Thank you for being a Big

Monthly Match Activity Ideas

MAY 2012 ACTIVITY IDEAS

55 FUN THINGS TO DO DURING YOUR SUMMER BREAK!
http://www.broward.org/PARKS/THINGSTODO/Pages/55WaystoFindSummerFun.aspx

Saturday, May 5, 2012
EcoAction Day at Fern Forest Nature Center
Volunteers clean up trash, plant native plants, and/or remove non-native invasive plants during these public workdays
From: 9 a.m. to noon.
Students can earn community service hours for graduation and college scholarships, and others can help improve and preserve the environment.
Volunteers should dress appropriately with long sleeves, long pants, and closed-toe shoes that can get dirty.
For more information, call the nature center at 954-357-5198.

Saturday, May 5, 2012
EcoAction Day at Long Key Natural Area & Nature Center
Volunteers clean up trash, plant native plants, and/or remove non-native invasive plants during these public workdays
From: 9 a.m. to noon.
Students can earn community service hours for graduation and college scholarships, and others can help improve and preserve the environment.
Volunteers should dress appropriately with long sleeves, long pants, and closed-toe shoes that can get dirty.
For more information, call the nature center at 954-357-8797.

EVERY SATURDAY OF THE MONTH
Fox Observatory Open at Markham Park
The South Florida Amateur Astronomers Association opens the park's observatory from dusk to midnight. Free and for all ages. For more information, call the park at 954-357-8868 or visit www.sfaaa.com.

EVERY Saturday and Sunday of the MONTH
Aquarium: Behind the Scenes at Anne Kolb Nature Center
Learn about the nature center's 3,500-gallon saltwater aquarium and its inhabitants at 2 p.m. in this half-hour program, which is for all ages and costs $1/person, which also includes the exhibit hall's other interactive exhibits. Call 954-357-5161 for more details.

Saturday, May 12, 2012
EcoAction Day at Secret Woods Nature Center
Volunteers clean up trash, plant native plants, and/or remove non-native invasive plants during these public workdays
From: 9 a.m. to noon.
Students can earn community service hours for graduation and college scholarships, and others can help improve and preserve the environment.
Volunteers should dress appropriately with long sleeves, long pants, and closed-toe shoes that can get dirty.
For more information, call the nature center at 954-357-8884

Saturday and Sunday, May 12 and 13, 2012
Bring Mom to Butterfly World at Tradewinds Park
In observance of Mother's Day weekend, the internationally famous attraction is offering free admission for mothers.
For all ages.
From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
For more information, call Butterfly World at 954-977-4400.
Tradewinds Park's regular weekend and holiday gate entrance fee of $1.50 per person (children 5 and under free) will be in effect.

OPEN REGISTRATION FOR BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF BROWARD FISHING TOURNAMENT. KEEP AN EYE OUT IN YOUR EMAIL FOR ALL THE INFORMATION
FISHING TOURNAMENT IS SATURDAY, JUNE 2ND

Wednesday, May 16, 2012
The Foundation For California will open “The Courage To Remember”, an educational exhibit on the Holocaust
Where: David Posnack Jewish Community Center is:
5850 South Pine Island Road
Davie, Florida 33328
phone #: 954-434-0499
OPENING DAY: May 16th at 5:30
Exhibit will be open to public for viewing until May 31st, Mondays-Fridays
“The Courage To Remember” is an historical exhibit of the Holocaust (of 1933-1945) created by the Simon Wiesenthal Center. Consisting of 42 panels, it is an historical account of the Nazis’ murderous campaign in which 6 million Jews and others (political dissidents, P.O.W.’s, Slavs, Gypsies, homosexuals and the mentally ill) were killed between 1933 and 1945. With nearly 200 original photographs, many never seen before by the general public

Saturday, May 19, 2012
EcoAction Day at Anne Kolb Nature Center
Volunteers clean up trash, plant native plants, and/or remove non-native invasive plants during these public workdays
From: 9 a.m. to noon.
Students can earn community service hours for graduation and college scholarships, and others can help improve and preserve the environment.
Volunteers should dress appropriately with long sleeves, long pants, and closed-toe shoes that can get dirty.
For more information, call the nature center at 954-357-5161.

Saturday, May 19, 2012
EcoAction Day at Deerfield Island Park
Volunteers clean up trash, plant native plants, and/or remove non-native invasive plants during these public workdays
From: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Students can earn community service hours for graduation and college scholarships, and others can help improve and preserve the environment.
Volunteers should dress appropriately with long sleeves, long pants, and closed-toe shoes that can get dirty.
For more information, call Quiet Waters Park at 954-357-510

Saturday, May 19, 2012
Butterfly Gardening Workshop at Butterfly World at Tradewinds Park
Learn how to identify and attract local butterflies to your own back yard. Free photo guide included. Butterfly gardening plants will be available for purchase in the garden center.
For all ages.
Starts at 1 p.m.
Workshop is free with paid Butterfly World admission.
For more information, call Butterfly World at 954-977-4400. Tradewinds Park's regular weekend and holiday gate entrance fee of $1.50 per person (children 5 and under free) will be in effect.

Saturday, May 19, 2012
The Gopher Tortoise Landlords of Crystal Lake Sand Pine Scrub
A volunteer-led natural area hike.
Free and for all ages.
From 3 to 4 p.m.
Call 954-357-8114 to make reservations.

Saturday and Sunday, May 19 and 20, 2012
Model Steam Train Rides at Tradewinds Park
For all ages. Riders under 10 years old must be accompanied by adults.
10 a.m. to 4 p.m., weather permitting.
Fee: $1/ride.
The Tradewinds and Atlantic Railroad offers model steam train rides on a half-mile track around a lake. Pregnant women are not allowed to ride the train.
For information, call the park at 954-357-8870 or the railroad station at 954-978-1134 (between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. on operating days only). The park's regular weekend and holiday gate entrance fee of $1.50 per person (children 5 and under free) will be in effect.

Saturday and Sunday, May 19 and 20, 2012
Weekend Farm Tours at Tradewinds Park
For all ages. From 10:30 a.m. to 2:45 p.m.
Fee: $3/person.
Tours to see the numerous farm animals, including a cow, sheep, goats, pigs, and chickens.
For information, call the park at 954-357-8870. The park's regular weekend and holiday gate entrance fee of $1.50 per person (children 5 and under free) will be in effect.

Saturday and Sunday, May 26 and 27, 2012
EcoAction Day at Snake Warrior's Island Natural Area
Volunteers clean up trash, plant native plants, and/or remove non-native invasive plants during these public workdays
From: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Students can earn community service hours for graduation and college scholarships, and others can help improve and preserve the environment.
Volunteers should dress appropriately with long sleeves, long pants, and closed-toe shoes that can get dirty.
For more information, call the Anne Kolb Nature Center at 954-357-5161.

OTHER LOW COST OR FREE IDEAS:

Enjoy the ocean
The Hollywood Beach Boardwalk is more than two miles of ocean vistas and old-time stores, good enough for USA Today to declare it one of the top 10 nostalgic promenades in the country. You can skate, walk, run or bike along the wide lane. One of the boardwalk’s endearing traits is that it offers room for all. The neighboring white sand beach provides plenty of room for both indolent sun worshippers and the active who want to play volleyball, practice yoga or build sandcastles. There are spots on the boardwalk to picnic or you can eat at an outdoor café. The broadwalk is open seven days a week from sunrise to sundown. For more information call the Hollywood Office of Tourism 954-921-3478.

The John U. Lloyd State Park, 6503 N. Ocean Dr. in Dania Beach offers breathtaking views of the ocean – what tourists pay thousands of dollars to fly in to see. But park visitors pay only $6 for parking. You can eat on the beach or even grill at the picnic table area. You can surf fish or swim in the ocean. There are also two boat ramps at the park so you can bring your boat. The park is open 365 days a year from 8 a.m. to sundown. For information call 954-923-2833.

Go fishing
Bass Pro Shops in Dania Beach has become a tourist spot throughout the United States and its Dania Beach store at 200 Gulf Stream Way, is no exception: It offers nearly four acres of sights, from an indoor waterfall to an aquarium to a shooting range. Remember it costs nothing to look, and the store often organizes free activities for children and families. The store is open seven days a week, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Saturday. On Sunday it opens from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. 954-929-7710.

Free visit to horses (and a park)
Tradewinds Park, 3600 W. Sample Rd., in Coconut Creek offers a look back to an easier time, when Broward still had farms. You can visit the park’s educational farm and its farmhouse museum. The park literally was once Tradewinds Farm. It raised horses. What may be the most touching: The horses now help the handicapped. They are housed in bright-red stables. You can go on horse rides on the park’s many trails. The park also has hiking trails and fishing lakes throughout its 627 acres. It is open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. with hours extended to 7:30 p.m. during Daylight Savings Time. It’s free during the week; $1.50 per person on weekends. Call 954-357-8870.

Starry, starry night view for free
The South Florida Amateur Astronomers Association shows you the beauty of space when the Fox Astronomical Observatory is opened to the public free of charge on Saturdays from sunset to midnight at Markham Park, 16001 W State Road 84, in Sunrise. Volunteers will show you how to stargaze in the observatory as well as how to set up and align your own telescope. They’ll teach about the beauty of the stars and what to look for. For information call the park at 954-389-7000.

Cheap fun in the fast lane
Now is your time to show your kids how to bike in the fast lane. The Brian Piccolo Park Velodrome, 9501 Sheridan St. in Cooper City, opens its professional bike racing complex to the public in the afternoons and evenings during the week and all day during the weekends unless there is a race going on. Cost during the day is $4 per adult; $2 for those 17 and under. The evening rate is a flat fee of $5 per person. But you can also get monthly passes for as little as $20. The track is open 3:15 to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday; 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturday and 8 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Sunday. Call 954-437-2626 for more information.

Free visit with the wild things
Marsh rabbits scurry away in the grasslands while largemouth bass and snapping turtles swim serenely in the pristine clear water. A lone eagle flies overhead, joining hawks, herons and egrets. The 420 acres of the Chapel Trail Park Nature Preserve, 19800 Sheridan St., in far western Pembroke Pines resembles Everglades National Park – but without the fees. It’s a free oasis in Broward County. The city of Pembroke Pines built an almost third of a mile boardwalk for visitors to tour the preserve. They can rest in the shade of huts built along the trail. On Saturday morning, visitors can rent canoes for $7 an hour or $15 for the entire 8:30 to 12:30 p.m. The preserve is open seven days a week from 7:30 a.m. to dusk. Call 954-435-6520 for more information.

Water park for less
Fans say Paradise Cove in C.B. Smith Park, 900 N. Flamingo Rd. in Pembroke Pines is aptly named. It offers full-day fun with 350-foot water slides, a 400-foot tube ride and a children’s playground. The best news is that it costs a fraction of what commercial water parks charge: $8.50 per person; children under 1 are free. After 3 p.m. the price goes down to $5.50. On weekends there is also a $1.50 parking fee. You can also hike around the park’s 80 acres of lakes or rent paddle boats or canoes. The water park is open 9:30 a.m. to 5:20 p.m., seven days a week. Call the park for more information 954-357-5170.

Swamp walk for free
Everglades Holiday Park, 21940 Griffin Rd., just west of Weston, is a throwback to an earlier era when wetlands were, well, swamps. Its rustic general store and the neighboring trailer-filled campground are a testimony to those grittier, less politically correct times. So are its unspoiled open grasslands. They all hark back to when the U.S. army Corps of Engineers had not arrived to dam up the River of Grass. On weekends, the park fills up with motorcyclists whose colorful attire alone makes it a popular tourist site. You can eat on the picnic tables that overlook the waters where you can also take an airboat ride. Entering and walking around the park is free. 954-434-8111

ALL THE TIME ACTIVITES:

Yoga
Quiet Waters Park, Deerfield Beach
Instructor - Kelly Ziff
Classes are for all ages and all levels are accepted, from beginner to intermediate to advanced.
$10 per person for hour-and-a-half classes.
Call 954-357-5100 for more information.

Broward Ski and Wakeboard
C.B. Smith Park, Pembroke Pines
Instructor - Mike Tolzmann
All forms of water-skiing, wakeboarding, slalom knee boarding, barefoot skiing, and tubing are taught, using a ski boat with wakeboard tower, wedge, perfect pass, and training boom.
All ages, by appointment year round. Party packages and summer camp specials are available. For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 954-292-3953, or visit www.browardski.com.

Occurs every week on Wednesday until 05/30/2012
Teen Time
Game room time, field trips, volunteer opportunities, and more. Free, for ages 13 to 17.
For more information, call the park at 954-327-3888.
6:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Price: Free.
Venue: Roosevelt Gardens Park