Extension News: March 2005 Archives

I visited The Little Nature Museum in Hopkinton recently with my two young grandsons. We all soon became involved with learning how the world looks through an insect's eyes, putting together pieces of a rock puzzle, and learning about fossils and different colors and textures of sand from around the world. We looked at luminescent rocks in a dark room under ultraviolet lights and saw the rocks streaked with bright, fluorescent colors. What a treat!

You’ll find The Little Nature Museum around a corner from the orchard store in a 200-year-old barn atop Gould Hill. In January, 2005, the non-profit nature museum began its 50 th year. A community resource for Hopkinton and surrounding towns, The Little Nature Museum offers school programs, interpretive trail walks, on-site interactive exhibits, and in-school visits to thousands of students and museum visitors annually, yet many people still don’t know about it.

Surrounded by fields and orchards of apple and peach trees, including many heirloom varieties, visitors to the hill's summit can see panoramic views in nearly every direction. You can explore the museum free of charge on weekends and holidays from late spring through early fall, and also on weekdays by appointment. Frequently, orchard visitors discover and take time to explore the museum when they come to pick apples.

Located for 31 years at Sandra Martin’s home in Weare, the collections once included live reptiles and amphibians. Martin developed trails and encouraged visitors to observe plants and animals in their natural habitats. Over the years, the museum became home to specimens donated by friends and relatives. Many of these specimens remain a part of today's hands-on displays.

The Little Nature Museum moved to its current location in 2001, shortly after Sandra moved from Weare to Hopkinton. It contains impressive, continually growing, collections of rocks, minerals, fossils, birds, shells, and other natural objects.

In the past two years, more than 4,000 people have enjoyed the museum’s displays and its uniquely personal approach to learning about nature. An outreach program brings programs to public schools, youth groups, homeschoolers, preschools, and senior citizens. Science classes have been an important part of the museum’s function from its beginning; up to 30 children each week throughout the year enjoy its programs and field trips. A quarterly newsletter featuring a science or nature article has been published continuously by the Museum for 50 years.

As Martin leads visitors through the museum, her excitement, knowledge, and love of nature are evident. Each item in the collection has a unique story, and Martin enthusiastically engages visitors in lively discussions leading down a pathway to discovery.

Martin first dreamed of bringing an awareness of nature, the environment, and science to others as a teenage girl living in Winthrop, Massachusetts in 1955. With that vision and her creative ambition, she founded The Little Nature Museum.

“Today’s museum visitors find a room many times the size of the original museum,” Martin says. “It is filled with glass cases, hands-on displays, and a variety of nature activities for all ages, designed to engage visitors in learning more about the exhibits.”

During the warmer months, children in grades K-3 will find a special self-guided outdoor discovery area just for them called “Everything Has a Home.” Guidebooks for teachers, adults, and children are available for this special area.

The Little Nature Museum became a federally registered nonprofit organization in 1998. A Board of Directors governs its operation. High school students and adult volunteers assist as museum guides. Donations, museum memberships, and sales from the nature shop support the museum's unique interactive learning and community service opportunities

Although its collections are safely stored away during the winter months, the museum offers free environmental programs for all ages in the Community Room of the Hopkinton Town Library. The museum annually offers a special two-day event, to be held this year on Sept. 10th and 11th. A calendar of upcoming programs is listed on the Museum's website.

Today, as the museum's director, Martin continues advancing her dream through the museum’s variety of educational programs, exhibits, and activities. With support from the community, board members, interested citizens, educators, and others, the Little Nature Museum will continue to provide adults and children with meaningful and exciting educational experiences.

On July 9, the Museum will host a special 50 th Anniversary program.

For more information, call 603-746-6121; e-mail info@nature-museum.org; or explore the Museum's website.

By Barbara Fales, UNH Cooperative Extension Wildlife Coverts Cooperator