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
Brookwood School Summer Program for kids Pre-K through 9 in Manchester 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

Kidleidoscope at Breakheart Reservation

Kidleidoscope is a program designed for preschoolers at Bradley Palmer State Park
Come join our park interpreter for a story time and nature walk! Complete a small craft and explore the woods! Walks are gently paced and approximately 1 mile, though not accessible for strollers. Appropriate for families with children 3-5 years old. Meet at the Visitor Center.
10:30 am to 11:30 am

Music Together - Friday

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® classes make it easy for parents/primary caregivers to play a crucial role in activating their child's music development. Classes are 45 minutes...
10:30 am to 11:15 am

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...
1:30 pm to 3:00 pm

Drop-In Family LEGO at HWPL

Wednesdays are LEGO Build Days at the Hamilton-Wenham Public Library
Put your imagination and building skills to the test at this self-directed drop-in program. All ages are welcome with a caregiver.
3:15 pm to 4:15 pm

Saturday, January 25

Superbowl of Birding 2025

The Superbowl of Birding 2025 is a unique competition conducted in Rockingham County, NH, and Essex County, Massachusetts
The Superbowl of Birding 2025 is a unique competition conducted in Rockingham County, NH, and Essex County, MA. During a 12-hour period, teams of birders of all ages and abilities seek out the greatest number of avian species and amass the most points based on the rarity of the birds recorded....
5:00 am to 5:00 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

Music Together - Saturday

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® classes make it easy for parents/primary caregivers to play a crucial role in activating their child's music development. Classes are 45 minutes...
9:15 am to 11:15 am

Gloucester's So Salty 2025

Celebrate Gloucester Massachusetts recognizably salty character with local cultural institutions in the heart of downtown.
Celebrate the fish city’s recognizably salty character with local cultural institutions and businesses during the 4th Annual Gloucester’s So Salty festival on January 25 and 26, 2025 from 10:00 am – 5:00 pm! Over 1,800 people came out last year to share their salty pride while enjoying free ice...
10:00 am to 5:00 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

Befriend the Barnyard

Befriend the Barnyard is a hands-on barnyard experience at the Trustees of Reservations' Appleton Farms in Ipswich Massachusetts
Discover our special barnyard animals! Our Angora rabbits Violet, Mabel, Oiver and Charles; Nubian goats Maeve, Morgana, and Mordred; dairy cows Gray, Jasmine, their calves Gigi and Joanie and our friendly flock of heritage chickens will take center stage as we learn about what makes them so unique...
11:00 am to 1:00 pm

Dungeons & Dragons Club at Essex Library

The Essex Massachusetts Library hosts a Dungeons and Dragons club for local kids.
Enjoy a the role playing game Dungeons and Dragons on Mondays, 5:30-7pm with Student Dungeon Master, Gus Hall. Spaces are limited, register early!
5:30 pm to 7:30 pm

Nice n' Easy Hike at Breakheart Reservation

Nice and Easy winter hike at Breakheart Reservation in Saugus Massachusetts
Join the Park Interpreter for this weekly guided hike! Each trip will highlight natural and historic features unique to Breakheart. Hikes are moderately paced and range from 2-3 miles over sometimes uneven and rocky terrain. Best for ages 8 years and up. Meet at the Visitor Center.
9:30 pm to 11:30 pm

Sunday, January 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
Subscribe to Skill Building