Family Nature Night Fun for Peiffer
It was a great night for a Family Nature Night on Tuesday with cooperative weather and families eager for some fun. A smiling face was waiting at the Welcome Table where Katie was there to greet everyone with raffle tickets and a description of all the activities inside! Partners were spread through the school, and pizza was freshly waiting in the cafeteria. Many went for pizza first to fuel up for the awaiting activities.
Denver Botanic Gardens brought an entire planting activity as well as a tricky guessing game with plants to investigate! Anyone who took the time to plant some seed was able to take home a pot of native grass they planted that night! History Colorado had some rousing games of history bingo going on while many posed with state symbols for a photo opportunity as well. The temporary tattoos were a popular prize!
Maybe you were busy trying to identify birds with Bird Conservancy of the Rockies by using binoculars to identify features from afar. Or perhaps you attempted to use different kinds of ‘beaks’ to fill your bird belly and learn about bird adaptations with Audubon Society of Greater Denver. Kids lined up for both activities with excitement and walked away with knowledge (and possibly gummy worms) to share.
Lookout Mountain Nature Center and Jefferson County Open Space brought several activities and was bustling with activity the entire evening. One especially popular person at this station is a favorite substitute teacher at Peiffer! Students ran up to say hi every time they recognized this friendly face. Kids also had a chance to play animal Twister, match animals to tracks, and make plaster track prints! What a variety!
Backyard Bass, located in the gym as well, gathered quite a following of students! Many could barely be pulled away for the raffle and came back right after to keep up the plastic fish catching streak they had established. Archery, run by A&H Adventures, was a popular stop for those over eight. A constant stream of kids lined up for a try at getting a bullseye. It’s also where our volunteer, Katrin, was stationed on an extra special night for her. When the raffle was announced, she was ushered into the cafeteria with all the families for a fun surprise.
The raffle at 6 pm was highly anticipated by all the families attending, and the cafeteria filled up with those hoping for a prize. Students gripped their tickets, hoping to hear their winning number. First, though, Katrin was called up to receive a volunteer vest, signifying that she has completed 200 hours of volunteer work with CPW. We at SOLE could not provide these terrific events and activities without dedicated volunteers like Katrin! After this celebration, binoculars, tents, sleeping bags, mystery bags, and fishing poles were presented, and lucky winners received this great camping gear as well as History Colorado Family Passes. The grand prize State Parks Gift Certificate was received by a very happy family eager to explore the parks in this beautiful state! Then it was time to go back to the fun activities waiting in the hall.
South Platte Park, part of South Suburban Parks and Recreation, came with a young live bull snake that fascinated young and old, alike. Were you brave enough to touch it? There was also entertaining trivia offered by USFS, who brought the most stickers to choose from by far!
The Generation Wild station challenged kids to complete 100 things by the time they turn 12. Many were able to check off at least a few already, and there were two more to complete at the station. How far can you jump? Some were able to jump as far a black bear. How about you? There was also a tracking activity to test your investigative prowess. Is it a coyote or a fox track? Trivia wheel also stayed popular until the end, even as other tables were packing up to leave. Who wouldn't want to test their trivia knowledge, after all?
It was a wonderful night full of fun for everyone. The SOLE program would like to thank all of our partners, volunteers, Peiffer staff, and everyone who attended that made the night a success!
