Family Programs Committee

The Family Programs Committee schedules adventures in western Massachusetts every month throughout the year. These adventures include family friendly hikes, experiential outdoor activities that teach outdoor skills and conservation concepts, seasonal crafts and games, camping, family nights and much more. We strive to instill confidence, collaboration, understanding and an appreciation of the outdoors so as to foster, respect and stewardship of our planet and all living things. Our focus is to get everyone outdoors. To that end we are experienced family leaders and we work hard to accommodate your needs, meeting you where you are in your outdoor experience. Children of all ages and their families (including grandparents) are invited to join us. AMC requires that a parent/guardian (18 years of age and over) attend with children at all events. We hope you'll join us in one of the many events listed on this site. Suggestions for additional events to add to the current schedule are welcome.

StoryWalk^®

We also work with other organizations to increase our reach and ability to offer interesting programs for families. An example of this kind of collaboration is the ongoing, self-guided StoryWalk^® available year round at AMC Noble View Outdoor Center, in Russell, MA. The story changes each month and often reflects a nature theme. A Storywalk^® offers families an active outdoor reading experience, where a children's picture book has been deconstructed and then placed page by page along a path. Families walk, read and talk their way through the story. To access the book, hike behind the Noble View barn and follow the signs. No registration is required. The AMC Western MA Family Programs Committee is thankful for a collaboration with the Hilltown Family Center which has sponsored the Storywalk^® through a Coordinated Family and Community Engagement Grant through the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care. The Storywalk^® Project was created by Anne Ferguson of Montpelier, VT and developed in collaboration with the Vermont Bicycle & Pedestrian Coalition and the Kellogg Hubbard Library.

Activity Schedule

All activities are subject to cancellation due to poor weather conditions. Check activities on outdoors.org for up-to-the-minute additions not yet shown here. Not all activities may be posted yet.