Summer Fun Guide

20199877 Alabama Ave. S.W.

Wilmot, OH 44689 programs@wildernesscenter.org

wildernesscenter.orgAll programs are free for TWC members, with a donation requested from non-members, unless otherwise indicated. For more information, or to register, call 330.359.5235 or visit wildernesscenter.org

Special Days and Nights Star Watch First Friday of every month starting at 8:00 pmThe Wilderness Center Astronomy Club members invite you to a star watch where, if it is clear, you can observe celestial objects through different types of telescopes and learn interesting facts about those objects. Cloudy or clear, a planetarium theater show and a constellation program about the night sky will be presented.

Geology DayThursday, June 6, 11:00 – 2:00Start an egg carton rock collection, learn about rocks, minerals and fossils, make rock art and visit the rock walk. Not enough? Then experience an earthquake in surround sound and sight as you watch Earthquake: Evidence of a Restless Planet in the full dome theater!

Earthquake: Evidence of a Restless Planet Theater ShowThursday, June 6, 11:30 and 1:00Explore the forces that transform the surface of our planet. Fly along the San Andreas Fault before diving into the planet’s interior. Journey back in time to witness the 1906 San Francisco earthquake, and the break-up of Pangaea 200 million years ago. Data-driven visualizations illustrate Earth’s story, revealing how subtle motions and sudden ruptures have shaped our planet over eons.

Herpetology Day Wednesday, July 10, 11:00 – 2:00A chance to get up-close with native Ohio reptiles and amphibians. Meet live frogs, salamanders, snakes and turtles, take a hike to look for snakes, stop by the lake and look for turtles, watch snake and turtle feeding.

Habitat Earth: Fulldome Theater ShowWednesday, July 10, 11:30 and 1:00 show times Living networks connect and support life forms large and small. This show features stunning visualizations of both biological and human-built networks (and of how they intersect), taking show-goers on an incredible, immersive journey through the interconnectedness of life on Earth.

Creatures of the NightFriday, July 19, 8:00 – 9:30 pmSaturday, August 10, 8:00 – 9:30 pmLearn about the wild animals that come out at night. Get up close and personal with some and hike to explore the forest nightlife! Remember to bring a flashlight.

Star Watch: Perseid Meteor ShowerSaturday, August 10, 9:00 pm

Join the Astronomy Club to view the Perseid meteor shower. Annual meteor showers, such as the

Perseids, happen when the Earth passes through streams of debris left behind by comets and asteroids. The body responsible for creating the Perseid meteor shower is comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle. Viewing Perseids is easy, all you need is a comfortable chair and a dark sky. We will also be using the telescopes in the observatory to

look at other objects in our night sky. So bring a comfortable chair and join us for a night of Perseid

watching. Cancelled if cloudy.

Life in the Rotten LogThursday, August 15, 1:30 – 3:00

Discover the abundance of life on rotten logs! Compare the plants and fungi that cling to the bark. Then, turn over rotten logs to see what kinds of creatures call them home. We will MAGNIFY these tiny creatures under microscopes to reveal their survival secrets.

Take a Hike Snake WalksSnakes are attracted to areas where they can warm up after a cool evening. Join a naturalist as we hike to these warming spots to find common snakes of the area. We will hike in brushy fields, so wear sturdy shoes and long pants. Saturday, June 1, 11:00 – 12:00Friday, July 5, 1:00 – 2:00Thursday, August 1, 11:00 – 12:00

Wilderness WalksLearn the natural history of the area and season. Spend an afternoon on a walk around one of the trails with a Wilder-ness Center guide! Sunday, June 2, 2:00 – 3:00Sunday, June 23, 2:00 – 3:00Sunday, July 28, 2:00 – 3:00Sunday, August 11, 2:00 – 3:00Sunday, August 18, 2:00 – 3:00

Butterfly WalksLearn about life cycles of butterflies and how to identify them. We will walk the Prairie trail to view the common butterflies visiting the area. Cancelled if raining. Tuesday, June 11, 11:00 – 12:00Saturday, June 29, 1:00 – 2:00 Thursday, July 18, 11:00 – 12:00Saturday, July 27, 1:00 – 2:00Wednesday, August 7, 10:30 – 11:30

Summer Days Family Nature Adventure Children learn a love of nature and the outdoors from the adults in their lives. Our group leaders will plan two days of nature activities for you and your special child to explore! Each session has been created to intrigue and challenge children of that age group. Sign your child(ren) up by age group. Activities will be different each year for the age groups to prevent repetition. Cost: $24 per adult/child member pair, $34 per adult/child non-member pair. Pre-registration required. Please provide email so we can send a confirmation letter with additional information about each specific session.

Nature Trailblazers: Ages 4-6 July 18-19, 10:00 – 2:00Take to the trail with your young child for guided hikes, games and group activities. We’ll discover wonders along the trail, share nature stories and create nature art to fill our days with adventure.

Plant Pathfinders: Ages 6-8 July 23-24, 10:00 – 2:00Explore why different plants grow in the woods than in the prairie. How can seeds move and plant themselves? Hike to a variety of

habitats to investigate plants, play games, collect samples and build a take-home

terrarium.

Niche Detectives: Ages 8-10

July 25-26, 10:00 – 2:00Learn about producers, consumers and decomposers around The Wilderness Center. Make a bug box and travel through the food web

as we learn about these important jobs in nature.

Wetland Wanderers: Ages 10-14

July 30-31, 10:00 – 2:00 Have a wet and wonderful time at TWC

and a special trip to Dundee Falls! We’ll learn about different types of wetlands, the things that live in them and race homemade boats down a river.

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Story Time We’d like to share some of our favorite nature books with you and your young child. We’ll read a story or two together and go outside for a walk related to the tale. Stories are for ages 3 – 4 years old, but younger and older children are welcome. Finding FishThursday, June 13, 11:00 – 12:00Something fishy is going on when we meet our fish friends. Cast a line with us as we hear fish stories, sing fishy songs and hike to the lake to feed the fish.

Spinning Tales of SpidersThursday, July 11, 11:00 – 12:00Spiders are nature’s artists weaving silky webs to catch prey or travel through the air. Share spider stories, silly songs and quaint poems that help them be less creepy. We’ll finish by hiking to the new Spider Web feature at the Playscape so little ones can imagine being a spider, too.

Going on a Bug HuntWednesday, August 21, 11:00 – 12:00Look for bugs in the grass & along the trail after we sing songs, read stories & recite fingerplays.

Playscape Playdates Add fun activities and extra imagination during your Playscape visit. Join the playdate any time during the two-hour time period to participate in the activities!

Pirates at the PlayscapeSunday, June 9, 2:00 – 4:00Tuesday, June 25, 10:00 – 12:00Ahoy there, maties! Join a pirate crew with friends and imagine yourself on the high seas. Cook in the galley, hoist the sails, draw your sword and make a telescope to take on further journeys.

Come in to Our WebWednesday, July 3, 10:00 – 12:00Join us to “get connected” and celebrate the new Spider Web feature at the Playscape. Play spider games with friends and family, search for and capture living spider specimens and weave your own web.

The Nose KnowsTuesday, July 16, 10:00 – 12:00Nature is full of interesting smells. Crush plants, squeeze fruits, and blend liquids to create your own new scent. Maybe you’ll discover a new perfume or a stinky stench.

Reuse and Recycle Round-upTuesday, August 13, 10:00 – 12:00Nature is full of lots of parts, each having a purpose or use. But what if we take them apart, we might reuse the parts to make something new. Bring your imagination to deconstruct and reuse common items and take home a new invention or natural organism.

wildernesscenter.org

Friday, October 11 Saturday, October 12All programs are free for TWC members, with a donation

requested for non-members, unless otherwise indicated.

Planetarium Theater Shows Come inside after a hike to cool off with the stars! Our new digital planetarium theater offers a unique learning experience. A constellation program on tonight’s sky will conclude each show.Free for members, $2.00 donation per person for non-members.

Journey to a Billion SunsFriday, June 7, 11:00 and 1:00Saturday, June 8, 12:30 and 2:00Journey to a Billion Suns is a breathtaking adventure, linked to the European Gaia mission launched in December 2013, which will take you on a fascinating journey through the Milky Way. This show tells the exciting, untold story of mapping the stars and compiles ancient history with scientific evolution.

Lars the Little Polar Bear Tuesday, June 18, 9:30 and 11:00 Wednesday, June 19, 12:30 and 2:00Lars, the Little Polar Bear, is the beloved star of a children’s book “Little Polar Bear and the Whales” written by Hans de Beer. Lars spends the first day of spring exploring near his home, making friends with a cormorant and a group of whales and touring the Arctic. Learn how polar bears live and also learn about the Arctic night sky.

Chronicle of a Journey to EarthSaturday, June 22, 12:30 and 2:00Imagine yourself to be a traveler from the depths of interstellar space. Being curious you decide to explore this solar system. You will traverse the Oort Cloud, pass by the gas giants and their families of moons and rings, as well as the rocky worlds of Mars, Mercury, Venus and Earth. You’ll stop to study Earth more closely and learn about the reason for seasons, Moon phases and solar and lunar eclipses.

Touching the Edge of the UniverseThursday, June 27, 12:30 and 2:00Friday, June 28, 11:00 and 12:30This fulldome show will explore the launch and orbiting of the next generation of space telescopes, Herschel and Planck – and out into the universe. These complex space telescopes will look at very distant events in space that our eyes cannot see. They will observe the birth of stars and planets and look back to the very beginning of time.

Two Small Pieces of GlassSunday, June 30, 2:00Learn how the telescope has helped us understand our place in space and how telescopes continue to expand our understanding of the universe. A local astronomer enlightens students on the history and workings of the telescope. They see how the largest observatories in the world use these instruments to explore the universe and the discoveries these incredible tools have made. We Choose SpaceSaturday, July 6, 12:30 and 2:00Discover man’s past on the Moon, the building of the space station and Man’s possible future on the Moon.

The Cowboy AstronomerSunday, July 14, 2:00Join the cowboy as he regales the audience with a wide range of star tales, explaining along the way the processes of star birth and star death, and how stars’ temperatures and colors are related. Throughout the show, he uses examples from many different cultures to identify familiar celestial objects and constellations.

Moles: What Is Out ThereFriday, July 19, 11:30 and 1:00Saturday, July 20, 12:30 and 2:00

Children (and parents!) will love Plato, the cutest mole ever, who discovers day and night, the Sun and Moon and the stars. Through traditional storytelling, children will learn basic concepts about science while having a great time.

Cosmic Origins SpectrographSaturday, August 3, 12:30 and 2:00

See the cosmos through the Hubble Space Telescope’s Cosmic Origins Spectrograph. Learn what spectroscopy is and how it is used to study quasars, cosmic evolution and the development of large-scale structures in the universe.

Incoming!Saturday, August 10, 7:00 pm and 8:00 pmCutting-edge visualizations bring data from current NASA missions to life while taking you on a ride through the dynamic story of our cosmic origins – and how scientific advances may allow us to find and track cosmic threats before they reach planet Earth. Stay after the 8:00 show to see stars through telescopes and watch for the “shooting stars” in the Perseid meteor shower if skies are clear.

Tonight’s SkySaturday, August 24, 12:30 and 2:00Discover the night sky! The instructor will lead you from one constellation to another to help you learn how to navigate amongst the stars. You will learn star names, constellation stories and the planets in tonight’s sky.

Environment Investigators Environment Investigators’ programs are geared for all ages of children working with adults. Programs are free for members, a donation is appreciated from non-members.

Pond ExplorationThere’s more to the pond than meets the eye! Learn about the animals big and small that live in the pond as you dip-net to catch, observe and then release them!Tuesday, June 4, 10:30 – 11:30Tuesday, July 9, 10:30 – 11:30Friday, August 9, 1:00 – 2:00

Insect Fun!Let’s catch some insects! We will use

nets and bug boxes to study the different types of insects and then

release them to their home.Wednesday, June 12, 1:00 – 2:00Tuesday, July 30, 10:30 – 11:30Tuesday, August 6, 10:30 – 11:30

Stream WalkersWe will collect fish and

invertebrates from Sugar Creek and then identify them to learn

what this means about the water’s quality. Bring creek shoes or your

rubber boots if you plan to stay dry!Friday, June 21, 1:00 – 2:00

Thursday, July 25, 10:30 – 11:30Wednesday, August 14, 10:30 – 11:30

Wilderness Sprouts Once school starts, spend time with your little ones at TWC! Wilderness Sprouts programs are designed for children ages 2 – 5 and their adult. Check out the Fall – Winter Sprouts brochure for more preschool programming!

Nature MusikFriday, Aug 23, 10:00 – 10:45 We will do basic rhythm, tonal and movement activities, all based on the seasonal nature that is happening outside the window. Be prepared to sing, dance, play simple instruments and be active with your young child!

Our World Full of WaterThursday, Aug 29, 11:00 – 12:00 Bring your children to explore the importance of water in our world for people, plants and animals. Experience ways water is used for drinking, washing, cooking, playing and more. We’ll have a splashing good time!