PEEC News:
Beloved children’s librarian Melissa Mackey will teach four special classes at PEEC this summer for kids ages 8-12.
Elements will have sessions on earth, air, fire and water. The classes will be held the second and fourth Wednesdays of June and July from 2-3:30 p.m. and costs $8 or $6.50 for PEEC members.
June 12, the theme will be earth, and kids will get to build their own mud town! Mackey will help kids make mini adobe bricks, and will share stories and information about local mud-house building, both modern and ancient. Then kids can use their bricks to make a house or a whole town.
On June 26, the theme is air. Kids will learn about air pressure science and make lots of different kinds of hot air balloons. They’ll also hear stories and learn information about the history of ballooning and Albuquerque Balloon Fiesta.
On July 10 the theme is fire. The group will learn several methods of fire building, talk about fire safety and, with the permission of the Los Alamos Fire Department, build fires and cook some tasty treats.
The theme is water on July 24. Kids will learn about water resources and scarcity on the Pajarito Plateau, do some water science experiments, and play scenario games that illustrate life without water.
Mackey grew up camping and hiking and was a First Class Girl Scout in 1980. Her first experience teaching children was when her sixth grade Girl Scout troop “adopted” an orphaned fourth grade troop.
Since then, activity-based teaching has been her passion. As an adult, from 1988-1993, she created and taught outdoor activities and crafting fun for kids at Ghost Ranch. For the last nine years, she has been a Youth Services staff member in the Los Alamos County Library System.
Registration is required, and these programs will be cancelled if sufficient enrollment is not reached, so sign up promptly at www.PajaritoEEC.org or by calling 662-0460.
