Events – Page 10 – Nature Discovery Center

Theraputic Massage in the Park

2020-10-07 Maura Denman

Join Kavana Healing Arts Spa each week for Massages in Nature at Russ Pitman Park.

Disconnect from the hustle and bustle, and reconnect with yourself and nature, as we perform 15 and 30 minute chair massages under the trees in the relaxing, outdoor environment of the park.

Now, more than ever, maintaining our mental and physical health and well-being are paramount. The act of healing touch helps to strengthen the immune system, elevates your mood, reduces stress, and improves muscle tone, among other benefits.

Ady Burgida, Massage Therapist

Kavana Healing Arts Spa and Ady Burgida, (Owner and proud Massage Therapy team member at Kavana Spa) have been serving the Houston community for the last 20 years. All Kavana Spa Therapists are licensed, and specialized in a variety of therapeutic and medical massage modalities.

When you arrive for your massage, let your therapist know what your massage goals are, so that they can best serve you. Appointments must be booked 24hrs in advance of the event. You will find us each week located by the bench near the pigeon enclosure in the middle of the park. We will be practicing the highest level of COVID safety and sanitation, using disinfectants between each client, and always wearing masks.

To book an appointment email our team at

Kavanastacey@gmail.com

15 minutes= $20

30 minutes = $40

15% of each service goes back to the Nature Discovery Center as a donation to support the mission of the Center.

Nature Story Time

2020-09-16 Maura Denman

This is a free, drop-in program.

When: Wednesdays at 4 p.m.

Preschoolers and their caregivers join us on Wednesday afternoons for nature stories, live animals, touchable specimens, and a simple craft.

We are currently offering our weekly Nature Story Time either outside under our pavilions behind the Center building or inside our downstairs classroom space.

Community Swift Night Out

2020-09-08 Maura Denman

Community Swift Night Out is back this year, and it’s the perfect socially-distanced way to participate in Houston Bird Week 2020! At dusk, Chimney Swifts begin circling roosting locations. They then swoop into their roosting locations and can be counted as they enter the chimneys.

Chimney Swifts are small, grey-brown birds found in Houston between March and October. They are best identified by their “cigar” shaped silhouette, short/tapered tails, and chittering calls. Chimney Swifts are considered vulnerable on the IUCN Red List as a result of their population decline of around 72% between 1966 and 2015, in part due to the decrease in nesting habitat.

Chimney Swifts, like their name suggests, nest primarily in chimneys and other man-made, low-light structures with vertical surfaces (e.g. air vents, wells, or smoke stacks), though they will also nest in hollowed-out trees. Modern chimney designs and the movement towards capping chimneys has resulted in fewer nesting sites for these swifts. Logging of old-growth forests has also reduced the availability of natural nest sites.

Swift Night Out is a community effort to help figure out where Chimney Swifts are in Houston and monitor populations long-term. We’re aiming to cover all of the known Chimney Swift roosts across the city, from large silo-style chimneys to specially-designed Chimney Swift towers, and we need your help! At dusk on September 20, community scientists across the city will count the number of swifts as they enter the varying roost locations.

If you’re new to counting swifts and would like more information, please send Anna Vallery an email at avallery@houstonaudubon.org.

WHEN

Our community count will be held on Sunday, September 20, 2020. A count is short and sweet (around 30 minutes at dusk), but can make a real difference in understanding the behavior of this unique species!

WHERE

We’ll spread out across the city at various sites where we think Chimney Swifts may be roosting—at large silo-style chimneys and in specially-designed Chimney Swift towers.

Constructed Chimney Swift Towers

Ed White Elementary School, 1708 Les Talley Drive
Hogg Bird Sanctuary, 1 Wescott Street
Houston Zoo, 6200 Hermann Park Drive *Zoo staff
Kleb Woods, 20303 Draper Road
Exploration Green Swift Tower – Pines, 29.562419, -95.120885. Best parking is off Diana Lane at the parking lot. You can see and walk to both towers.
Exploration Green Swift Tower – Oaks, 29.563846, -95.121834
Nature Discovery Center, 7112 Newcastle
Seabrook Tower #1, Close to Todville where Pine Gully goes under the road/bridge
29.590076, -95.001834
Seabrook Tower #2, In Seabrook Wildlife Refuge and Park,
29°35’14.6″N 95°00’35.6″W
White Oak Parkway, 1720 White Oak Drive
Willow Waterhole, 5201 S. Willow
Woodland Park, 212 Parkview
Bellaire Residence

Established Sites at Silos/Large Chimneys

Pershing Middle School, 3838 Bluebonnet (Stella Link entrance)
St. Paul’s Church, 5501 Main St.
Whole Foods Market Bellaire, 4004 Bellaire

MUST REGISTER TO PARTICIPATE

Native Landscapes for Birds

2020-09-08 Maura Denman

Calling All Native Plant and Bird Lovers…

It’s Time to Zoom into Virtual Native Landscape Certification Program Classes

Including Native Landscapes for Birds!

The Native Plant Society of Texas, Houston Chapter is giving you the opportunity to register for its Fall Native Landscape Certification Program 2020 classes.

The NLCP classes feature live presentations and a virtual Plant Walk (filmed in Russ Pitman Park with Mary Ann Beauchemin – recently retired Nature Discovery Center Park Steward) all coming to you via Zoom with an opportunity to interact with the speakers and ask questions.

Join us for Native Landscapes for Birds classes on one of these dates: Saturdays, 9:00 am to 4:30 pm, October 10th and 24th, November 7th. Each session features a different Birding Expert.

Register Now! www.npsot.org/wp/nlcp

Fall Back Class Fee – save $13! $37 (NPSOT members) or $52 (non-members).

By attending Native Landscapes for Birds you will:

Appreciate Texas’s rich bird diversity and their contributions to the natural world.
Understand current threats to bird populations and what you can do to help.
Recognize the importance of native plants and plant diversity to the success of birds.
Create and maintain bird-friendly native plant landscapes.

Critters and Crafts

2020-08-27 Maura Denman

Our new Critters & Crafts To Go Program is perfect for preschoolers or elementary aged kids who love animals and love to make crafts! Though you may order them with your own kids or grandkids in mind, we think you’ll find that Critters & Crafts To Go Packs also make great Birthday gifts for friends and family!

Critters & Crafts To-Go Packs contain the following basic elements:

A short themed Video Lesson (typically < 15 minutes) – with live animal encounters, specimen spotlights, and other content appropriate for the topic
3 “Ready to Go” themed Critter Crafts (with an accompanying instruction video as needed) – Each craft in the pack will represent an animal, an animal’s life cycle, or some aspect of an animal’s life. We’re carefully curating our craft packs so that kids are exposed to different kinds of crafts that use different craft media and assembly methods. For kids ages 3 to 6, we will pre-cut paper and cardstock craft pieces. For kids ages 7 – 10, we will leave the pieces uncut for them to cut out themselves. A couple crafts we selected may also have suggested modifications to increase the degree of difficulty for older kids.
- Note: for some crafts, you may need scissors, glue, tape, and crayons or markers from home to complete the craft, but we will supply everything else you need.

Costs:

Members – $16
Non-members – $20

Ages: 3 – 10 (with supervision and assistance)

Fall 2020 Dates & Topics

Order By Date	Pack Pick-Up Date	Topic
September 11	September 14	Butterflies (and maybe other bugs)
October 2	October 5	Fish
October 16	October 19	Frogs
October 30	November 2	Reptiles
November 13	November 16	Birds
November 27	November 30	Mammals
December 11	December 14	Animals in Winter

Place your order by noon on Friday to ensure your To Go Packs are ready for pick up on the Monday morning date listed for each topic above.

ORDER ONLINE

Clicks, Corks, & Contributions – Online Auction, Raffle and Cork Pull

2020-07-23 Maura Denman

PATRONS for Bellaire Parks invites the community to join them for “Clicks, Corks, & Contributions,” a virtual gala supporting neighborhood parks. Commencing August 13th, the gala will be a multi-day event featuring an online auction, cork pull, and raffle with gala. Proceeds from this online fundraiser will be distributed evenly among three much-loved neighborhood groups: Evelyn’s Park Conservancy, Nature Discovery Center, and Bellaire Little League. PATRONS postponed their largest annual fundraiser, the Wine and Tapas Gala, due to the COVID pandemic. The generosity of community members and local businesses resulted in an abundant array of auction and cork pull offerings, of which PATRONS is thrilled now to be able to offer to raise funds for such wonderful neighborhood organizations and their green spaces.

The auction boasts over 50 items donated by local businesses. Some of the items that will be offered are a 2017 Astros World Series Carlos Correa Autographed Ball, Autographed Earl Campbell Jersey, One Year Loftin Playground Naming Rights, Happy Hour for 20 at Upstairs Bar & Lounge above Hungry’s, a $2500 certificate towards orthodontic treatment at Contemporary Dental and Orthodontics and much, much, more! The bidding will commence at noon on Thursday, August 12th and will end at 9 p.m. on Saturday, August 15th. Pre-registration is now open at: https://cbo.io/bidapp/index.php?slug=PatronsBellaireParks#

The ever-popular cork pull features a treasure trove of opportunities for wine enthusiasts with over 75 bottles of wine. All wine included in the virtual cork pull is rated at 90 points and above, with several bottles ranging over $150 each. This offers great value given that a pull is priced at only $35 each. Some of the prime bottles include a Sheridan Block 1 Cabernet with a 99 rating, a Dominus Cabernet with a 100 rating, and a Bevan Red EE Oakville Cabernet with 97 rating. One of the raffle prizes titled “Women on the Go” raffle donated by Evelyn’s Park Conservancy will feature a pair of coveted Golden Goose sneakers, gift cards for local clothing boutiques and more. The Nature Discovery Center will offer a catered party at their outdoor pavilion for 15 people. Tickets for the raffle items will be offered at $10 per ticket. The lucky winners will pick up their items in the Evelyn’s Park Conservancy parking lot via curbside delivery in the days after the online event.

Betsy’s Restaurant will offer two specialty packages in honor of the online gala, with 25% of the proceeds going back to Patrons for Bellaire Parks. Packages will include your choice of red or white wine flights with Dairymaids cheese, cured meats, honey, fruit preserves and nuts. Packages may be reserved online at betsysbellaire.com.

The new tandem Konnection Swings at Feld and Evergreen, the large spinning and climbing ‘Rev8’ at Feld Park and Agility Canine play features at Officer Lucy Dog Park are just several of the wonderful additions PATRONS For Bellaire Parks has funded in the past year. Financial contributions made by PATRONS have funded the purchase and installation of playground equipment at six parks: Lafayette Park, Mulberry Park, Officer Lucy Dog Park, Feld Park, Evergreen Park, and Loftin Park in the City of Bellaire, Texas. These new playground pieces are part of the same donations by PATRONS that placed the Zip-Line in Evergreen Park, and Konnection Swings and Story Balls in Loftin and Lafayette Parks earlier this year.

PATRONS events coupled with the generous support of our community have resulted in beautiful parks and structures throughout Bellaire. Since inception, Patrons for Bellaire Parks raised over $2 million for the benefit of local parks and facilities. PATRONS for Bellaire Parks is a 501(c) (3) non-profit organization. For more information about Patrons for Bellaire Parks and their events, visit www.BellaireParks.org.

AUCTION LINK: https://cbo.io/bidapp/index.php?slug=PatronsBellaireParks#

Virtual Family Nature Night

2020-05-29 Maura Denman

One of the things that we will miss being able to do this summer is host our typical monthly Family Nature Nights at the Center. We couldn’t give up the program completely this summer, so we’re working to bring you our first ever Virtual Family Nature Night. Gather the family around the computer, stream it to your TV if you can, and join us for a night of nature fun!

The theme of this Family Nature Night will be Reptiles!

Families who register for this one of a kind program will receive:

a link to join an interactive Zoom session – where they will enjoy a reptile talk with live animal guests presented by Eric Duran, our Head Naturalist, as well as an interactive Q/A with Eric about reptiles.
instructions for a simple, printable reptile themed craft to go along with the theme of the night.

But that is not all, Family Nature Night wouldn’t be Family Nature Night without themed snacks! We invite your family to create your own reptile themed snack to enjoy during the event, using whatever you have in the kitchen. Make it a family affair, let the kids help with the ingredients, design, and construction of your snack.

And then take a photo of your themed snack creation to share with us before you dig in! We’ll gather your photos as entries in a little friendly, Family Nature Night Snack Competition! Be inspired by turtles, lizards, snakes, or crocodiles, tap into Pinterest if you’d like, or perform a Google search for added inspiration, or just let your own imaginations run wild!

We hope you’ll join us for this experimental night of family nature fun!

Cost: $5/family

REGISTER

Backyard Biology

2020-05-26 Maura Denman

Jul 6 – 10 Backyard Biology

No matter where you live, you have a natural world at your fingertips, right there at home! Plants, animals, fungi and so much more make their homes in cities and outside our homes. Join us for live animals, fascinating science, and fun activities, as we learn about the nature right outside your door! Our daily themes will include:

In the Garden
Urban Wildlife
Trees
Homes and Habitats
Water

Choose your own adventure this summer with our modular Camps on the Go! packages. Each package contains the materials, resources, and links needed for a week full of daily, science themed camp fun!

Daily Camp Activity Modules

Campers can complete the daily camp activity modules in any order and over as much time as they like, picking and choosing their daily camp schedule to meet their interests and attention spans. Campers could spend from 3 to 4 hours a day engaged in the hands on activities and crafts and soaking up the information and humor in recorded and live video lessons with our Head Naturalist Eric Duran.

2 – 3 Video Lessons with our Head Naturalist, including live animals or demonstrations (10 – 30 min each)
1 – 2 Activities, Games or Demos to try at home (5 – 20 min each)
1 – 2 Crafts with instructions and materials (5 – 20 min each) that may inspire additional themed imaginative play
1 – 2 Self-guided Outdoor/Indoor Scavenger Hunts or Hikes (10 – 20 min each)
An Interactive Zoom Discussion of the days projects with Eric and a live animal visitor (20 – 30 min)
A Link Out to watch a short video on the topic on another educational site (ie: BBC Earth, PBS Nature, etc.)

CAMP ON THE GO! PROGRAM DETAILS

Participants in our Camps on the Go! program will receive: • an email with a private link to the camp wesbite “hub” for their Camp on the Go! topic. This website will house a grid with the weekly calendar of lesson and activity modules including:

links to lesson and demo videos
links to printable PDFs as needed for crafts and activities
links to the daily interactive Zoom discussion (this is optional for those who are Zoom-ed out, but it will be an interactive time where campers can ask questions of Eric about the day’s topic, share with other campers the things they have done and/or created that day, etc.

• a packet of additional materials and resources needed to complete camp activities, which they will pick up from the Center in advance of their registered camp week. Details of packet pick up will be sent out in a Camps on the Go! email. These packets will contain:

craft supplies
activity supplies as needed
printed materials as needed to accompany crafts and activities

Camps on the Go! Costs

$75 Members / $85 Nonmembers

Registration

Register for our Camps on the Go! here Camp on the Go! packet pick up will be available the Friday through Sunday before camp on Monday between 9 am and 5 pm. Please register by 5 pm the Thursday before your camp starts to allow time for us to prepare your camp packet for pick-up. Note: If you would like to register for a Camp on the Go! after it has already debuted (later on in the summer), we would be happy to arrange packet pick up via email. In these cases, the Interactive Zoom Discussions you will have access to will be recorded from the week the camp originally ran. If your camper has any questions about their camp, they can email Eric Duran, their Camp Instructor, at the email address provided in their initial Camps on the Go! email.

Creepy Crawlies

2020-05-26 Maura Denman

August 17 – 21 Creepy Crawlies

Explore the world of animals without bones! The world is filled with spineless wonders: insects, spiders, worms, snails, and so much more! Every day we’ll visit with live invertebrate friends, and engage in some fun crafts and activities. As we investigate these daily themes, you’ll become a bug expert with us:

The Insects
Arachnids
Worms
Mollusks
Spineless Sea Creatures

Choose your own adventure this summer with our modular Camps on the Go! packages. Each package contains the materials, resources, and links needed for a week full of daily, science themed camp fun!

Daily Camp Activity Modules

Campers can complete the daily camp activity modules in any order and over as much time as they like, picking and choosing their daily camp schedule to meet their interests and attention spans. Campers could spend from 3 to 4 hours a day engaged in the hands on activities and crafts and soaking up the information and humor in recorded and live video lessons with our Head Naturalist Eric Duran.

2 – 3 Video Lessons with our Head Naturalist, including live animals or demonstrations (10 – 30 min each)
1 – 2 Activities, Games or Demos to try at home (5 – 20 min each)
1 – 2 Crafts with instructions and materials (5 – 20 min each) that may inspire additional themed imaginative play
1 – 2 Self-guided Outdoor/Indoor Scavenger Hunts or Hikes (10 – 20 min each)
An Interactive Zoom Discussion of the days projects with Eric and a live animal visitor (20 – 30 min)
A Link Out to watch a short video on the topic on another educational site (ie: BBC Earth, PBS Nature, etc.)

CAMP ON THE GO! PROGRAM DETAILS

Participants in our Camps on the Go! program will receive:

• an email with a private link to the camp wesbite “hub” for their Camp on the Go! topic. This website will house a grid with the weekly calendar of lesson and activity modules including:

links to lesson and demo videos
links to printable PDFs as needed for crafts and activities
links to the daily interactive Zoom discussion (this is optional for those who are Zoom-ed out, but it will be an interactive time where campers can ask questions of Eric about the day’s topic, share with other campers the things they have done and/or created that day, etc.

• a packet of additional materials and resources needed to complete camp activities, which they will pick up from the Center in advance of their registered camp week. Details of packet pick up will be sent out in a Camps on the Go! email. These packets will contain:

craft supplies
activity supplies as needed
printed materials as needed to accompany crafts and activities

Camps on the Go! Costs

$75 Members / $85 Nonmembers

Registration

Register for our Camps on the Go! here

Camp on the Go! packet pick up will be available the Friday through Sunday before camp on Monday between 9 am and 5 pm. Please register by 5 pm the Thursday before your camp starts to allow time for us to prepare your camp packet for pick-up.

Note: If you would like to register for a Camp on the Go! after it has already debuted (later on in the summer), we would be happy to arrange packet pick up via email. In these cases, the Interactive Zoom Discussions you will have access to will be recorded from the week the camp originally ran. If your camper has any questions about their camp, they can email Eric Duran, their Camp Instructor, at the email address provided in their initial Camps on the Go! email.

Backboned Beasts

2020-05-26 Maura Denman

August 10 – 14 Backboned Beasts

Join us as we discover the fascinating world of vertebrate animals: fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals. We’ll visit with some live animals, discover the science behind the different groups, and engage with some fun crafts and activities. Become a junior zoologist with us this summer as we explore:

Fish
Amphibians
Reptiles
Birds
Mammals

Choose your own adventure this summer with our modular Camps on the Go! packages. Each package contains the materials, resources, and links needed for a week full of daily, science themed camp fun!

Daily Camp Activity Modules

Campers can complete the daily camp activity modules in any order and over as much time as they like, picking and choosing their daily camp schedule to meet their interests and attention spans. Campers could spend from 3 to 4 hours a day engaged in the hands on activities and crafts and soaking up the information and humor in recorded and live video lessons with our Head Naturalist Eric Duran.

2 – 3 Video Lessons with our Head Naturalist, including live animals or demonstrations (10 – 30 min each)
1 – 2 Activities, Games or Demos to try at home (5 – 20 min each)
1 – 2 Crafts with instructions and materials (5 – 20 min each) that may inspire additional themed imaginative play
1 – 2 Self-guided Outdoor/Indoor Scavenger Hunts or Hikes (10 – 20 min each)
An Interactive Zoom Discussion of the days projects with Eric and a live animal visitor (20 – 30 min)
A Link Out to watch a short video on the topic on another educational site (ie: BBC Earth, PBS Nature, etc.)

CAMP ON THE GO! PROGRAM DETAILS

Participants in our Camps on the Go! program will receive:

• an email with a private link to the camp wesbite “hub” for their Camp on the Go! topic. This website will house a grid with the weekly calendar of lesson and activity modules including:

links to lesson and demo videos
links to printable PDFs as needed for crafts and activities
links to the daily interactive Zoom discussion (this is optional for those who are Zoom-ed out, but it will be an interactive time where campers can ask questions of Eric about the day’s topic, share with other campers the things they have done and/or created that day, etc.

• a packet of additional materials and resources needed to complete camp activities, which they will pick up from the Center in advance of their registered camp week. Details of packet pick up will be sent out in a Camps on the Go! email. These packets will contain:

craft supplies
activity supplies as needed
printed materials as needed to accompany crafts and activities

Camps on the Go! Costs

$75 Members / $85 Nonmembers

Registration

Register for our Camps on the Go! here

Camp on the Go! packet pick up will be available the Friday through Sunday before camp on Monday between 9 am and 5 pm. Please register by 5 pm the Thursday before your camp starts to allow time for us to prepare your camp packet for pick-up.

Note: If you would like to register for a Camp on the Go! after it has already debuted (later on in the summer), we would be happy to arrange packet pick up via email. In these cases, the Interactive Zoom Discussions you will have access to will be recorded from the week the camp originally ran. If your camper has any questions about their camp, they can email Eric Duran, their Camp Instructor, at the email address provided in their initial Camps on the Go! email.

Events Listing

Theraputic Massage in the Park

Nature Story Time

Community Swift Night Out

WHEN

WHERE

Native Landscapes for Birds

Critters and Crafts

Fall 2020 Dates & Topics

Clicks, Corks, & Contributions – Online Auction, Raffle and Cork Pull

Virtual Family Nature Night

Backyard Biology

Jul 6 – 10 Backyard Biology

Daily Camp Activity Modules

CAMP ON THE GO! PROGRAM DETAILS

Camps on the Go! Costs

Registration

Creepy Crawlies

August 17 – 21 Creepy Crawlies

Daily Camp Activity Modules

CAMP ON THE GO! PROGRAM DETAILS

Camps on the Go! Costs

Registration

Backboned Beasts

August 10 – 14 Backboned Beasts

Daily Camp Activity Modules

CAMP ON THE GO! PROGRAM DETAILS

Camps on the Go! Costs

Registration

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Backboned Beasts