Keeping the kids occupied during their summer breaks, can be a challenge. However, the Tempe Center for the Arts (TCA) , ASU Art Museum and Halle Heart Children’s Museum are offering some very cool programs that will keep them busy and entertained.  These workshops are a sure way to beat the summer doldrums and have fun making something beautiful to take home. Many are free.  For more things to do in Tempe this summer, visit https://tempetourism.com/summer/.

Gallery at Tempe Center for the Arts is offering a bunch of cool workshops related to the current exhibition Biomimicry: nature inspired design. Biomimicry is an exciting field that seeks to emulate nature in creating sustainable solutions to human problems. Two examples of biomimicry include Velcro (inspired by plant burr hooks) and solar cells (inspired by photosynthesizing plants). The exhibit will be on display through August 26, 2017.

Family Arts & Sciences Workshops, Saturdays, 12-2 p.m. 

• June 24 – Biomimicry Trading Cards – New Inventions with TCA staff
  Join the TCA team to learn about famous examples of biomimicry while creating trading card art about your own nature-inspired inventions!
• July 8 – Sonoran Wildlife- Clay Creatures with Halldor Hjalmarson
  Hjalmarson is a well known ceramics artist with a long-time interest in local wildlife. Meet the artist and use his hand-made molds with a traditional “sprigging technique” to create your   own clay creature.
• July 15 – Sustainability with ASU Julie Ann Wrigley Global Institute of Sustainability
  Can you create a sustainable future city? Join ASU’s Teacher’s Academy in an interactive game that introduces the three pillars of sustainability: society, economy and environment.
• July 22 – Beyond the Collection Box with ASU Natural History Collections
  Specialists from the ASU Biodiversity Knowledge Integration Center (BioKIC) will demonstrate  how to capture digital images of moths and butterflies with the “LepSnap” app.

Friday Night Maker Night with Cyndi Coon of Laboratory 5 Inc. – Gallery at TCA, 6-8 p.m. 

• August 18 – Date Night: Follow the Glow, learning from the Israeli Deathstalker Scorpion
  The Israeli Deathstalker Scorpion’s sting can be deadly, but its venom is being used as “glowing tumor paint.” Join the TCA staff in a glow-in-the  dark map-making workshop.

Additional Programs

• Through July 21 – Biomimicry Challenge
  Artists Jose Benavides, Alexandra Bowers and Nissa Kubly were chosen during a jury selection process to undertake a 9-week artist residency program inside temporary studios in the Gallery.
• August 24 – Free lecture with Dayna Baumeister, co-founder of the Biomimicry Institute – Gallery at TCA, 7-8:30 p.m.
• June 16-23 – Bee Hive Café for Teens – Gallery at TCA, 4-7 p.m. Local teens, art groups, science clubs and robotics teams are invited to meet and brainstorm in the exhibition’s Bee Hive-themed meeting space in the Gallery. Space is limited. Coffee and water provided.
  • Satellite Workshops at Edna Vihel Center – 10 a.m.-3 p.m. ; $10 registration –  lunch included
    – June 24 Biomimicry DESIGN Challenge for Teens with artist Christine Cassano and biomimicry specialist Kyra Galani. Register here.
    – July 15 Biomimicry CHAIR Design Challenge for Teens and Adults with artist Damon McIntyre & biomimicry specialist Kyra Galani. Register here.

ASU Art Museum 

Creative Saturdays, 11 a.m.-4 p.m.—Families can drop by any time every Saturday during the 5-hour time frame to participate in art-making activities ranging from button-making to basket-weaving. The activities vary each week in a fairly informal setting, so families can stay as long as they want and do as much of the activity as they would like.  All activities are free and kids take home their artwork. No registration required.

July 8 – Family Day with Las Hermanas Iglesias, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. – Kids can spend a whole day creating, learning and playing at the ASU Art Museum Family Day. At Family Day, art stations are set up throughout the galleries for kids ages 4–12. Activities will focus on the new exhibition RE: SISTERS featuring works by the sister duo Las Hermanas Iglesias. The sisters will also participate in Family Day activities.

Halle Heart Children’s Museum 

Kids can beat the heat at the Halle Heart Children’s Museum. During the hottest months of the year, kids and families can enjoy a range of themed activities such as CPR Super Hero Week, Kids Move with Heart, Dinosaur Discovery Week and Sustainability Week: Our Planet, Ourselves. Little tots can participate in Toddler Test Kitchen, a 4-week cooking class series; Get Moving! and Little Rhythms will have tots movin’ and groovin’; and Terrific Tuesdays will get hearts pumping with a spectacular dance party! Camp Heart Beat offers a 2-hour guided tour followed by a free lunch provided by Kids Café, a summer food service program.