Animal Camouflage (year-round)
Investigate how animals hide with a ‘hide and seek’ hike to find real, but
not always live, hidden animals. End the class with a visit from a snake; a
living master of camouflage.
Animal Homes (year-round)
Learn how animals’ size and adaptations define their shelters. Hike to
survey different animal homes.
Animal Tracks (year-round)
Study track identification basics and hike to search for and identify tracks
of resident animals. Make plaster casts of animal prints to take home.
Apple Cidering (Sept-Oct)
Using an old-fashioned cider press, make apple cider and learn about the
natural and cultural history of apples. Enjoy a fall hike, time allowing.
Bees and Honey (April-Sept)
Collect insects and learn about the bees’ hive and life cycle. Finish the
program with a sample of Wood Lake honey.
Birds Around Us (year-round)
Birds are amazing and beautiful creatures that alert us to changes in the
environment. Discover the incredible secrets of bird behavior and migration.
Cold-Blooded Critters (April-Oct)
Learn the attributes of animals with no fur or feathers, observe live
specimens in their habitats, and participate in a ‘hands-on’ visit with some
live cold-blooded critters.
Critter Walk (year-round)
From trees to bees and everything in between, explore Wood Lake to observe
and learn about nature’s critters and their habitats.
Dead or Alive (year-round)
Observe characteristics of living, dead, and inanimate (never alive) things
and learn the difference between the three. Sort objects into the three
categories and go on a hike to identify how all three things fit into
nature’s cycle of life.
Dinosaurs (April-Oct)
Extract fossilized (plastic) dinosaur bones at a simulated ‘dig site’ and
learn about the science of paleontology. Look at real fossils, then
reconstruct a skeleton using bones from the 'dig site'.
Insect Study (April-Sept)
Using sweep nets and magnifying ‘bug boxes’, find and observe insects and
other invertebrates in the prairie and forest.
Maple Syruping (Feb-Mar)
Learn about the natural and cultural history of maple syruping. Identify and
tap maple trees, collect sap, and turn syrup into a maple sugar treat.
Marsh Explorers (May-Sept)
Discover the incredible variety of animals, insects, and plants that live in
the marsh. Dip into the marsh with a collection cup to explore the hidden
depths of this diverse wetland.
Muskrat Safari (Jan-Feb)
Learn about adaptations of aquatic and land mammals. Go out to the marsh to
search for muskrat lodges and get a glimpse of life under the ice.
Nature’s Needs (year-round)
Identify the things both animals and plants need to survive, listen to a
story, then explore Wood Lake’s forest and prairie. End the class with a
visit from a live salamander.
Senses Around (April-Oct)
Explore the trails using the senses of sight, touch, hearing, and smelling
through a fun hike with activities.
Snowshoeing (Jan-Feb)
Experience the joy of walking on top of snow, conditions permitting.
Additional snowshoe rental cost: $1 per participant.
Trees, Leaves, and Seeds (April-Nov)
Become a tree by acting out its life cycle and learning about its leaves and
seeds. Collect seeds to find out how plants are able to spread out without
being able to move.
