Hilltown Families 
Fall in Western Mass is when nature literally takes center stage; a destination visitors outside the area flock to because of the gorgeous dynamism of the season. The trees and...
The number Pink Lady's Slipper orchids (sp. Cypripedium acaule) popping up in the NE woodlands this season is amazing! This plant can live up to 25+ years but not produce its...
Now that we have turned the corner from May to June, notice the changes through your senses. Your senses can tell you what time of the year it is without even...
On the heels of a New England winter, spring in Western MA can be very engaging to the senses. This week, take inventory through your senses and notice...
In shade gardens across the Hilltowns, Lily-of-the-Valley makes its debut in mid to late May. This delicate, fragrant flower is rich in...
It was Albert Einstein, who said, “Look deep, deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better.” During the spring, as nature bursts into bloom, help deepen your connection to...
Late summer means thunderstorms and, sometimes, hurricanes, too. Our collection of storm-themed books can be used to learn courage in the face of bad weather and to find resilience in...
Not only is winter the ideal season for tracking because of the blank canvas that snow provides, the cold temperatures help to open up access to habitats that cannot be explored...
Paleontology to Contemporary Art. Forensics to Cosmology. Literature in Translation to Robotics. These are just a few of the community-based learning highlights we’re featuring this week. Peruse our list and...
Ornithology to Language Arts. Citizen Science to Placemaking. Dickinson to Dickens. These are just a few of the community-based learning highlights we’re featuring this week....
This holiday season, let us explore how the harvest and display of coniferous trees unite our communities and how their evergreen presence in our landscape supports interests and values through...
Zines to 3D Printers. Cookies to Hand-Knitted Scaves. Current Affairs to Placemaking. These are just a few of the community-based learning highlights we’re featuring this...
Glassblowing to Mooncakes. Quakers to Ecosystems. Creative-Free Play to Nature-Based Learning. These are just a few of the community-based learning highlights we’re featuring this week!...
Seeds and their pods appear not only in our natural landscape, but they also fill our social scenery. Stalks of corn are bundled together with scarecrows as autumn decorations. Pinecones are...
QUESTION AND ANSWERS Where’s a good place to pick pumpkins with the kids in Western MA? Patricia McCarthy Krutiak recommends, “Whitney’s Farm Stand. Route 8. Cheshire, MA.” (Berkshire Co.) Heather Dunham...
Herbariums to Fermentation. Indian Dance to Jane Austen. Immigration to Botany These are just a few of the community-based learning highlights we’re featuring this week! Peruse...
Locavore Dinner to Vegan Picnic. Textile Arts to Classical Music. Garlic to Tofu. These are just a few of the community-based learning highlights we’re featuring...
Honey to Botany. Thin Places to Developmental Psychology. Interpretive Dance to Bioblitz. These are just a few of the community-based learning highlights we’re featuring this...
Fireside Poets to Local Peaches. Zen kōans to Holy Tulsi. Monarch Butterflies to Beavers. These are just a few of the community-based learning highlights we’re...
Impressionist Art to Irish Dance. Johnnycakes to Scones. Shelter Animals to Service Dogs. These are just a few of the community-based learning highlights we’re featuring...
Basket Making to Catapults. Alchemy to Sports. Nature Hikes to Observation Days. These are just a few of the community-based learning highlights we’re featuring this week!...
Vincent van Gogh to Miriam Makeba. Knitting Circles to Shaker History. Spices to Royalty. These are just a few of the community-based learning highlights we’re...
Literature in translation to Rube Goldberg Machines. Singularity to Anthropocene. Puppets to drums.These are just a few of the community-based learning highlights we’re featuring this...
This week, we have two words for you: Goat Yoga. Need we say more? Well, just in case stretching with Capra aegagrus hircus isn't your thing, you...
We are slowly turning the corner from Spring to the coming Summer. Longer days and warmer nights allow us to spend more time outside, doing those special activities that this time...
Community events to choose from this week will connect those of us who feel at home in a crowd of fellow enthusiasts, as well as those of us who prefer a...
Learning Landscape for April: Spring’s Big Night & Vernal Pool Habitat The April Landscape April is a month of massive transition here in New England. March’s maple sugaring season often runs...
Whether the winter has been harsh or mild, late winter is the toughest time of year for wildlife to find food. Knowing a few easy-to-spot and heavily relied on food sources...
While projecting our human view of nature onto the natural world makes it seem dead and lifeless, it's actually full of life that's well-adapted to winter's ways. By learning basic...
While the suddenly-bleak landscape of December may not seem like an ideal context in which to begin to connect more deeply with nature, it truly is! The snowy backdrop brings...