Raven Hill Discovery Center
is the proud recipient of the 2005 Crooked Tree Arts Center
eddi Award for Arts and Cultural Organizations
Raven Hill
Discovery Center is the only place in northern Lower Michigan
where science, history and art connect for children and adults
through hands-on activities and explorations, both indoors and
outdoors. Connections emerge through classes, exhibits and facilities
that provide opportunities for all ages to learn, create, grow
and play.
Contact
Information
Phone:
231.536.3369 or tollfree 877.833.4254 ~ Fax:
231.536.0132 ~ Email:
info@ravenhilldiscoverycenter.org ~ Address:
4737 Fuller Road, East Jordan, Michigan 49727
Summer
hours are in effect!
* Raven Hill is open daily
from Memorial Day to Labor Day.
* Weekday hours are 10 am to
4 pm
* Regular weekend hours are Saturdays
12 - 4pm and Sundays 2 - 4pm.
* PLUS, we are open over most
holiday periods & always
by appointment.
Regular
admission price is
$8.00 per person, except for babies
that stay in backpacks or strollers. Admission includes time
in the hands-on museum and a visit with the animals. There is
also access to the one room Schoolhouse, Time Tunnel, Energy
House and theTree House, as well as outdoor exhibits, such as
the new Earth Tones Music Garden, Beyond Jurassic Park, Ancient
World, Taxonomic (Taxi) Trail, the Stone Labyrinth, and the
Pond, if you dress for the weather. The average visit indoors
is one and a half to two hours. Exhibits are appropriate for
all ages, from one to one hundred!! Gift shop and picnic area
available. Activities are individually priced, over and above
admission price. The Center is located between East Jordan &
Boyne City, just off C-48 at Pearsall Road and within Mile 15
of the Breezeway.
Attention!
Coming Events!
A special Luke Buck Water Color Workshop
is scheduled at Raven Hill Discovery Center for Monday,
August 2 and Tuesday, August
3, 2010 from 9 am to 3 pm.
Luke Buck, a native "Hoosier",
grew up and studied art in Indiana. His nostalgic paintings
of Americana landscapes and American wildlife show a love
for life, art, and nature. Many “locals” here
in northern Michigan appreciate his talents and enjoy collecting
his paintings. Luke will be teaching his unique but traditional
technique and approach to watercolor painting through lectures,
demonstrations, and step-by-step painting with one-on-one
instructions. This workshop is designed for beginner, intermediate,
or advanced watercolor painters. Early enrollment is recommended
as space is limited. Cost: $200 for 2 days. Lunch is included.
~~~~~~~~
By popular request, a star party
will be held again this year out by the Raven Hill Discovery
Center Schoolhouse starting at 9 pm
on Thursday, August 12th. Bring
comfortable chairs or sleeping bags so you can lay back and
enjoy the meteor showers. Watching meteors is best done in
a reclining position so lounge chairs, sleeping bags or ground
blankets to lay down on to watch the meteors will be best
and plastic will help keep the dew off. Of course this is
all contingent on clear skies that evening (call 231.526.3369
for latest update). Enjoy the wonder and excitement, when
you see galaxies and nebula and planets that you may never
have seen before. Patrick Stonehouse, local astronomer, will
again have the telescopes out and be our “guide on the
side” for this exciting event. Donations of $5 per person
and $15 per family are appreciated. Light refreshments will
be available. Call 231.536.3369 to register or for more information.
~~~~~~~~~
It’s a FAMILY AFFAIR at
Raven Hill Discovery Center every second Saturday in 2010—next
up: August 14th from noon to
4 pm. Thanks to a grant awarded by the Charlevoix County Community
Foundation, the Center will offer FREE
ADMISSION and special science
activities on the second Saturday of each month in
2010. Bring the whole family “team” OR make it
a special event for parent and child. There will be fun problem-solving
demos & activities to fit various ages, abilities and
interests every month. Family groups can strengthen creative
& critical thinking skills by trying a different science
challenge each month, plus enjoy the museum, animals and outdoor
exhibits. The focus in August will
be Pond Critters. Come and be
prepared to learn about our pond community and catch (and
release) a frog. Watch for other fun events every second Saturday
in 2010 and make plans for your family to join us.
Here's More.......info,
exhibits and some history!
Winter Hours: Please
call ahead to check on winter road conditions. Between
Labor Day and Memorial Day, Raven Hill is open weekends from
12 to 4 pm on Saturdays and 2 to 4 pm on Sundays
or any time by appointment.
Treat yourself and your
family to a day or an afternoon of fun and exploration at Raven
Hill Discovery Center. You can build connections between science,
history and the arts in an interactive learning environment.
In addition to playing in the hands-on museum and holding the
exotic animals, you can also spend time in the one-room schoolhouse,
see the geologic history of the earth in the Exploring Beyond
Jurassic Park outdoor exhibit, stroll through various cultures
in the Ancient World, explore the new Tree House, show your
musical talents in the Earth Tones Music Garden and take a peek
at the Center’s “in-progress” exhibit, the
Energy House, which is solar powered. Plan at least 2 hours
or more, if you are taking a class or experiencing any of the
outdoor exhibits.
AND--feel
free to email us (look up & left for
the blue email button
) and share your experiences, comments and suggestions
about our facilities, exhibits and programs. Your input is appreciated.
Explore
the Earth Tones Music Garden
The
new outdoor Earth Tones Music Garden connects the science of
sound and the history of instruments to the art of music. The
eight over-sized, tuned instruments includes a 75' friction
harp, friction rods, a lithophone, triangles, whale drum, bells,
aerophone and Amadinda are made possible by the Michigan Council
for Arts and Cultural Affairs, the National Endowment for the
Arts and many community businesses, organizations and individuals.
The Music Garden's gala opening was Friday, July 17th and sponsored
in part by WCMU Public Radio and East Jordan Plastics, as well
as many other area businees and individuals. The Earth Tones
Music Garden was designed and constructed by musician and edutainer,
Tom Kaufmann. Tom demonstrates the Amadinda, aerophone, lithophone,
friction rods and the earth (friction) harp. Click
here to see and hear the Music Garden in action!
Play
in the barrier-free Tree House, built in the shape of a maple
leaf around four trees.
Designed and
built in the shape of a maple leaf by Poineau Woodworkers of
East Jordan, Michigan through a grant awarded by the Michigan
Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs and the National Endowment
for the Arts, plus many private donations, the Tree House connects
science and art. Panels are being decorated by local schools
and inside, visitors can play with a marble roll, leave notes
on chalkboard circles, ring the dinner triangle, examine a tree
trunk up close and personal and soon will also be able to look
through kaleidescopes, periscopes and telescopes. The stem of
the leaf forms a barrier free ramp for everyone's convenience.
Exploring
Beyond Jurassic Park
Stroll through Raven
Hill Discovery Center's "Exploring Beyond Jurassic Park"
and learn about the Earth's Geologic History before and after
the dinosaurs. The 350' walkway begins with the formation of
the Earth and ends with the appearance of modern man. The exhibit
includes real rocks, fossils, and trees and sculptures of extinct
species. Pictured above is the Pteranodon sculpture of welded
steel by Bill Allen.
The Ancient World
Raven Hill Discovery
Center's Ancient World Exhibit includes a working factory site
with 4 primitve pottery kilns, a glass furnace, a beading furnace
and a copper smelter. There are 5 cultural areas--Europe, Asia,
Africa, America and Oceana. Visitors can use their imagination
and circle the world, exploring a 10' Moai (Easter Island head);
obelisk, the bluestones of Stonehenge, a Sweet Track, zen garden,
pyramid, Olmec mound, raised crop beds, shaduf, Great Serpent
Mound and a Mayan ball court.
RAVEN HILL OPPORTUNITIES
Classes
for children and adults are available any time by appointment.
Call 231.536.3369 to book a specific class to fit your interests
and choose a day and time to fit your individual schedule.
Teachers
can book field trips and outreach programs for their students
Graduate
credit classes for educators through Central Michigan
University are offered year-round: two consecutive weekends
during the school year and one week during the summer months
Scouts
and other youth organizations can schedule day programs or overnights
to work on activities to fulfill badges, patches or pins
Families
will enjoy spending quality time with their children and grandchildren
Hikers
and walkers looking for
new trails to explore will find multiple opportunities for easy
to "black diamond" paths.
Earth
Journey: Walk to support Raven Hill any time.
Purchase a passport and add stickers as you visit different
exhibits at the Center. Beautiful limited edition Raven Hill
Discovery Center “Earth Journey” T-shirts are also
available with a map of the grounds in full color right on the
shirt. Walk, roll, stroll
around Raven Hill for as little or long as you wish ~ Stop and
play along the way ~ Take time to enjoy Near and Far ~ Now and
Then ~ Exhibits and Demos
"Short
History of Raven Hill Discovery Center"
Raven Hill Discovery
Center, 2005 Crooked Tree Arts Center eddi Award recipient for
Arts and Cultural Organizations, was established in 1992 as
a regional science and technology center. Raven Hill is a 501
(C) (3) organization. It is located on 157 acres adjacent to
Little Traverse Conservancy’s Raven Ridge Nature Preserve.
It is also a cultural, historical and art center. The overall
goal of the Center is to build lifelong connections for children
and adults that link science, history and the arts in a hands-on
learning environment. Over the past fifteen years Raven Hill
Discovery Center has had more than 134,000 visitors experience
science and technology, history and the arts through hands-on
exhibits and displays. Indoors, visitors can explore museum
exhibits like a wellness center, walk-in kaleidoscope, musical
instruments, generator bike, magnet table, loom, gyro cycle,
old-fashioned games, laser and plasma lamp, motion displays,
as well as many displays and collections of science, history
and art. In addition, the animal room is full of live animals,
including snakes, lizards, turtles, and spiders. Out-buildings
include a Time Tunnel, Print Shop, Work Shop, Raven Hill Schoolhouse
and Tree House, plus a Taxonomic (Taxi) Trail, Energy House,
caboose and forge that are in various stages of completion or
restoration. Outdoor exhibits range from the new Earth Tones
Music Garden, the medicinal and turtle gardens, Exploring Beyond
Jurassic Park, The Ancient World, labyrinth, wetlands boardwalk,
the Taxonomic (Taxi) Trail and a half-acre pond. Programs include
professional development workshops for teachers and graduate
classes through Central Michigan University, school field trips,
scout activities, summer day camp, adult enrichment classes
and family days. The museum is also open to the general public.
In addition, there have been over 75,000 contact hours with
teachers and students in area classrooms during the last fourteen
years as a result of Raven Hill’s Outreach Program. Raven
Hill is unique in northern Michigan. It draws regularly from
a twelve county area during the school year and from across
the United States and the world during the summer tourist season.
The Center is open year-round to the public, individuals, groups,
and organizations.
