Nature Play Afterschool
2025-10-28 15:30 - 17:30, 2025-11-04 15:30 - 17:30, 2025-11-18 15:30 - 17:30 (America/New_York)
Nature Play Afterschool Series
Grades 1-3
Tuesdays, 3:30-5:30 PM
September 2 – December 16 (no program November 11)
Fee per Child: Tier A-$438 | Tier B-$381 | Tier C-$324
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. During Fall Nature Play we will explore wooded trails and fields, jump in leaf piles, build forts, climb trees, and make new discoveries about ourselves and the world around us. Our instructors provide a safe setting for children to explore nature and encourage children to stretch their limits.

Girls into the Wild
2025-10-28 15:30 - 17:30, 2025-11-04 15:30 - 17:30, 2025-11-11 15:30 - 17:30, 2025-11-18 15:30 - 17:30
Girls into the Wild
Grades 4-6
Tuesdays, 3:30-5:30 PM
September 2 – December 16 (no program November 11)
Fee per Child: Tier A-$444 | Tier B-$386 | Tier C-$328
Limited to 12 participants
Girls into the Wild is for girls and nonbinary kids in fourth through sixth grade. Together we build a space where kids can be themselves, make friends, and take a few risks in nature. This fully outdoor afterschool program is a mix of structured and unstructured fun as we play games, do nature projects and explore nature in all weather. We’ll do our favorite activities that have been invented over the years, such as trading nature goods at the fairy market, building hotels for slugs, and fencing with staghorn sumac poles. We’ll visit our favorite places to play such as Roots, Jumping Rock, and the Faraway Woods. What new activities will we invent together?!

Junior Nature Play Afterschool
2025-10-29 13:00 - 17:30, 2025-11-05 15:30 - 17:30, 2025-11-12 15:30 - 17:30, 2025-11-19 13:00 - 17:30
Junior Nature Play Afterschool Series
Grades K-2
Wednesdays, 3:30-5:30 PM
September 3 – December 17 (Extended day (1 PM) on September 24, October 29, November 19 and December 17, no program November 26)
Fee per Child: Tier A-$570 | Tier B-$496| Tier C-$422
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 Fall Junior Nature Play we will explore wooded trails and fields, play pretend in our mud kitchen, and make leaf crowns. Our instructors provide a safe setting for children to explore nature and encourage children to stretch their limits.

Nature Play Afterschool
2025-10-29 13:00 - 17:30, 2025-11-05 15:30 - 17:30, 2025-11-12 15:30 - 17:30, 2025-11-19 13:00 - 17:30
Nature Play Afterschool Series
Grades 3-5
Wednesdays, 3:30-5:30 PM
September 3 – December 17 (Extended day (1 PM) on September 24, October 29, November 19 and December 17, no program November 26)
Fee per Child: Tier A-$570 | Tier B-$496 | Tier C-$422
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. During Fall Nature Play we will explore wooded trails and fields, jump in leaf piles, build forts, climb trees, and make new discoveries about ourselves and the world around us. Our instructors provide a safe setting for children to explore nature and encourage children to stretch their limits. For those parents deciding between the junior and nature play programs, the latter often travels further and is away from the Hitchcock Center’s play yard longer.

Fall Nature Discovery Preschool (Group A)
2025-10-31 09:30 - 11:30, 2025-11-14 09:30 - 11:30
Nature Discovery Preschool Series for 3-5 year olds (Adult/Child) Fall 2025
The Secret Life of Trees
with Chrissy Larson
Ages 3-5 (Adult required to attend with child)
Fridays, 9:30-11:30 AM
Alternating Weeks (activities are the same for Group A and Group B):
Group A Sessions: 9/12, 9/26, 10/17, 10/31, 11/14, 12/5
Group B Sessions: 9/19, 10/3, 10/24, 11/7, 11/21, 12/12

Fee per child/adult pair: Tier A-$352 | Tier B-$306 | Tier C-$260
Limited to 12 children. Limit of 2 preK children per adult. Each preK student must register. Siblings under 3 are free.
Spend six weeks uncovering the secret lives of trees! Learn tree anatomy, explore the science of leaves and roots, hunt for tree homes, and try to figure out who might live in a tree. Trees are an important part of our ecosystems, and through crafts, experiments, and hands-on activities, we will discover the ways trees help animals (and plants and fungi) survive! This program encourages learning through exploration, movement, songs, stories, and crafts. An adult caregiver must attend with the child.

Forest Bathing
2025-11-02 14:00 - 16:00
Forest Bathing

Thursday October 16th, 5:30pm – 7:30pm
Sunday, November 2nd, 2 pm – 4 pm
One session $25 or $40 for both sessions
Space is limited

Connecting with nature an essential part of who we are as people. Time spent in forests has been proven to reduce stress-hormone levels and lower blood pressure, a perfect way to navigate the challenges of the modern world. A Forest Bathing experience allows you to slow down and immerse yourself in the world around you. Our time together will consist of a leisurely walk with stops along the way to explore themagic of the Hitchcock Center woodland.
This is a very relaxed, slow, and mindful wayof spending time in nature. Walks typically last about 2-3 hours and finish with an herbal tea from Todd’s garden. There is hardly a better antidote for these times!

Wild Children of the Woods
2025-11-03 15:30 - 17:30, 2025-11-10 15:30 - 17:30, 2025-11-17 15:30 - 17:30
Wild Children of the Woods
Grades 3-5
Mondays 3:30-5:30 PM
September 8 – December 22 (no class October 13)
Tier A: $438 | Tier B: $381 | Tier C: $324
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 Fall turn to Winter. 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.

Curriculum Day
2025-11-04 08:45 - 15:00
November 4th – Educator Workshop Day – No school for Amherst Public Schools
with Isaiah Brown
Tuesday, November 4
8:45 AM to 3:00 PM
Grades 1 – 3*
Fee per Child: Tier A-$112 | Tier B-$97 | Tier C-$83
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.

The Great Christmas Bird Count
2025-11-05 08:00 - 17:00
Christmas Bird Count for Kids and Families
Sponsored by Hampshire Bird Club
Sunday, Dec 14, 2025, 1-3 pm
All Ages Welcome
Free
Do you want to learn more about birds? Would you like to contribute to science? Join birdwatchers all over America in the Christmas Bird Count (CBC)!
The CBC is a 125-year old event in which bird lovers of all ages and skill levels count all the birds they see in a 24-hour period in December. At this program, there will be something for everyone. We’ll meet at the Hitchcock Center for an indoor program about how to recognize common birds and a story about the history of the Christmas Bird Count. Afterwards, families who are interested may participate in an outdoor bird count, with ID help by Hampshire Bird Club members at the Hitchcock Center bird feeders and beyond. We’ll count every bird we see! Younger participants may decorate “eye focusers” and hit the trails for a self-guided bird scavenger hunt (with paper birds!). Stay as long as you wish. Don’t miss this opportunity to contribute to a real bird census! This event is rain, slow, sleet or shine. Families may stay and count birds for as much time as they wish but we recommend that you arrive on time for the indoor portion in order to get introduced to the common winter species we are likely to see. Binoculars are welcome but not required.
REGISTER HERE

Little Bear Nature Walk
2025-11-05 10:00 - 11:15, 2025-11-10 10:00 - 11:15, 2025-11-15 10:00 - 11:15, 2025-11-20 10:00 - 11:15
Ages 0-5 (Adult required to attend with child)
10:00 a.m. – 11:15 a.m.
See dates and locations below
Fee per child (adults and younger siblings under 16 months are free): Tier A-$15 | Tier B-$13 | Tier C-$11
NEW for 2025, Come along on a Little Bear Nature Walk! Little Bear Nature Walks are a way for toddlers, preschoolers and their caregivers to explore nature in an age-appropriate way. While on the walk, children borrow a backpack filled with simple tools for exploring. Nature educators guide children in small groups and explore plants, animals, rocks, and soil. Walks incorporate observation, inquiry, and sensory learning, but also make space for imagination and play. Each walk has a loose theme and includes a story or a song if time.
Learn more and register

Fall Birding Course
2025-11-07 05:00 - 17:00
August – November 2025
Sliding Scale $350 / $410 / $470
There is a maximum of 15 people
Join Scott Surner as he guides you through the fall migration in New England. The class starts with a trip to Plum Island to experience the southbound migration of shorebirds as well, we hope to encounter many Herons, Gulls, Terns, and an early Warbler on that first trip. The local trips will focus on the drab plumages of fall warblers, along with Vireos, Flycatchers, and of course “The Sparrows”. There will be two additional trips to coastal areas.
Fall Birding Class Dates:
All trips leave from the Hitchcock Center. Carpooling will be encouraged. Participants will need to make their own lodging arrangements for the final weekend overnight trip to the Cape, course cost only includes birding instruction. Additional information will be provided after signing up.
FIELD TRIPS:
August 23rd – Plum Island. Depart 5:00 AM Looking for southbound Shorebirds, Herons/Egrets, Terns, Gulls, and more.
September 13th – Local. 7:00 AM Fall warblers, Vireos, and flycatchers.
September 20th– Local. 7:00 AM Fall Warblers and more.
September 27th– Local. 7:00 AM Fall Warblers and the beginning of Sparrow season.
October 4th – Light House Point, Connecticut. Depart 5:45 AM Migrating Raptors and many other songbirds. Last year, we tallied 1183 Blue Jays migrating.
October 11th – Local. 7:00 AM. Local- more Sparrows and early waterfowl.
October 25th – Local- 7:00 AM. Local. Waterfowl.
November 7th-9th. Cape Cod. Depart the Hitchcock Center at 5:00 AM for a weekend on Cape Cod. We’ll hit several areas on the outer Cape, including locations in Provincetown, Wellfleet, Eastham, and Orleans.
CLASSROOM SESSIONS:
Wednesdays – Sept 10 & Oct 8 – 6:00 – 8:00 PM at the Hitchcock Center
REGISTRATION AND MORE INFO

School Holiday
2025-11-11 08:45 - 15:00
November 11th – School Holiday, No school for Amherst Public Schools
Tuesday, November 11
8:45 AM to 3:00 PM
Grades 1 – 3*
Fee per Child: Tier A-$112 | Tier B-$97 | Tier C-$83
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.

Hitchcock Community Read: The Serviceberry
2025-11-12 18:00 - 20:00
Hitchcock Community Read- The Serviceberry by Robin Wall Kimmerer
Date Change – November 12, 6-8pm
Free or by donation, registration required

Join us for a discussion of Braiding Sweetgrass author Robin Wall Kimmerer’s new book The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World. We will come together to discuss and share our experience of this special and timely book. This gathering will take place in the garden if weather allows and we will be able to visit our own Amelanchier (or Shadbush as we tend to call it here at Hitchcock) somewhere between its flowering and fruiting.
