It’s Take a Child Outside Week!
As Monarchs head south to their wintering grounds, let’s take a moment to appreciate and learn about this beautiful butterfly! Designed for early childhood audiences (ages 7 and under) this program introduces children to the Monarch and the wonderful migration journey it takes each year. Starting with a walk in our Nature Neighborhood Garden, participants will see the butterfly habitats stewarded at Prairie Ridge and learn about how the Monarch uses these spaces while migrating. Then, we’ll head to the picnic tables near the Nature PlaySpace where children will have a chance to participate in Journey North’s “Symbolic Monarch Migration” citizen science project. Each child will decorate a paper Monarch that will be sent to another child in Mexico – this spring we’ll get a new set of Monarchs and will get to see what their migration journey looked like on their return!
This is a free program beginning at 10:30am. Please meet at the Nature Neighborhood Garden entrance (head straight down the gravel path until you see the tall, black garden fence to your right). Come dressed for the weather and prepared to take a walk and get messy with art supplies!
For more information, contact Emma Blackford at emma.blackford@naturalsciences.org or 919.707.8737. In case of inclement weather, call the Prairie Ridge weather line at 919.707.8888, option 5, for information about possible cancellations.