Season's Sweetness

Posted by Matt Berman


Check out our Holiday Houses display in the Virginia Discovery Museum lobby,
complete with gummy bear Santa, marshmallow snowman, and sugar cone
evergreens. Kudos to Kaitlin Clear, VDM education manager, for the sweet design.

I don't recall any particular memory growing up of decorating a gingerbread house, which is odd to me because decorating a gingerbread house seems like such a quintessential Christmas-y activity. In fact, it's a holiday tradition that can be traced back for centuries.

I can only imagine my childhood lack of confectionary construction experience stemmed from my parents' unfounded fear that I'd turn into some kind of sugar-obsessed Hansel and Gretel clone if presented with a candy-coated winter wonderland. Well, maybe that fear wasn't completely unfounded; just this past Tuesday, I was banned from the kitchen during prep for the Virginia Discovery Museum's upcoming Holiday Houses event because I kept snacking on all the building materials. And I'm currently 27.

What can I say? My resolve is no match for M&M's and gummy bears.

With the first two of the museum's four Holiday Houses sessions set to start next week, there's still time to reserve your spot for this event, so come celebrate the sweetness of the season with us! Each child who registers with an accompanying adult gets their own pre-assembled graham-cracker house to decorate with a variety of goodies, including peppermints, Skittles, Life Savers Gummies, marshmallows, Dots, Hershey's Kisses, and more.

This event is for children 4 and older, with an adult.

• Sessions:
• Saturday, Dec. 7 at 10:30 a.m.
• Saturday, Dec. 7 at 2 p.m.
• Saturday, Dec. 14 at 10:30 a.m.
• Saturday, Dec. 14 at 2 p.m.
• Cost:
• Members: $8 per person, children and adults
• Non-members: $10 per person, children and adults

Space is limited, so register in person at the museum or call (434) 977-1025. If you have any questions, call or email Kaitlin Clear, VDM education manager, at education@vadm.org.

Matt Berman is the Exhibits and Marketing Manager at the Virginia Discovery Museum. Reach him at exhibits@vadm.org or marketing@vadm.org.

Meet a Police Officer

Have you ever wondered what it takes to be a police officer? At 10:30 this Saturday, Officer D.E. Williams from the City of Charlottesville Police Department will answer your question! Stop by the museum for a short class on safety for kids. See his badge and uniform and learn about how police officers work to keep us all safe. Officer Williams may be looking for a few new Junior Officers! This program, which is part of our Meet Me on Main Street series, is free with admission to the museum and is open to all ages with an adult.

Discoveroo is coming!

This Sunday is the Virginia Discovery Museum's annual family music festival, Discoveroo! Do you have your tickets yet for this exciting event? Join us at the Charlottesville Pavilion on the Downtown Mall for an exciting event featuring live music, fun dances, and games for kids of all ages. Discoveroo will feature thrilling acts such as the The Diggity Dudes, Bill Wellington, and Hope Harris. Here's Hope at last year's event!

Over 20 educational, interactive exhibitors are coming to share all about arts and culture! Come learn stage effects from the American Shakespeare Center, the art of colors from the local Girl Scouts, try some hip-hop with Charlottesville Performing Arts School, and dance the flamenco with Speak! Language Center. As always, the museum beekeepers will be there to answer any questions you have about their art, apiology.  Check out Ken hanging out with the Charlottesville Family Magazine mascot!

 We will also have fun festival activities happening all day, like face painting, bubbles, and best of all, dancing to the music! Tickets are available at the museum, at the event, or online. Member tickets are $10 and non-member tickets are $12 per person. A Family Four-Pack is only $25! Military families can pick up free tickets at the museum or on the day of the event.
The gates will open at 12:30 and the concert kicks off at 1:00. See you there!

What a Weekend!

It's a busy weekend downtown!

 First of all, right here at the museum, we're going Wild About Reading! This annual program is a part of the Virginia Festival of the Book's StoryFest.  Learn about Virginia's wildlife through an enlightening program which includes up-close experiences with live animals and story reading. The first 100 children will receive a wildlife-themed book. This program is especially suitable for families with children from preschool to 2nd grade and is free with admission to the museum.  Hosted by WHTJ PBS Charlottesville, Virginia Discovery Museum, and the Wildlife Center of Virginia.

For more information about Virginia Festival of the Book children's programs and all the StoryFest! events, see the VFB website. 


Also on the mall, the Downtown Business Association and the City of Charlottesville are hosting an historic carousel  at Central Place. That's right! There's a big carousel coming to play with our little one! The visiting carousel will be here today, Friday, March 22, through Sunday, March 24. Rides will run from 12 to 6 each day and are free to the public.

If you are downtown for any of these events today or tomorrow, don't forget to stop into the museum! 

Discovery DASH!

23rd Annual Discovery Dash
Saturday, May 18, 2013

at Monticello High School

Virginia’s oldest kids’ track race!
Races for kids ages 3-12

Register online here!

It’s time to start thinking about the Virginia Discovery Museum’s Annual Discovery Dash. This will be our 23rd  year hosting this event and we hope to have our largest turn-out ever. Taking place at Monticello High School on May 18, this event will feature over a dozen fun-filled races including a scramble for the little ones and exciting parent-child relays. Schools throughout the area are welcome to enter teams of runners for the school relay. There will be trophies, raffle prizes, yummy food, and great exercise.

The Discovery Dash has long been one of the most fun events hosted by VDM. It is always a joy to see the kids run their hearts out as they are supported by their friends and family. What a great way to bond through healthy exercise and competition! VDM is also pleased to be a part of the Let’s Move! campaign, a comprehensive initiative started by Michelle Obama to promote a healthier, more physical lifestyle for kids. We hope that this event encourages kids to engage in more physical activities that challenge their bodies and enrich their lives.

The Discovery Dash is also part of the Kids’ Triple Crown Series, a series of four Charlottesville area not-for-profit races sponsored by Ragged Mountain Running. To qualify for the Triple Crown medal, runners need to finish at least three of the four races: the Charlottesville Ten Miler – Kid’s Track Races, the Run for Autism, the Family Fitness Fair, and the Discovery Dash. We are excited to continue participating in this fun, community-wide opportunity. 

If you’ve participated in previous Dashes, we are looking forward to seeing you again. If you have never participated, make this the year to start. So mark your calendars for May 18 and check out vadm.org/eventsDash.html for more information and to register. We hope to see you there!

Meet Spike the Porcupine

This Saturday, March 9th, is the next installment of our popular program, Meet Me On Main Street. This program brings guests from our community into Little C'ville, where kids and families can learn more about what they do.
 
This week, we will get the chance to meet Kristin from the Blue Ridge Poison Center and her poison safety puppet, Spike! Spike is a porcupine and the main character in a short poison safety video that will be shown at 10:30 in the Back Gallery. Kristin and Spike will then share a game, a craft, and lots of important information about staying safe around potential poisons. Young children are at greatest risk for unintentional poisonings, so join us for this fun and important program. This program is free with admission.

KID*VENTION!!

We're getting so excited! It's almost time for Kid*Vention, VDM's free family science festival!

Join us for Kid*Vention, our annual celebration of everything science, on February 23 from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm. Once again, the event will be at the Key Recreation Center near the Pavilion on the East end of the Downtown Mall. Kid*Vention is a free community event at which children and their families can learn and play at a variety of stations run by VDM’s friends in the Charlottesville community. Over thirty community groups will be there to share their expertise about everything from astronomy to zoology. Come see their favorite parts of science made accessible to you through demonstrations, craft activities, and interactive games. Perfect for kids up to the age of 10, but all ages are welcome. Kid*Vention will feature stations on meteorology, the human body, the environment, chemistry, and more!

Come on out for a day of free science fun!

nTelos Cares for the VDM!

A big "thank you" to Charlottesville Family Magazine and nTelos Wireless, who have made it possible for the VDM to receive a $1,000 donation through the nTelos Cares program. Check out the details below!

nTelos Wireless, a Virginia-based provider of high-speed, dependable nationwide coverage for less, has donated $1,000 to the Virginia Discovery Museum.

The funds were donated via the company’s nTelos Cares program, which uses partnerships with local bloggers to benefit local nonprofits through social media sharing.  

“We are thankful that nTelos Wireless reached out to Charlottesville Family and they chose us to partner with them for this innovative promotion,” said Amy Wicks-Horn, executive director of the Virginia Discovery Museum. “It’s because of local companies and activities like this that we are able to year-after-year engage new supporters and further strengthen our brand in the local community.”

The Virginia Discovery Museum strives to bring young children and families together to engage minds, excite imaginations and explore the world around them. nTelos Wireless partnered with Charlottesville Family, which blogged about the Virginia Discovery Museum and asked its readers to help raise awareness – and funds – for the museum by sharing via Facebook and Twitter.

“We thought using our website and blog to increase awareness of one of our favorite charities was a fantastic idea,” said Jane DeGeorge, editor of Charlottesville Family Magazine. “It not only brought attention to our publication and website, but drove awareness of our Facebook page and the Facebook page of the Virginia Discovery Museum.”

“Every day, people use blogs and social media channels like Facebook and Twitter to communicate about things they are passionate about and the nTelos Cares program encourages the use of these tools to help generate awareness of worthy non-profits in our local community,” said Conrad Hunter, chief operating officer of nTelos Wireless. “It’s great when we can partner with a non-profit and see a grassroots effort start to form and gain momentum all online.”

Books and Floors

What do books and floors have in common? Besides "oo," they are both projects that the staff is working on here at the museum!

Books!

This Saturday, you can support the Virginia Discovery Museum by shopping at Barnes & Noble in Charlottesville, Virginia. In an effort to raise money for the museum, VDM is working together with Barnes & Noble Booksellers by hosting a Bookfair at the Barracks Road Shopping Center store. On January 12th, Barnes & Noble will donate a percentage of every sale made with a special Bookfair voucher. The vouchers can be picked up at the museum or from VDM's table at the store on Saturday. If you don't have a voucher, you can also simply mention VDM to the cashier. This is a great chance to use any holiday gift cards that are still around! Amy and Peter will also be at Barnes & Noble hosting fun crafts and story time events. Be sure to stop by the store for your favorite books, a craft, and support VDM!

If you can't make it to the store on Saturday, visit bn.com/bookfairs and use Bookfair ID Number 10988475 when you check out, between January 12th and 17th.

Floors! 
This past September, VDM saw its largest and most complicated renovation yet! The museum unveiled a brand new Back Gallery filled with many interactive and fun-filled exhibits, including "Little C'ville," a Virginia-centric hallway, and many new, fun touches in the Front Gallery. After witnessing such a wonderful outpouring of excitement and support in reaction to these changes, the VDM staff is starting work on their next big project: new floors!

The museum has now begun the project to replace the Back Gallery floors, which have not been updated in 12 years. Aiming to renovate the floors in February, the VDM staff has already started researching various eco-friendly and child-safe materials for these floors. We are excited to see all the different materials and colors that are not only environmentally conscious, but also will best highlight the fantastic new exhibits in the Back Gallery. We are also looking at all the fun educational components of these materials to teach kids about recyclables and possibly design.

Thanks to a generous donor, VDM has raised half the funds needed to accomplish our goal. If you are interested in helping to replace the Back Gallery floors, pleas contact us at executivedirector@vadm.org. Help us create a safe, eco-friendly, and educational environment for our visitors.

DMB Auction!

Surprise your friends with an amazing local night out! The Virginia Discovery Museum is auctioning off an amazing package valued at over $1,000. This package deal includes four tickets to the upcoming Dave Matthews Band show on December 14th at John Paul Jones Arena (Section 112, Row C, Seats 13, 14, 15, and 16), a Chauffeur Driven, Luxurious Executive SUV provided by Private Coach for the evening, a $50 gift certificate to Zocalo, and $100 of Downtown Mall gift certificates donated by the Charlottesville Parking Center to contribute towards the fun of your choice!

One hundred percent of the proceeds will benefit the Virginia Discovery Museum. Have a fantastic evening out and support a great local institution! The auction begins today and runs for one week - November 30 - December 7.  The minimum bid is $500. To place your bid simply email VDMonlineauction@comcast.net. For more information and daily updates on where the bids stand, visit vadm.org or Facebook.com/VADiscoveryMuseum. The auction will close Friday, December 7th at 5 pm and the winner will be notified by e-mail. Please see venue and vendor websites for details and restrictions that may apply.