By Kristen Swanberg, Senior Director of Education

Kidoinfo Giveaway: Win 4 tickets for your family to attend Audubon’s Raptor Weekend event on September 11th or 12th, 2010.  Tell us your favorite raptor in the comments below. One answer will be selected at random. Deadline to enter is Wednesday, September 8, 2010 at Midnight EST.

From Glocester to Block Island, raptors can be spotted soaring across our state.  These amazing birds eat meat and use their feet, instead of their beak, to capture prey. In fact, the word “raptor” comes from Latin meaning to “seize and carry away”. Hawks, falcons, eagles, and owls are all examples of raptors. Also called “birds of prey,” raptors have exceptionally good vision, a sharp hooked beak, and powerful feet with curved, sharp talons.

Raptors share common traits with all birds, such as feathers, wings, laying eggs, and being warm-blooded.  But it is their special adaptations that make them so amazing.  Let’s take a closer look….

Sharp Talons

The raptor’s sharp talons truly set them apart from all other birds – they are perfectly designed to catch, hold, and carry prey.  Most have three toes pointing forward and one pointing backward.  These toes have an extremely powerful grip.  Osprey and owls have one hinged toe that can be held in a forward or backward position.  Many owls even have feathers on their legs and feet while other raptors do not.  It is thought that these feathers help to keep them warm when they hunt on cold nights in the forest.

Hooked Beak

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Every week on GoLocalProv I share tips on how families can make the most of their weekend — including helpful hints that make parenting easier and connecting you to great local happenings.

Looking for more ideas? Sign up to receive our weekly newsletter full of weekend picks, local news and more!

This week’s list:

Kido Tip 1. Frame your summer memories.

Time to choose the best out of the zillions of pictures you took this summer and print it on archival photo paper. Help your kids make a frame out of shells or rocks collected from the beach. Attach shells to an old picture frame using a glue gun or Aileen’s tacky glue, let dry and insert photo. Perfect way to preserve summer fun!

Kido Tip 2. Celebrate DIY fun followed by WaterFire.

Maker Faire features hands-on making, building & hacking, culinary crafting, garage technology, arts and creativity for sale culminating with a WaterFire in the Creative Capital! You and your kids will dig seeing how people make their own things (robots, musical instruments, air conditioners, etc.) and a have chance to tinker yourselves. Maker Faire is an all ages, free event from 3-11pm on Saturday, Aug 28th at Bank of America Skating Center.

Kido Tip 3. Celebrate the end of summer!

Read full list on Go Local Prov.

By Kristen Swanberg, Senior Director of Education

Ever wonder what makes all that buzzing on hot summer days?  A very cool insect called a Cicada is the culprit.  Cicadas are quite large – one to two inches in length – with long wings and big eyes.  They are quite impressive to look at, but not to worry – they don’t bite or sting. They just make a lot of noise!

In the insect world cicadas fall into the scientific order called Homoptera along with leafhoppers and aphids.

In early summer when the soil temperature reaches above 64°F, cicada nymphs (juveniles) emerge. They have lived underground for years!  They typically appear at night and climb the closest tree.  Once these juveniles get a firm grasp on the trunk of the tree, they transform into an adult.  The nymph’s exoskeleton splits open along the back allowing the adult to emerge.  The adult cicada is a light green color at first, then darkens to a black/brown color.  The adult then leaves the exoskeleton behind and continues its climb further up the tree. That’s where the males make that loud buzzing sound you hear. They are looking to attract females.

In a slit made along a twig on the tree, the females lay their eggs.  The eggs remain there until the young hatch.  Upon emerging, the nymph drops to the ground then borrows down and remains underground for many years feeding on plant juices from roots.  As they near maturity the nymph will tunnel up through the ground continuing the lifecycle.

How do they make that sound?

The adult male cicada has two membranes called tymbals on each side of its first abdominal segment.  Muscles attached to the tymbals cause them to vibrate producing that buzzing you hear.  They also have a hollow abdomen helping to amplify the sound.  Their song is a long, continuous buzz that increases in intensity and loudness then dies off near the end.

Looking for Cicadas

Try looking for cicadas this summer.  They generally live in tall shade trees like oak and maple.  Your neighborhood might just be the right habitat.  First listen for the buzzing sound then try to find which tree the cicada is in.  Check the trunk of the tree for nymph sheds.  They are light brown and hollow.  If you find one, look down to locate the hole they emerged from.  The hole is about the size of your little finger.  As you look up along the trunk of the tree you just might discover a recently emerged adult cicada.  Have fun in your search!

The Scoop on Cicadas

• There are 75 different cicada species in eastern North America – all make slightly different buzzing sounds.

• Adult cicadas do not eat solid food, but instead drink fluids to avoid dehydration and live for only a few weeks.

• There are two groups of Cicadas.  Periodical cicadas which live underground for 13 or 17 years and emerge May to July.  And the more common annual cicadas that live underground for 2 to 8 years and typically emerge between July and August.

• Cicadas are among the longest living insects.

• Many people confuse cicadas with locusts by calling them the “seventeen-year locust”.  Locusts are in fact related to grasshoppers and crickets. They also make sounds in the summer but nothing like the cicada.

• Cicadas are eaten in many cultures. They are good source of vitamins and protein and are low in carbohydrates.  Lunch anyone?

Audubon’s Environmental Education Center is open year-round providing walking trails, nature programs, and exhibits for the whole family to discover.  For more information and a complete calendar of events, visit www.asri.org or call (401) 245-7500.

Rhode Island has many areas of scenic beauty and a growing network of paths for bicycling, walking, rollerblading, and running. The Rhody Bike Path Passport is designed to help you plan trips to explore the different paths in the state. Collect a unique stamp from businesses and organizations near featured bike paths in Rhode Island.

Summer may be half over but there is still plenty of time to plan your trips and and collect your stamps. First, download a passport here or obtain a copy of your passport at the Bayside YMCA or the Cranston YMCA.

If you collect stamps from three different paths by October 15, 2010, you will be eligible for a prize drawing including a grand prize worth at least $250 – check the website later for prize details!

The Rhody Bike Path Passport is a project by the Zeta II class of the non-profit organization, Leadership Rhode Island to encourage people to enjoy Rhode Island’s scenic beauty, stay fit, and support local businesses!

I wrote about some of our family’s favorite outdoor spaces for the July 2010 issue of Providence Monthly. Share your favorite spots in the comments below.

Brown Street Park & Playground
Location: behind Hope High School, East Side, Providence, RI
Parking: Street parking. Make sure to check the signs on where to park to avoid a ticket.

This park (a continuous work in progress) has been designed and built by a dedicated group of parents, neighbors and partners as a place that is both useful and beautiful. Although well used and nestled between Hope High School and residential streets this park private and cozy.

The Friends of Brown Street Park organization have a created an amazing outdoor space with thoughtful playground and exercise equipment and community garden. The large fenced-in park incorporates natural and re-purposed materials including old tires and a sculptural wood-slatted climbing structure into the playspace. The park is located behind the Hope High School running track. If the track is empty this a fabulous place to let your kids run laps.

Brown Street Park has a reputation for amazing programming including summer concert series, exercise classes and weekly story time. Find their full schedule on the website.

India Point Park & Playground
Location: India Street, Providence (near The Community Boating Center). The playground is located between the Gano Street entrance to the Park and the shoreline overlooking the Seekonk River. Pedestrian walking bridge crossing 95 connects Wickenden Street to the India Point Park.
Parking: Paved parking lot located short walk to playground.

We love this urban park for its large unstructured spaces located along the water, shady spots, multi-age playground and its appeal to people of all ages from many different neighborhoods. The park has picnic tables and paved pathways for walking and bike riding. A great spot for community events including the annual The Cape Verdean Independence Festival. On weekends you can watch the Mexican Soccer League play April through October.

The updated playground equipment has a maritime theme including boat-shaped sandboxes, climbing ropes, and a flagpole with yardarm. The fenced-in playground has a retaining wall on one side adorned by a community inspired stoneware mosaic mural, designed by artists Mika Seeger and Peter Geisser.

Bonus: Play the mural treasure hunt with your kids. Clues found here.
Website: http://www.friendsofindiapointpark.org/park.html

Burnside Park
Location: 2 Kennedy Plaza, Providence in downtown Providence adjacent to Kennedy Plaza
Parking: Metered street parking. Park in the mall parking lot. $1 for up to 3 hours. Or check RIPTA.com for schedules.

This small (mostly fenced in) park is a lovely shady spot in downtown Providence with plenty of benches and green space for a picnic. An equestrian statue of General Burnside of Civil War fame and known for his facial hair, now called sideburns, sits prominently in the park alongside a large ornate fountain.

Kennedy Plaza hosts events daily including lunchtime music concerts and weekly farmers market. New this year for families is the Kidoinfo story time. Every Tuesday mornings at 10am the all-ages storyhour will feature at least one book from a local Rhode Island author or illustrator along with weekly raffles and a book swap.

Website: http://www.kennedyplaza.org/
More information about the Kidoinfo story time found here.

Slater Memorial Park & Playground
Location: Newport Ave, Rte 1A, Pawtucket, RI
Parking: Multiple parking lots located throughout park including lots adjacent to the Carousel, playground and Daggett Farm.

This historic park is full of things to do and large enough you will have to drive from one end to the other. The popular Looff Carousel built in1894 and installed in the park in 1910 has retained its old fashioned charm (tickets required).  The park is a popular spot for special events including the children performance series on Tuesdays in the summer. There are tennis courts and plenty of open space for games and picnic areas. Walking and biking trails weave though the woods and alongside the water.

The fenced-in playground is a huge attraction for families. Recently built the playground has different play areas and climbing structures (including ropes and rock climbing wall) designed for toddlers and older kids. From the playground you can easily walk to Dagget House and farm, built in 1685. This free petting zoo is small and the perfect size to combine with the playground and a picnic lunch. Snack bar and bathrooms located adjacent to Dagget Farm.

For full summer schedule, check the Pawtucket Park’s Recreation Department website: www.pawtucketri.com.

Roger Williams Park
Location: Elmwood Ave., Providence, RI
Parking: Multiple parking lots located thoughout park.

This park reminds me of Central Park in New York City. You can visit all summer long and never do the same thing twice. Home to Hasbro Playground, “flying horses” carousel, the Zoo, the botanical greenhouse, the Museum of Natural History, baseball fields, hiking, tennis courts, bandstand and the Dalrymple Boathouse where you can rent paddle boats and mini speed boats. The Temple to Music made in 1924 is gathering place for concerts and festivals.

The fenced-in boundless playground designed and built by Hasbro is one where children of all abilities can play together. The playground is divided into 3 sections as well to accommodate children of different ages- from toddler to school age. This sunny playground—perfect for early morning or late afternoon visits during the summer—is located near the carousel (tickets required), snack bar and bathrooms.

Website: http://www.providenceri.com/government/parks/

Photo Credit: Photos at Brown Street Park and India Point Park by Douglas Itkin. Burnside Park photo by Michael Christofaro.

By Katy Killilea

New Hampshire was a winter-only destination for us, before our kids knew enough to state preferences. Driving through the snowy mountains, we would laugh as we imagined the dorks who’d arrive in summer to take children to the Storyland theme park, instead of bundling them into a pulk for some (nothing dorky about it) Nordic skiing. This year I learned to appreciate New Hampshire in the summer. Hiking, swimming holes, and moose-spotting: Rhode Islanders are fortunate to have this exotic, woodsy, affordable playground so close by.

Regarding Storyland: driving along Route 16 through Glen, the colorful exterior calls out to anyone between the ages of two and ten, or whatever age a child becomes too cynical to have fun with a theme. Storyland is small, but not suffocating. Wholesome, but not saccharine. It’s everything a kid wants, but not more than a parent can bear: shows, nauseating rides, clean bathrooms, affordable snacks, and live pigs. Buy a ticket (about $25 per person) after 3PM, and get a pass to be readmitted the next day—a great deal for those who can’t get enough Bamboo Chutes.

But this is New Hampshire, where everyone is outdoorsy or at least takes a stab at being so. For a backcountry experience without the weight of tent, stove, and dinner ingredients on your back, consider hiking to an Appalachian Mountain Club hut. Some of these are especially recommended for families with young children. A relatively short, easy hike to the hut won’t wear a family out too much to enjoy the woodland destination, and parents will be at ease knowing shelter and food await. We were able to reach the hut at Lonesome Lake in under ninety minutes of croc’d shuffling (hiking boots, or at the very least sneakers, are required for everyone but the very most idiotic hikers), examining crazy mushrooms and resting on perfectly-sized boulders for water breaks along the way. The chilly lake was inviting after the just-strenuous-enough hike.

Hut cuisine is wholesome and delicious, prepared by rosy-cheeked twentysomething super-beings, and served family style at long tables. With a sheet and pillowcase from home, the spartan bunks are comfy enough for tired people, and a mountaineer’s breakfast with generous doses of maple syrup sets hikers up for a new day of exploration. (About $90/adult and $50/child.)

If you prefer your rugged natural beauty with a side order of thick towels, a massage, and a staff to take your children hiking or mountain biking, head way, way up north. In Dixville Notch, a sneeze from the border with Canada, is The Balsams Grand Resort Hotel. Lodging comes with three lavish meals, boats, tennis, golf, entertainment and children’s activities. Included for families is Camp Wind Whistle: kids 5 and older can spend any hours (or all hours) between 9:00am-4:30pm, and some evening hours, with camp counselors in age-appropriate groups. Become a facebook friend of The Balsams for up-to-the-minute deals. (Barring a special, the cost is $200 and up/adult and $75 and up/child.)

For a last-minute trip and potential bargain, Nordic Village Resort in Jackson hits the spot. Condos of all sizes, many with hot tubs and gigantic plasma screen televisions, are managed by one central agency. Great deals can happen for seat-of-the-pants travelers. Thoughtful additions like communal-use rowboats, hidden swimming pools, evening magic acts and s’mores-making give what could be just a heartless condo conglomerate a vacation-y feeling. Conveniently located for hiking, swimming holes, and Storyland. (A fairly luxe condo can sometimes be found for under $150/night.)

Heading north on Route 93, the big-ish small town of Littleton makes an ideal stop. Littleton Food Coop might be the love child of Eastside Marketplace and the coop in Wakefield—a perfectly balanced grocery store for those in need of lovely prepared foods, chia seeds, local honey, and cold Diet Coke. For a slightly insane treat, visit Chutters, official Guinness World Record holder for Longest Candy Counter. Rows and rows of scoopable candies ($10/lb) compete for attention with giant samples of fudge and a Fill Your Own Pixie Stick station ($6/yard). If jaw-dropping exposure to sugar isn’t on the itinerary, the Village Bookstore has an extensive children’s section that includes stuffed animals, games, and marionettes. Next door, the Chang Thai Cafe has dreamy Massaman curry ($11).

If there’s more than one adult in a family and the children don’t like to look at sheets, Adult B might do well to take the children to any of fifty-two amazing swimming holes or to Echo Lake beach for a mellower swim. This will allow Adult A to see the Garnet Hill store in Franconia, where clothing and sheets can be found at prices 75%-90% lower than expected. This little shop is open only on weekends and Mondays, and is conveniently located next to Wendle’s Cafe (offering the perfect coffee, lunch, wifi combo.)

Just up the road from Franconia in Sugar Hill is my new favorite New Hampshire destination: Polly’s Pancake Parlor. It’s so much better than it needs to be. Open only May through October (woe to skiiers), P.P.P. showcases local ingredients (including organic grains, ground into flour on-site) prepared with such care and in such a variety of ways that we ate there five days in a row, stopping only when we ran out of vacation. The locally smoked bacon with Polly’s own maple syrup is the perfect gateway food for confused vegetarians. Other favorites: cornmeal pancakes with coconut. Artfully arranged blueberry-nectarine bowl. Habanero pepper maple sugar, sprinkled on eggs. ($4 short stack, $3 side of bacon, $2 scrambled eggs.) Any of these is perfect fuel for hiking, swimming, or sheet shopping.

What do you like best in New Hampshire? Share hits and misses with your comments.

Learning to ride a bike is a watershed moment for a child.  The instant a parent lets go of their child’s saddle and they wobble but don’t fall down freedom is born.  If you can remember that moment you might recall the shear exhilaration of knowing that for the first time in your life you were able to get from here to anywhere.  Quickly. The perception of distance and time would be forever altered, as would your parents’ anxiety every time you mounted up and turned a distant corner.

Teaching a child to ride, unfortunately, is postponed longer than necessary.  The use of  “training wheels” has been misunderstood since their invention.  Their original intent was not meant to train someone to ride but meant to train them to wait until someone taught them to ride.  There are many methods used to teach bicycle riding but the best I have found involves no pedals and no training wheels.

The original modern day no-pedal bike was the Like-a-Bike, a German manufactured miniature bike made from wood laminate.  It is a beautiful work of industrial design and has a price tag to match its one of a kind iconic styling.  Its concept was borrowed from the 1800’s Draisienne or hobby horse.  There are knock-offs, of course, but if you already own a bike and your child is able to put their feet firmly on the ground just take the pedals off.  This turns the bike into a two-wheeled walker without the pedals interfering.

Here’s the thinking and method behind this approach.  Training wheels don’t teach balance because the child depends on them to hold him up.  If the wheels are raised slightly to allow teeter then the child waits for them to catch his balance.  The key to balancing is learning the effect of weight on steering.  Using the bicycle as a hobby horse that you push with your feet you learn quickly that weight affects the direction of your bike.  As the steering and adjustment of weight is developed the glide length increases and before you know it – ba-da-bing – your child is balancing.  Pedaling is easily mastered after this.

So…stop waiting and let your child start learning because the sooner they start riding the sooner you’ll be able to rediscover what it’s like to be a kid again through the eyes of your child.

Reed Caster is an avid cyclist and the parent of two children who outgrew tricycles years ago. He owns and operates Caster’s Bicycles in Warwick, Rhode Island along with his wife Mindy. They will be opening a second location on the East Side of Providence the end of August.

By Jeanine Silversmith

As a mom and hiker, I jump at every chance to get into nature and enjoy it with my children. But let’s face it, sometimes the kids are less than inspired. Sometimes a familiar hike needs something new. Sometimes they would rather sit and stare at a puddle in the parking lot (this almost always happens when I’m itching to move).

Kids keep us on our toes. It’s one of our many challenges as parents to find novel ways to motivate our children towards that which we deem important. Getting outside is a priority in my house and my kids are usually willing. That being said, I’m always on the lookout for new ideas. So when my friend Kristen Kardos, co-founder of RI New Moms Connection and a Kidoinfo contributing writer, offered this idea, I was stoked!

Kristen was ready to start exercising after her third child was born, and her middle guy decided he wasn’t interested in hiking. Gasp! Kristen hikes with her kids even more than I do, and I’m the one who started a family hiking organization. Goodness knows how she found the creative energy or time with a newborn to think up a hiking scavenger hunt, but mine is not to question. Mine is to modify the scavenger hunt just a bit and, with Kristen’s permission (thanks, Kristen!), to share it with all of you.

Click here for the scavenger hunt, grab pencils and clipboards (or anything stiff to write on), and head to a kid-friendly hiking trail, your backyard, or a nearby park. Work cooperatively to find as many of the items as you can, or compete against one another to see who can finish a row or the entire chart first. (Feel free to change or mix up the items on the scavenger hunt to create different playing boards.)

Just remember to get out there and have fun!

Jeanine Silversmith is a self-described tree-hugging, science and math geek whose love of nature, coupled with her absolute certainty that people, especially children, are happier, healthier, and wiser when they regularly spend time in nature, led her to establish Rhode Island Families in Nature. She loves to run, garden, bake, hike, and go camping, especially when accompanied by her husband, Ian, her five-year-old daughter, Sierra, and her two-year-old son, Devin. They live in Wakefield.

You can now find me every week over at GoLocalProv sharing tips on how families can make the most of their weekend — including helpful hints that make parenting easier and connecting you to great local happenings.

This week’s list:

Kido Tip One. Bring baby powder to the beach. Baby powder (talc-free or corn starch) wicks away sand off skin like magic making diaper changes a breeze and kids grit-free! We always keep a container in the car and the beach bag. Read full article on GoLocalProv.

Kids at Roger W. Wheeler State Beach. Photo by Douglas Itkin

The Parks & Recreation Department Fun Bus filled with kites, board games, hula hoops and more is visiting Providence’s neighborhood parks this summer!

From Providence City News:

If you see a large, colorful bus painted with images of children rumbling through your neighborhood, it’s probably the Providence Parks and Recreation Department Fun Bus.  Mayor David N. Cicilline announced that the Fun Bus has begun visiting the city’s neighborhood parks loaded with lots of activities for children like board games, a 35-foot inflatable obstacle course and hula hoops.
The Fun Bus visits a different neighborhood park every day throughout the summer from 12pm until 4pm.  In addition to board games and hula-hoops, the bus also has kites, jump ropes, tug-of-war equipment, footballs, basketballs, face painting and jewelry-making material and everything you need to compete in a potato sack race.  The bus is staffed with seven Parks and Recreation Department employees ready to engage children in fun activities.

“Whether it’s sailing on Narragansett Bay, playing golf, splashing at a water park or competing in a fierce tug-of-war, we’re working hard to come up with fun, affordable ways to keep children engaged in high-quality, safe activities this summer,” said Mayor Cicilline.

The Department of Parks and Recreation is also partnering with the YMCA of Greater Providence to bring the Y on the Move to the city’s parks.  Y on the Move engages children and families in health and wellness through interactive games, inflatable slide, bungee pull, sports wall and much more.

The Fun Bus schedule for the rest of the summer is as follows:

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