Irvine Nature Center
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Early Childhood Programs Blog

Earth Friends

Living Off of The Land Week 7

November 22, 2016 - Earth Friends

Week 7! After checking in, and stopping to check out some salamanders near the gazebo, we headed towards the vernal wetlands. Once we got to the access road, we reinspected… Read more »

Tags: camouflage Debris Hut Deer mouse Everybody's It Tag Irvine Irvine Nature Center Living Off of The Land salamanders Tom Brown Jr.

Living Off of The Land Week 8

November 7, 2016 - Earth Friends

  Happy Halloween!  We had a fun and spooky day at Irvine as we learned about onion grass, worked on our shelter and collected milkweed for our fire in our… Read more »

Tags: Debris shelter Earth Friends halloween Irvine Nature Center Living Off of The Land milkweed Sassafras Spice bush

Forest Explorers Week 6

October 29, 2016 - Earth Friends

You never know what you will discover around here! The old saying- “you can’t step into the same river twice” rings true with us this week. We started with a… Read more »

Tags: Bat and moth Dead Racoon Forest Explorers Garter snake Irvine Irvine Nature Center Musk Preying Mantis Racoon Story Stump seats Tunnel

Forest Explorers Week 5

October 29, 2016 - Earth Friends

This week Ms. Colleen subbed for Ms. Paula and showed us lots of awesome things! We had an opening circle and introduced ourselves to Ms. Colleen before heading to the… Read more »

Tags: Dead fox fox Irvine Irvine Nature Center Jewelweed Poison Ivy predator prey game Red-backed salamander

Forest Explorers Week 4

October 29, 2016 - Earth Friends

We started off with a check in circle and had a fun game of telephone before heading towards the gazebo. Fall is here, and among the bright colored tumbling leaves,… Read more »

Tags: Crow call fire Fire in the Forest Forest Explorers Irvine Irvine Nature Center Sit spot spicebush Story

Forest Explorers Week 3

October 29, 2016 - Earth Friends

Week 3, the rainy week! For our third week, our second teacher Ms. Paula starting working with us! It was thundering at the beginning of class so we ended up… Read more »

Tags: Forest Explorers Honeysuckle Irvine Irvine Nature Center Joe Pye Weed Meet A Tree painting Sassafras Toad

Forest Explorers Week 2

October 29, 2016 - Earth Friends

For our second week we started off by having a check in circle and then told a collaborative story. Each person gets to go around and say one sentence to… Read more »

Tags: autumn olive camouflage Common buckeye fire Irvine Irvine Nature Center Perilla Story

Living Off of The Land Week 6

October 24, 2016 - Earth Friends

Today we took an epic walk to the ponds in a far off land after starting with our daily check-in circle.  It was a really hot day so a trip… Read more »

Tags: Irvine Irvine Nature Center Living Off of The Land macroinvertebrates Pond Yarrow

Living Off of The Land Week 5

October 18, 2016 - Earth Friends

    For our 5th week, we got a new instructor Kelly that will be with us for the rest of the semester! Kelly is an awesome naturalist and will… Read more »

Tags: camouflage carving Earth Friends Irvine Irvine Nature Center Jewelweed Living Off of The Land Ninja Poison Ivy Woolly Bear

Living Off of The Land Week 4

October 18, 2016 - Earth Friends

Week 4! We began the week by making straws from Joe Pye Weed (Eutrochium) found right near the Irvine building! They are really cool because you drink water from a… Read more »

Tags: Black Walnut fire Group Challenge Irvine Irvine Nature Center Joe Pye Weed Living Off of The Land QM tag Quadrupedal Movement

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    • About
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  • Irvine Nature Center

    11201 Garrison Forest Road
    Owings Mills, MD 21117
    Phone: 443­-738-9200
    Fax: 410­-902-8210

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    GROUP VOLUNTEER INQUIRY

    Irvine Nature Center is located in Owings Mills, Maryland. Thank you for your interest in volunteering with us!

    • Name of Company/Organization
    • Expected # of Volunteers (5-30)
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    • Irvine Nature Center hosts volunteer groups Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays 9:00am-12:00pm or 1:00pm-4:00pm. Please enter 3 possible dates that work for your group
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    • About
      ▼
      • About Irvine Nature Center
      • Mission, Vision and Values
      • Irvine Staff
      • Board of Trustees
      • Employment Opportunities
    • Visit
      ▼
      • Plan Your Visit to Irvine
      • Programs & Events
      • Programs for Schools
      • Animal Ambassadors
    • Support
      ▼
      • Become A Member
      • DONATE
      • Other Ways To Give
      • Corporate Partnerships
      • Pumpkins on the Green 2026
      • Volunteer/Intern
    • Early Childhood Education
      ▼
      • Nature Preschool
      • Little Birds
      • Earth Friends Homeschool
    • Nature Programs
      ▼
      • Summer Nature Camp 2026
      • Programs for Children
      • Programs for Adults
      • PROGRAMS FOR SCHOOLS
        ▼
        • Field Trips
        • Nature in the Classroom (school presenations)
        • Eco-Explorers After-School Nature Club
    • Rentals & Special Events
      ▼
      • Birthday Parties
      • Weddings & Rentals
      • Pumpkins on the Green 2026
    • Become a Member/Renew
    • Registration & Payment