Although many of our workshops are most effectively held on the grounds of The Quarry Farm Nature Preserve and Conservation Farm, we are aware of the time and budget constraints faced by local educational institutions. Therefore, a number of our workshops and presentations will travel to you.

The following listing includes notation of ONSITE  for those programs that can only be experienced here. Those noted WILL TRAVEL are presentations that can be held onsite or in your classroom, conference room, or other meeting place. Most programs are free (although we accept donations to help us continue our work). Programs that feature a make-it, take-it element will include a fee for supplies.

Check this page often as we are constantly developing new workshops and presentations.

“Just What is The Quarry Farm, Anyway?”
-an overview of The Quarry Farm Nature & Conservation Farm (WILL TRAVEL)

“Art in Nature” series
– Make a Lasting Leaf (birdbath, bowl, or stepping stone) (ONSITE)
– Animal Tracks Casting (ONSITE)
– Drawing and Painting from Life (featuring native flora and fauna) (WILL TRAVEL)
– Bark Masks (transform the wearer into an animal, a mythical creature, a plant, a tree or something else entirely)

“Small Streams”
–an overview of aquatic macroinvertebrates (insects, crustaceans and mollusks) that live in our waterways, their importance in the food chain as well as how they are ‘water canaries’ that indicate water quality (WILL TRAVEL)

“Living Side by Side”
-a photographic meeting with those wild animals that hide under the porch, fly overhead and go bump in the night, as well as a face-to-face encounter with one or more of them (WILL TRAVEL)

“Beneficial Insects
– a photographic presentation of the insects that can keep Putnam County green and growing (WILL TRAVEL)

“Meet a Tree”
– close encounters with the native hardwoods of the Great Black Swamp…with poetry! (ONSITE)

“Wetland Wonderland”
– a study of the water, plants and animals of a large wetland and vernal pools (spring and fall only) (ONSITE)

“If You Can’t Beat ‘Em, Eat ‘Em!”
-selecting and cooking with edible invasive plants…includes recipes (ONSITE)

“Listen to the Birds”
–an introduction to wild birds through song, movement, and sight

Girl Scout Badge Programs

The Quarry Farm Nature Preserve and Conservation Farm offers workshops to help Girl Scout troops fulfill requirements for the following badges:

Bugs
Brownie: Grades 2-3
Troop members will learn about, and have the opportunity to meet and even touch, insects that begin their life cycle in the quarry and under the surface of Cranberry Run in the nature preserve, as well as how they function in the ecosystem and their impact on human life. This will be followed by a hike around the gardens of Red Fox Cabin where they will see many different types of insects that pollinate the flowers and trees.

Hiker
Brownie: Grades 2-3
Troop members will make a butterfly or honeybee snack (fruits and in-season edible flowers) in the Seitz Family Pavilion before going on a sights and sounds scavenger hunt around the gardens of Red Fox Cabin.

Animal Habitats
Junior Badge: Grades 4-5
Troop members will take a guided tour of the farm animal sanctuary, discovering how the animals came here because they lacked proper care and shelter and what types of habitat each requires. They will meet educational wildlife ambassadors and discover their needs as well. A walk along the Cranberry Run trails will offer a glimpse of a clear stream, one that supports a variety of fish and animals.

Flowers
Junior Badge: Grades 4-5
Troop members will walk around the gardens of Red Fox Cabin and learn about the various types of flowers that grow there. They will learn why certain flowers are planted in certain locations and what Ohio settlers used flowers for. Each member will have the opportunity to make a tussy mussy — a flower bouquet that relays a message by the types of flowers it contains. SPRING ONLY: Troop members will take a wildflower hike along the trails of the nature preserve, identifying wildflowers and hearing how settlers and Native Americans used some of them for food, healing and dyes.

Gardener
Junior Badge: Grades 4-5
Troop members will learn about the plants that grow, without the use of pesticides or herbicides, around Red Fox Cabin and how Ohio settlers and Native Americans used herbs for healing, in food and to repel biting insects. They will be able to select herbs to make a bundle for fragrance or for flavoring pizza.

Painting
Junior Badge: Grades 4-5
Troop members will meet on the steps of Red Fox Cabin and walk to the “studio” under the red roof of the Seitz Family Pavilion. They will discuss how different colors make them feel, then create a unique painted still-life t-shirt using these colors as well as leaves and flowers gathered in gardens and along the trails. Each troop members is asked to bring a plain white t-shirt in their size to complete this project.

Night Owl
Cadette: Grades 6-8
Troop members will gather in the evening under the red roof of the Seitz Family Pavilion before taking a night hike along the forested trails to the upland meadow. Once there, they will hear about constellations, planets and other celestial bodies that they can view in the night sky above. During the return hike, the group will stop at key points and listen for nocturnal sounds, including various frog calls from the quarry itself.

Trees
Cadette: Grades 6-8
Troop members will meet various types of trees that grow here, sketch and learn their parts and learn what role trees play in our ecosystem. They will design and draw a blueprint of a tree house that will fit in their favorite tree.