Summer Discovery Adventures

Monday, June 30, 2025
9:00 AM - 3:00 PM

Summer Discovery Adventures are immersive, week-long day programs that give kids a chance to step back in time and experience life in the 1830s at Old Sturbridge Village. Every session offers kids the opportunity to explore an aspect of 19th-century history and daily life. All programs include an afternoon snack, hands-on crafts, and the chance to learn something new while making lasting friends and memories.

Register before April 20, 2025 and SAVE $50 per child / per session!

2025 Program Options

Abecedarians (Ages 6-7)

Classic Food Fun | July 7 - 11 and July 28 - August 1

How did people grow and preserve their vegetables without modern conveniences like refrigeration? In this program, explore food in the 19th century focusing on vegetables. Participants will try different aspects of historical cooking and gain an appreciation for traditional practices.

Activities may include cooking over the open hearth, pickling, and planting vegetables.

Stars, Stripes & Stories:  A 19th-Century Independence Week | June 30 - July 4

Through hands-on activities, storytelling and creative projects participants of this five-day program will discover how the Fourth of July was celebrated in the early years of this young country! At the end of the week, participants will participate in special July 4th Village activities.

Activities may include learning 19th-century games, cooking over a fire pit, and learning popular patriotic songs.

Young Artist | July 14 – 18 and August 4 – 8

Explore different mediums of 19th-century art while creating your own masterpieces using the Village as your inspiration! The week will culminate with an art show highlighting our young artist’s creations.

Activities may include watercolor painting, sketching with charcoal, and creating a self-portrait miniature.

Ox Tales | July 21 – 25

Our oxen teams are superstars here at the Village! Spend a week learning about the importance of a well-trained team to a family in the 19th century.

Activities may include farm chores, learning about animal husbandry, and farm-related crafts.

Peddlers (Ages 8-10)

Dirty Jobs | July 7 – 11 and July 21 – 25

Life in the 1830s was dirty and smelly!  Participants will get hands-on experience with the messiest of tasks of life in the early 1800s:  helping farmers around the barn, digging in the dirt of the Village’s gardens, and helping with the messy task of cleaning wool.

Activities may include cleaning wool, making dyes with natural materials, creating herbal remedies, cooking over an open hearth, and discovering the magic of compost

Cook and Create | July 14 – 18 and July 21 – 25

From the time they were six or seven years old, kids were really important to the daily upkeep of a household in the 1830’s.  Participants in Cook and Create will learn how to cook historical food in a brick hearth, practice 19th-century crafts, and get their hands dirty with some typical tasks at home and on the farm.

Little House Adventures | July 7 – 11 and August 4 – 8

Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books are enduring stories about country life in the 19th century.  Though the stories take place in the Midwest, Wilder and her husband Almanzo had roots in the Northeast.  We will explore the life of a rural farm family and experience crafts, activities, and foods mentioned in Wilder’s books.

History Detectives | July 14 – 18 and August 4 – 8

Explore the Village with fresh eyes as you try to unravel a week-long mystery!  Detective trainees in this program will flex their mystery-solving skills as they decipher codes and hunt for clues.  They will participate in traditional Discovery Adventures activities like hearth cooking and chores, all tinged with an element of the mysterious as they compile leads throughout the week. If you participated in this program last summer, don’t worry: there will be a new mystery to solve this time around!

Yankee Doodle and the New Frontier | June 30 – July 4 and July 28 – August 1

The first 50 years of the United States saw technological advancements expansion west and a growing sense of patriotism.  Explore our early history as we look at inventions and technology that shaped our nation During the week of June 30-July 4 participants will take part in special July 4th Village activities.

Activities may include cooking over an open hearth, viewing historical maps from our collection, making a felt tri corn hat and experimenting with cyanotype paper. 

Wooly Wonders | July 28 – August 1

How does wool transform from a sheep’s winter coat to a ball of yarn? Dabble in the history of textile production by learning how wool is treated after it has been shorn.  Kids will dye a wool sample, practice weaving, and even meet the wooly wonders themselves—the Village sheep!

Activities may include dying wool, learning to spin, weave and learning basic knitting techniques.

Apprentices (Ages 11-14)

Timeless Trends: 19th-Century Style | July 7 – 11 and July 28 – August 1

Grab your needle and thread and get ready to learn about fashion during the 19th century. This program includes exploring and creating 19th-century fashion, touring the textile artifacts in the collection, seeing period-accurate hairstyles, and getting a special look at the costumes used here at Old Sturbridge Village. From sewing vests to fabric dyeing this program will take you on a textile journey through the 19th century.

Please note that this program includes an additional $25 materials fee.

The Great 19th-Century Bake Off | July 14 – 18 and August 4 – 8

Join us for a week of baking fun!  Participants will learn 19th-century baking techniques, and how to translate recipes from that time into tasty treats.  At the end of the week, we will have a baking competition to flex our new skills!

Please note that this program includes an additional $25 materials fee.

Militia | June 30 – 4 and July 28 – August 1

Taking on the role of a real 18th and 19th century Sturbridge militia or retired Revolutionary soldier, our company will learn the discipline, drills, target practice, arms, clothing and personal equipment that were required of a member of an early New England militia.  In addition to all the practice drills, you will try some authentic outdoor camp cooking and participate in other militia-related activities.

During the June 30 – July 4 session, participants will also participate in special July 4th Village activities.

Please note that this program includes an additional $25 materials fee.

Crafts and Trades | July 7 – 11 and July 21 – 25

Plunge into the world of 19th-century artisans with this adventure that will give you hands-on experience with 1830s craft. Each day, participants will focus on a different trade like blacksmithing, pottery, and woodwork. After meeting with the Village’s knowledgeable costumed historians, we will work on our own exciting projects from clay, wood, and metal.

Please note that this program includes an additional $25 materials fee.

Ink and Press | June 30 – July 4 and July 14 – 18

See what it would have been like to be a 19th-century printer.  Participants in this program will take an in-depth look at our printer shop and learn the art and craft of bookmaking, work on our replica printing press, and create their own bound works of art to take home.  During the June 30 – July 4 session, participants will take part in special July 4th Village activities.

Other activities may include carving a block print and binding a book.

Please note that this program includes an additional $25 materials fee.

Journeymen (Ages 14-17)

Forge and Fire | July 28 – August 1

Roll up your sleeves and discover what it was like to be a blacksmith and a potter during the 19th century. This program will have participants working half of their week with the blacksmith and half of their week using the potter’s wheel to create their own masterpieces.  Spend time learning your craft before going into the Village to observe our costumed experts.

Please note that this program includes an additional $25 materials fee.

Pricing Before April 20, 2025:

Abecedarians (Ages 6-7) & Peddlers (Ages 8-10):
Member–$305
Non-member–$330

*Apprentices (Ages 11-14) & Journeymen (Ages 14-17):
Member–$330
Non-member–$355

Pricing from April 21, 2025 Onward:

Abecedarians (Ages 6-7) & Peddlers (Ages 8-10):
Member–$355
Non-member–$380

*Apprentices (Ages 11-14) & Journeymen (Ages 14-17):
Member–$380
Non-member–$405

*Please note: Apprentice and Journeymen programs have an increase of $25 due to specialty materials. 

Lunch can be added for an additional $43 per child per week during registration.