Looking for some family fun this weekend? The Edith J. Carrier Arboretum is offering a combination of activities kids this Saturday from 1-5pm, including carriage rides, poetry, dance, cloggers, and live music – sounds like fun!
Here is the information from the event webpage:
The Harrisonburg Children’s Museum, Gus Bus, and the Association for Childhood Education International, dancers and musicians, even Harrisonburg’s Favorite Horses, Sony and Cher, join together with the EJC Arboretum, for the third annual Children’s Harvest Festival at the EJC Arboretum, Saturday, October 23, from 1:00 to 5:00 pm. Elementary school age children are invited with their parents to the free festival. The fun will be ramped-up when children come wearing festive costumes.
The Harrisonburg Children’s Museum invites you to discover the joys of “Letterboxing”, a fun adventure for the whole family. This map-based activity helps children explore plant and animal life as they navigate through the scenic trails of the arboretum. Come watch Mountain Heritage Cloggers, a youth dance troupe perform historic clogging and maybe learn a step or two, and music by the River Bend Trio.
The EJC Arboretum concludes another season of its children’s monthly reading program in partnership with the Gus Bus. Festival children can visit and go aboard Gus Bus for the final reading program of the 2010 Storytime in the Understory.
Come compose poetry with the Arboretum Director at the arboretum’s Poet Tree, and leave a poem in the poetry basket for other children and visitors to read.
Walk the magical forest on a trip to Middle Earth with arboretum docent Ginny Chandler in medieval costume to learn how to use the magical power of observing nature, and watching birds and animals, studying trees and plants found in the arboretum wooded trails, to find your bearings and make choices that direct the future of forest lands. Or collect and count acorns for a trail activity supporting the Potomac Conservancy and Virginia Forestry riparian planting. Festival children can support efforts to preserve and improve Virginia’s waterways.
Horse drawn wagon rides are available with a ticket purchase for adults and children!
Supporting young festival goers, The Association for Childhood Education International, will participate as program facilitators. These JMU student volunteers and future educator professionals will provide various activities including helping children harvest tree seeds and nuts to be grown and used for riparian plantings by the Potomac Conservancy. ACEI will also serve a snack, and help children make fall themed crafts.
For more information call (540) 568-3194.
