Carved pumpkins on display during the 2010 Unionville Fair.
Ahhh.. to be a kid again! What could be more fun than a scavenger hunt? Exploring a Native American tipi? Watching a baby chick break through the shell? Carving a pumpkin? All these experiences and more will be available to the young, and the young at heart, at the Unionville Community Fair, Friday, September 30 through Sunday, October 2.
The first and fifth graders from all the Unionville-Chadds Ford elementary schools will visit the Fair on Friday as part of their annual educational school field trips. Organizer and fifth grade teacher, Dave Lichter explains, “For the first graders it is a way for them to experience the fair and get to know what the fair is all about. For the fifth graders they can take something away from the fair and connect it to what they are learning in school.”
For the first time this year, Friday’s field trip activities will be carried on throughout the weekend. Robin Moore, acclaimed author and storyteller, will be reading stories to the children during Saturday and Sunday in the Storytelling Tent and setting up his tipis on site. Moore is the author of the Bread Sister trilogy, which is a popular series with the fifth graders.
Kids will be able to connect with the agricultural heritage of the area through many activities. They will make applesauce from apples grown right in the area at Barnard’s Orchards, and witness the importance of bees and pollination through an interactive simulation led by one of the Fair’s newest partners, The Land Conservancy of Southern Chester County.
For the more competitive bunch, there will be a rousing cow milking contest featuring a fifth grader and teacher team from each school on Saturday at 5pm. And for those willing to take a chance – buy a ticket for the Cow Pie Bingo, and cheer on Cricket the cow in the hopes it chooses your spot to take care of business!
A new contest for all ages this year is the Pumpkin Carving Contest on Saturday from 10am to 4pm. Participants can bring their own pumpkin and tools, or purchase a pumpkin at the fair for a nominal amount and use the tools provided. Either way, once the pumpkins are all lit up at night, a winner will be chosen from each age category (family through high school).
Lichter sums it up: “The Fair is all about making connections… to the history of the land, to the people and to the local culture.” So come and connect with the Fair this year!
