Walk through a whale, paint a puppy and 2,000 toys: What to do for Cape school vacation
From walking through the inside of an inflatable whale to painting a puppy portrait or learning about osprey, Cape Cod offers a full slate of activities during April school vacation week.
Our list of things to do on Cape Cod for April 15 through April 21 includes events for infants and toddlers, preschool, kindergarten and elementary school-aged children and the whole family.
Activities are scheduled across the peninsula, in Brewster, West Barnstable, Falmouth and more. Many feature a hands-on learning component or focus on the Cape's natural wonders.
Here are some of the events you can enjoy with your children:
Free family play day
Cape Cod Toy Library, Inc. is hosting an event from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, April 15, that features plants, worms, insects and more with Mary Wilson of Pitter Patter Programs and a creative art room with early childhood art educator Bonny Campbell-Runyan. There will be a variety of engaging play materials from the Toy Library for families to enjoy exploring, experimenting, pretending, creating, building and learning together. There will be play spaces and play materials for infants and toddlers as well as preschool and elementary school-aged children.
The library will hold a raffle for four 3-month Play Passport subscriptions from sponsor Cape Cod Toy Chest. If you would like to sponsor a subscription that allows a family free admission to the toy library and its 2,000 toys for three months, visit https://capecodtoylibrary.app.neoncrm.com/forms/sponsor-a-family-play-passport
The free event is at the Toy Library’s inside play space in the basement of First Lutheran Church, 1663 Main St. (Route 6A) West Barnstable. For more information, visit www.capecodtoylibrary.org/.
Reptiles Rock!
The Cape Cod Museum of Natural History in Brewster presents “Reptiles Rock!”, a rainforest reptiles show, at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, April 15. The show is for ages 3 and up. Tickets are $15 per person and don’t include museum admission.
This program is the first of daily offerings during school vacation week. In addition to guided nature walks, there are hands-on activities. Learn more at www.ccmnh.org.
Reptiles Rock includes a mini zoo set-up offering a close look at 10 to 14 smaller animals, including bugs, frogs, snakes and lizards. Plus, the show has a presentation by a rainforest reptile herpetologist with four larger animals, including a large red or yellow foot tortoise (South America), a large monitor or tegu lizard (Africa or South America), a 9- to 10-foot boa or python (South America or Myanmar/Burma) and the American alligator. All habitats are tropical or semi-tropical rainforests.
Throughout the presentation there will be opportunities for volunteers to come up and assist. After the program, everyone will have the opportunity to handle one of the reptiles.
For more information, please call the museum at 508-896-3867 ext. 133.
Family beach walk
Explore how many signs of wildlife you can find during a walk along the beach and dune trails at South Cape State Park Beach. Meet at the beach entrance at 11 a.m. Monday, April 17, for the hour-long walk led by staff from the Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. There are no bathrooms at this location. Dress for the weather. The walk will be canceled if there is heavy rain or strong winds. Registration is preferred at www.waquoitbayreserve.org/. Visit that website for a full listing of daily activities, including a talk by co-founders of the Falmouth Osprey Project and a walk to spot birds of prey, during school vacation week.
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Whale walk
The Cape Cod Museum of Natural History in Brewster presents the inflatable 44-foot humpback whale from 10:45 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. Wednesday, April 19. Learn all about humpback whales from the inside out. Museum naturalist Mike Harnett will present a 20-minute program. Due to the educational level and content, this exhibit is restricted to ages 5 and up. Space is limited to 20 per time slot and reservations are required. The whale visit, funded by The Bilezikian Family Foundation, is included with museum admission. Arrive 15 minutes before show time to sign in. For more information or to make a reservation, call the museum at 508-896-3867 ext. 133.
Painting puppies
Osterville Village Library will host a “Puppy Love Paint Party” with Blue Anchor Studio at 10 a.m. Friday, April 21, at the library. Open to all ages 8 and older, participants will paint an adorable puppy on a 12 x 16 canvas. All supplies are provided as well as step-by-step instructions. It’s a fun way to spend the day! Note: the paint will not come out of clothing so please dress accordingly. Register at: https://www.blueanchorstudio.net For more information, visit ostervillevillagelibrary.org or call the Osterville Village Library at 508-428-5757.
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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Things to do during April school vacation week on Cape Cod
