Got Fossils?

We went to the Imaginology event at the Orange County Fairgrounds recently and we were lucky enough to stumble upon the booth for the Laguna Hills Community Center. They had a few staffers on site and a big box of fossils for kids to dig through.

I was excited to learn that the community center is situated right smack dab on top of one of the richest fossil sites in America. And rather than keeping all those bones to themselves, they've kindly put some on display for the public to explore.

My little ones love dinosaurs so we made the trip. It's a beautiful location with fountains and a mural of the prehistoric animals that once roamed the hills and swam the seas on that very site. Inside, they have several displays to view including the tusk of a Columbian Mammoth that was 15 feet tall. Quite impressive! They also had the fossil box out, so the kids got to do a little digging of their own. My favorite was the skull of the saber toothed cat nestled in the wall above the staircase landing.

When you arrive at the center stop at the front desk and ask for a Paleopack. They have a parent/chaperone guide with a map of the exhibits and fun facts to talk with your kids about while you view each display. They'll also give you a kids activity packet with coloring pages and dot-to-dots. Take crayons or pencils with you if you want to complete the activities there.

 

The community center also offers a Fossil Finders Fossil Fixers School Tour Program geared for grades 2 through 5. With this program, students will participate in a three day program that meets the California State Science content standards. They offer this same program in a condensed one day version for the general public. For information on when these classes will be offered or to make a reservation call 949-707-2680.

When you've finished exploring inside, head out to the Prehistoric Playground. Loved this spot! The boulders had fossils and imprints of scallops and other prehistoric sea life and the cave beneath the bridge showed off the dinosaur skeletons. There are two levels to play on with multiple structures and a super-cool whale skeleton to climb.

 

For a morning of play and learning, Laguna Hills Community Center is definitely a must-do!

For more information visit www.gotfossils.com. The website also features games, videos, animal facts, and much more to explore with the kids before or after your visit.

Laguna Hills Community Center is located at 25555 Alicia Parkway, Laguna Hills, CA 92653.

Imaginology

I took my kids to the Imaginology event at the Orange County Fairgrounds this weekend and it blew me away. What an amazing event! What could have been your run-of-the-mill youth expo, has been totally redesigned to become one of the most creative, interactive, educational, and worth-while events I've ever attended.

The S.T.E.A.M.-themed activities and vendors were so well put together and they had so much to offer to get kids thinking and creating. S.T.E.A.M. stands for science, technology, engineering, arts, and math, so on-site we were able to explore a science fair, see 4-H exhibits and livestock, dig for dinosaur bones, build structures with toothpicks and marshmallows, build mobiles, create with clay, and build a foil boat and see how many pennies we could put in it before it sank. Oh, and my son made a cardboard rocket and got to launch it himself. Loved that. These were only a few things we got to do in our short time there. I say short because we went on Sunday at 1:00, and some vendors and activities were packing up ahead of the 5:00 closing time, but we were still able to participate in some really fun activities.

 

 

 

I love the Centennial Farm area at the Fairgrounds, and was excited to see that a lot of the event was situated here. We got to see and touch baby chicks and plant radish seeds, and they had brand new piglets and lambs that the kids thought were super cute. You could even catch a hayride.

 

 

After attending this event I'm hyped to try to incorporate more of this style of learning into my children's education at home. The School Library Journal has a great article on STEAM and a list of resources to refer to for inspiration and information. Don't forget to check out the STEAM Pinterest board. And keep an eye out for the STEAM Carnival that will be coming to the Port of Los Angeles in October.

Why I Love Shipley

In my last post about Shipley Nature Center I talked mostly about the new children's program and offered a general overview of the grounds. But I really think this nature center has a lot to offer and I wanted to mention a few more of the things I love about Shipley.

 

 

 I took my daughter with me to take a few photos for a post I was writing for dandelionmoms.com, also about the new children's program (you can read that post here). We said hello to Barbara, one of the staff members, and she offered us a Critter Count checklist to keep track of the wildlife that we spotted while we were out on the trails. My daughter LOVED keeping track, and I was amazed by the number of animals we encountered. When we checked back in, Mandy helped us record our observations so the next time we visit we can compare our animal observations. We had a grand total of 2 bunnies, 9 lizards, 9 butterflies, 7 birds, 2 hummingbirds, and 3 squirrels.

Shipley also participates in the Get Outdoors! OC program and they provide Nature Scene Investigator Guidebooks for kids to learn more about some of the natural environments and historic locations in Orange County. With the NSI Guidebook, you are directed to various locations to explore and follow clues that lead you to keys or rubbing plates to help you complete your mission.

In addition to the new children's program, Shipley seems to be adding new things all the time. They now have a spot outside where kids can make footprints of local wildlife. At the first children's program event, they made binoculars, then went out to look for animals on the trail. So stop in on Wednesday's at 11:00 and participate in a fun, nature related craft and story time. It's such a great experience for the little ones.

Shipley will also be hosting their annual Spring Festival on Saturday, April 26 from 10:00 to 2:00. There will be face painting, a Maypole dance, storytelling, and much more.

For more information about Shipley Nature Center visit http://shipleynature.org/.

Shipley Nature Center Begins New Children's Program

One of my favorite places to take my kiddos to explore is Shipley Nature Center in Huntington Beach. The 18-acre center features trails that wander through California native habitat. The center displays eight habitats here including an oak woodlands habitat, meadow habitat, redwood grove habitat, Blackbird pond habitat, coastal sage scrub, riparian woodland habitat, Torrey Pine habitat, and Southern Oak Woodland Habitat. You'll find a special area that provides food and shelter for Monarch butterflies, a replica of a Native American reed hut, and an observation platform to look out over Blackbird pond.

 

Shipley also has a great interpretive center. Head in to the building and make your way to the back room. They have puzzles, puppets and other fun things for the kids to play with before or after your walk.

I'm super excited because Shipley is now offering a children's program on Wednesday mornings at 11:00. They'll be doing story time, a craft, and of course you'll have access to a nature walk. The cost is $3 per adult.

 

 

For more information check out their website at http://shipleynature.org/. Have fun exploring!

Music for Infants and Children

I recently posted about music you can listen to with your kids to have a dance party at home. But exposure to music, both listening and participating in creating it, is essential to growth and development. When children are engaged in music they are developing their motor skills, concentration, perception, memory, language, speech and much more.

There are so many ways to enrich your child's life with music. Musical toys are everywhere - keep a set in your home and give your child access to play with their instruments whenever they feel like making noise. The Parents Bee Bop Band Play & Learn Drum comes with a removable lid to store the other 4 musical instruments inside the drum.

Make musical instruments with your child. The plastic resealable baby food tubs and glass jars make wonderful noise when you add a few beans, beads or coins and seal the container shut. I used the plastic baby food tubs to do this with my infant son, and to eliminate the choking hazard I wrapped the tub with duct tape. Mine was original, but you can get duct tape in amazing patterns these days so you can choose something more appealing than basic gray if you want to add a visual element to the homemade instrument. Need inspiration? Pinterest and Google are swarming with homemade musical instrument projects.

Turn household objects into musical instruments. Use your pots and pans and wooden spoons and shoe boxes and pine cones and get groovin'. See how your child expresses himself and concentrates and laughs when he's given the opportunity to make music freely.

Finally, take a music class with your child. If you have a preschool aged child participate in a parent and child class together. Let your older child take a fun class where they'll play music and engage with other kids their age. Parks and recreation departments often have classes for kids of all ages. If you are in the Orange County area, Dancing Keys Music Studio offers Simply Music Rhapsody classes for children as young as 3 months.  For 4- to 6-year olds, Play-A-Story classes are an introduction to music and piano, allowing children to play improvisationally to build a foundation for learning. Other programs are also available. Contact Dancing Keys Music Studio to find out more at www.Dancingkeys.com, 949-734-DKMS (3567) or info@dancingkeys.com.

I received a free introductory class from Dancing Keys that I attended with my 2-year old daughter and she loved it. Her favorite part was making thunder on the drum!

 

 

 

Mother's Beach Marina Del Rey

As a writer, I get to take my family with me to do my research now and then. For my current project, I am exploring neighborhoods in Los Angeles County, and we are lucky enough to stumble upon some fun locations that we never would have found otherwise. This past weekend, we found Mother's Beach in Marina Del Rey. The sandy beach sits just behind The Cheesecake Factory and offers views of the Marina, volleyball courts, calm waters for splashing and a super fun playground complete with a pirate ship.

There is a self-pay parking lot next door to the Cheesecake Factory where you can pull in, pay for your time there at the machine, and place a ticket on the dashboard. The machine accepts cash and debit/credit cards. If we lived closer, this would be a great spot for family dinner night, then head out to the beach for play time.

Mother's Beach Marina Del Rey is located at 4101 Admiralty Way, Marina del Rey, CA 90292
For more information call (310) 578-0478

They Might Love A Dance Party!

You might know them from one of their adult albums or from the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse theme song - either way, They Might Be Giants will get you moving. They've released more than ten albums, four of them for children. Their first family-friendly album was No! and was mostly recorded to provide music for Malcolm in the Middle. Since then they've released the Grammy winning Here Come the 123s, Here Come the ABCs, and the Grammy nominated CD/DVD set Here Comes Science. Their tunes are educational and super fun to listen to.

As the weather cools down and gets a little soggy (or icy, depending on where you live), us parents start looking for indoor activities that keep kids entertained and provide some physical fitness. Have a dance party to get kids moving, and with tunes like Photosynthesis, Fake Believe, and The Secret Life of Six, they'll also be learning about letters, numbers, science and more.

Playing with your kids doesn't have to be expensive or complicated. Just turn on the music and have fun together!