Saturday, April 5, 9 am-3 pm
Evaluating Materials on Native Americans
This workshop helps you make good choices for your library, classroom or personal use when shopping online or in a bookstore. Join us in the Children’s Library for a day of examining, carefully and critically, books and other educational materials. $35/$30 for Museum members. Educators can earn .5 CEUs. Register: (860) 396-6839.

Friday, April 11, 12:30 pm and Saturday, April 12, 1 pm
Stonefish Sisters, Champion Dancers
World champions Waskwane, Beedoskah and Cheyenne bring the color and swirl of powwow dances as they perform hoop and jingle dances. Free with Museum admission, free to Museum members. This event is part of the CL&P Performing Arts Series.

Monday & Friday, April 14 & 18, 11 am & 1 pm
Snakes Alive!
Meet and greet 6 sleek, slithering snakes from the region and listen to Native storyteller Trudie Lamb Richmond (Schaghticoke) tell the ancient tale of Shishiqua, the Abenaki story about how snakes came to be. Charming snake expert Nancy Hopkins-Schmeltz brings her arresting charges to the Gathering Space for two 40-minute programs each day. Free with Museum admission, free to Museum members.

Saturday, April 12, 2-3 pm
Reception with World Champion Dancers
Museum Members Only. Meet World Champion Native dancers Waskwane and Beedoskah Stonefish, both 9 years old, and Cheyenne Petoskey, 15, over dessert and coffee after the trio’s performance in the Museum Auditorium. RSVP to Sarah Eleazer, (860) 396-6890 or seleazer@mptn-nsn.gov by April 8.

Tuesday, April 15, 12:30 pm
Myths and the Moundbuilders
Join archaeologist Russ Handsman for a showing of this PBS documentary film and a discussion of how ancient earthwork sites were sacred places in the midst of ancestral homelands where Native peoples still live. For ages 10 and older. Free with Museum admission, free to Museum members.

Wednesday, April 16, 1 pm
Catching & Studying Snapping Turtles
Meet wildlife biologist Shelley Spohr who has trapped and is studying snapping turtles in the swamps of Mashantucket. Her PowerPoint presentation shows how the 3-year study is conducted and what is learned about these primordial creatures. Free with Museum admission, free to Museum members.

Thursday, April 17, Noon-4 pm
Help Build a Wetu (aka Wigwam)
Help build a wetu outdoors on the Museum’s Farmstead Exhibit grounds with Museum Curator Stephen Cook, staff archaeologist Candyce King (Mashantucket Pequot) and cultural educator Cassius Spears (Narragansett). Free with Museum admission, free to Museum members.

Saturday, April 19, 1-2:30 pm
Filmmaker Previews “Hidden Landscapes”
Meet filmmaker Ted Timreck for a special preview of his new film about sacred sites of Native New England, including Paleolithic rock cairns and other stone constructions in Vermont and the 10,000-year-old Sandy Hill archaeological site on the Mashantucket. Free with Museum admission, free to Museum members.

Friday, April 25, 11:30 am-3 pm
Gifts of the Land & Waters Celebration
Join in our traditional spring celebration with the talented Quabbin Lake Singers, a family drum group performing at 11:30 am and 1:30 pm; Shinnecock potter Courtney Leonard, who shares the story of her culture through her art at 1 pm; and the Museum Puppet Players offering, “If I Catch it Can I Eat It” at 11 am. Free with Museum admission and free to Museum Members.