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New Developments for Kids Summer Programs 200911:18AM / Monday, June 15, 2009
LENOX, Mass. - This year, Ventfort Hall Mansion and Gilded Age Museum’s new “Ventfort Kids Summer Program” will include both boys and girls ages 7-13 in week-long programs focusing on outdoor adventures and indoor discoveries.
Located in and around the grounds of the magnificent 1893 mansion and its historic arboretum, Ventfort Kids Summer Program offers seven week-long sessions featuring a blend of arts, crafts, forestry, history, architecture, landscape design, games, cooking, and just plain fun. Participants can choose among a variety of options within two programs, the ongoing “American Girl® Sessions” and “Ventfort Goes Wild!” the new nature and arts-based program.
“Ventfort Goes Wild” is a brand new program that will explore arts and ideas that are rooted in history, but alive today, trying a hand at many art forms inspired by the interests of the Gilded Age. Designed to be both educational and fun, the children will be able to contribute in a lasting way to Ventfort Hall’s mission; for example, by participating in the creation of the Ventfort Arboretum, helping with the forest garden, and designing and shaping a nature path.
The American Girl® Sessions will include the series’ newest doll: Rebecca Rubin a 9-year-old girl living on the Lower East Side of New York City in 1918 at the end of the Gilded Age. Her family of Jewish Russian immigrants, and their new American life will further enhance the rich and diverse historical context of Ventfort Hall’s program.
Dawn Martin, Ventfort Hall’s new Education Coordinator, brings many years of art education and supervisory experience to her new home in the Berkshires. Her BA in Art History from Syracuse University and MS in Art Education from the Mass. College of Art and Design, combined with on-the-ground “training” in all things garden-related have prepared Dawn to share the arts and the outdoors with participants in the “Ventfort Goes Wild!” programs. (Having two sons helps with the wild part.) “Artists have been inspired by the light, air, community and beauty of the Berkshires for centuries, and I’m thrilled that children can add to that tradition by creating new works of art in this fabulous Gilded Age setting,” says Dawn.
Ventfort Hall also welcomes Jessica Pollard as the new American Girl® coordinator. Jessica is the mother of two daughters ages 6 and 11, and has been a teacher at Lee Elementary School for 11 years. She has a degree in Education and Child Study from Smith College, and has served as Director of the Lee Youth Drama Club for 5 years. “One of our productions was Shakespeare’s ‘A Midsummer Night's Dream,’ during which we built fairy houses with natural materials and put them on display on our school's nature trail. I have a strong connection to and love for the history and art of the Berkshires and all of the treasures that we have here as a community of teachers and learners,” says Jessica.
Ventfort Hall’s Executive Director, Jeffrey Folmer says, “One of our most important objectives is to teach kids about the Gilded Age in a fun and engaging way. Kids love coming here where we make sure to offer them a ‘Gilded Age experience’ that is just up-to-date enough to hold their interest and get them excited!”
Each program runs for one week, Monday – Friday, from 9:00 to 3:00. The cost is $250 per week; with an advance registration and payment discount of $225 per week at least two weeks in advance.
The schedule is as follows:
July 6 – July 10 - American Girl®
July 13 – July 17 - “Ventfort Goes Wild!” Light and Shadow
July 20 – July 24 - American Girl®
July 27 – July 31 - “Ventfort Goes Wild!” The Gardening Artist
August 3 – August 7 - American Girl®
August 10 – August 14 - “Ventfort Goes Wild!” Texture and Architecture
August 17 – August 21 - American Girl® Goes Outdoors
For detailed program descriptions and a registration form, please visit www.GildedAge.org or email Dawn Martin at summerprograms@GildedAge.org. |
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