Family Nature Night Returns to Eagle Valley!
Eagle Valley Elementary students and staff are no rookies when it comes to Family Nature Night! With partners and SOLE activities set up and ready to go, families began arriving right at 5 pm. They were greeted at the Welcome Table with a smile and raffle tickets for the kids. Parents listened as Bonnie explained what activities lay beyond and kids picked out stickers they wanted from the table.
Backyard bass was front and center as people walked the path up to the school. Many could not resist stopping by to show off their casting skills and made this stop first before making it to the Welcome table. The volunteers and staff smiled and laughed right alongside the kids as they provided instructions and tips for improving fishing skills. The artificial fish may not be the real thing, but oh man is it fun catching them!
Outside the school's front doors, Walking Mountain Science Center, Mountain Valley Horse Rescue, and the Wildlife Trivia were ready to entertain anyone who came by. Dani, from Sylvan Lake State Park, stood ready to quiz students on their wildlife knowledge with tricky trivia questions! What a great opportunity to show off how much you know and learn fascinating facts about Colorado’s Wildlife. Many kids spun the wheel several time, eager to see if they could correctly answer questions from a variety of categories.
Mountain Valley Horse Rescue brought magazines and scissors for some habitat invention fun. Students had the opportunity to cut out and glue pictures to a piece of paper, creating their very own take-home habitat. There was great imagination and thought put into habitat making. Amy also provided information about programs available at the Mountain Valley Horse Rescue Ranch, located about 30 miles north of Eagle.
Walking Mountain Science Center brought all kinds of intriguing biofacts! There was an array of animal skins, skulls, scat models, and other wildlife related items that spurred some great conversations. Eyes lit up as kids felt the different kinds of fur and examined the skull replicas.
Inside the school, more fun awaited! Walking down the hallway was an adventure all on its own with the Generation Wild Jumping Game. Feet ready on the start line, people jumped as far as they could down the hallway to see which animal species they could leap as far as. This activity is number 88 on the Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) list of “100 Things to do before you’re 12.” Copies of the list were available to take home too!
The cafeteria lured families in with the smell of freshly delivered pizza. Many took a seat and enjoyed the company of other families as they chowed down on the cheesy goodness. What better way to stay energized and fueled up during the evening than free food!
The gym, where archery was set up, was also quite the popular destination. Anyone 8 years old or over could receive one on one instruction from CPW staff. Becoming an accurate shooting requires practice and concentration, but is tons of fun! Several kids hopped right back in the line as soon as they released their final arrow, determined to hit the bulls eye!
Activities paused for a short time in the middle of the event for the raffle drawing. Families made their way to the cafeteria and found a seat; kids eagerly pulled out their tickets and studied the numbers in hopes they would be lucky. After each ticket was called, the excited ticket holder made his or her way up front with cheers and applause from the rest of the crowd to pick which awesome outdoor prize they would take home. The raffle ended with the grand prize winner receiving a certificate for an annual state parks pass!
After the raffle ended, activities resumed and several families stayed to visit their favorites again.
The SOLE program would like to send a big thank you to all of our partners, volunteers, Eagle Valley staff, and everyone who attended that made the night a success!
