Hitchcock Center for the Environment

Nature Play Afterschool: Spring
2024-04-03 15:30 - 17:30, 2024-03-27 15:30 - 17:30, 2024-03-20 15:30 - 17:30 (America/New_York)
Nature Play Afterschool Series: Spring
with Jeff Mazur
Grades 2 – 4
Wednesdays, 3:30 PM – 5:30 PM
March 20 – June 5 (no program April 17)
Fee per Child: Tier A-$346 | Tier B-$288 | Tier C-$245 | Tier D-$187
Limited to 12 participants
Hitchcock’s Nature Play Afterschool Program is designed to let kids be kids. Together we will run, jump, climb, invent, imagine, play and be free-range kids all while developing self-confidence and learning valuable social skills. In spring Nature Play After School we will explore, watch the trees bud, celebrate the green and blooming springtime, and play in the mud. Our instructors provide a safe setting for children to explore nature and encourage children to stretch their limits.

Junior Nature Play Afterschool: Spring
2024-04-03 15:30 - 17:30, 2024-03-27 15:30 - 17:30, 2024-03-20 15:30 - 17:30
Junior Nature Play Afterschool Series: Spring
with Lauren Dausch
Grades K – 2
Wednesdays, 3:30 PM – 5:30 PM
March 20 – June 5 (no program April 17)
Fee per Child: Tier A-$346 | Tier B-$288 | Tier C-$245 | Tier D-$187
Limited to 12 participants
Hitchcock’s Junior Nature Play Afterschool Program is designed to let kids be kids. Together we will run, jump, climb, invent, imagine, play and be free-range kids all while developing self-confidence and learning valuable social skills. During Spring Junior Nature Play we will play in the mud and spring rains, look for bugs, and enjoy the warming outdoors. Our instructors provide a safe setting for children to explore nature and encourage children to stretch their limits.

Homeschool II: H2WHOA
2024-04-02 10:00 - 14:00, 2024-03-26 10:00 - 14:00, 2024-03-19 10:00 - 14:00
Homeschool II: H2WHOA!: How Water Connects Us
Grades 4-6, Ages 9-12
Tuesdays 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
March 5 – May 28 (No program Mar 12, Apr 9 for Discovery Days, no class Apr 16 for April Vacation Week)
Tier A: $771 | Tier B:$643 | Tier C:$546 | Tier D:$418
Limited to 12 participants
How do clouds form? Where does water go once it’s down the drain? What lives in a vernal pool? Discover the answers as we explore daily water-related themes, and the ways this vital liquid connects all life. Learn about aquatic plants and animals, the ways humans affect our ecosystem, and the importance of caring for our shared waters as members of communities. Try building a beaver dam, forming your own snowflakes, and measure the health of local ponds and streams. This class will feature field trips, engineering challenges, games, crafts, journaling, and more.
Non-refundable within a week of the start of the program; all refunds incur a 10% administrative fee.

Homeschool I: Water Protectors
2024-04-02 10:00 - 14:00, 2024-03-26 10:00 - 14:00, 2024-03-19 10:00 - 14:00
Homeschool I: Water Protectors
With Lauren Dausch
Grades 1 – 3, Ages 6 – 8
Tuesdays 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM
March 5 – May 28 (No program Mar 12, Apr 9 for Discovery Days, no class Apr 16 for April Vacation Week)
Tier A: $771 | Tier B: $643 | Tier C: $546 | Tier D: $418
Limited to 12 participants
Inspired by the Indigenous water protectors of Standing Rock, Homeschool 1 will focus on the sacredness of water. We will explore questions such as what is the importance of water, and how does it connect everything? What is the water cycle? How can water support so many diverse habitats and creatures? We will gently learn about current issues involving clean water and water conservation, and discover how we can be change-makers and caretakers of the earth no matter how old or young we are! Our group will explore this topic through outdoor play, hands-on activities, journaling, songs, community projects, field trips, and more. Join us as we become the water protectors we were meant to be!
Non-refundable within a week of the start of the program; all refunds incur a 10% administrative fee.

Wild Children of the Woods: Spring
2024-04-01 15:30 - 17:30, 2024-03-25 15:30 - 17:30, 2024-03-18 15:30 - 17:30
Wild Children of the Woods
With: Monya Relles
Grades 3 – 5
Mondays 3:30 PM – 5 :30 PM
March 18 – June 3 (no program April 15 and May 27)
Tier A:$314 | Tier B:$261 | Tier C:$222 | Tier D:$170
Limited to 12 participants
We go to the woods to think, learn, play, and explore in this afterschool series for upper-elementary schoolers. We will roam the grounds of the Hitchcock Center as we watch the seasons change in our beautiful woods. We will visit stump city, ferns, and the far-away woods, play some organized games, and learn about the animals, plants, and life in these woods, including ourselves.

Girls into the Wild
2024-03-31 15:30 - 17:30, 2024-03-24 15:30 - 17:30, 2024-03-17 15:30 - 17:30
with Katie Koerten
Grades 4 – 6
Tuesdays, 3:30 – 5:30 PM
September 3 – December 17 (no program November 5)
Fee per Child: Tier A-$453 | Tier B-$378 | Tier C-$321 | Tier D-$245
Limited to 12 participants
Girls into the Wild is back in Fall 2024 for more romping wildly through the field and forests of the Hitchcock Center with Katie! As always we’ll visit our favorite places to play in the forest, such as Stump City, the Ferns, and the Faraway Woods – exploring the seasonal beauty of nature as we go. Play games, make friends, and create nature projects outdoors! Come build your confidence and show your wild side! Genderqueer, nonbinary, agender and trans young people are welcome.

Spring Curriculum Day
2024-03-29 08:45 - 15:00
March 29th School Holiday
With Alanna Rutledge
Friday, March 29, 8:45 AM – 3:00 PM
Grades 1 – 3*
Fee per Child: Tier A-$110 | Tier B-$92 | Tier C-$78 | Tier D-$60
Limited to 12 participants
Come play outside on this day off for Amherst elementary schoolers! Bring a snack, lunch and water bottle and come prepared to play outside, no matter what the weather! Limited to 12 participants. *Depending on enrollment, your Kindergartner or 4th grader may be able to join.

Girls into the Wild: Spring
2024-03-28 15:30 - 17:30, 2024-03-21 15:30 - 17:30
Girls into the Wild: Spring
with Katie Koerten
Grades 4 – 6
Thursdays, 3:30 PM – 5:30 PM
March 21 – June 6 (no program April 18)
Fee per Child: Tier A-$350 | Tier B-$292 | Tier C-$248 | Tier D-$190
Limited to 12 participants
Girls into the Wild continues into 2024 for more romping wildly through the field and forests of the Hitchcock Center. As always we’ll visit our favorite places to play in the forest, such as Stump City, the Ferns, and the Faraway Woods – exploring the seasonal beauty of nature as we go. Play games, make friends, and create nature projects in the outdoors! Come build your confidence and show your wild side! Any young people with an experience of gender marginalization are welcome!

Nature Play Afterschool: Spring
2024-03-28 15:30 - 17:30, 2024-03-21 15:30 - 17:30
Nature Play Afterschool Series: Spring
with Lauren Dausch
Grades 3 – 5
Thursdays, 3:30 PM – 5:30 PM
March 21 – June 6 (no program April 18)
Fee per Child: Tier A-$350 | Tier B-$292 | Tier C-$248 | Tier D-$190
Limited to 12 participants
Hitchcock’s Nature Play Afterschool Program is designed to let kids be kids. Together we will run, jump, climb, invent, imagine, play and be free-range kids all while developing self-confidence and learning valuable social skills. In spring Nature Play After School we will explore, watch the trees bud, celebrate the green and blooming springtime, and play in the mud. Our instructors provide a safe setting for children to explore nature and encourage children to stretch their limits.

Book Circle: All We Can Save
2024-03-25 19:30 - 20:30
All We Can Save Book Circle
January – May
2nd and 4th Mondays of the month, 7:30pm – 8:30pm
Are you hungry for deeper dialogue about the climate crisis and building community around solutions? We are too. All We Can Save Circles are like a book club, but a cooler, deeper, extended version. Let’s strengthen the “we” in All We Can Save. Circles were created by Dr. Katharine Wilkinson. Join us for this bimonthly book circle, must commit to most dates. Please submit interest here or email casey@hitchcockcenter.org. Some copies available to borrow from Hitchcock.
All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and solutions for the Climate Crisis
Edited by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson and Katharine K. Wilkinson
REGISTER HERE

Workshop: Climate Change in New England
2024-03-20 19:00 - 20:00
Climate Change in New England (Virtual)
Workshop with Dr. Elizabeth A Burakowski
Wednesday, March 20
7 pm – 8 pm
Climate in the northeastern United States has shifted remarkably over the past few decades, with notable impacts on ecosystems and society. Trends include warmer and shorter winters, fewer days with continuous snow cover, changes in leaf out dates and chilling periods, and dramatic swings in precipitation and drought. How will the climate choices we make today affect native plants in the future? This talk will provide an overview of climate trends past and future, based on historical observations and future climate model projections.
Workshop leader:
Dr. Elizabeth (Liz) Burakowski is Research Faculty at the Institute for the Study of Earth Oceans and Space at University of New Hampshire. She is also an affiliate faculty member in the Department of Earth Sciences. Dr. Burakowski earned her Ph.D. in Earth and Environmental Science in 2013, studying the climate impacts of deforestation in the northeastern United States. She has co-authored over two dozen publications on New England climate change, including the 2021 New Hampshire Climate Assessment. Dr. Burakowski is an avid perennial and vegetable gardener and enjoys eliminating invasive plants in her yard for sport.

Senior Nature Walk with John Green
2024-03-20 10:00 - 12:00
Wednesday, March 20
10 am – 12 pm
Sliding Scale Tickets: $10, $15, $20
Space is limited, register now!

Join naturalist John Green on this gentle and slow walk through the woods. There should be signs of springs and the fading of winter to explore.
REGISTER HERE

Bark & Winter Tree ID with Michael Wojtech
2024-03-17 10:00 - 12:30
Bark & Winter Tree ID with Michael Wojtech
Collaboration with Adventure East
Tuesday, March 12
6:30 pm class, located at Hitchcock Center

Sunday, March 17
10 am – 12:30 pm class, outdoor field location TBD
Sliding Scale Tickets: $45, $60, $75
Space is limited, register now!

There is no better local naturalist to teach you about winter tree identification. Michael wrote the book, literally. Join Michael Wojtech, author of BARK: A Field Guide to Trees of the Northeast for a two part class, in collaboration with Adventure East. There will be a Tuesday evening classroom presentation followed by a Sunday morning in the field. The traits typically used to describe trees—leaves, twigs, and buds—are often hard to see or seasonally absent.
Join Michael for an exploration of bark, which is always visible, in any season. As you hone your perceptive abilities you will learn about a system for identifying tree species by their bark, and discover why such a variety of bark characteristics exist. Why do some species have smooth bark, while on others it is thick and broken? Why does bark peel? Space is limited, please register now. Adventure East will provide snowshoes or microspikes depending on weather.
REGISTER HERE

Spring Birding Course
2024-03-16 07:00 - 12:00
Spring Birding Course with Scott Surner
February 24 – June 8 2024
Classes and field trips
Sliding scale tickets: $375, $325, $280
Up to 15 participants. Registration required.
March 16: Local. 7 am – 12 pm. Hampshire/Franklin Counties- more arriving waterfowl.
REGISTER HERE

Girls into the Wild: Winter
2024-03-14 15:30 - 17:30
Girls into the Wild: Winter
with Katie Koerten
Grades 4 – 6
Thursdays, 3:30 PM – 5:30 PM
January 4 – March 14 (no program February 22)
Fee per Child: Tier A-$314 | Tier B-$261 | Tier C-$222 | Tier D-$170
Limited to 12 participants
Join us in winter 2024 for more romping wildly through the fields and forests of the Hitchcock Center. As always we’ll visit our favorite places to play in the forest, such as Stump City, the Forest Garden, and the Faraway Woods – exploring the seasonal beauty of nature as we go. Play games, make friends, and create nature projects outdoors! Come build your confidence and show your wild side! Any young people with an experience of gender marginalization are welcome.

Nature Play Afterschool: Winter
2024-03-13 15:30 - 17:30
Nature Play Afterschool Series: Winter
with Jeff Mazur
Grades 2 – 4
Wednesdays, 3:30 PM – 5:30 PM
January 3 – March 13 (no program February 21 or March 6)
Fee per Child: Tier A-$281 | Tier B-$234 | Tier C-$199 | Tier D-$152
Limited to 12 participants
Hitchcock’s Nature Play Afterschool Program is designed to let kids be kids. Together we will run, jump, climb, invent, imagine, play and be free-range kids all while developing self-confidence and learning valuable social skills. In Winter Nature Play After School we will explore snowy wooded trails and fields, make snow villages, and sled down the HCE hill. Our instructors provide a safe setting for children to explore nature and encourage children to stretch their limits.
