GREENWICH, CT — First celebrated in 1970, when 20 million Americans mobilized to call for greater protections for our planet, Earth Day has since grown into an unparalleled global collaboration. The theme of Earth Day 2021 is Restore Our Earth, and will be officially commemorated on Thursday, April 22.
Spark your children’s interest in protecting the environment by joining the Bruce Museum online for Digital Family Day: Earth Day on Sunday, April 18, to enjoy a variety of fun activities your family can do at home. Environmentally friendly crafts include creating a paper “garden” using recycled materials; using recycled paper to make a ball filled with seeds that you can plant; and fashioning a butterfly feeder, also using recycled materials easily found at home.
Hands-on Earth Day activities with a special Bruce Museum twist include creating your own contemporary/abstract art painting, an art activity led by Education Associate Gabriela Perez and inspired by the recent exhibition “She Sweeps with Many-Colored Brooms”: Paintings and Prints by Emily Mason. Megan Brown, Manager of Youth and Family Services, reads from the children’s book Grandpa’s Too-Good Garden, written and illustrated by renowned New Yorker cartoonist James Stevenson, whose work was recently highlighted in the exhibition Fun / No Fun: Children’s Book Art by James Stevenson.
All Digital Family Day activities and their instructions via text and video will be posted at brucemuseum.org and Live on the Bruce Museum’s Instagram page starting at 9:00 am on Sunday, April 18. There is no charge to take part in the Digital Family Day: Earth Day, as Youth and Family Programming at the Bruce Museum is generously supported by GIVE: Steven and Alexandra Cohen Foundation, and The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America.
Other online programs offered on a regular basis include Digital Bruce Beginnings, a program for children ages 3–5 and their caregivers that explores the Bruce Museum’s exhibitions with a story time and imaginative play. New programs every Tuesday, 9:00 – 10:00 am; on April 13 the buzz is all about Pollinators! Register at brucemuseum.org.
For Digital Weekends with the Bruce, Museum educators provide families with fun and creative activities based on current exhibitions. Use the linked videos and activity descriptions to enjoy at-home art and science projects. New programs are posted on Saturdays, 12:00 pm, at brucemuseum.org. Programs for May include Create Your Own Character on May 1, and Grow Your Own Seed on May 29.
The Bruce Museum is also hosting a family-friendly Art Workshop with Sandy McDermott: New England Animals on Saturday, May 22, 2021, 12:00 - 1:30 pm via Zoom. Nature illustrator Sandy McDermott leads a virtual session about how to draw your own scientific illustrations of animals native to New England. No prior skills necessary; participants will receive a list of materials required for the workshop prior to the program. Cost is $15 for Museum members, $20 per individual for non-members. Advance registration at brucemuseum.org.