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VSP: Saturday Outreach at the Houston Museum of Natural Science at Sugar Land
September 24, 2022 @ 10:00 am - 3:00 pm
On the second and fourth Saturdays of each month, we host fun outreach or craft activities at the Butterfly Garden section of the Museum. The topics vary and can include butterfly gardening, native plants, dragonflies, etc.
Volunteers are needed to help staff our booth and present the topics above. There will be two shifts per day and two volunteers per shift are needed. Volunteers will need to complete a short 2 hour training session required by the museum before they can volunteer.
To volunteer, look for the SignUp Genius that will be emailed to all members who have taken the museum’s training.
If you would like to volunteer but have not taken the museum’s in-house training, contact Katie Sallean or Jamie Fairchild to make arrangements.
Here are the topics scheduled for the remaining dates for 2022:
May 14: 9 Natives for Your Garden (Lead – Katie Sallean)
-Discuss why native plants are so important to have in your garden
-Discuss the best kinds of native plants to have in your garden
-Discuss/highlight the native plants that are in the butterfly garden at the museum
-Learn where to find native plants
Craft: Seed balls with native seeds to take home
May 28: General Garden Tours; Stump the Naturalist
June 11: Backyard Birds (Lead – Susan Walther)
-Discuss how to attract birds to your backyard
-Discuss the types of plants that birds need year round
-Use our Bird WOW
Craft: Make a bird feeder
June 25: General Garden Tours; Stump the Naturalist
July 9: Healthy Soil makes Happy Plants (Lead – Shannon Westveer)
-Discuss why healthy soil is the foundation for healthy plants
-Discuss how to improve the health of your soil
-What makes up soil? Why you shouldn’t use chemicals on your yard.
Craft: Soil Art (we might change this)
July 23: General Garden Tours; Stump the Naturalist
August 13: How you can help Native Bees (Lead – Sharon Watson)
-What are native bees and why are they important
-Discuss some of the characteristics of native bees
-Talk about some of the native bees in our gardens
Craft: Make a “Bee Hotel” out of straws
August 27: General Garden Tours; Stump the Naturalist
September 10: Waterwise-conserving this precious resource
-Use Enviroscape WOW
-How to water your yard/garden properly
-What kinds of plants are waterwise (native plants)
Craft: Make a water drop collage
September 24: General Garden Tours; Stump the Naturalist
October 8 and October 22: Batty Bats! (Lead – Shari Lewis)
-Bat WOW
-Learn about the types of bats in our area
-Fun facts about bats
-Learn why bats are an important part of our ecosystem
Craft: Make a Bat Treat holder (and get a treat).
November 12: Migration Station & Butterfly Migration (Lead – Aida Pita)
-Butterfly WOW
-Discuss some butterflies that migrate and where (Monarch)
-Discuss when you can expect to see certain migrations in our area
Craft: Decorate a pot and plant a milkweed (pot will be biodegradable so kids can just plant in ground)
November 26: General Garden Tours; Stump the Naturalist
-NOTE-this is Thanksgiving weekend so workday depends if we can find folks to sign up for this date
December 10: Winter Wildlife (Lead – Terri Hurley & Robbin Mallett)
-Who is in my garden during the winter
-Birds in my garden in Winter
-Mammals in my garden in Winter
-Insects??
Craft: Make a suet cake
Note-4th Saturday is Christmas eve.
[VSP hours to be recorded in VMS under the category “Houston Museum Nat. Science – Houston or Sugar Land: TMN Report Hours”]
HMNS SL COVID-19 Precautions: “Due to Harris County currently being listed as a county with MEDIUM RISK, universal indoor masking is lifted for all guests and staff members.
The CDC recommends that if you are unvaccinated or at high risk for severe illness, that you continue to wear a mask around others
Masking is still required when in the lower level of the museum or when participating in Youth Education Programs (like camp or classes)
People may choose to mask up at any time. People with symptoms, a positive test, or exposure to someone with COVID-19 should wear a mask.”
TMN COVID-19 Precautions: “For any indoor or outdoor activities that do occur in-person, masks and social distancing considerations are encouraged.”
Fort Bend County COVID-19 Green Advisement: “Resume normal contact with others unless sick. Resume attending public and private gatherings freely. Resume visiting vulnerable populations while practicing good hygiene and social distancing.” The Green risk description follows: “Minimum and controlled level of COVID-19 in Fort Bend County. New chains of transmission are rare.”