Weekends at The Natural History Museum

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September 2008

Returning Sep 24, 2008	Dinosaur Encounters Natural History Museum Dinosaur Encounters will be offline for scheduled maintenance in September. The T. rex and Triceratops will be ready to meet you again beginning Wednesday, September 24, 2008. For more information about Dinosaur Encounters please visit nhm.org/encounters.
September 5 Friday	Group Overnight Adventures Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits Ever wonder what happens in the Museum at night? Come spend a night here and find out. We’ll tour galleries at both the NHM and the Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits, and explore some of the ancient fossils in our collections. Bring your sleeping bag, air mattress and flashlight and fall asleep surrounded by animals in our diorama halls. Snack and light breakfast is provided for all participants. For groups of 10 or more. Adult to child ratio 1:6. For more information call (213) 763-3536 or view available dates online at www.nhm.org/calendar/goa_sleepover.html.
September 6 Saturday 10:00 am - 2:00 pm	Beautiful Books by Hand [N] Natural History Museum The “joy book,” a beautiful Asian-inspired work, will bring happiness to you while you make it and while you look back on it later. You will have a wide selection of Japanese papers to choose from. They are gorgeous in their colors and textures. It's a paper lover’s delight! Join Wendy Poma and create a beautiful work of art. No previous experience required. All materials are supplied by the instructor. Each class is $45 for Members; $50 for nonmembers. Members can save $20 and take both classes for $70!
September 12 Friday	Group Overnight Adventures Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits Ever wonder what happens in the Museum at night? Come spend a night here and find out. We’ll tour galleries at both the NHM and the Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits, and explore some of the ancient fossils in our collections. Bring your sleeping bag, air mattress and flashlight and fall asleep surrounded by animals in our diorama halls. Snack and light breakfast is provided for all participants. For groups of 10 or more. Adult to child ratio 1:6. For more information call (213) 763-3536 or view available dates online at www.nhm.org/calendar/goa_sleepover.html.
September 13 Saturday 10:15 am - 11:15 am	Critter Club: What's in the Garden? Meet at South Doors (First Floor) Hey 3-5 year olds, this club's for you! Come with us and explore our gardens, where pillbugs, snails, and worms are living under the leaves and dirt. We will make tiny homes for your new friends and listen to buggy stories. Wriggle on over for a fun adventure! Critter Clubs are for 3-5 year olds and a participating adult. All programs are free with paid Museum admission. Events available on a first come, first served basis. No reservations required; check in at Museum’s south doors. For more information, please call (213) 763-3230.
September 19 Friday	Group Overnight Adventures Natural History Museum Ever wonder what happens in the Museum at night? Come spend a night here and find out. We’ll tour galleries at both the NHM and the Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits, and explore some of the ancient fossils in our collections. Bring your sleeping bag, air mattress and flashlight and fall asleep surrounded by animals in our diorama halls. Snack and light breakfast is provided for all participants. For groups of 10 or more. Adult to child ratio 1:6. For more information call (213) 763-3536 or view available dates online at www.nhm.org/calendar/goa_sleepover.html.
September 19 Friday 10:00 am - 5:00 pm	Spider Pavilion Members Preview Days All members are invited to experience the Spider Pavilion before it opens to the general public. Join us for family crafts and special presentations by Museum experts, who will show you just how beneficial spiders are to the environment. Don’t miss your exclusive opportunity to hang out with these eight-legged wonders. Members receive free tickets throughout the run of the exhibit.
September 20 Saturday 10:00 am - 5:00 pm	Spider Pavilion Members Preview Days All members are invited to experience the Spider Pavilion before it opens to the general public. Join us for family crafts and special presentations by Museum experts, who will show you just how beneficial spiders are to the environment. Don’t miss your exclusive opportunity to hang out with these eight-legged wonders. Members receive free tickets throughout the run of the exhibit.
September 20 Saturday 11 am Family Tour — 12 pm Adult Tour	Scavenger's Safari: Exciting Entomology Brian Brown, Entomology Curator, has discovered new insect species all over the world – in locales ranging from L.A. backyards to the rain forests of Thailand. He knows plenty of surprising insect facts too. Spend an hour inside his Ento world on this special behind-the-scenes tour. This monthly program is free with Patron Family Membership ($185 annually). RSVP today at (213) 763-3426.
September 20 Saturday 2:00 pm	“We Bought a Zoo” by Benjamin Mee Discussion and Book Signing Natural History Museum (Second Floor North American Mammal Hall) He admits it was a ludicrous dream, but British journalist Benjamin Mee had always dreamt that his family would operate a zoo. In 2006, the dream came true — but not like he had anticipated. The Mees bought the crumbling Dartmoor Wildlife Park, but in the course of rehabilitating it, funds ran dry, the menagerie of quirky animals grew, and family tragedy struck. “We Bought A Zoo” by Benjamin Mee is an unforgettable memoir about the mysteries of the animal kingdom, the power of family, and the triumph of hope over tragedy. Benjamin is on hand for a discussion with Tom Curwen (writer and former editor of Los Angeles Times Book Review), and book signing event. Free with paid Museum admission.
Opening September 21 Sunday	Spider Pavilion Opens Natural History Museum Enjoy a rare, up-close view of orb weaving spiders doing what they do best. Inside the Spider Pavilion, hundreds of arachnids are busily spinning webs of all shapes and sizes. Look out for the giant golden silk spider, considered the largest spider in the Americas and the weaver of webs up to three feet across. The banded garden spider is also at work, easily identified by yellow and black markings, and known for large, crisscrossed webs. The Pavilion is open through November 2, 2008. Separate admission ticketing applies. Members receive free tickets.
September 21 Sunday speaker appears at 2:30 pm	Sustainable Sundays Natural History Museum In this new series, the Museum becomes a forum in which visitors engage with speakers and researchers about international conservation issues, and then learn how those issues are at work right here in Los Angeles. Museum scientists and experts will talk about their research into pertinent environmental issues, and local nonprofits and advocacy groups will offer resources for anyone interested in learning more about sustainability. In this series kick-off, Conservation International’s Carlos Manuel Rodriguez talks about the “Costa Rica Model,” in which government policymakers and local indigenous people worked together to protect and revive Costa Rica’s forests in the 1990s.
September 26 Friday	Group Overnight Adventures Natural History Museum Ever wonder what happens in the Museum at night? Come spend a night here and find out. We’ll tour galleries at both the NHM and the Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits, and explore some of the ancient fossils in our collections. Bring your sleeping bag, air mattress and flashlight and fall asleep surrounded by animals in our diorama halls. Snack and light breakfast is provided for all participants. For groups of 10 or more. Adult to child ratio 1:6. For more information call (213) 763-3536 or view available dates online at www.nhm.org/calendar/goa_sleepover.html.
September 27 Saturday 11:30 am 1:30 pm 2:30 pm 3:30 pm	Dinosaur Encounters North American Mammal Hall on Level 2 Get closer to a dinosaur than you ever thought possible! Meet a life-size juvenile Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops during a live presentation. These amazing creatures help us understand dinosaur behavior, anatomy and survival tactics of the two species. Dinosaur Encounters happen in the North American Mammal Hall on Level 2.
September 28 Sunday 11:30 am 1:30 pm 2:30 pm 3:30 pm	Dinosaur Encounters North American Mammal Hall on Level 2 Get closer to a dinosaur than you ever thought possible! Meet a life-size juvenile Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops during a live presentation. These amazing creatures help us understand dinosaur behavior, anatomy and survival tactics of the two species. Dinosaur Encounters happen in the North American Mammal Hall on Level 2.

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October 2008

October 11 Saturday 10:15 am - 11:15 am	Critter Club: Super Spiders Meet at South Doors (First Floor) Visit our fabulous Spider Pavilion and learn all about awesome arachnids! We’ll watch spiders eat their lunch, create a creeping craft, and hear spider stories! Critter Clubs are for 3-5 year olds and a participating adult. All programs are free with paid Museum admission. Events available on a first come, first served basis. No reservations required; check in at Museum’s south doors. For more information, please call (213) 763-3230.
October 11 Saturday 9:30 am - 4:30 pm	Nature Journaling Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits Writer and illustrator Janet Takahashi leads a class in the art of the nature journal. Participants learn to capture their own experiences and fill their journal pages with striking visuals – the color palette of a particular time of year, for instance, or the variety of birds in your backyard. Drawing will take place inside the Page Museum and throughout its park. Great for adults and teens 16 and up; all skill levels welcome. Lunch and materials provided. $100 for members; $125 for non-members. For more information, (323) 857-6300, ext. 112.
October 12 Saturday 9:30 am - 4:30 pm	Nature Journaling Page Museum at the La Brea Tar Pits Writer and illustrator Janet Takahashi leads a class in the art of the nature journal. Participants learn to capture their own experiences and fill their journal pages with striking visuals – the color palette of a particular time of year, for instance, or the variety of birds in your backyard. Drawing will take place inside the Page Museum and throughout its park. Great for adults and teens 16 and up; all skill levels welcome. Lunch and materials provided. $100 for members; $125 for non-members. For more information, (323) 857-6300, ext. 112.
October 12 Sunday	Sustainable Sundays: The Different Shades of Green Natural History Museum The Natural History Museum becomes a forum in which visitors interact with museum scientists and guest researchers about international conservation issues, and puts them in touch with organizations that actually do something. Learn about sustainability from the experts; decide on your shade of green. In this installment, Caltech's Dr. Nathan Lewis describes and evaluates the challenges – technical, political, and economic – involved with widespread adoption of renewable energy technologies.
October 18 Saturday 9:30 am - 12:00 pm	Fossil Hunting in Silverado Canyon Offsite Search for 90-million-year-old marine fossils with Lindsey Groves, Collections Manager of Malacology, and LouElla Saul, former Collections Manager of Invertebrate Paleontology and current Museum Research Associate. This rich fossil site is a great place to learn the basics of fossil excavation along side Museum scientists. Bring a bag for your best finds! Participants provide their own transportation. Grades 2 and up, accompanied by an adult. Members $29; General Admission $39.
October 18 Sunday 10:00 am - 2:00 pm	Gone Buggin' at the Hart Hart Park and Museum Come see Brent “the Bug Guy” Karner as he takes his Natural History Museum bugs on a road trip to the Hart Park and Museum for the Pumpkin Festival. Learn about the ways bugs have been used in Halloween and why they get a bad rap. Free admission; visit www.hartmuseum.org for information updates and show times. The Pumpkin Festival will be held from 10 am to 2 pm.
October 19 Sunday 11:00 am	Scavenger's Safari: Gorgeous Gems Natural History Museum Join Alyssa Morgan, Mineral Sciences Collection Manager, as she guides guests through the Hall of Gems and Minerals, and then behind the scenes in the department’s lab. She’ll show off the equipment curators use to research mineral specimens, and tell some of the stories behind the discovery and acquisition of some of the department’s most extraordinary rocks, gems, ores and meteorites. Monthly Scavenger Safaris are free with Patron Family Membership ($185 annually). RSVP today at (213) 763-3426.
October 24 Friday 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm	Spider Pavilion Flashlight Tours Not Your Average Date Night Natural History Museum To celebrate Halloween, we invite our visitors to tour the Spider Pavilion after dark. During extended Museum hours, guided flashlight tours let guests encounter our arachnids when they are most active. After the tours, the Museum offers spider-themed activities. Visitors receive a free flashlight (while supplies last) so they can investigate their own backyards. As an alternative to the usual dinner and a movie, couples are encouraged to come to the Museum for food, concessions and music — right before taking a guided tour by flashlight of the Spider Pavilion.
October 25 Saturday 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm	Spider Pavilion Flashlight Tours Game Show Night Natural History Museum In addition to the tour, guests are invited to test their knowledge about arachnids and win prizes in a trivia competition. Kids can also create spider crafts.
October 26 Sunday 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm	Haunted Museum Natural History Museum All Naturalist members ($325 annually) and higher will be invited to join us on The Graveyard Shift, as the Museum transforms into a variety of spooky cemeteries, which guests explore to seek hidden clues and interact with our Museum experts in the realm of the departed. With notebooks and magnifying glasses in hand, they will collect all the clues hidden throughout the event. Different areas of the Museum will be festively themed to enliven the adventure, including an authentic New Orleans cemetery featuring a live jazz band, a catacombs section with piles of bones, a Dia de los Muertos area and a Davy Jones’ Locker set-up, highlighting watery graves. Haunted Museum is free with Naturalist Membership and higher ($325 annually). Join or upgrade your membership today at (213) 763-3426.
October 30 Thursday 5:00 pm - 8:00 pm	Spider Pavilion Flashlight Tours Spider Cinema Night and Trick-or-Treating Natural History Museum NHM turns the Spider Pavilion courtyard into an outdoor theater for a Halloween-themed movie. Guests are encouraged to come in Halloween costume and go trick-or-treating in Museum galleries.

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Weekend programs at the Natural History Museum are supported by a major grant from Farmers Insurance Group.

Additional support for Family and Children's Programs is provided by the Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, Avery Dennison Foundation and The Gary Saltz Foundation.