ALPENA — Besser Museum for Northeast Michigan is part of an Alpena Public Schools grant-funded project, partnering to provide educational enrichment programs to APS students going into fourth, fifth, and sixth grade.

The program is called MI Kids Back On Track. Besser Museum will be offer four different programs that APS students an attend for free.

The sessions will be held from 9:30 to 11 a.m. on Wednesdays, July 23, July 30, Aug. 6, and Aug. 13.

Parents need to contact the Besser Museum at 989-356-2202 to register their students.

Session 1 — GREAT LAKES FISHERIES

Wednesday, July 23 — Students attending this session will learn about the Great Lakes fisheries heritage, the threat of invasive species, and the scientific methods being used to protect our natural resources. Students will learn fun facts

about fish anatomy. During this session students will tour two historical maritime vessels: the Katherine V, a 1928 wooden commercial

fishing tug, and the Chinook, a 1947 steel research vessel retired in 2016.

Session 2 — HABITAT EARTH

Wednesday, July 30 — Students attending this session will learn about different animal characteristics and will be able to classify the animals in the museum’s exhibit into six categories such as mammals, amphibians, birds, reptiles, etc. The featured planetarium film, “Habitat Earth,” will teach students about how animals, people, and habitats throughout the world are connected. Students will create their own diorama of an animal habitat such as those viewed in the museum’s Natural Wildlife exhibit.

Session 3 — FOSSILS & DINOSAURS

Wednesday, Aug. 6 — Students attending this session will learn about the geological history of Earth and how much

has changed since our planet was first created. This talk will focus on meteorites and dinosaurs, and there will be a planetarium show. For the activity, students will visit the museum’s fossil park and learn about the Devonian period and keep all the fossils they

find. Students will also receive a Fossil Guide and Journal for Northern Michigan.

Session 4 — TELESCOPES & OBSERVATIONS

Wednesday, Aug. 13 — Students will learn about telescopes and how they work, as well as some history about them and how they’ve changed the astronomical world forever. The planetarium show will focus on teaching some of these concepts, enhancing the experience with the movie “Two Small Pieces of Glass.” The activity for this event will be to create your own telescope, and the take-home activity will involve finding certain targets in the sky using their star charts and observing them with their new telescope. Students will receive

a telescope kit and a star chart.