Archive for the ‘Fun on grounds’ Category

Dec
13

Winter Camp Zoofari is a comin’…

Posted by in Camp,Education Office,Events,Fun on grounds

…and it’ll be here before you know it! Just when the weather starts to get a bit cooler and Summer Camp Zoofari is but a distant memory, our department gets geared up for round 2-Winter Camp Zoofari!

 

Feeding our Masai giraffes

What better way to spend your Christmas vacation than here at the Zoo? Winter Camp Zoofari will host kids ages 4-12 during the week of December 19th-23rd. Since Winter Camp is only a week long, each day will be a different camp topic, depending on the age of the child attending. We have every topic from Adventures in the Rainforest to Wildlife Photography and Stories for the youngest campers!

Each camp day, kids will visit the new African Forest exhibit, feed our Masai giraffes, ride the carousel, participate in a Zooper Challenge and meet a live touchable animal! There’s so much to do and enjoy each day in Camp Zoofari that some days it’s hard to fit it all in.

So, for the next few days our Education Department will be hard at work preparing classrooms, reviewing curricula, getting craft supplies and animal biofacts ready for what is proving to be another fun and exciting Camp Zoofari experience! We hope that your kids will be part of that experience this December!

Campers enjoy touring Zoo grounds (especially our new elephant expansion!)

For more information (including our Winter Camp brochure) and to register, visit our website at: www.houstonzoo.org/camp.

Tags: , ,
Dec
05

December: Story Safari at the Houston Zoo!

Posted by in Animal Fun Facts,Classes/Programs,Featured,Fun on grounds,Public Programs

December is here and you know what that means? It’s time to bundle up with a new story at Story Safari in the Houston Zoo’s Children’s Zoo. Join us every day at 10:30AM and 11:00AM at the Butterfly Stage to listen to this month’s book: “Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed” by Mo Willems.   

Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed by Mo Willems

I know when you think of cold weather the last thing on your mind is naked mole rats. Some of you may even ask yourself “What in the world is a naked mole rat?” That’s all okay because for this story “You only need to know three things: 1. They are a little bit rat. 2. They are a little bit mole. 3. They are all naked. All except Wilbur…” Want to find out why Wilbur likes clothes so much? Well join us for Story Safari to find out! (hey, maybe he’s cold!)

Tags: , , , , ,
Nov
03

November: Story Safari at the Houston Zoo!

Posted by in Featured,Fun on grounds,Public Programs,Uncategorized

Colder weather means it’s time to warm up with some hot food, friends and family. So grab your warm beverage from the McCaw Café or Twigga Terrace and join your friends Bennett and Viviana at the Houston Zoo Butterfly Stage for a story that will warm your hearts. To learn more about the Houston Zoo storytellers click here!

Armadilly Chili by Helen Ketteman

During the entire month of November we will be reading the book Armadilly Chili by Helen Ketteman, a Texan tale of Miss Billie Armadilly. “A blue norther’s a-blowing’” and Miss Billie makes hot pot of chili to warm up during those cold desert nights, but despite its savor, the chili taste “flat as a Texas prairie”. Want to find out what is missing from her chili? Join us for Story Safari everyday this month at 10:30a.m. & 11:00a.m.!    

 

Tags: , , , , , ,
Oct
16

Story Safari at the Houston Zoo!

Posted by in Animal Fun Facts,Classes/Programs,Education Office,Fun on grounds,Public Programs,Uncategorized

Have you met Bennett and Viviana? They are the Houston Zoo’s Story Safari storytellers! Everyday in the Children’s Zoo Butterfly Stage at 10:30AM and 11:00AM, Bennett and Viviana bring to life wonderful and exciting stories for children of all ages. To learn more about them and the rest of the Houston Zoo’s Education staff click here!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“There’s a wolf in the woods and everyone says, “She’s big, she’s bad, she’s old, and she’s HAIRY! Best leave her alone, she is mean and scary. But we wanted to know, so we crept a little bit closer…” 

Want to know what happens next? Come find out with us! We’ll be reading “What’s the Time, Grandma Wolf?” by Ken Brown each day during Zoo Boo – October 14th – 31st. Hope to see you there!

 

Tags: , , , , , ,
Oct
11

Home School Events-Exhibit Expeditions!

Posted by in Classes/Programs,Fun on grounds

Watch out… home schoolers are taking over the Zoo! On September 22nd  we hosted the first Exhibit Expeditions! This fun-filled day was packed with exciting tours to some of the Zoo’s most popular spots and animal meet and greets at the end of every tour! Everyone who attended had a blast exploring the Zoo and learning about the animals around them.

 

About to head out on a Zoo tour!

Don’t worry…the fun isn’t over yet, the next invasion of home schoolers will be on November 10th for Station Exploration! This day will be filled with interactive activities right at the animal’s exhibits! Station Exploration will take place from 10:00am-1:15pm. Price information as well as registration can be found at www.houstonzoo.org/homeschool.

We can’t wait to see everyone learning right along with the animals!

 

Liberty, our bald eagle, was one of the animal visitors for the special event

 

-Written by Amy Barnhill, Education Specialist

Tags: , ,
Oct
05

SOS: Howlerween at the Houston Zoo!

Posted by in Animal Fun Facts,Animal Information,Events,Fun on grounds

The Houston Zoo’s Primate Department will be celebrating their 3rd annual Howlerween during the entire month of October! There will be special Howler Monkey Meet the Keeper Talks every day at 3:30p.m. “Howlerween” will coincide with Zoo Boo from 9a.m. to 3p.m. both days inside Wortham World of Primates near the Howler Monkey exhibit. 

 

Howler monkeys are the largest of the New World monkeys and they have the loudest call of any land mammal. (Click here to listen to a Black Howler Monkey) Their deep, howling calls can be heard almost 3 miles through the tropical forest of Central and South America! Howler Monkeys are critically endangered due to the illegal pet trade and bushmeat crisis.

On the weekend of October 22-23 we will be holding a Spotlight on Species event which will include educational activities, Howler Monkey keeper chats at 10a.m., 2p.m., and 3:30p.m., as well as a variety of merchandise that will be on sale to help raise money for Wildtracks. Wildtracks is a non-profit organization that rehabilitates these illegally procured monkeys and reintroduces them into the wild forests of northern Belize.  Primate keepers Rachel Vass and Helen Boostrom visited Belize in June and spent time working at Wildtracks with some of these rehabilitated monkeys. You can read their blog posts on the Houston Zoo’s Wild Conservation Blog!

Visit our website to learn all the details about our special Howlerween Spotlight on Species weekend on October 22-23, located in our Wortham World of Primates. Please come out and visit us for a howling good time!

Tags: , , , , , ,
Oct
04

First Annual Get Out and Play at the Houston Zoo!

Posted by in Events,Fun on grounds

The warthog race!

On September 17th, 2011 the Houston Zoo hosted the first annual Get Out and Play event and it was a huge success! Get Out and Play was a day to raise awareness for Nature Deficit Disorder. The event was jam packed with exciting games and activities for children and adults to enjoy, and reached over 1,000 guests in its’ very first year.

 

Kids pretending to be chimps, fishing termites out of the termite mound!

The most popular game for children that day was the big termite mound outside of Tommy’s Tree House at our chimp exhibit. The children had to scavenge for termites as if they were real chimpanzees using fake bamboo sticks! Other games involved children pretending they where jaguars on the hunt, and warthogs escaping danger along with many other fun games to play!  

Get Out and Play wasn’t just about fun animal games; KickStart came out and demonstrated martial arts as well as did a mini-lesson for the kids at the Zoo to learn some cool moves!

Jumping like a jaguar!

But that’s still not all; the Houston Texans (the sponsor of the day) sent out Toro and brought an inflatable football toss for children to practice their throwing skills. As you can see the day was filled with games and activities to enjoy as a family. We are looking forward to next year’s Get Out and Play Event!!

-Written by Amy Barnhill, Education Specialist

Tags: , , ,
Sep
03

SOS: St. Vincent Amazon Parrot

Posted by in Events,Fun on grounds

One of the reasons I love my job is that I get to work with some pretty amazing people. In our SOS programs (Spotlight on Species) that happen all year round on Zoo grounds, the Education Department assists in a variety of ways. SOS programs are setup by animal sections who want to draw attention to a particular species in need. Once they have a date in mind for their event the Education Department gets to step in and help them with their messaging.

St. Vincent Amazon Parrot

 

Being a liason for an SOS event has some serious perks. First, we get to spend time with keepers that we may not know very well. This helps to create a cohesive work environment between all departments of the Zoo. Second, we get to learn in depth about an animal in our collection! For instance, I am helping out with the St. Vincent Amazon Parrot SOS on Sunday, September 4th. Before I started working with the fabulous Bird Department I had NO idea that we are the ONLY Zoo in North America to exhibit these birds…crazy!

Another perk of working on an SOS is getting to share our knowledge (from an education standpoint) with keepers. Each group benefits…who could ask for more? And last, but certainly not least, we get to help out at the event and talk to the public about an animal that needs your help!

With less than 800 of these left in the wild, we need your help!

So why not enjoy your Labor Day weekend here at the Houston Zoo? The Bird Department will host their SOS for the St. Vincent Parrot next to Stormy the Bird Bank from 11am to 3pm on Sunday, September 4th. There will be crafts to do, photos for sale, games, activities, keeper chats-you  name it! You may even leave the Zoo learning something about these parrots that you didn’t know before (but shh…we won’t tell!).

Tags: , , ,
Jun
15

Tours Are A Go!

Posted by in Classes/Programs,Featured,Fun on grounds

Chance feeding one of the lions at the training window!

The Zoo has always offered a variety of behind the scenes tours, but recently someone noticed that the process of registering, scheduling, and coordinating the keepers could use a bit of organization.

Fortunately, the Education department has some experience with that.

As part of the reorganization process, we got to go on “mock” tours of all the areas we now offer.  Let me tell you, there are some awesome experiences available!  Through the training process, I got to see the inside of the orangutan building, feed a lion at the training window, go inside the Zoo’s 10-below freezer, pass pieces of fruit to the cassowary, meet one of our new rhinos up close, and many more cool things!  

To make it all a little easier for everyone involved, our tours are now set to certain days and times.  For example, if you want to take a tour of the Commissary (and that super-cold freezer), you can do it on Tuesday or Thursday at 9:30am.  We’ve also made them more consistent: every tour starts with a 30-minute front of scenes tour led by one of the Education Specialists, and that person accompanies the group on the behind the scenes portion as well.

DeAndra feeds the bongo during our tour training!

As different areas offer different experiences, there are now categories of tours.  Sneak Peeks give you a look inside a back area of the Zoo, Premiere tours include an up-close animal experience, and the Star Treatment tours include an encounter with one of our coolest animals.  We’ve also added a Red Carpet Experience: The African Forest Safari Package.  This four-hour tour is the one I am the most excited about; it includes an hour front of scenes guided tour, lunch at Twiga Terrace, and behind the scenes tours of all four of the new animal buildings of The African Forest.  I hope someone books that tour, because I can’t wait to lead it!

Interested in booking a tour or finding out if your favorite animal area is available?  www.houstonzoo.org/tours

Tags: ,
May
06

Introducing… Viviana Valdez!

Posted by in Education Office,Fun on grounds

We got to meet Bennett a while back.  Now it’s time to meet Viviana, the other person on our two-person Interpretive team! 

Name: Viviana Valdez

Department and Title: Education Department; Interpretive Specialist

Job Description: My job includes, but it is not limited to, performing on gounds Educational programs, such as Story Safari, Zooper Challenge, and Zoo Adventures.

Hometown: Houston, TX

Favorite animal and why? Well I’m a big fan of all primates, but my favorite animal is definitely the mandrill. I love their beautiful colors.

Favorite class to teach at HZI: Story Safari.

How long have you worked at the Houston Zoo? 3 years

Describe your education and experience prior to working at the Houston Zoo:  I didn’t have much experience prior to the Houston Zoo. I was fresh out of high school when I joined the Zoo team, with only one year of clerical experience from working an intership at the U.S. Treasury Dept. The Admission’s department hired me as a part-time carousel operator, and I’ve been working my way up the ladder since.

What do you enjoy most about working in the EduTeer Department?  Well, I love my job and that makes working here enjoyable for me. If theres anything I enjoy most about working in the EduTeer Dept is the casual atmosphere within the team.

What animals do you have at home? I have a guinea pig named Mr. Man.  Although, I’m hoping to adopt a dog once I move out of my apartment complex.

Tell us a fun fact about yourself: I like to collect office supplies, especially post-its.

Now that we’ve gotten to the Specialists, be prepared for some more fun responses! The first of SIX Education Specialists is next week!

Tags: , , ,

Older Posts »