Events

    Second Sundays

    Location: 

    Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

    Come by the Arnold Arboretum for our series of Second Sundays community events, celebrating Peters Hill and the neighborhoods surrounding it. Enjoy family activities, play lawn games, talk to a horticulturist or a scientist, sample local apples, take a tour, and more!

    Learn more and RSVP.

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    National Fossil Day

    Location: 

    Harvard Museum of Natural History, 26 Oxford St., Cambridge

    What treasures are found in the Harvard University paleontology collections? Meet Harvard paleontologists to find out! See their favorite fossils, learn about their research, and ask them your questions.

    Learn about local fossils and where to find them, see what new techniques and technologies are being used to study fossils, and hear about current research projects. Join us to celebrate National Fossil Day with short talks and table-top presentations for all ages.

    Regular museum admission rates apply.

    ...

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    ¡Celebremos El Salvador!

    Location: 

    Harvard Museum of Natural History, 26 Oxford St., Cambridge

    Celebrate the vibrant culture and natural history of El Salvador. Enjoy captivating folk dances by Grupo Torogoz and try hands-on activities including corn grinding and painting with cochineal insects. Go on a scavenger hunt and discover the rich heritage of animals, minerals, and artifacts from the region. Join an archaeologist for a live-streamed tour of Joya de Cerén, the Pompeii of Latin America. Take a break with Spanish Story Time, enjoy traditional Salvadoran cuisine (available for purchase), and enter a raffle to win a museum gift basket.

    All are welcome to explore,...

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    Second Sundays

    Location: 

    Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

    Come by the Arnold Arboretum for our series of Second Sundays community events, celebrating Peters Hill and the neighborhoods surrounding it. Enjoy family activities, cool off with free ice cream, play lawn games, talk to a horticulturist or a scientist, take a tour, and more!

    Tour and Tree Mob Schedule:

    • 12:00pm: English-language tour of Peters Hill
    • 1:00pm: Spanish-language tour of Peters Hill / Recorridos guiados en español a las 13.00 horas
    • 1:15pm: Tree Mob – topic to be announced!
    • 2:...
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    Caterpillar Walk with Sam Jaffee

    Location: 

    Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

    The Caterpillar Lab is moving in, and while the exhibit will be full of their munching critters and offer lots to explore, the real story is the one going on outside where these creatures are living out their strange lives in the wild.

    Join Director of the Caterpillar Lab Sam Jaffe on a walk around the property exploring for native caterpillars and other insects. Learn how the Caterpillar Lab finds all of their caterpillars, learn about host plants and parasitoids, and get all of the caterpillar-finding secrets from one of the foremost caterpillar hunters in the world! This...

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    Caterpillar Lab

    Location: 

    Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

    The Caterpillar Lab is returning to the Arboretum! This immersive, interactive exhibit will feature hundreds of native caterpillars at every stage in their life cycles. Visitors will be able to learn from the experts as they explore the displays. The Lab offers something for every age group, and will give new insight into the world around us.

    Event dates & times:

    • Friday, August 18: 12:00pm–4:00pm
    • Saturday, August 19: 11:00am–4:00pm
    • Sunday, August 20: 11:00am...
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    Second Sundays at the Arnold Arboretum

    Location: 

    Peters Hill, Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

    Bring your family and friends to Peters Hill for an afternoon of free tours, crafts, family activities, and more! Did we mention free ice cream and bubbles? Free activities open to all ages include:

    • Tours of Peters Hill offered in both English and Spanish

    • Plant information tents featuring wildflowers and plant defenses, fascinating Arboretum plant highlights, know-how of Arboretum experts, and a rich assortment of cuttings to view up close

    • Ice cream, art activities, lawn games, StoryWalks®, and more!...

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    Make Your Own Cyanotypes: A Walk-Up Program

    Location: 

    Hunnewell Lawn, Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

    Stop by the Hunnewell Lawn between 12:00pm–3:00pm to create beautiful nature-based cyanotype prints. Participants will arrange flowers, leaves, and seeds and expose them in sunlight to create a deep blue print with bright, ghost-white silhouettes.

    *While supplies last. No registration required.

    Get directions to Hunnewell Lawn.

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    Summer Solstice 2023: Night at the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture

    Location: 

    Harvard Museums of Science & Culture, 11 Divinity Ave., Cambridge

    Join the Harvard Museums of Science & Culture on the longest day of the year—free of charge—to explore the galleries and new exhibitions at the Harvard Museum of Natural History, the Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology, the Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments, and the Harvard Museum of the Ancient Near East.

    Step outdoors to enjoy lively musical and circus performances, play mini-golf, and make a flower crown. Ice cream, mocktails, and snacks will be available to purchase from food trucks and vendors. Don’t miss out on this popular event for all ages...

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    Mr. Twister and the Tale of Tornado Alley

    Location: 

    Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

    An opera for youth and families, Mr. Twister and the Tale of Tornado Alley follows Mr. Twister and his grandson Bobby on a journey around the globe—from the chilly arctic to the sizzlingly warm Gulf of Mexico. Through the power of his magic telescope, Mr. Twister can see just about everything—except the family reunion of the North and South winds that is about to create a cyclone in Tornado Alley! Join us on this operatic adventure (with puppets!).

    Families are also invited to a pre-show puppetmaking workshop where your child can make a puppet to use during the performance of...

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    Family Hike: Flower Power

    Location: 

    Hunnewell Building, Arnold Arboretum, 125 Arborway, Boston

    Families need nature at all times of the year! Meet inside the main gate at the Visitor Center. We’ll look at buds and blooms and learn how bees find flowers. Go on a StoryWalk®, get a bee tattoo, and look at flowers under magnifiers. Free and open to all, most suitable for children ages four through ten.

    Learn more and RSVP.

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