UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Exhibits, games, activities and prizes focused on learning about bugs, animals, health and science will be offered for children at Penn State's Ag Progress Days expo, Aug. 15-17.
In interactive exhibits at the 4-H Youth Building, on Main Street between West Eighth and West Ninth streets at the Ag Progress Days site, children can learn about 4-H programming in science, engineering, technology, citizenship, leadership and healthy living. They can find out how to get involved with 4-H, play with rabbits, see robotics demonstrations, and learn about farm and home safety and plant diseases.
“This year’s youth building will showcase the variety of activities that can be done in 4-H,” said building coordinator Jeanette Blank, 4-H education program associate and teen program manager. “We are also excited to be hosting the first Ag Olympics event for our 4-H families and alumni, as well as the public, during the show’s extended hours on Wednesday night.”
Following are other Ag Progress Days attractions for youth and families:
-- The Shaver's Creek Environmental Center exhibit, on Main Street between West Eighth and West Ninth streets near the 4-H Youth Building, will feature presentations on wildlife, including turtles, birds of prey, snakes, amphibians and insects.
-- At the Kids' Climb, on Main Street near the Equine Exhibits Building, children can don safety equipment and harnesses and climb a tree like a professional arborist.
-- Hands-on exhibits at the Pasto Agricultural Museum, on East Tenth Street across from the red barn, will give visitors a glimpse into farm and rural life before the widespread use of electricity and gas-powered equipment.
-- Demonstrations on healthy eating, food safety, first aid and firearm safety will be offered at the Family Room building on Main Street.
-- Visitors can get "lost" in A-Maze-N -Corn, outside the Joseph D. Harrington Crops, Soils, and Conservation Building, at the end of East Fifth Street. This corn maze is accessible for wheelchairs and baby strollers.
-- Miniature horses, draft horses and other breeds will be among the demonstrations at the Equine Experience, at the top of Main Street.
-- At the Pedal Go Kart Derby, on West Eighth Street behind the Family Room building, kids supply the power as they travel a serpentine track.
Sponsored by Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences, Ag Progress Days is held at the Russell E. Larson Agricultural Research Center at Rock Springs, 9 miles southwest of State College on Route 45. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Aug. 15; 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Aug. 16; and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Aug. 17. Admission and parking are free.
For more information, visit the Ag Progress Days website at http://apd.psu.edu. Twitter users can find and share information about the event by using the hashtag #agprogressdays, and Facebook users can find the event at http://www.facebook.com/AgProgressDays.