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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Bring your wild things to the Academy between March 9-April 28 for Riveropolis, Bugtopia, and a bouquet of other programs that will connect your family to the beauty, wonder, and whimsy of the natural world.
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Toddler Storytime is a 20-30 minute program that uses stories, songs, fingerplays, and movement to help young children ages 1-3 years old develop word and sound recognition, gain background knowledge of how the world works, and encourages families to build social connections with other parents and children.
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Join us for this limited-time tinkering experience for all ages! Experiment together as a family, and prepare to be surprised by your own ingenuity. Leave your mark with highlighters and UV light. Turn familiar shadows into strange creatures and landscapes, and create colorful portraits with long exposure photography. Plus, immerse yourself in surprising artworks that play with color and perception, and explore 700+ hands-on exhibits that will delight the whole family.
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Get ready to race at this exclusive LEGO® F1® - themed ‘Build the Thrill Event’ only at LEGOLAND® Discovery Center Bay Area from April 16 – May 25!
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Drop by the Randall Museum’s Art Room and get creative with your kids. Art instructors guide a different hands-on art activity each week. All ages are welcome to participate. Afternoon Art is a great way to get a taste of the Randall Museum’s arts and crafts programs. All children under 8 must be with a paying participating adult.
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The Walt Disney Family Museum continues its celebration of the 70th anniversary of Disneyland with the debut of Happiest Place on Earth: The Disneyland Story, an original special exhibition curated by award-winning producer and Disney Legend Don Hahn with museum Director of Collections and Exhibitions Marina Villar Delgado. Inspired by the 2025 book, The Happiest Place on Earth: The Incredible Story of Walt Disney’s Disneyland, published by Disney Editions and written by Hahn and historian Christopher Merritt, this treasure trove of Disney history will take guests behind the scenes of one of the most groundbreaking endeavors of the 20th century—the creation and opening of Disneyland in Anaheim, California. Happiest Place on Earth: The Disneyland Story will be on view beginning Friday, November 14 in the museum’s Lower Lobby and Theater Galleries.
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This behind-the-scenes tour will take you through a facility designed to accommodate all current and future animals at Oakland Zoo, from small birds to large tigers and grizzly bears. It features radiology and surgical suites, a small laboratory, a pharmacy, wide transportation docks, and LEED Gold certification.
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Our Farmstand is open year round and stocked with already harvested veggies, flowers, heirloom dry beans and preserves all organically grown here at Blue House Farm! We also carry sourdough bread and pastries from Rosalind Bakery, local pastured eggs from Antonio & Sons Farm, chicken, pork, and beef products from our friends at Root Down Farm and Markegard Family Grass-fed, organic seasonal fruit from Frog Hollow Farm and Blossom Bluff Orchards, local honey from State Street Honey, and lots of other goodies from our coastside community!
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Join Oakland's 32nd Annual Earth Day to celebrate our planet with a day filled with sustainability, community, and environmental action! Join volunteers and honor our beautiful city, and be committed to making a positive impact for generations to come.
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The Jack London Square Farmer’s Market offers local produce, food, and craft products. The Farmer’s Market provides a weekly opportunity for the community to enjoy a variety of vendors along the beautiful Oakland waterfront. Market hours are 11:00 AM to 4:00 PM every Sunday. The Farmer’s Market is operated by Golden State Farmers Market Association.
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FREE Mom's Day Boutique is a great opportunity to get one-of-a-kind Mother's Day gifts for all the moms in your life April 26 in Concord. We present the ultimate local Mother’s Day shopping experience at the free Mom's Day Boutique on Sunday, April 26, in the elegant Hilton Concord Golden Gate Ballroom. Shoppers will be able to pamper themselves and buy gifts for everyone on their Mother's Day shopping list. The Boutique is open from 11am to 3pm with free admission and free parking. The free indoor fair allows shoppers to get special Mother's Day gifts for family and friends from over 60 arts and crafts vendors, home-based businesses and commercial exhibitors.
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- Free Spring Mini Photo Session - Shoott - Shoott, Broadway, New York, NY, USA, 04/17/2026 - 04/18/2026, See link for times
- Toddler Plus Storytime - Main Library - Children's Department, 04/17/2026, 10:30am
- Family Storytime - Alameda Free Library - West End Library, Alameda Free Library, 788
Santa Clara Avenue, Alameda, CA 94501, United States, 04/18/2026, 10:30am
- Family Storytime - Main Library - Children's Department, 04/18/2026, 10:30am
- Junior Rangers: Refuge Native Plant Protectors - Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge Environmental Education Center - Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge Environmental Education Center, Grand Boulevard, San Jose, CA, USA, 04/19/2026, 10:30am-12:00pm
- Family Storytime - Main Library, 04/19/2026, 12:30pm
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The KidsOutAndAbout annual guide to summer camps in the San Francisco 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 fingertips!
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Parents have an abundance of choices when it comes to PreK and day care options in the San Francisco 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 San Francisco? 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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