Connecticut River Museum’s April Vacation Adventures Invite Art and River Exploration

For those looking for a different kind of school vacation getaway for their children or grandchildren, the Connecticut River Museum (CRM) Mural Mayhem: River Explorations & Art Adventures just may be the ticket. Starting on Monday,

April 18 and running daily through Friday, April 22, CRM staff and Anna Sanko, executive director of the Architecture Resource Center and a Connecticut Commission on Culture master teaching artist, will lead a mix-it-up program of art, design, nature, and history. Children aged 7 to 12 will learn how to design and build a mural that illustrates the animals, plants, birds, fish, trees, buildings, bridges, and more found along the river while also exploring the museum's exhibits, taking a nature hike, or heading out into Essex Village for an architecture scavenger hunt. Themes for each adventure workshop include Eco Explorer; Boats, Planes, Trains & Automobile; Construction Crew; Design Discover; and Mural Masterpiece. Flexible scheduling allows you to sign up for individual days or the entire week, whichever fits your family needs. The fee is $25 per day, $110 for all five days with sessions running from 9 a.m. to noon. Museum members pay $20 per day or $90 for all five days. The program is funded in part by a grant from the Connecticut Commission on Culture & Tourism. To register, call the Education Department at 860-767-8269 x13 or email jwhitedobbs@ctrivermuseum.org. The Connecticut River Museum is located at 67 Main Street on the Essex waterfront. For more information on these and other programs, exhibits and special events, visit www.ctrivermuseum.org.

Monday, April 18:

Eco Explorers

Join for a spring hike and a shape-shifting scavenger hunt as the group searches for geometry in nature and finds out about the plants and animals that live around the river. Start the mural project by laying out the landscape and creating plants and animals to live in it.

Tuesday, April 19:

Boats, Planes, Trains & Automobiles!

Explore the museum in search of cool ways to travel. Hear exciting stories about explorers, sea captains, and famous wrecks on the river. Mural mayhem continues as the group designs the cars, trucks, boats, trains, and planes that travel in and along the river.

Wednesday, April 20:

Construction Crew

Explore Essex in a scavenger hunt of geometric proportions! Search for shapes, hunt for important buildings, and discover how the town is designed, then head back to the museum to create the buildings for the group's own river town.

Thursday, April 21:

Design Discovery

Conduct design experiments to see how inventors test ideas. Use the Turtle submarine as inspiration to design an invention. Mural mayhem continues as the group works on finishing the projects and organizing its ideas to build giant artwork!

Friday, April 22:

Mural Masterpiece

Play the mural discovery challenge searching the museum's murals for clues to solve geography puzzles and history mysteries. Work as a team to assemble everyone's artwork and finally put the pieces together to create a mural masterpiece.