Free Drop-In Programs for Families

PHOTO: Grow Up Great Backpacks

Discovery Backpacks
Families visiting the Garden can borrow Discovery Backpacks from the Information Desk in the Visitor Center. Backpacks include two magnifiers, two binoculars, field guides, and journals and golf pencils to record discoveries. Discovery Backpacks offer a highly interactive experience for individual families. Backpacks may be picked up in exchange for a driver’s license; they are available during Garden hours year-round, and will be given out on a first-come, first-served basis.

PHOTO: story time
Story Time

Story Time in the Lenhardt Library
Mondays, January 9 – May 21
No Story Time on April 23
10 – 11 a.m.

Stop by for nature-themed stories and activities Monday mornings in the Lenhardt Library! Afterwards, pick up a Bingo activity card at the Information Desk and take a walk through the Garden and in the Greenhouses. Stories and activities are geared for children two to five accompanied by a caregiver.

Malott Japanese Garden Children’s Festival
Malott Japanese Garden Children’s Festival

Saturday, May 19 & Sunday, May 20
10 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Learn about children’s celebrations in Japan during this special weekend of activities. Listen to koto harp and shakuhachi flute music, enjoy traditional folktales, and watch a tea ceremony. Kids of all ages can make projects to celebrate Girls Day and Boys Day — design a kimono paper doll, create a miniature carp kite, construct an origami samurai helmet, and more at family-friendly hands-on stations.

  • 10 a.m. – 3 p.m. 
    Family Activities
  • 10:30 a.m. 
    Tea Ceremony Demonstration by Dr. Seiko Nakashima and students of the Urasenke School
  • 11:30 a.m. 
    Shakuhachi Flute Performance by Michael Chikuzen Gould
  • 12:30 p.m. 
    Storytelling by Anne Shimojima
  • 1:30 p.m. 
    Shakuhachi Flute Performance by Michael Chikuzen Gould
  • 2:30 p.m. 
    Koto Harp Performance by Chicago Koto Group
PHOTO: Drop-In Activities
Grunsfeld Growing Garden Family Drop-In Activities

Saturdays & Sundays, June 2 – September 30
11 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Grunsfeld Growing Garden

Get close to nature and discover where food comes from and how plants grow at the new Grunsfeld Growing Garden. Pollinate flowers, dissect seeds, see roots growing, compost with worms, create a rainbow for healthy eating, and more. Activities vary from week to week.

  • June 2, World Environment Day Activities: Plant Parts & Rainbow Garden
  • June 3: Plant Parts
  • June 9 & 10: Wiggling Worms
  • June 16 & 17: Super Seeds
  • June 23 & 24: Powerful Pollinators
  • June 30 & July 1: Plant Parts
  • July 7 & 8: Rainbow Garden
  • July 14 & 15: Wiggling Worms
  • July 21 & 22:  Super Seeds
  • July 28 & 29: Powerful Pollinators
  • August 4 & 5:  Rainbow Garden
  • August 11 & 12: Wiggling Worms
  • August 18 & 19: Super Seeds
  • August 25 & 26: Powerful Pollinators
  • September 1 & 2: Plant Parts
  • September 8 & 9: Rainbow Garden
  • September 15 & 16: Wiggling Worms
  • September 22 & 23: Super Seeds
  • September 29 & 30: Plant Parts
PHOTO: Japanese Garden Family Sundays
Malott Japanese Garden Family Sundays

June 3 & 17, July 15, August 5, September 2 & 16
11 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Drop by the Elizabeth Hubert Malott Japanese Garden for hands-on activities related to Japanese arts and culture. Practice using chopsticks, rake miniature dry gardens, make Japanese kites, and more. The free activities vary each time, and are subject to change.

  • June 3: Koinobori (mini carp kites)
  • June 17: Kendama (origami cup and ball)
  • July 1: Tanabata Wishes & Streamers
  • July 15: Kabuto (samurai helmets)
  • August 5: Uchiwa (paper fans)
  • September 2: Kimono Paper Dolls
  • September 16: Gyotaku (fish prints)
PHOTO: Japanese Garden Summer Festival
Malott Japanese Garden Summer Festival

Saturday, August 18 & Sunday, August 19, 2012
10 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Learn about the summer festivals (matsura) celebrated in Japan during this special weekend of activities. Listen to taiko drum and koto harp music, enjoy traditional folktales, and watch a tea ceremony. Kids of all ages can make projects to celebrate summer — fold origami, create a paper fan, make a kite, and more at family-friendly hands-on stations. 

  • 10:30 a.m.
    Tea ceremony demonstration by Dr. Seiko Nakashima and students of the Urasenke School
  • 11:30 a.m.
    Storytelling by Anne Shimojima
  • 12:30 p.m.
    Taiko drum performance by Koyko Taiko
  • 1:30 p.m.
    Storytelling by Anne Shimojima
  • 2:30 p.m.
    Koto harp performance by Chicago Koto Group
PHOTO: Sukkot Family Activities
Sukkot Family Activities

Sunday, October 7
11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Celebrate the Jewish harvest holiday Sukkot! Families are invited to help decorate the branch-covered sukkah, which will be on display from October 1 – 8 at the Regenstein Fruit and Vegetable Garden. These activities are provided by the National Council of Jewish Women, Chicago North Shore Section. 

Click here for more information on the Sukkah Display.