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 LEGOLAND® Discovery Center Philadelphia 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 MINLAND, what scenes will you spot? Rev those engines and join in the LEGO® F1® fun now!
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Classic fairy tales get mixed up and downright silly in The Stinky Cheeseman and Other Fairly Stupid Tales. How about the Ugly Duckling growing up to be A Really Ugly Duck? Or the Princess kissing a frog only to end up with a mouthful of slime? With quirky characters, funny twists, and enough stinky cheese to go around, this hilarious adaptation of the beloved book will have kids and parents falling out of their seats.
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Spring in our Gardens isn’t rendered. It’s real. And it’s our kind of AI: Always Incredible. Every bud, bloom, and birdsong is nature-generated, crafted by sunshine and soil … not software. Color pops, leaves unfurl, and the whole landscape awakens with fresh, authentic, undeniable energy. Early spring bulbs bring the season to life, followed by flowering trees bursting into bloom. Fragrance drifts on the breeze. Radiant tulips stretch towards the sky.
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Looking to see if swim lessons are the right fit for your little one? Join us for FREE trial lessons all weekend long!
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Dogs, cats, birds…and more! A complement to Small Living Things: The Magical Art of Eric Carle, this exhibition features a selection of works from the Michener’s permanent collection, putting your furry, feline, and flying friends on center stage. From sculpture to painting, artists like Henry B. Snell, Daniel Garber, Lizbeth Stewart, Charles Ward, Robert Winokur, Judith Heep, Katharine Steele Renninger, and Edith Emerson depicted animals in a variety of media, emphasizing the significant artistic inspiration they found in these creatures. Whether portraits of beloved companions or unique portrayals of everyday animals, these artworks invite viewers to experience the whimsy and wonder of the creatures in our collection.
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Betrayal haunts, but love endures. Experience the timeless beauty and emotional depth of Giselle - the Romantic ballet masterpiece that has captivated audiences since its debut in 1841. This haunting tale of heartbreak will transport you into a supernatural realm filled with ethereal elegance and devastating justice.
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Join Winnie the Pooh in the Hundred Acre Wood in a silly, whimsical musical adventure where anything can happen and imagination rules! Will Pooh and his friends keep their honey safe or will those mischievous Heffalumps and Woozles outsmart them? Our 1st and 2nd graders perform in this dazzling show filled with music, laughter, and surprises! Note: This is performed by 1st & 2nd Graders.
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Celebrate Earth Day with music, food, and community at Earth Day Phoenixville 2026. Join neighbors and families for a fun, family-friendly afternoon at Reservoir Park with live music by The Mighty Manatees, hands-on kids’ activities, local nonprofits and green businesses, friendly speakers, and food vendors with vegetarian options. Inspired by the global theme Our Power, Our Planet. [email protected] Learn more: https://linktr.ee/pwrup26 |
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Join us for our 250th celebrations at Newlin Grist Mill through special demonstrations, workshops, make-and-takes, and talks on topics related to the trades that built America and the feeding of a revolution. Demonstrations are ongoing throughout the day. Talks are $10/person or free for members.
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Join Stenton and nearby neighbors for our third annual Dinah Day! Dinah Day marks the date in 1776 when Dinah was manumitted from slavery.
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Celebrate Earth Day Weekend with us at the Pennypack Trust! Bring the whole family and join us for the 8th Annual Earth Day Trail Race. All proceeds benefit PERT's efforts to protect open space and maintain our current 950+ acres of land. You can choose to run/walk 10K, 5K, or 1 mile. Please sign up and secure your spot!
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Over 50 of Philadelphia’s best food trucks and food vendors line Main Street for the day. Enjoy everything from traditional barbecue to frozen sweet treats.
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Panda fest is an outdoor Asian food festival with experiential activities, tastings, and market fairs. Panda fest is one of the biggest outdoor Asian food festivals in the US with experiential activities, tastings, and market fairs that showcases the vibrant food, art and cultural traditions from Asia. We will decorate the festival with a lot of Panda decorations. And we will have Panda inflatables, Panda Dough Figurine, Panda Painting DIY, Panda Face Painting, Panda themed food. Tickets required for ages 6 and up.
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A sensory-friendly morning designed for guests with sensory sensitivities, autism, and other disabilities, along with their families. This program is reserved for guests with pre-registered tickets only; the Museum will open to guests with general admission and member tickets at 11 AM.
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Maker Faire is a gathering of fascinating, curious people who enjoy learning and who love sharing what they can do. From engineers to artists to scientists to crafters, Maker Faire is a venue for these "makers" to show hobbies, experiments, projects. We call it the Greatest Show (& Tell) on Earth - a family-friendly showcase of invention, creativity, and resourcefulness. Glimpse the future and get inspired!
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iD Tech: The World's #1 STEM Summer Camp! BattleBots® Camp? You can only get it here. Roblox Camp? We've got that and more in our Summer '26 lineup. Register today at the top-rated tech camp for 25 years and counting! iD Tech is the very best experience built around your child—their interests, their skill level, their goals for the future. Trusted by 75+ of the world’s top universities and over 1,000,000 parents, iD Tech is where kids and teens learn from the best—coding, game dev, robotics, and more. The future starts at iD Tech! Click here for more information about your local iD Tech opportunities! Virtual camps are also available!
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- Free spring mini photo session with Shoott! - Philadelphia area - Shoott, Broadway, New York, NY, USA, 04/16/2026 to 04/18/2026, See link for times
- Glimpse of Goldfish Weekend - Goldfish Swim School - Mount Laurel, Briggs Road, Mount Laurel Township, NJ, USA, 04/17/2026 to 04/19/2026, Lessons every half hour all day long!
- Earth Day Phoenixville 2026 | Our Power, Our Planet - , Reservoir Park, Franklin Avenue, Phoenixville, PA, USA, 04/18/2026, 12:00 PM - 4 PM
- Public Archaeology Days at Newlin Grist Mill - , Newlin Grist Mill Park, Cheyney Road, Glen Mills, PA, USA,
04/18/2026, 10am-3pm
- Dinah Day 250 - , 4601 North 18th Street, Philadelphia, PA, USA, 04/18/2026, 12:00 - 4:00 PM
- Greenixville 2026 - Annual Green Earth Festival - , The Phoenixville Farmers' Market - Under the Gay Street Bridge & Along the French Creek Trail, 04/18/2026, 12 - 4 pm
- FREE Youth Choir - Singing City: Next Generation - , Temple University -
Presser Hall (2001 N. 13th St.) Philadelphia, PA 19121, 04/18/2026, 12:30PM-1:30PM
- Franklin Square Season Opening Day - Franklin Square - , Franklin Square, North 6th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19106, United States, 04/18/2026, 11 am - 1 pm
- Crafting History: Water Marbling - , Historic St George's Museum and Archives, North 4th Street, Philadelphia, PA, USA, 04/18/2026, 1:00pm - 3:00pm
- Introduction to Birding at Lower Perkiomen Valley Park - , Lower Perkiomen Valley Park, 101 New Mill Road, Oaks, PA 19456, United States, 04/18/2026, 9:00 AM-12:00 PM
- StrEAT Food Festival - Manayunk - , 4312 Main Street, Manayunk,
Philadelphia, PA 19127, United States, 04/19/2026, 11 am - 5 pm
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The KidsOutAndAbout annual guide to summer camps in the Philadelphia area 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…
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Looking for a thrilling family-friendly adventure in the Philadelphia? 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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