Little Explorers' Fall Series to Feature Under-the-Sea, Cave and Desert Adventures
By Julie Perine on August 23, 2018
Bridgeport Parks and Recreation Little Explorers is gearing up for a new series of units and each will be an adventure.
“We’re doing something a little different this year,” said Anita Jesmer, who has headed up the program for several years. “We’ll be visiting different environments and learning about creatures that live there. It’s going to be a lot of fun.”
Each unit of the fall series is offered to children age 3-8 with two class time options: 10-11 a.m. Thursdays and 6-7 p.m. Wednesdays. All classes will be held at Benedum Civic Center. The cost per four-week unit, per child is $40.
The first unit runs Sept. 5-27 as the young students will slip into scuba gear and take an Under-the-Sea Adventure.
“We’ll learn about starfish, crabs, seahorses, sea turtles and even sharks,” Jesmer said.
The craft portion of the unit, which is always quite popular, will include the making of stuffed seahorse pillows, crab hats and shark-tooth necklaces.
The next unit, which runs Oct. 3-25, is titled Cave Exploration.
“The kids will learn about bats, spiders and make their own cave replicas out of plaster of Paris,” Jesmer said. “They’ll also learn about stalactites and stalagmites, formation of caves and the hibernation of bears.”
The series will wind up in November with an Adventure into the Desert, learning about the animals which inhabit the hot, dry environment.
“We’ll learn about elephants, cheetahs and kangaroos and we might even run across a king cobra curled up against a cactus,” Jesmer said. “We’ll make cheetah ornaments, elephant banks, stuffed kangaroos and king cobra replicas.”
That unit will run Nov. 7-Dec. 6.
The hands-on science sessions have proved to be informative, entertaining and exciting for children who participate. To register, call Bridgeport Parks and Recreation at 304-842-8240 or stop in the office of the Benedum Civic Center.
Editor's Note: Photos were taken at past Little Explorer sessions at Benedum Civic Center.
