Harrisburg, PA – The State Museum of Pennsylvania today announced its program schedule for March 2018:
StoryTime: Pancakes for Breakfast by Tomie dePaola, Friday, March 2, 10:00 AM
Join us in Village Square to learn about cooking in kitchens of the past. Enjoy our story Pancakes for Breakfast by Tomie dePaola and help make a “Pretend Pancake Breakfast” with kitchen utensils once used in old kitchens. StoryTime is our popular series for children 3-5 years old. Each reading is held in a gallery and is followed by a related play activity or hands-on exploration of artifacts. StoryTime is included with general admission.
Nature Lab: The Eastern Coyote, Thursday, March 8, 11:30 AM
Join museum educators in Nature Lab to learn about the eastern coyote. Explore this wily, adaptable predator through images and hands-on objects. This program is included with general admission.
Learn at Lunchtime: Pennsylvania Charter, Friday, March 9, 12:15–12:45 PM
Join archivist Joshua Stahlman from the Pennsylvania State Archives to learn about the commonwealth’s 337th birthday and William Penn’s original 1681 Charter, the document that granted him the land of Pennsylvania. This program is included with general admission.
Charter Day: Sunday, March 11, Noon–5:00 PM
The Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission will celebrate the commonwealth’s 337th birthday on Charter Day. This special day offers visitors to The State Museum of Pennsylvania the rare opportunity to see William Penn’s original 1681 Charter.
England’s King Charles II used the Charter to grant the land that is now Pennsylvania to founder William Penn. This document is sometimes referred to as Pennsylvania’s “birth certificate” and was Penn’s personal copy. The Charter will remain on display through 12 noon, Friday, March 16. For the remainder of the year, the Charter is safeguarded in a special vault within the Pennsylvania State Archives.
In addition to the Charter, the Archives will also display four original deeds tracing the sale of lands by American Indians to William Penn and his successors between 1683 and 1789.
Other Charter Day programs include:
“Sherlock Academy: Help Solve the Case of the Rotten Receipt,” Nature Lab, Noon–4:00 PM
STEM librarians from the State Library of Pennsylvania will present this hands-on program using forensic handwriting analysis.
“Exploring Industrial Pennsylvania through Fowler’s Bird’s-Eye Views,” Floor 1, Changing Exhibit Gallery, starting at 1:00 PM
The State Museum presents an afternoon of informal presentations, led by subject experts, including curators, archivists, and academics, focusing on various aspects of Pennsylvania’s late 19th-century industrial landscapes, as represented through the hand-drawn bird’s-eye views of T.M. Fowler, the nation’s most prolific city viewmaker. These presentations coincide with the exhibit Every Thing of Interest Shown: T.M. Fowler’s Pennsylvania Bird’s-Eye Views, on display at the museum through May 6. Presentation times: 1 PM, 1:45 PM, 2:30 PM and 3:15 PM.
Available Charter Day only: Join us in the Planetarium for The Future of Human Space Exploration to learn about NASA’s exciting plans for sending humans farther into the solar system than ever before. Special show times: 12:20 PM, 12:40 PM, 1:00 PM, 1:20 PM, 1:40 PM, 2:00 PM, 2:20 PM, 2:40 PM, 3:00 PM, 3:20 PM and 3:40 PM.
Admission to The State Museum is free on Charter Day, Sunday, March 11, and includes visits to the Planetarium, the Curiosity Connection, and galleries. Free admission to the Planetarium and Curiosity Connection is by timed ticket.
HomeSchool Day, Wednesday, March 14, 10:00 AM–2:00 PM
The State Museum of Pennsylvania’s upcoming HomeSchool Day offers a look at Colonial Pennsylvania through history, archaeology, natural history, and the fine arts. The event is tailored for families and organizations that teach in a home setting.
The program fee for HomeSchool Day is $10 per person (adults and children over age 1) and includes all special programs and admission to the Planetarium. Members of the Pennsylvania Heritage Foundation (including State Museum Affiliate members) will be admitted free. To register for HomeSchool Day, call 717-772-6997, Monday through Friday, between 9 AM and 4 PM. Pre-register prior to March 7 and receive a $1 discount on each admission.
3rd in the Burg, Friday, March 16, 5:30–7:30 PM
Celebrate nature indoors with the Pennsylvania Parks & Forests Foundation and the Pennsylvania Conservation Heritage Project. Learn more about Mira Lloyd Dock, “mother of Pennsylvania forestry” and the City Beautiful Movement, and Gifford Pinchot, former governor of Pennsylvania and forester, through two short documentaries produced by WITF. Hands-on tree identification with Weiser State Forest staff and an appearance from Smokey Bear are also planned. Free admission and refreshments.
The Planetarium at The State Museum of Pennsylvania: The planetarium is offering two shows from February 28 through April 1:
We Are Stars (Grade 4 and up), Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, 11:00 AM; Saturday, 11:00 AM and 1:00 PM; and Sunday, 1:00 PM
What are we made of? Where did it all come from? Explore the secrets of our cosmic chemistry and our explosive origins. Connect the evolution of life on Earth to the formation of the universe by following the building of hydrogen atoms to the synthesis of carbon and the molecules for life. Narrated by Andy Serkis
Two Small Pieces of Glass (Grade 4 and up), Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, 1:00 PM; Saturday, Noon and 2:00 PM; and Sunday, 2:00 PM
While attending a local star party, learn how the telescope has helped us understand our place in space and continue to expand our understanding of the universe. Learn about the history of the telescope and see how they work. Discover how the largest observatories in the world use these instruments to explore the mysteries of the universe.
We Are Stars and Two Small Pieces of Glass will not be showing on March 11. See Charter Day for special presentations and show times.
Assisted listening devices and/or closed captioning are available upon request at the time of ticket purchase. Planetarium shows are $3 per person in addition to general admission. Planetarium admission is free to members of the State Museum Affiliate and the Pennsylvania Heritage Foundation.
The State Museum of Pennsylvania, adjacent to the State Capitol in Harrisburg, is one of 23 historic sites and museums administered by the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission as part of the Pennsylvania Trails of History. The State Museum offers expansive collections interpreting Pennsylvania’s fascinating heritage. With exhibits examining the dawn of geologic time, the Native American experience, the colonial and revolutionary eras, a pivotal Civil War battleground, and the commonwealth's vast industrial age, The State Museum demonstrates that Pennsylvania's story is America’s story.
Museum hours are Wednesday through Saturday, 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, and Sunday, 12:00 PM to 5:00 PM. Admission is $7 for adults (ages 12-64), $6 for senior citizens (ages 65 and up), and $5 for children (ages 1-11).
MEDIA CONTACT: Howard Pollman, 717-705-8639