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___________________________________________________________
Date: January 3, 2010
Re: Second Saturday Science Series begins January 9
It’s a FAMILY AFFAIR at
Raven Hill Discovery Center this second Saturday in 2010—January
9th 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, starting this Saturday, January 9th. 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 January will be Towering Towers. Small
fry can use building blocks while older children can try other
challenges, such as domino towers, Jenga towers, paper towers
and playing card towers. Raven Hill Discovery
Center is the only place in northern Lower Michigan where children
and adults can link science, history & the arts with 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.
Raven Hill Discovery Center is located between East Jordan &
Boyne City, just off C-48 at Pearsall Road. For more information
or questions or for winter road conditions, please call 231.536.3369.
___________________________________________________________
Date: December 18, 2009
Re: Winter Solstice 2009
Raven Hill Discovery Center has
hosted a winter solstice celebration at its outdoor Ancient
World Exhibit site for about seven years, but will move the
event indoors this year to allow more people to participate,
said CEO Cheri Leach. Instead of celebrating near a native-stone
scale replica of the bluestones of Stonehenge, participants
will be able to view a model of Stonehenge, make a sundial to
take home, learn how water clocks work, and mark down important
dates from a perpetual calendar. A bonfire, hot chocolate, s'mores
and luminaria also are planned. General admission is $8 and
includes access to regular indoor and outdoor displays and exhibits.
Leach said the solstice celebration is an opportunity to connect
science, history and art -- the East Jordan center's mission
-- and to teach about cycles and seasons. The solstice was especially
important in ancient times, when communities needed reassurance
that there would be another season. "The 21st is the longest
night and the shortest day of the year; after that the days
get longer," she said. "So winter solstice is the
celebration of the new harvest season."
___________________________________________________________
Date: November 22, 2008
Re: Holiday Hours for 2008
Plan on treating yourself and
your family to an afternoon of fun and exploration at Raven
Hill Discovery Center this holiday season. Located between East
Jordan & Boyne City, just off C-48 at Pearsall Road, the
Center helps visitors build connections between science, history
and the arts in an interactive learning environment. In addition
to the hands-on museum and exotic animals, visitors can dress
for the weather and visit the tree house, the one-room schoolhouse,
explore the Time Tunnel, see the geologic history of the earth
on the Exploring Beyond Jurassic Park outdoor exhibit, and snowshoe
or cross country ski around the Taxi Trail and to the Ancient
World outdoor exhibits. Raven Hill Discovery
Center will be open from noon to 4 p.m. for family visits during
both Thanksgiving and Winter breaks. Hours include, Friday,
November 28th through Sunday, November 30th, as well as Saturday,
December 20th through Monday, January 5th, with the exception
of Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.
Visitors can always explore the museum and animals. Special
activities include pioneer crafts in November and a variety
of activities in December, including Shibori, an ancient folding
and dyeing technique that yields beautiful scarves, Hot Glass
Beads, working with a torch to create your own glass beads,
marbled paper, leather pouches, aluminum repose, plus several
other Arts & Crafts sessions. There will be a do-it-yourself
gift-wrapping station available. Anyone interested in making
holiday gifts can call and schedule a time for their choice
of classes. Raven Hill will also celebrate
the Winter Solstice on Sunday, December 21, 2008 with a trip
out to Stonehenge in Raven Hill’s very own Ancient World.
The trek will begin at 5 p.m. Participants can snowshoe or cross
country ski an illuminated trail and are asked to bring a goody
to roast on the fire and a piece of firewood to keep the fire
burning. The entire family will have great fun. Be sure to plan
on playing in the museum and seeing the animals afterward while
you warm up. Snowshoes will be available to borrow for those
who do not own any. Please call to reserve snowshoes and register
to participate in the Winter Solstice event. The
Center’s annual Holiday Open House is scheduled from noon
to 4 p.m. on Sunday, December 28th, so help us celebrate our
18th holiday season. Finally, a New Year’s Eve Overnight
from 6 p.m. on December 31, 2008 to 9 a.m. on January 1, 2009
will entertain the kids and keep them safe, while you celebrate
with them or on your own. Registration is limited, so book your
spaces soon by calling Cheri at 231-536-3369. Cost is $100 per
person for the overnight and includes meals, snacks & activities.
_____________________________________________________________
Date: January 17, 2008
Re: Tree House Project
Raven Hill Discovery Center is
extending an invitation to submit drawings to be used in the
design of a Tree House that will be built this spring as a part
of a grant from Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs
and the National Endowment for the Arts. The Tree House Project
will create an arboreal space that incorporates the science
of sound, light, motion, simple machines and nature, as well
as the art of glass, clay, metal, wood, fiber and stone. The
Raven Hill Discovery Center Tree House will be built on a platform
that is suspended by cables between four trees about 8 feet
above the ground. The tree house will be approximately 15’
x 15’, but not necessarily square or rectangular.
Art classes or individuals can
participate at three levels:
1. Teachers, students of any
age and the community are invited to draw (and label or describe)
their own fantasy tree house. Submitted drawings will become
the property of Raven Hill Discovery Center and be reviewed
for the feasibility of the designs. As many ideas and elements
as possible will be incorporated into a final tree house design
to be created by Andre’ Poineau of East Jordan. In 1995,
Poineau Woodworkers designed and constructed the Tree House
in the 4-H Children’s Garden at Michigan State University
in Lansing, Michigan.
2. The Tree House walls will be constructed of panels approximately
4’ x 6’ in size. Art teachers and their students
may submit a design for a wall panel. Upon acceptance of a class
design, a panel will be delivered to the school, where students
will embellish their panel by painting, staining, wood burning,
carving, insetting, etc.
3. High school juniors and seniors will be invited to work with
Poineau Woodworkers at Raven Hill Discovery Center to assemble
the tree house on May 21, 2008 (rain date: May 22).
Please call Cheri at 231.536.3369
to sign up for one or more levels of participation, for more
information or if you have any questions.
Dates:
February 14, 2008 Tree House drawings
due
March 14, 2008 Tree House panel designs are due
April 14, 2008 Panels delivered to schools for embellishment
May 14, 2008 Finished panels returned to Raven Hill Discovery
Center
May 21, 2008 Assembly of Tree House at Raven Hill Discovery
Center
May 22, 2009 Assembly of Tree House (raindate)
__________________________________________________________________________
Date: December 2, 2007
Re: 2007 Winter Holiday Events
Raven Hill Discovery Center has
scheduled FUN for this holiday season. If you are looking for
a creative way to make holiday gifts for loved ones this year,
look no further. Raven Hill Discovery Center is hosting an Art
Across the Ages “Make & Take” Weekend on December
8, 2007 from noon to 4 pm. Bring the whole family for an exciting
day of gift making. Stations will include Shibori, an ancient
dyeing and folding technique that yields beautiful scarves,
Hot Glass Beads, working with a torch to create your own glass
beads for those 10 or older, copper planishing, using a hammer
stone & fire to make a pendant, needle felting, plus several
other Arts & Crafts stations. General admission is $7 per
person. To participate in the “Make & Take”
stations, there is an additional $5 charge. Participants can
make multiples of any art or craft project for the cost of individual
materials. For example, those who choose to create larger silk
Shibori scarves will pay $6 per scarf. There will also be a
do-it-yourself gift-wrapping station available. As always, visitors
may decide to spend all their time exploring the museum &
animal rooms. Then celebrate the Winter
Solstice on Friday, December 21, 2007 with a trip out to Stonehenge
in Raven Hill’s very own Ancient World. The trek will
begin at 5 p.m. Participants can snowshoe or cross-country ski
an illuminated trail and are asked to bring goodies to share.
The entire family will have great fun. Be sure to plan time
to play in the museum and see the animals afterward while you
warm up. The Center’s 17th annual
Holiday Open House is scheduled from 5 to 8 p.m. on Friday,
December 28th, so stop by on your way home from work to help
us celebrate the holiday season. And
a New Year’s Eve Overnight from 6 p.m. on December 31,
2007 to 9 a.m. on January 1, 2008 will entertain the kids and
keep them safe, while you celebrate with them or on your own.
Registration is limited, so book a spot for your children soon
by calling Cheri at 231-536-3369. Cost is $100 per child and
kids must be between 4 and 12 years of age. Alternatively,
just treat yourself and your family to an afternoon of fun and
exploration at Raven Hill Discovery Center this holiday season.
Located between East Jordan & Boyne City, just off C-48
at Pearsall Road, the Center helps visitors build connections
between science, history and the arts in an interactive learning
environment. In addition to the hands-on museum and exotic animals,
visitors can dress for the weather and spend time in the one-room
schoolhouse, explore the Time Tunnel, see the geologic history
of the earth on the Exploring Beyond Jurassic Park outdoor exhibit,
and snowshoe or cross country ski around the Taxi Trail and
to the Ancient World outdoor exhibit. Raven Hill will be open
every day from noon to 4 p.m. from Saturday, December 22nd through
Wednesday, January 2, 2008, except for Christmas Day and New
Year’s Day.
___________________________________________________________________________
Date: June 15, 2007
Re: 2007 Summer Programs and Events
Summer classes are already in
full swing at Raven Hill Discovery Center. Classes are available
for children and adults. They take place every week day, both
morning and afternoon or other times by appointment. Classes
feature lots of new experiences for children from four to fourteen
and for adventurous adults. Favorites include art classes like
Shibori, batik, marbled fabrics, hot glass beads, stained glass,
copper smithing, jewelry, printing and graphics, papermaking,
felting, pysanky, welding, and raku pottery, as well as African
spirit masks, playing school, frog catching and survival. Kids
and adults gain new skills as they experience all areas of science,
history and the arts. Everyone can also take full advantage
of Raven Ridge Nature Preserve with its boardwalk, trails and
overlook platform. Other outdoor activities include spending
time exploring Michigan’s geologic history in Raven Hill’s
Beyond Jurassic Park exhibit or learning about Michigan’s
trees while hiking the Taxi (Taxonomic) Trail. Sign up for summer
classes to fit your schedule by calling Raven Hill Discovery
Center. Choose the day, time and class that fits the best. Cost
for classes is $16 per hour for adults and $8 per hour for children.
Participants can bring a sack lunch and for attend both morning
and afternoon classes. Professional Development classes for
teachers are also scheduled throughout the summer. Graduate
credit for classes is available through Central Michigan University.
In addition, the Center is open daily to the general public:
10 to 4 weekdays, 12 to 4 Saturdays and 2 to 4 Sundays. Admission
price is $7, which includes the museum, animals and newly expanded
outdoor exhibits like the Ancient World, Jurassic Park, Schoolhouse
and Taxi Trail. For more information on any of the programs
or to register, please call 231-536-3369 or toll free 877-833-4254.
Special events include celebrating the
Summer Solstice on Thursday, June 21, 2007 with a trip to Stonehenge
in Raven Hill Discovery Center’s Ancient World. June 21st
marks the beginning of the summer or growing season and the
day is celebrated by many cultures around the world. As in ancient
times, Raven Hill’s Summer Solstice will be celebrated
traditionally with food, games, and a large bonfire, which was
believed to give a boost to the sun's energy so that it would
remain potent throughout the rest of the growing season and
guarantee a plentiful harvest. The festival will mark the longest
day of the year. Anyone wishing to attend should call 231.536.3369
to register. Families are welcome and everyone should bring
finger foods to share, a piece of firewood to keep the bonfire
burning and a flashlight to find their way back to their car
after the bonfire! The festivities will begin at 7 p.m. and
participants can drive to the Ancient World or park at Raven
Hill Discovery Center and walk to the Ancient World over the
Wetlands Boardwalk. AND, the Center’s
5th annual fundraiser, Summer Magic 2007: A Nite at the Museum
is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. on Friday evening, July 20th.
Interested adults are invited to spend an exciting evening at
Raven Hill Discovery Center to celebrate sixteen years of science,
history and art connections. Please join us and enjoy fun, food,
and friends in support of Raven Hill. A $20 per person ticket
purchase and the proceeds from a silent auction will benefit
Raven Hill Discovery Center programs and facilities for the
coming year. Please call 231.536.3369 by July 18th to reserve
tickets or for additional information.
_______________________________________________________________________
Date: March 4, 2007
Re: 2007 Vernal Equinox
Raven Hill will celebrate the
Vernal (Spring) Equinox on Wednesday, March 21, 2007 with a
bonfire at Stonehenge in Raven Hill’s Ancient World Exhibit.
The event will start at 7 p.m. Participants can walk, snowshoe
or cross-country ski depending on the weather and are encouraged
bring food to roast and share. If the skies are clear, a telescope
will be set up to observe the moon, planets and stars. As
befits Ancient Cultures, several traditions will honor the ending
of the dark and the beginning of the light. A turtle rock will
be dedicated and placed facing east for the spring season. Cornmeal
will be sprinkled to bless the raised crop beds for the new
growing period. Food will be placed in the bonfire to honor
the spirits. Finally a tree will be planted to symbolize the
renewal of nature, the balance between day and night and the
coming of spring. The entire family will
have great fun. Be sure to plan on playing in the museum and
seeing the animals afterward. Please call Cheri at 231.536.3369
to register, for more information and to confirm the event in
case of inclement weather. There is no charge, but donations
of fruits and vegetables for the tortoises or birdseed for the
wild birds or cash to help with operating expenses will be gladly
accepted.
___________________________________________________________________________
Date: January 15, 2007
Re: AAA: Art Across the Ages Fiber Workshops Offered
The winter sessions of Raven Hill Discovery
Center’s AAA: Art Across the Ages series explores the
history of fiber, as participants make and decorate fiber objects
from various time periods. The Fiber I sessions start at 4 pm
on Friday, January 19th and run Friday through Sunday for two
weekends. The Fiber II sessions start at 4 pm on Friday, February
16th and run Friday through Sunday for two weekends. The AAA:
Art Across the Ages Fiber Workshops will explore the history
of making and decorating fibers from the Neolithic Age through
Ancient, Medieval, Renaissance, Pioneer and Modern times. Participants
will explore the various time periods by creating representative
hands-on fiber projects, as well as connecting the science to
the art and history of the times. The workshops will help participants
build a wealth of connections between the science, history and
art of fiber. From neolithic rope making and mat weaving to
paper making to weaving on and off loom to basketry to modern
synthetic fibers and from staining and natural dyes to indigo
dyeing to Shibori to batik & French Serti painting designs
on fibers, these two fiber workshops will present new links
to fiber art for everyone involved. The
AAA: Art Across the Ages series of workshops invites anyone
interested in fibers to register for either of the workshops
to be held at Raven Hill Discovery Center this January and February.
Participants can be high school students, college students and
interested adults, as well as teachers of any grade level. Everyone
will create their own fiber works of art in the various traditions.
In collaboration with Central Michigan University’s Off
Campus Programs, the Center is able to offer three hours of
graduate or undergraduate credit for each of the two fiber workshops.
Those taking a workshop for college credit pay tuition directly
to CMU. Those auditing the workshops pay a per day tuition of
$50 to Raven Hill. Each workshop is limited to ten participants.
Call Raven Hill Discovery Center at 231.536.3369 for more information
or to register for an hour, a day or the entire workshop.
__________________________________________________________________________
Date: November 15, 2006
Re: Holiday Hours Announced for 2006
Raven Hill Discovery Center will be open from
noon to 4 p.m. for family visits during both Thanksgiving and
Winter breaks. Hours include, Friday, November 24th through
Sunday, November 26th, as well as Saturday, December 16th through
Wednesday, January 3rd, with the exception of Thanksgiving Day,
Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. Visitors can always
explore the museum and animals. Special activities include pioneer
crafts in November and a variety of activities in December,
including the 2nd annual Make and Take Arts and Crafts Festival
on Saturday, December 2nd, including Shibori, an ancient dyeing
and folding technique that yields beautiful scarves, Hot Glass
Beads, working with a torch to create your own glass beads,
marbled paper, leather pouches, aluminum repose, plus several
other Arts & Crafts stations. There will be a do-it-yourself
gift-wrapping station available. Raven
Hill will also celebrate the Winter Solstice on Thursday, December
21, 2006 with a trip out to Stonehenge in Raven Hill’s
very own Ancient World. The trek will begin at 5 p.m. Participants
can snowshoe or cross country ski an illuminated trail and are
asked to bring a goody to roast on the fire and a piece of firewood
to keep the fire burning. The entire family will have great
fun. Be sure to plan on hot chocolate and playing in the museum
and seeing the animals afterward. Snowshoes will be available
to borrow for those who do not own any. The
Center’s annual Holiday Open House is scheduled from noon
to 8 p.m. on Thursday, December 28th, so come early and play
or stop by on your way home from work to help us celebrate our
16th holiday season. Finally, a New Year’s Eve Overnight
from 6 p.m. on December 31, 2006 to 9 a.m. on January 1, 2007
will entertain the kids and keep them safe, while you celebrate
with them or on your own. Registration is limited, so book the
Center soon by calling Cheri at 231-536-3369. Plan
on treating yourself and your family to an afternoon of fun
and exploration at Raven Hill Discovery Center this holiday
season. Located between East Jordan & Boyne City, just off
C-48 at Pearsall Road, the Center helps visitors build connections
between science, history and the arts in an interactive learning
environment. In addition to the hands-on museum and exotic animals,
visitors can dress for the weather and visit the one-room schoolhouse,
explore the Time Tunnel, see the geologic history of the earth
on the Exploring Beyond Jurassic Park outdoor exhibit, and snowshoe
or cross country ski around the Taxi Trail and to the Ancient
World outdoor exhibit.
____________________________________________________________________________
Date: November 4, 2006
Re: Jurassic Park Revisited
The Michigan Council for Arts & Cultural
Affairs (MCACA) has awarded $10,500 to Raven Hill Discovery
Center for JURASSIC PARK REVISITED. The 2007 grant award will
give Raven Hill the chance to expand the Center’s established
outdoor exhibit, “Exploring Beyond Jurassic Park: The
Geologic History of the Earth”, while simultaneously providing
career experiences for high school participants and expanding
visitor understanding of the Earth’s past. JURASSIC PARK
REVISITED will emphasize earth’s history that is still
dynamically changing, constantly growing and developing, as
man learns and applies new techniques and technologies to make
more discoveries. The grant will add more sculptures of extinct
species to the outdoor exhibit and provide middle & high
school students the chance to experience bronze casting as they
cast leaves and other objects for “textural signs”
along the pathway. Visitors will be able to feel and see real
fossils, bronze leaves of ancient plants, as well as skeletons,
skulls and teeth up close along the trail. The grant needs to
be matched 2:1, so let us know if you are interested in helping
out with a donation. Call Cheri at 231.536.3369 for more information.
______________________________________________________________
Date: October 4, 2006
Re: AAA--Art Across the Ages CLAY Workshop
Raven Hill Discovery Center is offering a series
of fall and winter workshops entitled AAA: Art Across the Ages.
The first session explores the history of clay and pottery.
It starts at 4 pm on Friday, October 20th and runs for two weekends.
The AAA: Art Across the Ages Clay Workshop will explore the
history of pottery from the Neolithic Age through Ancient, Medieval,
Renaissance and Modern times. Participants will explore the
various time periods with representative hands-on clay projects,
as well as connecting the science to the art and history of
the times. The workshop will help participants build a wealth
of connections between the science, history and art of clay.
From the very first pottery that was probably a basket lined
with clay accidentally getting burned to the modern polymer,
Sculpy clay, this workshop will present new links to learning
for everyone involved. The AAA: Art Across
the Ages series of workshops invites anyone interested in clay,
metal, glass and fiber to register for any and all of the workshops
to be held at Raven Hill Discovery Center this fall and winter.
Participants can be high school students, college students and
interested adults, as well as teachers of any grade level. Everyone
will create their own works of art in the various traditions.
In collaboration with Central Michigan University’s Off
Campus Programs, the Center is able to offer three hours of
graduate or undergraduate credit for each of five workshops:
clay, metal, glass and two fiber sessions. Those taking a workshop
for college credit pay tuition directly to CMU. Those auditing
the workshops pay a per day tuition of $50 to Raven Hill. Each
workshop is limited to ten participants. Call Raven Hill Discovery
Center at 231.536.3369 for more information or to register for
a day or the entire workshop.
________________________________________________________________________
Date: September 6, 2006
Re: AT&T—Ancient Techniques & Technologies Fall
Open House
Have you ever wondered what it would be like
to create something like the Ancients did? Come to the fall
open house on Sunday, September 24, 2006 at Raven Hill Discovery
Center’s Ancient World Outdoor Exhibit and see for yourself.
Participants in the Center’s Ancient Techniques &
Technologies grant workshops will be there from noon to 4:00
to share their experiences of indigo dyeing, hot glass beads,
primitive pottery, copper planishing and flint knapping arrowheads.
See the newly set obelisk and the ancient factory work site
with its Roman clay-straw and Nigerian top-loading kilns, ancient
glass making and beading furnaces, and copper smelter. Talk
with the artists, who “worked” in ancient times
this past summer and live those times through their eyes. Raven
Hill Discovery Center was awarded the Ancient Techniques &
Technologies (AT&T) grant for 2006 by the Michigan Council
for Arts and Cultural Affairs. The grant has helped students
and teachers explore techniques used by ancient cultures to
create works that have become important historically and as
art. In April, approximately 120 northern Michigan middle and
high school students and their teachers participated in invitationals
and explored ancient techniques in glass, clay, metal, fiber,
wood & stone while creating small artworks. This summer,
workshops allowed participants a chance to actually create and
use ancient tools, techniques, and technologies. Workshops included
wood, fiber, glass, clay, metal and stone art. Both spring and
summer workshops brought artists-in-residence to Raven Hill
Discovery Center where they worked with teachers and students
interested in art, science and history. Summer participants
created the ancient factory site and used ancient techniques
to create artworks that will be permanently displayed in Raven
Hill Discovery Center’s ever-evolving Ancient World Exhibit.
All participants created their own smaller works of art in the
various art mediums. This year’s
open house occurs in the Ancient World Exhibit. In addition
to the artwork, there will be art and craft demonstrations,
hands-on opportunities, and refreshments. The Wetlands Boardwalk
connects Raven Hill to the Ancient World and to Raven Ridge
Nature Preserve, so visitors can walk the Boardwalk to the Ancient
World or they can drive past Raven Hill and park at the beginning
of the Ancient World Exhibit. Staff and volunteers will be available
to lead tours or visitors can explore on their own. The hands-on
museum & animal room will be open only from 2 to 4 pm. Visitors
can sign up for memberships and classes, including ancient art
techniques like Shibori or hot glass beads or copper planishing.
___________________________________________________________
Date: September 1, 2006
Re: CMU Letterpress Printing and Bookbinding Intensive
Central Michigan University Off-Campus Programs
is partnering with Raven Hill Discovery Center to offer credit
options for the new 2006-07 Connections Series Workshops, where
participants will have hands-on experiences in connecting various
art media with science and history. September will begin the
series of twelve workshops with a printing and bookbinding intensive,
where participants will learn the entire process of making a
book. The workshop is worth two credit hours. Chad
Postotnik of Deep Wood Press in Mancelona is the artist-in-residence
for this first workshop, which is scheduled for the last two
weekends in September. Each participant will come equipped with
their own original haiku and a desire to learn this 500+ year
old means of printing and even more ancient form of binding.
The class will be making a finished book in a edition of 22,
each student will go home with a book, one donated to the Raven
Hill library, one for the Deep Wood archives and 10 will be
available for purchase with the proceeds going to a local scholarship
or charity to be determined. The workshop
begins with an overview of the Japanese stab binding, which
will be used to familiarize the students with the letterpress
terminology, tools and the type case from which they will be
setting the words for their haiku. Students then are introduced
to the concepts of rudimentary book design and will come to
a consensus regarding various issues of “style”.
Work begins in earnest as words are set and impressed onto paper
as printing commences. Pages are collated, binding begins, title
selected and applied and everyone involved can congratulate
each other on becoming a published author and possessing another
exquisite title for their home library. All
of the Connections Workshops are designed to bring science,
history and art teachers together to build links that connect
curriculum for students of all ages. The workshops are appropriate
for art, science and history teachers, as well as high school
and college students interested in art, science and history.
Coming workshops include the science, history and art of glass,
clay, metal, fiber, wood and stone. Raven Hill is working with
Central Michigan University’s Off Campus Programs to make
three hours of graduate or undergraduate credit available for
each of the additional eleven workshops. Those taking a workshop
for college credit will pay tuition directly to CMU. Each workshop
is limited to ten participants. Call Cheri at 231.536.3369 for
more information or to register for a workshop, either for CMU
credits or as an audit.
__________________________________________________________
Date: June 9, 2006
Re: AT&T—Ancient Techniques & Technologies FIBER
Workshop
Fiber in the ancient tradition will be the
subject of a workshop at Raven Hill Discovery Center during
the week of June 19, 2006. The six-day Ancient Techniques &
Technologies (AT&T) Fiber Workshop will cover a wide range
of fiber arts, including spinning yarn with a drop spindle,
book binding, indigo and natural dyes. The intensive will give
participants a chance to actually experience ancient materials,
methods, tools, techniques, and technologies with fibers and
with a few modern conveniences thrown in for good measure!
Bethany Schaltz will share her expertise in spinning yarn on
a drop spindle with participants on Monday, June 19th. Chad
Postotnik of Deep Wood Press will work with participants on
Tuesday, June 20th to give them experience in the ancient art
of bookbinding. Participants will explore at least four different
book structures in this introduction to bookbinding, create
them, and then take them home as finished works and samples
to make more. Wednesday, the 21st through Friday, the 23rd of
June, Joann Condino of Three Pines Studio will facilitate indigo
dye processes. Indigo is among the oldest dye plants known to
Eurasian civilizations and will allow participants to work in
a range of pure, colorfast blues. Locally found natural dyes
on Saturday with Cheri Leach will round out the week’s
workshop.
_________________________________________________________________________
Date: May 23, 2006
Re: Memorial Day Weekend and Summer Hours
Treat yourself and your family to an afternoon
or a day of fun and exploration at Raven Hill Discovery Center
this weekend and this summer. Located between East Jordan &
Boyne City, just off C-48 at Pearsall Road, the Center helps
visitors build connections between science, history and the
arts in an interactive learning environment. Visitors can spend
time in the one-room schoolhouse, walk the labyrinth, explore
the Time Tunnel, see the geologic history of the earth on the
Exploring Beyond Jurassic Park outdoor exhibit, and wander through
the Center’s new outdoor exhibit, The Ancient World. In
addition to the hands-on museum, the exotic animals and the
outdoor exhibits, visitors can register for science, history
and art classes. Classes are available for children 4 to 14
and for adults. Raven Hill will be open
every day over Memorial Day weekend from noon to 4 p.m. from
Saturday, May 27 through Monday, May 29, 2006. On Tuesday, May
30th, summer hours will go into effect and the Center will be
open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, as well as noon
to 4 p.m. on Saturdays and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Sundays. Summer
hours last through Friday, September 1st. Raven Hill is also
always open by appointment.
___________________________________________________________________________
Date: April 20, 2006
Re: At&T Grant
Raven Hill Discovery Center has been awarded a sixth grant
by the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs. Ancient
Techniques & Technologies (AT&T) will help teachers,
students and visitors explore techniques used by ancient cultures
to create works that have become important historically and
as art. As the first component of the grant, approximately one
hundred twenty northern Michigan middle and high school students
and their teachers will participate in Invitationals on April
25th and 26th and use techniques in glass, clay, metal, fiber,
wood & stone to create small artworks.
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Raven Hill Discovery Center is a regional science
and technology center. It is located on 157 acres in a rural
area of northwestern Lower Michigan next to the 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.