

Essex County Trail Association is hosting the annual Equine EXPO at Topsfield Fairgrounds
Don't miss the 31st annual Equine EXPO & Tack Sale, Saturday, April 25, 2025 from 9-3 in the Arena Building at the Topsfield Fairgrounds on Route 1, Topsfield, MA. Individuals, groups & businesses will make up our booths offering new and used items as well as services for the horse and...
9:00 am to 3:00 pm

Family Day at the Bird Banding Station

Kids will learn about local and migrating birds at Joppa Flats Education Center in Newburyport Massachusetts
There's nothing like a visit to Parker River National Wildlife Refuge for wonderful family nature experiences, and seeing the bird banding station in operation is at the top of the list. See Mass Audubon scientists evaluate, examine, and release migrating songbirds while you learn about migration...
9:00 am to 11:30 am

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

4th Saturday at Lynn Museum

Lynn Museum in Massachusetts offers free admission on the second Saturday of each month.
Come to the Lynn Museum and Historical Society for FREE family fun. Join us on the second and fourth Saturday of each month for FREE admission to the Museum from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.! You can view our latest exhibitions, purchase Lynn-themed goods in our shop, check out books in our free library, and...
10:00 am to 2:00 pm

The Legacies of Long Hill: House & Garden Tour

Tour the Gardens at the Trustees of Reservations Long Hill Gardens in Beverly, Massachusetts!
The Trustees of Reservations invite you to join our expert guides for a tour around Long Hill’s stunning Sedgwick Gardens and learn more about the special plants. Step inside the beauty and layered history of Long Hill with a guided tour of its breathtaking gardens and historic house. Once the...
10:30 am to 12:00 pm

Sunday, April 26

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

The Legacies of Long Hill: House & Garden Tour

Tour the Gardens at the Trustees of Reservations Long Hill Gardens in Beverly, Massachusetts!
The Trustees of Reservations invite you to join our expert guides for a tour around Long Hill’s stunning Sedgwick Gardens and learn more about the special plants. Step inside the beauty and layered history of Long Hill with a guided tour of its breathtaking gardens and historic house. Once the...
10:30 am to 12:00 pm

CraneOutdoors: Castle Neck Hike in the Dunes

Hiking the Dunes at the Crane Wildlife refuge with the Trustees of Reservations.
You may be familiar with Crane Beach, but have you ever visited the dune trails? The dunes of Castle Neck are a much less explored world unto themselves. They offer one of the most accessible dune landscapes in New England and trails that provide a firsthand look into the delicate and ever-changing...
1:00 pm to 3:30 pm

Sunday STEAM Club at North Shore Children's Museum

Visit Peabody MA, NorthShore, North Shore Children's Museum
Join in on Sundays at 2:30 for STEAM Club for ages 5-11. Each week participants will explore science, technology, engineering, art, and math with our NSCM staff! Every STEAM club session will see your kids participating in hands-on activities while exploring a new topic. Space is limited, please...
2:30 pm to 4:00 pm

Monday, April 27

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

Tuesday, April 28

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

Barnyard Story Hour at Appleton Farms

Kids can meet the barnyard animals and hear a story at Appleton Farms in Ipswich Massachusetts.
Bring your little ones to Appleton Farms for our farm-fresh story hour. We will read books about animals and nature, maybe sing a song or two, then head up to the carriage barn to visit our Nubian goats, Angora rabbits and see what other animals are out and about on the farm. We will engage in...
10:30 am to 11:30 am

Wednesday, April 29

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

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

Thursday, April 30

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
Subscribe to Drop-in