Summer Spectacular Is BACK! at the Springfield Museums
SPRINGFIELD (MA)—There are so many opportunities for fun (and learning) at the Springfield Museums this summer. The Museums present Summer Spectacular—full-immersion, hands-on fun for the whole family July 5-August 11, 2021. The Museums are open seven days a week and the Museums invite visitors to play, explore, and create with us! Many activities take place outside on the Museums Grounds (rain locations TBA) and all are free with museum admission! Full schedules at SpringfieldMuseums.org/programs.
“Each week will start with opportunities to explore the Amazing World of Dr. Seuss, Wild Kratts: Creature Power and the sculptural works of Don Gummer, plus the facilitated hands-on learning spaces The Cat’s Corner, Spark!Lab, and The Art Discovery Center,” said Jenny Powers, Family Engagement Coordinator. “Then on Wednesday through Saturday, we going all out with hands-on activities, chances to meet the Cat in the Hat, and concerts throughout the Museums Grounds!”
Summer Spectacular Schedule
July 5 – August 11, 2021
Sunday-Tuesday:
Daily Hands-on activities in The Cat’s Corner, Spark!Lab, and The Art Discovery Center.
Art Discovery Center Projects:
July 5-11 – Trace and Illustrate an Arabic Calligraphy
July 12-18 – Make an Inro and Netsuke
July 19-25 –Printmaking with Flowers
July 26-August 1 – New Logos Meet Ancient Art
August 2-August 8 – TBA
Wednesdays Weekly:
11:00-2:00 Meet the Cat in the Hat! – Safe, social-distanced visits with the Cat in the Hat! While Dr. Seuss’s most iconic character will be behind stanchions, you can still get a fabulous family photo!
11:00-2:00 Live Animal Reptile Encounter – Join one of our knowledgeable museum educator’s at the Reptile Wall in our Live Animal Center to get a closer look and learn more about animals like a painted turtle, box turtle, ball python, and bearded dragons!
11:00-2:00 Chalk Art with Amy Reyor – Join Springfield’s own chalk artist Reyor as she create playful artwork on the Museums Grounds. Grab some chalk and join the fun too, then leave with your own bag of sidewalk chalk to use at home.
11:00-3:00 Wabi-Sabi Art in the Sunshine – In Japanese art, wabi-sabi means imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete. Use water on Buddha Boards to create art that slowly disappears, or tempera paint on our painting frame that gets scrubbed down each afternoon.
11:00-3:00 Pollinator Super Powers – Bees and Beyond! Learn more about our most famous pollinators and other local helpers that may surprise you, including how you can help them! Play a pollinator game start a local pollinator scavenger hunt.
11:00-3:00 Symbols and Shades of Home – Learn about the historic nomadic people of the Islamic world, and how they used color and pattern to identify their homes no matter where they traveled. Make your own design that represents you and your family.
Starting July 15 11:00-3:00 The Meaning of Flowers in Asian Art – Explore the symbolism of different species and colors in Asian Art, then head into the George Walter Vincent Smith Art Museum to see examples in the collections. Color some flower trading cards and have fun sharing them with friends and family.
July 14 & 28, August 4 & 11 11:00-3:00 Visit from US Fish & Wildlife – From animal skins to rain gardens, join Fish & Wildlife intern Guillermo to learn more about the natural world that surrounds us!
Thursdays Weekly:
11:00-2:00 Live Animal Reptile Encounter – Join one of our knowledgeable museum educators at the Reptile Wall in our Live Animal Center to get a closer look and learn more about animals like a painted turtle, box turtle, ball python, and bearded dragons!
11:00-3:00 Printmaking in the Sunshine – “Mono” means one, and “monoprints” are prints that can only be made one time. Use paint, paper, brushes, and texture tools create your own one-of-a-kind artwork.
11:00-3:00 The Meaning and Tradition of Talking Sticks – Talking sticks are also known as speaker’s staffs. They originated within the Indigenous tribes of the Mohawk, Seneca, Cayuga, Oneida, and Onandaga, and have been and are currently apart of many Indigenous traditions today.
11:00-3:00 Arabic Calligraphy – Learn to create the beautiful characters of another language and decorate a fabric tote bag.
11:00-3:00 Pollinator Super Powers – Bees and Beyond! Learn more about our most famous pollinator’s and other local helpers that may surprise you, including how you can help them! Play a pollinator game start a local pollinator scavenger hunt.
Starting July 15 11:00-3:00 The Meaning of Flowers in Asian Art – Explore the symbolism of different species and colors in Asian Art, then go into the George Walter Vincent Smith Art Museum to see examples in the collections. Color some flower trading cards and have fun trading them with friends and family.
Fridays Weekly:
10:15-1:15 Spark!Lab Rockets (Weather Permitting) – Shoot off two different rockets you power with your feet! First, make a stomp rocket out of paper and launch it using an empty soda bottle. Then, try a special person-powered rocket launcher on loan from the Smithsonian’s Lemelson Center.
10:15-1:15 Design, Build, Test – Imagine a scientific mission to space, draw inspiration from existing spacecraft, and then design and build your own simple model spacecraft to accomplish the goals of their mission. After assembling a spacecraft and attaching tools, to your creation, you can complete a series of tests to ensure that they’re ready for launch. Did you include the necessary tools? Can the spacecraft withstand the vibration of launch, or the spin of navigating through space? If not, it’s back to the drawing board—the design/build/test cycle begins again!
10:15-1:15 Arabic Calligraphy – Learn to create the beautiful characters of another language and decorate a fabric tote bag.
Starting July 15 10:15-1:15 Sculpting in the Sunshine – This summer the Museums Grounds will be enlivened by Don Gummer’s large sculptures! Take inspiration from these landscaping-changing pieces and create a mini sculpture using similar mediums to take home.
1:30 – Bring Your Own Blanket Concert on the Quad with Toe Jam Puppet Band – Toe Jam Puppet Band offers a special brand of hands-on children’s entertainment that grown-ups can also enjoy. The performances are very active, encouraging kids and parents to sing and dance along with the band as they entertain with a unique combination of original songs, masterful shadow puppetry, storytelling, and just plain old good fun.
Saturdays Weekly:
11:00-2:00 Meet the Cat in the Hat! – Safe, social-distanced visits with the Cat in the Hat! While Dr. Seuss’s most iconic character will be behind stanchions, you can still get a fabulous family photo!
All exhibits and activities are FREE with museum admission unless noted.
Please note there are fantastic classes for kids, teens, and adults all summer long at the Museum School.
We hope you are inspired by your visit to the Museums. And, please come back again—there is always something new at the Springfield Museums! Family memberships are $125.
Springfieldmuseums.org, One Admission/Five Museums,
including the one and only Amazing World of Dr. Seuss Museum
Parking is always FREE
About The Springfield Museums
THE SPRINGFIELD MUSEUMS are located on the Quadrangle at 21 Edwards Street in the heart of downtown Springfield, Massachusetts. The nationally accredited and Smithsonian-affiliated consortium of museums includes the Springfield Science Museum, the Michele and Donald D’Amour Museum of Fine Arts, the Lyman and Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History, the George Walter Vincent Smith Art Museum, the Dr. Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden, and the Amazing World of Dr. Seuss Museum, the first and only museum dedicated to the beloved children’s book author and Springfield native.
Hours
Tuesday-Saturday: 10 am to 5 pm, from June 28-August 23, Open Monday-Saturday: 10 am to 5 pm
Sunday: 11 am to 5 pm
New Protocols include
- Visitors are encouraged to wear a mask on Museums grounds.
- Masks will be required for visitors age 5 and up in the Amazing World of Dr. Seuss Museum, the Seymour Planetarium, the Wild Kratts special exhibit, and all facilitated spaces, including Spark!Lab, Art Discovery Center, Science Workshop, and Science Discovery Lab.
- Students enrolled in youth classes at the Museum School are also required to wear a mask.
- Advance tickets are strongly encouraged. Please visit the Tickets page.
The Museum Store
Museum Store will allow 10 visitors at a time. Visitors can also reserve time to shop. Please call ahead for reservations 1-413-263-6800, ext 362.
For More Information:
Karen Fisk, Director of Marketing and Communication Strategy
413-263-6800, ext. 459