Find out about life on a farm with hands-on activities, such as feeling sheep wool, a straw scavenger hunt, looking at duck, turkey and goose feathers, and gathering plastic eggs from our hen puppet. Pioneer toys will be available to play with. Adult companions must remain with children during this program. Meet at the Shelter. […]
Bees are hard at work this time of year. They help pollinate crops and create products, like honey and wax. Learn about beekeeping in the 1800s. There will be a demonstration out in the yard about creating a bee house called a skep. We will talk about beekeeping and how honey and wax were used […]
Many interesting creatures can be found living under logs. Learn about the importance of fallen logs and leaves to the environment and the types of creatures that depend on them. Afterward, hike the trails to flip logs in search of log life, including fun fungi, slimy salamanders, slow snails, and farting beetles. This is a […]
Join Hancock Park District at the historic 1847 McKinnis House to learn what it was like to write letters in the 1800s. We will talk about the history and the art of letter writing and how pens and ink were made, use a feather quill and ink to write letters and draw pictures, and create […]
The 1847 cook stove will be on and the aroma from tea, apple crumb cake, and wood smoke will be in the air. There will be a cook stove demonstration, the opportunity to have tea and apple crumb cake, and enjoy the wood burning fire. Each guest will be given a recipe book to take […]
Ah, the sweet taste of honey. When baking, honey can be used instead of white sugar. You and your friends at the parks will enjoy tea sweetened with the bee’s sweet nectar and honey cookies that participants will make and bake in the old wood cook stove. Meet at the McKinnis House. This program is […]
Spring is almost here and the temperatures are starting to fluctuate. This means that conditions are right for collecting maple tree sap. Step back in time to see the process the pioneers and Native Americans used to collect sap and boil it down to produce sweet maple syrup. Other stops of interest include sap science […]
The Story of Maple Syrup will be shared at the McKinnis House while guests enjoy a cup of tea. Grandkids can step back in time with a shared memory of the olden days by their grandparents. There will be maple cookies to sample while sitting in front of the cozy fire. Meet at the McKinnis […]
The warmer air of spring causes the sap in maple trees to flow. Join Hancock Park District as we tap sugar maple trees for our upcoming maple sugarin’ week. We […]
During this hike, we will explore the outdoors by looking at coniferous trees and feeling their prickly needles, looking for animal tracks and deciding if they are from a raccoon, […]
