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  • Saturday, September 18

    • 9:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
    • Project Learning Tree Workshop (map)
    • Agape Center for Environmental Education, Fuquay-Varina

    • PLT is an award-winning environmental education program designed for teachers and other educators working with students in pre-kindergarten through grade 12.  This workshop focuses on the activities from the preK-8 activity guide.  At the workshop, educators will receive a free PLT Activity Guide that is chock full of interdisciplinary instructional activities that use the forest as a “window” into natural and built environments.  At the workshop, participants will engage in hands-on PLT activities, as well as learn how PLT activities can accomplish existing curricular goals.  All PLT activities are correlated to North Carolina’s Basic Education Plan.  PLT is also one of the required workshops for individuals working to complete their Environmental Education Certification in the state of North Carolina.

      This workshop is fun, hands-on, action-packed, and informational.  PLT is for anyone interested in natural resources and environmental education. The workshop offers educators exciting new activities to use in teaching science, math, language arts, social studies, and environmental studies. This 6-hour workshop provides credit for both NC EE Certification and partial CEU upon completion.

      Pre-registration is required. For more information, contact us at 919-552-9421 x 210 or ACEed@agapekurebeach.org

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: All PLT materials are free to workshop participants. Thanks to a generous grant from PLT, there is no fee for this workshop.
    • Class/Workshop: Science Professionals, Other
    • 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 a.m.
    • NC Mountain State Fair (map)
    • WNC Agricultural Center, Fletcher

    • WNC Agricultural Center, the third largest fair in North Carolina, celebrates the heritage of the Blue Ridge mountains, including agriculture, music, crafts, art, food, entertainment, display of livestock, competitions, and midway amusement rides. The NC Mountain State Fair runs September 10-19, 2010.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: $7 for adults/ $3 children 6-12/ children 5 and under free
    • Hands-On Activity, Arts/Performance, Demonstration, Exhibit: Families, General Audiences
    • 9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.
    • Loggerhead Shrikes-The Butcher Bird! (map)
    • Anderson Point Park, Raleigh

    • Shrikes have been spotted in the park! And it is Wake Audubon’s Bird of the Year! Learn about this amazing bird and why it has such a bloody reputation. (Lizards and grasshoppers beware!) We will look for shrikes and take a hike around the park to view other species of birds as well as non-avian wildlife. Binoculars are recommended. Sponsored by Wake Audubon Society.

      • Learn why shrikes are called the Butcher Bird
      • See study skins of Loggerhead Shrikes
      • Look for impaled creatures
      • Go on an informative bird walk around the nature park

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Hands-On Activity, Class/Workshop, Other: General Audiences
    • 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    • TSDesigns – Award Winning Sustainable Manufacturer (map)
    • TSDesigns, Burlington

    • TSDesigns- Printing T-shirts for Good

      We custom print sustainable products-tsdcarolinas, tsdorganic, and tsdrecycled. We run our business in a sustainable way. TS Designs is run on a triple bottom line business model, one that strives for social justice, environmental stewardship, and economic prosperity, also known as People, Planet, and Profit.

      We showcase a wide array of sustainable intiatives on our property (www.tsdesigns.com/about/virtural-map-of-tsd), host green certificate classes through Alamance Community College and the Triad Electric Vehicle Association (www.teva-nc.org) as part of this philosophy.

      TSD has also won numerous awards for our sustainable business practices. The latest was the NC Sustainability Champion award won by Eric Henry, president of TS Designs.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Tour/Open House: General Audiences
    • 9:30 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.
    • Star Families: Fall Skies (map)
    • Morehead Planetarium and Science Center, Chapel Hill

    • Explore the fall skies in Morehead’s star-filled planetarium dome. Learn to identify the planets, bright stars and constellations best seen at this time of year while enjoying stories from various cultures about star patterns in the heavens.

      Recommended for families with children ages 7 and up. Program takes place in Morehead’s GlaxoSmithKline Fulldome Digital Theater.

      Registration required. On-line or by calling 919.962.1236.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: $20/family for nonmembers (up to 4 in a family, $2 for each additional family member); $15/family for Morehead members and UNC students (up to 4 in a family, $2 for each additional family member)
    • Class/Workshop, Science Talk/Lecture: Families, General Audiences
    • 9:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.
    • Trail Hike Series: Prairie Wanderings (map)
    • McDowell Nature Center, Charlotte

    • Enjoy a leisurely themed hike with the family. Explore the nature preserve and uncover the secrets of the season. Call 704-588-5224 to reserve your spot or for more information.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Hands-On Activity: Families
    • 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
    • Snaketacular (map)
    • Natural Science Center of Greensboro, Greensboro

    • The Natural Science Center of Greensboro will celebrate the reptile world with the annual WILDLY popular Snaketacular event. Visitors will have the opportunity to view rattlesnakes and other pit vipers, such as copperheads, cottonmouths and moccasins. Also, check out a 15 ft. albino python, get nose-to-nose with local non-venomous snakes and let the kids enjoy face painting and snake crafts!

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Free with museum admission.
    • Exhibit: Families, General Audiences
    • 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
    • Ocean Adventure (map)
    • Cape Fear Museum of History and Science, Wilmington

    • Learning Center: Ocean Adventure
      What is an aquanaut? Discover the answer to this question and more as you explore ocean science. Learn why the estuary is called the “ocean’s nursery.” Examine local shells and learn about North Carolina’s state shell. Find out why starfish are not fish at all! Use various magnification tools to examine sea life up close.

      Appropriate for children ages 5 to 12. Parental participation is required.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Free with museum admission.
    • Hands-On Activity, Class/Workshop: Families
    • 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
    • The Science and Art of Wine making (map)
    • Shelton Vineyards, Dobson

    • Tour a state-of-the-art working winery and learn about the art and science of wine making in North Carolina. Tour will end with a tasting of 5 wines (must be 21 years of age to sample) and participants will receive a souvenir glass. Tours start every thirty minutes from 10 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. daily.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: $5.00 per person
    • Hands-On Activity, Tour/Open House: General Audiences
    • 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    • Great Apes (map)
    • North Carolina Zoo, Asheboro

    • Join us for a celebration of the North Carolina Zoo’s great apes! Located in the Africa exhibit region of the park.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Free with zoo admission.
    • Tour/Open House: Families, General Audiences
    • 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
    • Fall Into the Farm with Sandburg & Lincoln (map)
    • Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site, Flat Rock

    • A free family festival to experience life on the Sandburg farm. Special programs include square-dancing, dairy goat demonstrations, bird walks, nature tours, sustainable gardening, activity stations for young visitors and more. This festival also honors Carl Sandburg’s pulitzer-prize winning biography of Abraham Lincoln, featuring a Lincoln presenter and Gettysburg Address contest.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Hands-On Activity, Arts/Performance, Demonstration: Families, General Audiences
    • 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
    • Yates Mill Corn Grinding Demonstrations (map)
    • Historic Yates Mill County Park, Raleigh

    • *Half-Hour Corn Grinding Tours* are offered on the 3rd weekend of each month from Mar – Nov, including September 18-19 (Sat. 10am-4pm and Sun. 1-4pm): Shell corn by hand then see the water mill in operation during ½-hour tours. Learn how the corn-milling machinery works from 19th-century costumed guides. Pre-registration is not required, but is encouraged for groups of 10 or more people. Last tour begins at 3:40pm.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: $5/adult, $3/seniors and children (but those age 6 & under are free)
    • Hands-On Activity, Demonstration, Science Talk/Lecture, Tour/Open House: Families, General Audiences
    • 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.
    • Carnivorous Plant Hike (map)
    • Carolina Beach State Park, Carolina Beach

    • Take a hike with a park ranger and learn about the fascinating world of carnivorous plants that grow at Carolina Beach State Park. See plants that “bite back” such as sundews, bladderworts, butterworts, pitcher plants, and the Venus fly trap. Meet at the Nature Trail Parking Lot at 10:00 a.m. For more information call 910-458-8206.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Other: General Audiences
    • 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
    • Rat Tales at the Charlotte Nature Museum (map)
    • Charlotte Nature Museum, Charlotte

    • Learn all about the world of rodents from squirrels to rats. Live specimens will be on hand for an up close look. Interactive stations will be set up to further your rodent knowledge, and stories about these animals will be read during hourly story time. Don’t Make a pet of Me puppet show will run on the half hour.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Free with museum admission.
    • Hands-On Activity, Demonstration, Science Talk/Lecture, Exhibit, Other: Families
    • 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
    • Explore More Life Lab at Discovery Place (map)
    • Discovery Place, Charlotte

    • Immerse yourselves in our Explore More Life Lab, which is an interactive biology wet lab, featuring a touch tank with live animals from the ocean, fascinating focus stations, and a hands-on unit, featuring Insects during the month of September. Learn how insects eat, make noise, move, and how they differ from other bugs, such as spiders. Have fun creatively experimenting while you learn about these creepy crawlies.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Free with museum admission.
    • Hands-On Activity, Demonstration, Science Talk/Lecture, Exhibit: Families, General Audiences
    • 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.
    • Recycling (map)
    • Bur-Mil Park Wildlife Education Center, Greensboro

    • This class covers the importance of recycling, what happens to the recyclable materials when they leave the recycling center, and what Greensboro’s recycling program looks like. This free workshop has no prerequisites.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Class/Workshop, Science Talk/Lecture: Families, College Students, General Audiences
    • 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
    • Fun Science (map)
    • Johnston Community College, Smithfiled

    • Johnston Community College Hosts:

      1)Microscopy and Microorganisms by Barry Keith
      2)Kitchen Chemistry by Darryl Heuser
      3)Journey Into The Human Body by Nahel Awadallah

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Hands-On Activity, Demonstration, Tour/Open House: Families, College Students, Science Professionals, General Audiences
    • 10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    • NC Estuarium River Roving Tours (map)
    • NC Estuarium, Washington

    • River Roving Educational River Tours- Learn about the history and habitats of the Washington waterfront.  These boat tours cruise the Pamlico River Wednesday through Friday at 10:30 and 12:45, and Saturdays at 10:30. No admission fee or other cost is involved for the tour, but advance reservations are required. Riders should check in 15 minutes in advance. Children must be at least 6 years old to ride; a responsible adult must accompany children under 16.  Call 252-948-0000 for reservations. Please call ahead for program information as space may be limited. The Estuarium is a Partnership for the Sounds facility, an organization promoting eco-tourism and sustainable economic development in the Albemarle-Pamlico region.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Science Talk/Lecture, Tour/Open House: Families, General Audiences
    • 10:30 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.
    • A World Apart (map)
    • Discovery Place, Charlotte

    • Learn about the tropical rainforest ecosystem and the species that call it home during “A World Apart”.

      Get acquainted with a variety of species that call the rainforest habitat home and explore the unique features that help them thrive in this one-of-a-kind environment. Keep your eye out for the ball python, a constrictor that uses its 200 vertebra to twist and turn around the rainforest exhibit. You also could meet an iguana hailing from Central and South America that uses its third eye to sense the presence of predators – and friendly Museum visitors.

      Step in to a world where the seasons change from hot to hotter, frogs roam freely and a 20-year old blue and gold macaw looks on as you experience the wonders of the tropical rainforest.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Free with museum admission.
    • Science Talk/Lecture: Families, General Audiences, Other
    • 11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
    • From Field to Food: A Fall Harvest Celebration (map)
    • Historic Yates Mill County Park, Raleigh

    • Participate in fun, harvest-time activities and corn-related games of skills. Listen to old time music and sample foods made from corn, or enter your own culinary creation into the park’s Cornmeal Cook-off Contest! Learn how corn and wheat are harvested from the fields, and explore harvest-related handcrafts. This 5th annual event includes many free, hands-on activities (which will include focuses on waterpower, simple machines, and power trains), demonstrations and craft displays, in addition to harvest-time story-telling, singing, dancing and other performances. The mill is open for corn-grinding demonstrations during the event and is interpreted by 19th century costumed interpreters.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Fee for mill tours ($5 adults, $3 kids and seniors, age 6 and under are free)
    • Hands-On Activity, Arts/Performance, Class/Workshop, Demonstration, Tour/Open House, Exhibit, Other: Families, General Audiences
    • 11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
    • SciWorks Planetarium Shows (map)
    • SciWorks Science Center, Winston-Salem

    • SciWorks planetarium offers several shows throughout the day for various age groups. We also present a live sky tour of the current night sky. Shows and times vary daily so please call ahead. First show at 11:00 a.m. Last show at 3:00 p.m. Several shows daily.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Free with museum admission.
    • Other: Families, General Audiences
    • 11:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    • Live Animal Encounter (map)
    • North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island, Manteo

    • Come face to face with alligators, snakes, sea turtles and many other live animals in Neptune’s Theater. This program is featured everyday at 11:30 a.m.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Demonstration, Science Talk/Lecture: Families, General Audiences
    • 11:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
    • Touch Tank Feeding Demonstration (map)
    • SciWorks Science Center, Winston-Salem

    • Join SciWorks’ animal care staff as they demostrate the unique feeding mechanisms of various marine animals including horshoecrabs, sea urchins and anemones.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Free with museum admission.
    • Demonstration: Families, General Audiences
    • 12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.
    • Creatures of the Ancient World (map)
    • Aurora Fossil Museum, Aurora

    • Join us for a discussion and presentation on ice age mammals and whales of the ancient world. There will be a talk and a show of fossils. Search for your own fossils on the Pit of the Pungo.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Hands-On Activity, Demonstration, Science Talk/Lecture: Families, General Audiences
    • 1:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.
    • Animal Encounters (map)
    • North Carolina Zoo, Asheboro

    • Join the North Carolina Zoo for close-up encounters with animals! Located in the kidZone section of the park.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Free with zoo admission.
    • Demonstration: Families
    • 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
    • Nature Bike Ride (map)
    • American Tobacco Trail, Apex

    • We’ll take time to “stop and smell the roses” as we meander along the Trail with bikes, exploring the sights and sounds around us. Participants will need to bring water and be able to ride a distance of two miles. Pre-registration is required, so call (919)387-2117 to sign up today!

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: $3/ person or $5/ family
    • Class/Workshop: Families, General Audiences
    • 2:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
    • What’s Glowing On? (map)
    • Discovery Place, Charlotte

    • Grab a seat at “The Stage” and discover the science behind luminescent and incandescent light. By the time the show is over, you’ll be an expert on all that shines.

      Put yourself in the spotlight as a contestant in the “Will it Glow?” game show, hosted by one of the Museum’s brightest scientists. Explore the materials that make things glow and take a closer look at items such as the artwork of Vincent Van ‘Glow’ to watch them shine. The show does ‘lights out’ with a BANG! — get a front row seat to the explosive qualities of light.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Free with museum admission.
    • Class/Workshop, Demonstration, Science Talk/Lecture: Families, General Audiences, Other
    • 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
    • Butterflies and Moths (map)
    • Reedy Creek Nature Center, Charlotte

    • Capture the magic of these winged beauties as we identify and discover the many different individuals present in the preserve.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Hands-On Activity, Science Talk/Lecture, Tour/Open House: Families, General Audiences
    • 2:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
    • Meet the Animals (map)
    • NC Museum of Natural Sciences, Raleigh

    • From alligators to opossums, come face-to-face with a new live animal each week.

      Upcoming Topics

      Sept. 11: Insects & Arthropods

      Sept.12: Turtles
      Sept. 13: What do I eat?
      Sept. 14-17: Nocturnal Animals
      Sept. 18-19: Turtles
      Sept. 20-24: Alligators
      Sept. 25-26: Turtles

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Hands-On Activity, Science Talk/Lecture, Other: Families, College Students, Science Professionals, General Audiences
    • 2:30 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.
    • Science on a Sphere Program (map)
    • North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island, Manteo

    • See the Earth like never before with an educational program on our three dimensional sphere at Oceans Revealed. Every day at 2:30 p.m.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Free with paid admission.
    • Demonstration, Science Talk/Lecture: Families, College Students, Science Professionals, General Audiences
    • 3:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
    • Aviator Brewing Company (map)
    • Aviator Brewing Company, Fuquay-Varina

    • Come tour Aviator Brewing. See the complete brewing process from grain, fermentation, aging, and kegging/bottling. Visit our yeast lab and see the yeast in action! Great hands-on tour with sample of beer for the adults and brewery-made rootbeer for the kids! Cheers.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Demonstration, Science Talk/Lecture, Tour/Open House: Families, College Students, Science Professionals, General Audiences
    • 3:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
    • A World Apart (map)
    • Discovery Place, Charlotte

    • Learn about the tropical rainforest ecosystem and the species that call it home during “A World Apart”.

      Get acquainted with a variety of species that call the rainforest habitat home and explore the unique features that help them thrive in this one-of-a-kind environment. Keep your eye out for the ball python, a constrictor that uses its 200 vertebra to twist and turn around the rainforest exhibit. You also could meet an iguana hailing from Central and South America that uses its third eye to sense the presence of predators – and friendly Museum visitors.

      Step in to a world where the seasons change from hot to hotter, frogs roam freely and a 20-year old blue and gold macaw looks on as you experience the wonders of the tropical rainforest.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Free with museum admission.
    • Science Talk/Lecture: Families, General Audiences, Other
    • 3:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
    • A World Apart (map)
    • Discovery Place, Charlotte

    • Learn about the tropical rainforest ecosystem and the species that call it home during “A World Apart”.

      Get acquainted with a variety of species that call the rainforest habitat home and explore the unique features that help them thrive in this one-of-a-kind environment. Keep your eye out for the ball python, a constrictor that uses its 200 vertebra to twist and turn around the rainforest exhibit. You also could meet an iguana hailing from Central and South America that uses its third eye to sense the presence of predators – and friendly Museum visitors.

      Step in to a world where the seasons change from hot to hotter, frogs roam freely and a 20-year old blue and gold macaw looks on as you experience the wonders of the tropical rainforest.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Free with museum admission.
    • Science Talk/Lecture: Families, General Audiences, Other
    • 3:00 p.m. – 3:45 p.m.
    • Explore McDowell: Guided Nature Hike (map)
    • McDowell Nature Center, Charlotte

    • Join an educator and discover something new at McDowell. A forest walk, stream study, or an introduction to letterboxing might be on the agenda. Please call 704-588-5224 ro reserve your spot.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Hands-On Activity: Families
    • 3:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
    • Library Science Demonstration (map)
    • Orange County Main Library, Hillsborough

    • Dr. Bill Switzer, a professor at NC State University, will present a science demonstration targeted at ages 9 and up. Dr. Switzer will separate the components of air and change the states of matter of its individual elements, all with the help of audience participants.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Science Talk/Lecture: Families, General Audiences
    • 4:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
    • Sub Zero (map)
    • Discovery Place, Charlotte

    • Join our resident physicist at the “The Stage” to chill out and explore a world below freezing. With materials so cold they can only be touched with cryogenic gloves, you’re in for an icy treat!

      The star of the show is liquid nitrogen – a unique element that’s so cold, when poured out of its tank in a room temperature setting; it turns to gas before even hitting the floor – giving you the chance to frolic in a nitrogen cloud. You’ll watch as it makes a surgical glove as delicate as glass, takes the bounce out of a bouncy ball and causes a penny to shatter with one strike of a hammer.

      Learn more frosty facts about this important element at “Sub Zero”.

    • Event Web site
    • Cost: Free with museum admission.
    • Class/Workshop, Demonstration, Science Talk/Lecture: Families, General Audiences, Other
    • 4:00 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
    • Live Animal Talk (map)
    • McDowell Nature Center, Charlotte

    • What does a snake feel like? Can turtles trade shells? Discover these answers and more while you get up close to several resident animals of McDowell Nature Center, the Preserve, and possibly your own backyard.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Hands-On Activity: Families
    • 6:30 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
    • Moonrise Paddle on Big Lake (map)
    • William B Umstead State Park, Raleigh

    • Come celebrate International Observe the Moon Night. Join park rangers for a scenic twilight canoe paddle while the moon rises over the trees. We’ll share the most recent moon science updates and some old lunar legends. The program will begin with a short instruction on canoe basics.

      *Registration Full*

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Hands-On Activity, Other: Families, General Audiences, Other
    • 7:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.
    • International Observe the Moon Night (map)
    • Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute, Rosman

    • Telescopes with docent hosts will be open for public viewing at PARI. Nearby parking will allow for families and other groups to come and go as they please. Lunar topic docents will also be prepared to answered visitor questions.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Hands-On Activity, Tour/Open House: Families, General Audiences
    • 9:30 p.m. – 12:00 a.m.
    • Lunar Observing at ASU’s Rankin Observatory (map)
    • Appalachian State University, Boone

    • The 15 telescope Rankin GoTo Astronomy Laboratory Facility will provide the opportunity for participants to take their own guided tours of the Moon. In addition to viewing various surface features such as craters and mountain ranges, participants will have the opportunity to find many of the Apollo moon landing sites.

      The event is free but does require registration. See the Event Web Site linked below for registration information and event details. Viewing will occur at Rankin Science South Building on the campus of Appalachian State University.

    • Event Web site
    • This event is free to participants.
    • Hands-On Activity, Demonstration, Tour/Open House: Families, College Students, General Audiences
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