Sugar Grove Nature Center offers summer youth programs
 

[June 15, 2016]  Sugar Grove Nature Center Announces Exciting Program Opportunities for the Whole Family! Join our Nature Family on One or All of these Fabulous Programs! To register, or for more information, please email [e-mail]  or call 309.874.2174.

Kids Summer Nature Study

Looking for educational, memorable opportunities for your kids this summer? Enroll them in our Summer Nature Study Programs Today! All programs require advanced registration and payment. Space is limited. Register by visiting our website at sugargrovenaturecenter.org, email [e-mail]  or call 309.874.2174. Classes could be cancelled if minimum enrollment is not met by the registration deadline. Please contact us for availability.

Nature Fun Club

Tuesdays, June 14-July 19 (6 sessions); 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.;
Ages 6-8

Nature Adventurer's Club

Tuesdays, June 14-July 19 (6 sessions); 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.;
Ages 9-12

Discovery and exploration will be emphasized in this exciting program. Along with environmental themes, show-and-tell, and projects, participants will enjoy plenty of unstructured time in nature. While these programs run concurrently, ages will be divided for most activities.


Fee for Series: Registration & prepayment required by June 7. Discounts available for members.

Frontier Kids 

Wednesday, June 29; 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.;
Ages 6-8 

Wednesday, June 29; 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.;
Ages 9-12 


Meet a real buckskinner and learn what skills were needed to survive on the frontier in the 1800’s. Create fun craft projects, play old-time games, and sample snacks from the turn of the 19th century! 


Registration & prepayment required by June 22. Discounts available for members.

Meet the Monarchs 

Wednesday, July 13; 9:30-11:30 a.m.;
Ages 6-8;
Wednesday, July 13; 12:30-2:30 p.m.;
Ages 9-12

Come explore the magnificent monarch with Laurel Schumacher, Earthkeeper and first grade teacher at Thomas Metcalf Laboratory School! You will learn how to find and identify monarchs in their natural habitat. Explore the life cycle, food sources and habitat of a monarch butterfly. Find out why monarchs need our protection and how you can do your part in conserving this marvelous insect! 


Registration & prepayment required by July 6. Discounts available for members.

Creek Stomp 

Tuesday, July 26; 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.;
Ages 6-8
Thursday, July 28; 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.;

Ages 9-12

Kids will love getting wet and muddy as they explore the banks and depths of a nearby creek! Learn about some creatures we might encounter, then head out to creek to see what we can find!


Registration and prepayment required by July 19. Discounts available for members.

McLean County Art Center Mobile ROVER: Plein Air Watercolor Painting 

Friday, June 3; 1:00-4:00 p.m.;
Ages 12-19

We are delighted to welcome the McLean County Arts Center’s ROVER: Mobile Arts Program for this exciting program! Sugar Grove Nature Center provides the perfect setting for this introduction to outdoor studio practice. Under the direction of local artist-teacher Dale Evans, students will practice painting landscapes “en plein air” (in the open air) using professional artist-grade watercolors. A month-long exhibition of the artwork created will be held in MCAC’s Brandt Gallery.


Free: Registration is required and seating is limited. Visit mcac.org to sign up.

Youth Nature Photography Workshop

Thursday, July 7; 9:30-11:30 a.m.;
Ages 9-12 


Explore the art of nature photography with John Tobias! Learn to use the features of your camera while creating gorgeous photographs of the natural world. Bring a digital camera with fully charged batteries (or extra batteries), and a memory card that can hold up to 100 images. No cell phone cameras, please. You will spend some time outdoors, so dress for the weather. 


Registration and prepayment required by June 30. Discounts available for members.
 

Stream Discovery, Citizen Science 

Friday, July 22; 10:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m.;
Ages 12-16


Determine the health of a nearby stream by testing the water quality and identifying its macro invertebrate inhabitants. We’ll examine all the things that we find and analyze the creek’s physical, biological, and chemical components. This information will then be entered into a statewide database and be compared with other waterways in Illinois.
Sign up today and join us in some science fun!

Please bring a lunch. Registration and prepayment required by July 15. Discounts available for members.

[Rachael Kramp, Environmental Support Specialist]