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A Promising Future ...
The Sun Shines on Middle Schoolers
for the Junior Solar Sprint |
First-place champions for speed in the Monadnock Regional Junior Solar Sprint Race are Stephen Twitchell of Peterborough and Kaleb Guinn of Greenfield, seventh-graders at South Meadow School.  | There was bright sun on Wednesday, charging both students' enthusiasm and the small solar-powered cars that they were racing.
It was the annual Junior Solar Sprint competition for the Monadnock/Keene region, held at Adams Playground in Peterborough, with participation of a half-dozen area middle schools.
It's a chance for middle school students to learn key skills in their curriculum - things like science, engineering and math - and apply them by designing, building and racing small solar-powered cars. In the process, they also discover the importance of teamwork and problem-solving.
"Junior Solar Sprint lets middle school students think big about our future," said Susie Spikol, who organizes the event for the Harris Center for Conservation Education. "It's a chance for them to be leaders and help us imagine a world that runs on innovation, new technology and solar power."
Other winners from Wednesday's race included: Second place for speed: Kaitlin Roberts and Carl Wagner of South Meadow School; third place: Jay Murrey of South Meadow School; most innovative: Joellen Racicot and Hannah Sandquist of South Meadow School; best craftsmanship: Amar Patel, Tom Heghan and Zach Willett of Keene Middle School; best use of technology: Trey Horne of Jaffrey-Rindge Middle School; best use of recycled materials: Suzanne Hassanein, Katie Silegy and Helen Peterson of Keene Middle School; and Kids' Choice Award: Dilyon Burgoyne and Christian Reider of Jaffrey-Rindge Middle School.
The overall program is run by the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association. The Monadnock-Keene race is organized by the Harris Center and supported by Millipore, Antioch University New England, Public Service of New Hampshire, New Hampshire Ball Bearing, Sweetwater Natural Products, and Eastern Mountain Sports. |
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The Nature of June |
Jack-in-the-Pulpit |
The delicate green and brown stripes of this member of the arum family are thought to attract pollinating insects to the bottom of the flower. Inside, if the flowers look like little green berries, these are female flowers. If they look like little threads, these are male flowers.
In "A Guide to Enjoying Wildflowers," Hancock authors Donald and Lillian Stokes describe fun ways to understand these and other flowers of the woods. |
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| Sunday, June 13, 2 p.m.
Eyes on Owls -- Owls for Wol's | |
Eyes on Owls - June 13, 2 p.m., at the Harris Center | Mark your calendar for Sunday, June 13, when Marcia and Mark Wilson return to the Harris Center for their ever-popular "Eyes on Owls" program, featuring live owls and all the wisdom that comes along with these remarkable birds. The program runs from 2 to 3:30 p.m. at the Harris Center.
The Wilsons founded Eyes On Owls in 1994 as an educational enterprise that brings wild owls to schools and organizations to let folks learn about these wild neighbors and their habitats.
The owls at Eyes On Owls are permanently disabled - that is, they can't survive on their own in the wild. Many of the owls are survivors of collisions with vehicles. The Wilsons give each owl a safe, clean, low stress home and all the mice they need to eat (owls don't eat plants, of course). Several times a week, they bring a selection of owls to a school or group program to help people learn about these fascinating birds.
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Coming June 18 - July 26
"30 Views at the Harris Center"
Paintings by Lone Mountain Artists & Friends | |
Enter a chance to win this pastel painting of Mount Monadnock by Donna Allen in a raffle to benefit the Harris Center. Meet the Lone Mountain Artists and Friends and enter the raffle at an opening reception June 18, 6 to 8 p.m. at the Harris Center.  | After months of painting at the Harris Center on Monday afternoons, the Lone Mountain Artists and Friends will soon be returning with an art exhibit in the Babbitt Room.
"30 Views at the Harris Center" will feature paintings inspired by the Harris Center. The exhibit runs from June 18 through July 26.
Join us for an opening reception on June 18, 6 to 8 p.m. to meet the artists.
While the exhibit is on display, please feel free to enter a raffle to benefit the Harris Center. The prize is an original pastel painting by Donna Allen, a member of Lone Mountain Artists. The drawing will be held July 27. A percentage of art sales during the exhibit will also benefit the Harris Center.
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| See what you hear:
Bird Songs Come into View with Donald Kroodsma |
Donald Kroodsma shows how he records birdsongs at Nubanusit Neighborhood. |
| Sometimes it helps to visualize things.
That was one of the take-home points of birdsong expert Donald Kroodsma during a recent visit to the Harris Center and the Nubanusit Neighborhood and Farm in Peterborough.
Kroodsma is one of the world's leading experts on bird songs, the author of "The Singing Life of Birds" and the "Backyard Birdsong Guide" books to eastern and western North America.
Speaking at the Harris Center May 7, Kroodsma showed how he studies digitally recorded bird songs by analyzing their visual sonograms and by dramatically slowing down the recordings when they're played back. By doing so, you can see and hear distinct patterns that you can't hear in the field. He has discovered, among many other things, that birds have their own dialect in different parts of the continent, just like people may have a southern accent or a northern accent.
The following morning, under heavy skies, Kroodsma led a short field trip at the Nubanusit Neighborhood and Farm where he showed participants how he records bird songs. They then took the show indoors, uploaded the recorded bird songs, and analyzed what they had just heard. The visit was a real eye-opener for those who love bird songs and want to better understand what they're hearing. |
Back-Tracking ... a look back at the Harris Center's 40 years
A Wol's Nest Reunion!
August 1; Spread the Word! |
Wol's Nest campers get up close and personal with birds, 1988. See anyone you know here? Tell them about the reunion!  | Announcements! Announcements!
Attention former campers, counselors, parents, grandparents, one and all: Join the Harris Center in celebrating 35 years of the Wol's Nest summer program.
To bring together the many smiling faces of Wol's Nest, we're having a reunion. It's Sunday, August 1, 10:30 a.m., at the Harris Center. We'll have fun recollections, activities you'll remember, barbeque lunch, songs, and an optional hike to Bald Mountain.
Please RSVP by July 19 by calling 603-525-3394 or emailing jacobs@harriscenter.org.
 Help us spread the word through Facebook and build a buzz. Meanwhile, parents, there's still room in this year's Wol's Nest, session 1: July 5 through 16. Sign up soon, while you still can. For information, contact Sara LeFebvre, 603-525-3394 or lefebvre@harriscenter.org. |
Birds Eye View: It's all about the Birds for Greenfield Elementary School |
Greenfield Elementary School visits the Harris Center. | Third-graders from Greenfield Elementary School have been studying birds and vertebrates with Susie Spikol, outreach education coordinator for the Harris Center.
The project in teacher Rachel Hill's class included a trip to the Harris Center in May, during which the class made detailed observations and drawings of several bird species. Susie then led the class on a birding trip around the Harris Center grounds, the highlight of which was watching a robin successfully forage for earthworms. |
Evidence in Antrim: Harris Center Backs up Vertebrates
with Antrim Elementary School |
Jenn Sutton's third graders at Antrim elementary school visit McCabe Forest to see signs of vertebrates.  | Students in Jenn Sutton's third grade class at Antrim Elementary School have also been learning about vertebrates. They've been backed up by Harris Center teacher-naturalist Jaime Hutchinson.
The class recently visited nearby McCabe Forest (owned by the Society for the Protection of N.H. Forests) to look for evidence of vertebrates. They found signs of woodpeckers and other birds, salamanders, many mammals and other species. A productive and fun trip, overall!
As part of their unit on vertebrates, the class made artful books about different species. The books were on display during the Children and the Arts Festival in Peterborough. |
Going Vernal: Keene's Fuller School Students Discover Vernal Pool Connections |
Keene's Fuller School students explore vernal pools. | The Harris Center's Polly Pattison has been working with fifth-graders at Keene's Fuller School to discover the remarkable world of vernal pools.
Students in the classes of Bridget Lundin and and Linda O'Connor
observed and identified amphibian egg sacks, salamanders and aquatic invertebrates. They also learned how to carefully sample these vernal pool and pond creatures and make models.
The students used magnifiers, field guides, and nets while collecting their own samples to study at vernal pools which are within walking distance of their schools. "Working with living creatures always inspires enthusiasm and interest," Polly said. "The students learn a lot and really enjoy interacting with the amphibians, as well as collecting and identifying invertebrates." |
| Out and About with the Harris Center |
June 13 (Sun.) - Owls for Wol's! Mark and Marcia Wilson return with their "Eyes on Owls" presentation. Always a favorite at the Harris Center, they feature six different live and lively owls! We are welcoming the Wilsons and their owls back in celebration of our upcoming Wol's Nest summer program (it's the 35th anniversary!). 2 to 3:30 p.m. at the Harris Center.
June 18 (Fri.) - "30 Views at the Harris Center," an exhibit of paintings inspired by the Harris Center, featuring the Lone Mountain Artists and friends. After months of painting at the Harris Center on Monday afternoons, the Lone Mountain Artists and friends are returning with remarkable creations. Meet the artists at this opening reception (6 to 8 p.m.) and enjoy the art until July 26. The artists include Donna Allen, Evelien Bachrach, Carole-Anne Centre, Diane Gibbons, Gundy Khouw, Mia Mead, Martine Villalard-Bohnsack and friends Judy Badot, Phyllis Clark, Tony Garland and Rita Klug. While the exhibit is on display, please feel free to enter a raffle to benefit the Harris Center. The prize is an original pastel painting by Donna Allen. A percentage of art sales during the exhibit will also benefit the Harris Center.
June 19 (Sat.) - Surveying the Birdlife of Grand Monadnock a la Tudor Richards (1915-2009), NH Audubon's first executive director. Join master birder, Eric Masterson with Ben Haubrich, longtime superintendent of Monadnock State Park and Harris Center trustee, as they check Tudor's 1952 and 1962 survey route. When Harris Center honorary trustee Francie von Mertens repeated the survey in 1995, her results were quite different, especially at the higher elevations. So Eric wants to get an early start to get to the higher ground early. Survey departs at 6 a.m. sharp from the Dublin Trail Head. Back by late morning. Co-sponsored with NH Audubon's Monadnock Chapter.
June 20 (Sun.) - Remarkale Rindge Ramblings. Join hike leaders Brian Bishoff, Betsy Marshall and Emily Hague for an afternoon hike through some of Rindge's protected back woods. We'll begin at the farm fields of the Meeting School (a Quaker boarding school) and follow an old Class VI road down to the Monadnock Conservancy's Towne Hill-Fairmount Farm easement, featuring mature mixed forests and a beaver wetland. Cosponsored with the Monadnock Conservancy. Meet at Market Basket in Rindge, at 1 p.m. Back around 3 p.m.
June 27 (Sun.) - Land, Lake and Loons: A Silver Lake Paddle. Celebrate 25 years of land-protection success with this paddle on Silver Lake. Harris Center trustee Ben Haubrich and Eric Aldrich will lead this paddle along about 5 miles of shoreline, pointing out projects (involving many partners) that have conserved wildlife and other natural resources on this remarkable lake. One of the most recent projects involving the Harris Center and Silver Lake Land Trust, protects nearly 200 acres of Camp Marienfeld on the western shore. Meet at 9 a.m. at the boat landing on Breed Road in Harrisville. Bring canoe/kayak and (required) life jacket. Ends around noon.
July 7 (Weds.) - Sketching from Nature, four sessions at the Harris Center with Hancock artist Heidi Chester: Weds. July 7, 14, 21, 10:30 a.m. to noon, and Sat. July 31, 10 a.m. to noon. Bring your own sketchbook, pens/pencils/paints, and sun and bug protection. All ages and experience levels welcome. Kids under 12 must be accompanied by an adult. The class culminates July 31 with Worldwide SketchCrawl Day, in which the Harris Center will be among sites around the world to be sketched, painted and shared on the web. FREE, but class size is limited so please call to register, 525-3394.
July 9 (Fri.) - Senior Friday Hike to Crotched Mountain's New Dutton Brook Trail. Check out Crotched Mountain Foundation's new, universally accessible 1.8-mile trail. Meet leaders Ollie Mutch and Lee Baker at 10 a.m. at the southeast corner of Ocean State Job Lot parking lot near the Route 202/101 intersection in Peterborough. Ends around 12:30 p.m.
July 10 (Sat.) - Eastside Trail Work with Jim Orr. Help fix up the Harris Center's popular Eastside trails (Boulder Train, Dandelyon) on this intergenerational volunteer opportunity. We'll clear about 2 miles of trails. Meet at 9 a.m. at the Harris Center. Ends around noon. |
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Contact Info:
Eric Aldrich
Harris Center for Conservation Education
603-525-3394
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