Map Quest

The second installment of our popular Explore It! program was all about…well, exploring. We learned about Christopher Columbus, compasses, maps, navigation, went on a pirate treasure hunt, and made maps of our favorite places. Looking forward to seeing everyone this Tuesday for week 3: Paint a Legend.

Digging for buried treasure where X marked the spot!

 

A great start on the blueprint of his house. Future architect, right here.

 

Cartographers at work

She was all about the details--last one to leave.

Painting her map with tea to give it an aged look.

Now here's a map I need..."Where the Diamond Is." Guess we need to pay close attention to this one!

We are having a great time at Explore It!

Here are some pictures from our first public Explore It! session this summer at the Museum. The program is geared towards kids ages 3-10, takes place each Tuesday in July from 10-11am, and costs $1 per child. The theme on July 5 was “Feel the Beat,” and we concluded our story time and music hall exhibit tour by making drums from oatmeal canisters. Rock on, kids.

Keeping the rhythm with some Zydeco music as a warm-up

 

 

Animal Trackers

Day 5 was all about tracks…of animals in the Big Thicket, and ourselves! We had a special presentation from Rangers Paula, Stephanie, and Austen of Big Thicket National Preserve, then used rubber molds of animal footprints to make and paint plaster casts. We also played an animal track match memory game to learn what animal several familiar tracks belong to, and went on an exhibit hunt around the museum. Full, fun day.

Ranger Paula reading a "Who Am I?" story with riddles identifying animals.

Making footprints in tin foil to leave in the car during a hike, so that in case you get lost, the rangers know what to look for.

The rangers brought examples of paws for us to make prints in sand.

We love Ranger Stephanie!

The paparrazzi mobs the celebrity rangers.

Alan mixing plaster for his rubber animal track mold.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Environmental Stewardship

Welcome to Day 4 of EnviroKids Camp A. Today we learned more about what it means to be good stewards of our environment, and put those principles into practice by making recycled paper and picking up litter around the community. Then it was time for a break from the heat with a trip to Barbara Jacket spray park.

Our first steps were to rip old paper scraps into confetti and mix them in a blender with water. Then, we poured the colored paper pulp smoothies onto pieces of window screen in pans of water.

Paper pulp: a great combination of art and gross.

Spreading the pulp evenly around on top of the screen to form a (more-or-less) flat blob.

Getting all the gunk out...

This group demonstrates perfect form transferring their pulp-covered screen from the water to the paper.

Next steps: blot out the water, squeeeeeze some more, let dry overnight, and peel off from waxed paper.

Litter-gathering champions with their booty...Don't Mess With Texas!

Cooling off.

The birthday girl!

Giovanni is levitating in the background.

One of the hazards of being a Teen Troupe volunteer for camp: getting dragged under the dump bucket.

The Museum's Education Coordinator, Megan O'Connor, on left; Director Shannon Harris on right.

Curator Ami Kamara and Megan.

Gator Mania

Okay, so it wasn’t exactly “mania,” per se, but when guest presenter Amos Cooper pulled a live alligator out of his bag on Day 3 of EnviroKids…there was definitely a lot of screaming. But we warmed up to the little guy pretty quickly, as you’ll see below.

Charles and Keriana

 

Rhionnon

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Into the Wild

Welcome to EnviroKids 2011! This year, our popular summer camp is themed “Into the Wild” and combines environmental stewardship with nature appreciation and outdoor survival skills. Enjoy these pictures from Day 2, when we walked to one of downtown Port Arthur’s urban parks with our nature journals and pencils, hand-painted water bottles, insect observation kits (which turned mostly into koi-catching kits…), and disposable cameras. Oh, and plenty of bugspray.

 

Jorge was, surprisingly, our only bee sting casualty of the day.

 

 

Another Country Thank-You

We recently hosted the awesome kindergartners from nearby Travis Elementary School for a hands-on pioneer-themed tour. They donned period clothing, learned about the trials of coming west, and performed some chores that kids their age would have done in the 1850’s. They had fun shelling corn, churning butter, and washing clothes for one morning, but most agreed they’re glad we have electricity to help out on all the other days! Here are some pictures from the field trip as well as a few of the wonderful thank-you notes they sent.

Ms. Terri showing the kids how to use a washboard

 

The butter they churned is delicious! The staff is still working on finishing off the last creamy hunk of it.

 

Wagon wheels were crucial to the pioneers' success. Here Ms. Patsy helps the kids with a pasta necklace paying tribute to the wagon wheel.

 

An impressive interpretation of dressing up like pioneers

 

We believe the translation for this image to be something along the lines of "We shelled corn and hung clothes on the clothesline outside in the sunshine." Great details!

Art to Wear

The lovely ladies of Girl Scout Troop 3651 paid the museum a second visit this spring to earn their “Art to Wear” Try-It. We had a great time playing with puff paint, papier-mache, beads, and glitter to create some fashionable take-home accessories modeled after Janis Joplin’s style and Leah Rhodes’ eye for design.

Decorating t-shirts by sewing on buttons and painting designs.

 

Getting our hands messy coating toilet paper roll bracelets with pasty tissue paper.

 

Friends forever, 'cos we're stuck together.

 

Mardi Gras masks!

Teen Troupe Reward Trip

All of our fabulous Teen Troupers who earned at least 30 points during the school year were rewarded with an overnight field trip on April 15. We journeyed to the Houston Galleria for some big-city dining and shopping, and next morning explored the San Jacinto Day Festival and Battle Reenactment. The festival commemorates the final battle of the Texas Revolution in 1836, when Texas won its independence from Mexico and became its own nation for ten years.

Impersonating posters at the movie theater

 

She must have learned that perfect archery form from our EnviroKids camp!

 

3D stylin'

 

Ready for "Rio"!

 

at the San Jacinto Monument/Battleship Texas

 

Happy that no one was getting pushed into the reflecting pond

 

I tried to race the golf cart. It won.

 

I'm sure the "Charlie's Angels" pose was a common one in 1836.

 

Square dancing lessons (with some Macarena thrown in)

 

Anthony offering the assistance of his sunglasses as his sister uses a glass fire starter to burn patterns on wood.

 

We've got the Bieber Fever!

 

Corn dogs and free sno cones=perfect festival food.

 

Don't shoot the fiddler!

 

Sacked out on the drive home. I think we did a good job exhausting them.

A Country Thank-You

 

In April we put a Western twist on our annual Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon for the faithful workers who man (and woman) our gift shop, front desk, special events, and more. Enjoy the following highlights from our rousing round of “Pass the Hat” (if the music stops while you’re wearing the cowboy hat, you get bluebonnet seeds, Texas tea towels, or other fine country prizes).

I think this hat was made for him.

 

Miss Virginia tries it on for size.

 

Way to go, Ms. Gail!

 

Congratulations to Ms. Frances.

 

Ms. Pam is always a winner.

 

Three of your hillbilly hostesses: the museum's secretary, curator, and education coordinator.