Pre-School

Vacation Week Flyby: Get Ready, Gather, and Go!

Lots of fun activities are part of every Fly-by at Joppa Flats Education Center!

Our school vacation programs offer a wide variety of indoor and outdoor activities while we keep minds active and hands busy during break! Each session offers a different theme, with art activities, experiments, group games, and more. It's free-flow learning for the whole family. Come once or make it a multi-day experience! Fly by for an hour or stay all day for a vacation activity that suits your family schedule.

When:

Thursday, December 28, 2012 10 am - 2 pm

Location:

Joppa Flats Education Center

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Family Flyby: Boats Afloat!

Make your own boat, then see if it floats at Joppa Flats Education Center!

Free-flow learning at Joppa Flats is fun for the whole family. There's simple science fun with coloring pages, crafts, and toys for ages 2 to 6; science experiments and group challenges for ages 7 and up; and outdoor exploration, seasonal live animals, and scheduled family presentations for everyone. Fly by for an hour or stay all day for family time that suits your schedule. There's something different to see and do with every visit! This week, kids are encouraged to be a pirate for the day, learn the skills a sailor needs at sea, and learn about ocean conservation!

When:

Saturday, July 7, 2012 10am - 2pm

Location:

Joppa Flats Education Center

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Family Flyby: Return of the Touch Tank

You can look at, AND touch the creatures in Joppa Flats touch tank!

Free-flow learning at Joppa Flats is fun for the whole family. There's simple science fun with coloring pages, crafts, and toys for ages 2 to 6; science experiments and group challenges for ages 7 and up; and outdoor exploration, seasonal live animals, and scheduled family presentations for everyone. Fly by for an hour or stay all day for family time that suits your schedule. There's something different to see and do with every visit! This week we're thrilled to have our touch tank back for the season. Come look AND touch the creature that live in our tank!

When:

Saturday, June 2, 2012 10am - 2pm

Location:

Joppa Flats Education Center

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Family Flyby: Gardening for Wlildlife

What you plant in your yard determines the kid of wildlife that visits!

CANCELED: 5/5 8 a.m. Note to all readers: Lisa Hutchings & Elyssa Davis want to inform you that we had to cancel the gardening family flyby that was scheduled for Sat May 5th.

Free-flow learning at Joppa Flats is fun for the whole family. There's simple science fun with coloring pages, crafts, and toys for ages 2 to 6; science experiments and group challenges for ages 7 and up; and outdoor exploration, seasonal live animals, and scheduled family presentations for everyone. Fly by for an hour or stay all day for family time that suits your schedule. There's something different to see and do with every visit! This week we'll focus on how to make your back yard more inviting to wildlife by choosing the right plants and planting them to create shelter.

When:

Saturday, May 5, 2012 10am - 2pm

Location:

Joppa Flats Education Center

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Family Flyby: Flippered Friends

Learn about animals with flippers, their similarities and differences!

What do whales, dolphins, sea lions, seals, walruses and manatees have in common? They all have flippers! Join us for free-flow learning at Joppa Flats that is fun for the whole family. There's simple science fun with coloring pages, crafts, and toys for ages 2 to 6; science experiments and group challenges for ages 7 and up; and outdoor exploration, seasonal live animals, and scheduled family presentations for everyone. Fly by for an hour or stay all day for family time that suits your schedule. There's something different to see and do with every visit!

When:

Saturday, April 14, 2012 10am - 2pm

Location:

Joppa Flats Education Center

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Family Flyby: Animal Folklore

Brer rabbit and the tar baby is a classic american folktale

When:

Saturday, March 10, 2012 10:00 am - 2:00 pm

Location:

Joppa Flats Education Center

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Family Flyby: Endangered Species Success Stories

Many whales are bouncing back from the brink of extinction!

Come learn about the human impact, the conservation movement, and the local species that have been de-listed in Massachusetts! Lots of hands-on and take-home crafts to enjoy!

When:

Saturday, February 4, 2012 10:00 am - 2:00 pm

Location:

Joppa Flats Education Center

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Family Flyby: Super Birds

This month's Family Flyby will be in conjunction with the Super Bowl of Birding!

This Family Flyby will run in conjunction with the Superbowl of Birding 2024. This competition is a big deal in the birding world, and the Joppa Flats Education Center is going to be brimming with avid birders! What a great opportunity to learn from folks with lots of experience!

When:

Saturday, January 28, 2012 10:00 am - 2:00 pm

Location:

Joppa Flats Education Center

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Meet Backyard Birds

What birds come to your yard in the winter? Find out at Joppa Flats Education Center!

Drop in at Joppa Flats for an up-close winter wildlife experience! On select weekend and school vacation days, Joppa Flats volunteer Deb La Roy presents demonstrations on bird research and banding. After capturing wild birds in the Joppa backyard, Deb brings them inside to measure, weigh, examine, and then release them. The unique band that Deb places carefully on each bird’s leg connects other bird researchers with the data she’s collected. You’ll learn about your own backyard birds and why they’re here while watching scientific research in action.

When:

Fridays, January 13 & 20, 2017 10:30-1:30

Location:

Joppa Flats Education Center

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Eco-Art: Busy Beaver Builders

Join us as we look for elusive river mammals at Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary. Photo: American Beaver ©Scott Santino

Experience what life is like as the largest rodent in North America. We will examine a beaver mound up close, and then take a walk to see a beaver lodge, dam, and scent mounds. Discover how beavers continue to change the habitats in which they live and how other species of plants and animals benefit. On our return, we will make beaver dioramas out of natural materials.

When:

Thursday, July 11, 2013 9-11:00 am

Location:

Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary

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Babson Farm Quarry Self-guided Walking Tour at Halibut Point

Take a self guided tour at one of Massachusetts most beautiful locations!

Where: Halibut Point State Park

7:00 am to 6:00 pm

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Saugus Iron Works Park Grounds & Estuary Walk

Learn about the natural world in Saugus while ecploring the park ground ast the Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site in Massachusetts.

Where: Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site

7:00 am to 7:00 pm

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Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit at Pingree School

Pingree School hosts the 15th annual Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit on their campus in South Hamilton, MA. Pingree . The exhibit will open in early September with more than 50 temporary works on display in addition to the 20 pieces in the permanent collection of Pingree School. The exhibit ...

Where: Pingree School

8:00 am to 6:00 pm

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Crescent Farm Corn Maze

Imagine the biggest puzzle you’ve ever seen. Now imagine a day in the sunshine with your friends or family. Now add an adventure that takes teamwork and memory skills. All these things and more can be found at Crescent Farms Corn Maze. Crescent Farm Corn Maze trails cut into 9 acres of corn. Inside...

Where: Crescent Farm

9:00 am to 9:00 pm

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Corn MAiZE and Haunted Attractions at Connors Farm - Danvers

Come to Connors Farm to find your way through this year's maze and enjoy many family fun activities! After completing the maze, stay and have some fun around the farm. Children enjoy apple and pumpkin picking, hayrides, and most of all, visiting the barnyard animals.

Where: Connors Farm

9:00 am to 6:00 pm

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Sing & Dance with the Music Man

Come join the fun at Community House Of Hamilton & Wenham Monday, Thursday and Saturday mornings at 10am for 30 - 45 minutes of great music with Brian Doser! Sing and dance with the Music Man during a family concert, featuring familiar and original tunes, performed by local dad and musician,...

Where: Community House Of Hamilton & Wenham

10:00 am to 10:45 am

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Hallowed Harvest Salem

Salem's only Jack-O'-Lantern festival, known as "Hollowed Harvest: Wicked Labyrinth", returns for its 4th season with even more Jack-O'-Lantern magic than ever before! Prepare to be blown away by hundreds of intricately carved Jack-o'-Lanterns, an epic spider web tunnel, hands-on pumpkin carving,...

Where: Shetland Park

12:00 pm to 10:00 pm

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Saturday, November 9

Harvest Market at Appleton Farms

Join The Trustees in celebration of the harvest season at a special farmers market, featuring a bounty of Appleton organic produce along with a selection of other local edibles & gifts from area artisans, crafters, and producers of fine foods. The Appleton culinary team will have sweet &...

Where: Appleton Farms

12:00 pm to 4:00 pm

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CraneOutdoors: Castle Neck Hike in the Dunes

While just about everybody on the North Shore has probably been to Crane Beach, the dunes of Castle Neck are a much less explored world unto themselves. Offering one of the most accessible dune ecosystems north of Cape Cod, Castle Neck has over six miles of trails, traversing the dunes, maritime...

Where: Crane Wildlife Refuge on the Crane Estate

1:00 pm to 3:30 pm

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Sunday, November 10

Saugus Iron Works Park Grounds & Estuary Walk

Learn about the natural world in Saugus while ecploring the park ground ast the Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site in Massachusetts.

Where: Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site

7:00 am to 7:00 pm

♦ Read More →

Babson Farm Quarry Self-guided Walking Tour at Halibut Point

Take a self guided tour at one of Massachusetts most beautiful locations!

Where: Halibut Point State Park

7:00 am to 6:00 pm

♦ Read More →

Flying Horse Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit at Pingree School

Where: Pingree School

8:00 am to 6:00 pm

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Newburyport Farmers' Market

The Newburyport Farmers Summer Market celebrates local fresh produce every Sunday morning rain or shine! Start your Sunday browsing fresh North Shore local produce, meats, cheeses, and seafood in an open air market atmosphere! Food and beverage vendors offer fresh hot coffee, breakfast treats and...

Where: Tannery Marketplace

9:00 am to 1:00 pm

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CraneExplorer: Shipwreck Scholars

Coastal views with a side of shipwreck! Families will be guided on a Castle Hill hike through the salt marsh, dunes, and beach, while learning about local nautical history, including the role of Fox Creek Canal and Robinson Boat Yard in the area’s shipbuilding legacy, and the fascinating tale of...

Where: Crane Wildlife Refuge on the Crane Estate

10:00 am to 12:00 pm

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Cat's Meow at the Crane Estate

Our imagination is one of our greatest assets. Imagine living in 1929 and visiting the Crane family at their summer home in Ipswich. The house is so big and Mrs. Crane’s kitty, Ptolemy, has gone missing just before the party! Can you help a family servant find our mischievous Siamese? Once he’s...

Where: Castle Hill on the Crane Estate

10:30 am to 11:30 am

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Foraged Fall Wreath Workshop at Long Hill

Bring the energy of the season into your home or onto your door with our Fall Wreath Workshop, partnered with bioregional herbalist and foraging instructor, Iris Weaver. In this hands-on workshop, create a 8” to 12” unique wreath using foraged dried plant stalks, pine cones, nuts, acorns, and more...

Where: Long Hill and Sedgwick Gardens

10:30 am to 12:30 pm

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