KidsOutAndAbout Weekly Newsletter |
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Dear KidsOutAndAbout readers: When my kids were little, one of our favorite nature activities was also one of the simplest: We’d head out onto a trail, stop among the trees, and play the Listening Game. The rules were easy: Close your eyes. The first time you hear a sound, any sound at all, put up one finger. Then add another for each new sound you notice. After a minute or two, someone says, “Open your
eyes,” and everyone compares fingers and talks about what they heard. It’s a small exercise in attention, but it changes how kids experience the world. The invisible becomes visible... not to the eyes, exactly, but to the mind. Things that were just out of range suddenly move onto our radar. Nature is full of motion and music, and this game helps us tune ourselves to it. The free Merlin Bird ID app from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology takes that magic one step further: Tap Sound ID, and suddenly the songs around you appear on your screen as a voiceprint and a bird name and an image that shows you what to look for. And what a moment ago was only background atmosphere becomes a Carolina Wren, or an Eastern Whip-poor-will, or the Common Yellowthroat pictured above,
singing his heart out for a girl with a camera. That’s one of the great tasks of childhood, and of the adults who love children: to help hidden things come into view. Before we know something, it is almost as if it isn’t there. But once it is named, we have a new way to see. There are suddenly new dimensions to our universe, helping us transform even more mysteries into things that are ours. And we never really experience the woods—or the field, or the river, or
the ocean, or the city, or our backyard—the same way again.
—Debra Ross, publisher of KidsOutAndAbout.com, co-author of The Eclipse Effect: How to Seize Extraordinary Moments to Build Strong Communities
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KidsOutAndAbout.com: Discover more. Do more. Connect more. If you like my publisher's column, you can easily scroll through past columns in the "Notes from Deb" section of our site. |
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Get ready to race at this exclusive LEGO® F1® -themed ‘Build the Thrill Event’ only at LEGO® Discovery Center Washington, D.C. now through May 25th! Grab your pit pass and drivers briefing and choose your team. Get hands-on with LEGO® bricks to create a minifigure driver and build an ultimate race car, before putting them through their paces! Will you take pole position? Then take on build challenges to beat the clock, before taking part in an awesome race! Plus, visit LEGO® F1® in MINIWORLD, what scenes will you spot? Rev those engines and join in the LEGO® F1® fun now!
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ABC and Peake Events are excited to bring you the 12th annual Maryland Chicken Wing Festival. Join us and enjoy wings from some of the best establishments around. Admission includes entrance and parking to the event. This is a family-friendly event, with lots of activities, music, and good food and drink!
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Families of kids with disabilities, including Down syndrome, autism, and developmental disabilities, are invited to play, read, and create art together at the library! We will have a variety of toys and art supplies so kids can play and create while families socialize and learn about local resources. This event is designed for families who have children ages 0-12. Siblings are welcome!
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The Puppet Co.’s adaptation of this classic tale features 15 handmade rod puppets! Cinderella dreams of rising beyond her circumstances to attend the royal ball. The Puppet Co.’s adaptation of this classic tale features 15 handmade rod puppets! Cinderella highlights the power of hope in this rags-to-riches story with lots of magical transformations.
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Spend a Saturday afternoon centered around inclusion, wellness, and community fun! Anything's PAWSible is a FREE festival filled with dog-friendly fun and benefits a great cause. Bring the whole family to this 4th annual festival and 5K fundraiser to make service dogs accessible to children with disabilities.
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Looking for a sustainable choice this Earth Month? Clear out your closets and give your items away to someone new at our Share Fair at Black Hill Discovery Center! Have a coat you know someone will love, but it’s just not right for you? Have a game your kids played when they were younger, but hasn’t been touched for years? Give your once-loved items a second life by participating in our bi-annual Share Fair! “Givers” will use the trunks of their cars or bring their own tables, hanging racks, etc. to display items being given away, trunk-or-treat style. Be as creative and elaborate as you like! Attendees not bringing items can drop by anytime to browse, seek, and claim an amazing find. Givers and attendees will vote for the Giver with the best set up and most unique finds.
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It’s fairy and gnome season at Annmarie! Families are invited to enjoy a magical day of nature play while traveling through the six realms of Annmarie Garden, discovering an enchanting variety of activities along the way. Guests can meet fairy friends, search for hidden gnome homes, create crafts, ride a unicorn, and explore the garden’s natural spaces. This immersive, imagination-filled event offers an over-the-top day of creative fun for families. Food and drink vendors will be on site.
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- Free spring mini photo session with Shoott! - Shoott, DC Metro area, Friday, April 17 to Sunday, April 19, 2026, See link for times
- 34th Annual Strathmore Juried Exhibition: STEEPED - The Mansion at Strathmore, Rockville Pike, Rockville, MD, Friday, April 17 to Sunday, April 19, 2026, Sat: 10am–3pm
- Rockville International Night - F Scott Fitzgerald Theatre, 603 Edmonston Drive, Rockville, MD 20851, Friday, April 17, 2026, 6:00PM
- Observe the Sun with Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum - Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum,
Jefferson Drive Southwest, Washington, DC, Friday, April 17 to Sunday, April 19, 2026, 12 pm - 3 pm
- Manassas 4th Annual Anything's PAWSible Festival and 5k Run - 9027 Center Street, Manassas, VA, Saturday, April 18, 2026, 11 am - 4 pm
- Farmers Market SW at District Wharf - 735 Water Street Southwest, Washington, DC 20024, Saturday, April 18, 2026, 9 am - 1 pm
- McLean Community Center Spring Community Parking Lot Sale - McLean Community Center, 1234 Ingleside Ave, McLean, VA 22101, Saturday, April 18, 2026, 9 am - 1 pm
- Art Show - Children's Art Classes - Ashburn, VA, Broadlands Center Plaza, Broadlands, VA, Saturday, April 18, 2026, 2:00PM -
4:00PM
- Teen Studio Series: Practicing Mindfulness with Cyanotype Printing - National Gallery of Art - East Building, 4th Street Northwest, Washington, DC, Sunday, April 19, 2026, 2:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.
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The KidsOutAndAbout annual guide to summer camps in the DMV is back! You can search by date, age, or categories like day/overnight, sports, drama, music, theatre, arts & crafts, technology, robotics, horseback riding, preschool, & more. Our guide
puts summer fun right at your fingertips!
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Parents have an abundance of choices when it comes to PreK and day care options in the DMV area! Use our Big List to help find the best one for your kiddos and check our events calendar to find Open Houses where you can meet teachers and tour the
schools.
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Looking for a thrilling family-friendly adventure in the DMV area? Escape rooms are interactive, puzzle-packed experiences where you and your team work together to solve clues and complete your mission-all before time runs out! Whether you're escaping a
spooky cabin, cracking a high-stakes heist, or breaking a magical curse, escape rooms offer exciting, screen-free fun for kids, teens, and adults.
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Have a great weekend!
Debra Ross
Publisher, KidsOutAndAbout.com
Mom of Madison and Ella |
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