Thursday Field Trips and Activities

Feedback from past participants indicated an interest in more activities the first morning of the program, and time for grandparents and grandchildren to enjoy campus and area attractions together. So, this year, we are offering you the opportunity for an optional “field trip” to one of eight destinations after the opening session on Thursday morning. Transportation will be provided, and you will be back in time for lunch. Options include:

Created on the 2.5-acre site of a historic Victorian home that once served as a residence for university deans, the Allen Centennial Gardens have been called UW-Madison’s largest outdoor classroom. The 22 magnificent gardens are maintained by UW faculty, staff and students, and represent gardening styles from around the world. Primarily used as a teaching tool in horticulture, botany, entomology and plant pathology, the gardens are also popular among visitors who stroll the grounds and gardeners who come to ooh and aah.

Within UW-Madison’s 933 acres sits the Bascom Hill Historical District. Visitors will enjoy viewing the original buildings of UW-Madison, the Abe Lincoln Statue and learn about the unique history of the university. The history of the state of Wisconsin is also highlighted as visitors explore the Native American Effigy Mounds located on campus. The Bascom Hill History Tour is a treat for people of all ages and is a highlight to any visit to the University of Wisconsin.

Named for university benefactor Herb Kohl, UW-Madison graduate (1956), U.S. senator and owner of the Milwaukee Bucks professional basketball team, the Kohl Center opened in January 1998 as one of the country’s most highly regarded collegiate arenas. The $76 million facility seats 17,142 for basketball and 15,038 for hockey.

One of the country’s leading university art museums, the Chazen houses a permanent collection of 16,000 works of art dating from 2300 B.C. to present day.

With its reconstructed dinosaurs, huge mastodon skeleton, colorful mineral samples, a six-foot-diameter rotating globe and a walk-through model of a Wisconsin limestone cave, the Geology Museum has long been a favorite of both kids and adults.

The Wisconsin Historical Museum is located on Madison's Capitol Square and is full of wonderful information about the state's rich history. Explore Wisconsin's distinctive heritage and a variety of other American history topics through artifacts, photographs, full-scale dioramas, audio-visual presentations and interactive multimedia programs.

The State Capitol houses the Office of the Governor along with the Wisconsin Supreme Court and both chambers of the Wisconsin legislature. It sits in the center of Capitol Park, located atop a hill on an isthmus formed by lakes Monona and Mendota. The nine-and-one-half acre, landscaped grounds forming the square remains at the center of the original historic plat of Madison, designed in 1836 by James Duane Doty and surveyor J.V. Suydam. Reaching to a height of over 200 feet, the Capitol dome is topped by Daniel Chester French's elegant gilded bronze statue, "Wisconsin." Edwin Blashfield's mural "Resources of Wisconsin" lavishly decorates the ceiling of the rotunda, which is the only granite dome in the United States. Inside, visitors are treated to the unique textures of 43 varieties of stone from around the world, hand-carved furniture and exquisite glass mosaics.

The purpose of the Wisconsin Veterans Museum is to commemorate, acknowledge, and affirm the role of Wisconsin veterans in America’s military past by means of instructive exhibits and other educational programs. The museum features dioramas, consisting of life-size figures and painted murals that realistically and vividly portray events in which Wisconsin veterans participated. The dioramas duplicate a variety of environments, from a snow-covered forest to a tropical jungle.

Learn and retain new information about the museum by participating in a Scavenger Hunt. Fill out your Scavenger Hunt booklet, which will be provided for you, by exploring the exhibit dioramas for answers.

After the Badger picnic, there are a variety of activities available for you to enjoy. Activities include:

• Run onto the field
• Visit a sky box and see other indoor seating
• See what a locker room looks like
• Experience the UW Wow Room
• Held in cooperation with the Athletic Department

• Coordinated by the Student Guides

• Board games
• Television
• Game room
• Computer lab
• Cards
• Art materials

Ken Lonnquist is a funny, enjoyable songwriter from Madison. He performs for audiences of all ages in a wide variety of musical styles. Solo or with The Whateverlys or The Kenland Band, his gift for improvisation engages audiences, and he is known for audience interaction and songs made up right on the spot!

Ken Lonnquist and members of his Kenland Band will close out the day with lively songs in the Ogg Hall Phillips Lounge. His performance will be from 8:00 to 9:00 p.m. on Thursday night.