Learning at the Santa Monica Pier

Learning can be fun, especially when it involves the Santa Monica Pier! The award winning Santa Monica Pier Curriculum is a comprehensive, California state education standards based curriculum, created in 2009 in celebration of the Pier’s centennial, with a generous grant from the Sempra Energy Foundation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The curriculum and companion, Youth Guide to the Santa Monica Pier, were designed to help children learn about the historic and cultural significance of the Pier and introduce educators and youth-workers to the many opportunities for learning at the Pier.

With lesson plans for all ages (K-12), you can learn mathematics with Ferris Wheel numbers and a Math Scavenger Hunt. Create a Habitat, Rollercoaster Calculations and Marine Debris are also just a few of the many lessons to explore in the science category.

There are also lessons in Language Arts, Visual and Performing Arts, Health and Physical Education as well as Careers and Technical Education.

Check out the online Pier Curriculum for a multitude of learning opportunities! Parents and teachers alike will love this resource.

This Octopus is getting his education as we speak!

Happy Learning,

 

 

PACIFIC PARK SNEAK PEAK: Two New Gyro Loops

I am pleased to announce, after much anticipation, that we have added two new Gyro Loops to the Pacific Park gaming family!

OPENING FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 24th, 2011

Spin to win in this two seat, 360 degree turning and tumbling game. Players use a joystick to control their speed and RPM all while flying in circles, rotating frontward,backward and all around in what feels like a free-falling, yet fun wheeling, swing like manner in an attempt to win a prize!

Celebrate Leap Year with Santa Monica Pier & OVO

On Wednesday, February 29th, 2012, The Santa Monica Pier and OVO by Cirque Du Soleil are celebrating LEAP YEAR with some very special offers. And if you are a Leap Year Baby (and can prove it), the first 100 people to show their valid ID will receive two complimentary tickets to see OVO that night!!!

With so many deals and offers (as seen below) there is every reason to come see us at Pacific Park while you’re visiting.

Upcoming Events in Santa Monica

Santa Monica is truly an amazing city (and a place this Octopus is glad to call home).  With so many restaurants, shops, theaters and daily events, there is always something for everyone, and always something to do. To help keep you “in the know” of all that Santa Monica has to offer, I will be posting my favorite events every week on Inkie’s Ink!

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2012 & SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2012

Fireside at the Miles Memorial Playhouse 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A landmark theater by the sea
Completed in 1929, the Miles Memorial Playhouse is one of the oldest active theaters in Los Angeles. Done in a Spanish revival style by reknowned architect John Byers, the Miles features beautiful woodwork, Mission-style beams, original iron chandeliers, sconces and a beautiful arched hearth. Discover or revisit a beautiful local treasure and attend some amazing performances, right here in the heart of Santa Monica. For the third year in a row the Miles is proud to present the always-inviting, always warm “Fireside at the Miles” Series! Friday, enjoy six weekends and thirteen separate events featuring contemporary music, opera, jazz, dance, puppetry, poetry, beat boxing, a capella singing and more. Performances take place beside the huge vintage fireplace with a cheery eco-logs fire. Comfy couches, cozy candles, organic beverages and pastries all await you inside the historic playhouse.

Tickets: Shows begin at 8pm, doors at 7:15pm. $10 for adults and $5 for students, seniors and youth 17/under
Reservations: (310) 458-8634 or milesplayhouse@smgov.net. Please arrive by fifteen minutes before showtime to retain your reservation; late seating is not guaranteed.
Website: http://fireside.milesplayhouse.org
Like us on facebook.com/milesplayhouse
Where: 1130 Lincoln Blvd., Santa Monica, 90403
Free event parking is available in the pink granite-faced subterranean garage serving 808 Wilshire, entry on Lincoln. Important: mention “Miles” when parking to receive a validated ticket.

All events are suitable for adults and mature teens, and most are also appropriate for children; call for details.

FIRESIDE at the MILES is sponsored by the City of Santa Monica, Cultural Affairs Division and is supported by generous donations from Panera Bread and Whole Foods.

 

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2012

Family Day: The Art Bug with Cirque du Soliel`s OVO and artist Karen Nakashima

 

 

 

 

 

 

A partnership day with OVO from Cirque du Soleil®!Saturday, February 25, 1 – 3 pm

Admission: $10 per person or FREE for SMMoA MembersDoes your favorite insect fly, swim, jump, or crawl? Discover the spectacular hidden world of insects with The Art Bug—Santa Monica Museum of Art’s workshop in collaboration with Cirque du Soleil’s OVO and artist Karen Nakashima. Learn the basics of bugs and construct one with found natural materials. Preserve your bug within a specimen box of your own design. The OVO Bug Team joins the workshop for additional insect-inspired fun. Put on your best critter-face for the OH-Snap photo booth. 

NOTE: There is a 4 pm performance of OVO by Cirque du Soleil immediately following the workshop on Saturday, February 25. Purchase special discount tickets* and catch the show after the workshop!

To purchase tickets to this event, CLICK HERE

 

SATURDAY, MARCH 17, 2012

Buy Local Expo: Shopping, Music, Demos, Raffle Prizes! FREE!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Buy Local Expo
March 17, 2012
11am – 4pm

The Santa Monica Chamber, Downtown Santa Monica Inc. and the City of Santa Monica present the second annual Buy Local Day, featuring the Buy Local Expo from 11am-4pm on the Third Street Promenade and throughout the city on Saturday, March 17th and Sunday, March 18, 2012.

Featuring over 80 local merchants, free music, demonstrations and tastings, plus a weekend of festivities throughout Santa Monica. Get “caught with your receipt showing” to be entered into a raffle for some great prizes from local businesses, and enjoy sidewalk sales citywide, a Buy Local scavenger hunt, open studios + art walk at Santa Monica Airport (more information at www.arts.smgov.net) and more!

To help make buying local as easy and affordable as possible, many local businesses will be offering special deals and discounts. (A list of participating
merchants will be available soon)

 

This is just a taste of what’s to come, so stay tuned for more offers and events from the Amazing City of Santa Monica!

Happy Monday Everyone,

 

 

Aquadoption at the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium

Our friends at The Santa Monica Pier Aquarium have a great Valentine’s Day gift idea; the gift of Aquadoption. That’s right, you can adopt an Octopus, which they say “are believed to be one of the smartest invertebrates, and have shown the ability to learn new skills by observing one another.” I COULDN’T AGREE MORE!

“How about giving the environmental gift of Aquadoption? Offering your loved one an octopus shares the idea that you want to offer eight times as many hugs. A moon jelly can represent that you are “over the moon” for your Valentine. Or a seahorse can depict your feelings of your Valentine being your knight in shining armor. Whether you foster an animal for yourself, a classroom, or a grandparent, Aquadoption at the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium is a special way to connect with an animal and gain a greater understanding of the amazing ocean habitat in our Bay. By participating in this program, you make a commitment to keeping the Santa Monica Bay and its animals healthy and safe.

By purchasing a gift adoption, you help raise awareness of the Aquarium, giving your friends and family a greater understanding of the ocean and creating new stewards of the marine environment.

The program has been revamped to add new animals and newly structured aquadoption levels and benefits. Some aquadoptions now include guided Aquarium tours, an opportunity to feed an adopted animal and behind-the-scenes tours.  All yearlong aquadoptions feature a personalized packet with an adoption certificate, photo, fact sheet and two free passes to the Aquarium.”

For more information about Aquadopting on of my relatives, or a variety of other aquarium animals, visit: http://www.healthebay.org/santa-monica-pier-aquarium/meet-locals/aquadoptions

Won’t You Be My Valentine?

Valentine’s Day is one of my favorite days of the year! It is a day that I get to share with so many amazing couples here at Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier. And tonight, I look forward to sunset (5:37PM PST), when our Ferris Wheel lights up with a custom display of Valentine’s Day colors and patterns.

Join me at Pacific Park tonight to experience why our Ferris Wheel was named one of  “Los Angeles’ Most Romantic Locations” – Westways Magazine & AOL Digital Los Angeles. The lighting display ends at midnight, so make sure to begin or end this wonderfully romantic evening with that special someone at the Ferris Wheel, and take a picture to capture the memory.

Hugging you with all 8 tentacles,

 

 

Inkie’s Images Contest 2012

Submit your best photo of Pacific Park by posting it on our wall. All photos will be compiled into an Inkie’s Images Contest Gallery on our Facebook Fan page at www.facebook.com/pacificpark and voted on by you and your friends. Whichever photo receives the most likes and comments will win Wristbands for a Family of Four.

We will also be featuring your photo on Inkie’s Ink!

Competition ends March 1st and the winner will be announced March 2nd. Get creative and have fun. Contest begins…NOW!

Good Luck,

Santa Monica Aquarium Free Admission Sundays!!!

In this economy, nothing is better than free! And all February, the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium will be FREE ADMISSION SUNDAYS! What better time to get out of the house with the family and explore what the Santa Monica Pier Aquarium has to offer.

To make it the best family outing ever, come check us out at the end of the Pier, where many rides, games and food await you.

 

“Performers from OVO from Cirque du Soleil, the new touring show about the world of insects currently performing under its blue and yellow Grand Chapiteau (Big Top) at the Santa Monica Pier, visited Heal the Bay’s Santa Monica Pier Aquarium February 1st to kick off a month of free Sundays at the Aquarium.

OVO is the internationally known circus’ ode to the insect and three of those characters – the red spider, the cricket and the flea – paid a visit to observe the live animals in the Aquarium’s tide pool touch tanks, posing for photos both inside the marine science center and with the marine-themed mural outside as a backdrop.

As partners in promoting community education, the Aquarium and Cirque du Soleil invite the public to visit the Aquarium for free any Sunday in February. In addition, Cirque du Soleil, as a part of its commitment to community involvement, will sponsor five field trip education programs, including bus transportation, to the Aquarium during the run of the show. For many, the field trip to the Aquarium marks the students’ first experience with the beach environment and their first opportunity to observe marine life up close.

While OVO is described as “immersion into the teeming world of insects,” Aquarium visitors will be immersed in the underwater world, gaining knowledge about the creatures of the Santa Monica Bay through hands-on, interactive exhibits of more than 100 species native to the Bay. The free Sundays will in particular celebrate crustaceans – the ocean’s counterpart to insects on land – and as always, strive to inspire environmental stewardship for the benefit of all marine life.

In addition to the variety of crustaceans on exhibit, touch tanks at the Aquarium offer an opportunity to get up close and personal with sea stars, anemones, sea cucumbers and urchins. Moray eels, octopus, sharks, rays and a diverse number of fish species – all from the Santa Monica Bay – are displayed in habitat-specific exhibits.  Moon jellies – some as large as dinner plates – mesmerize as well as educate. The Aquarium has its own nursery to raise these majestic oceanic drifters.

The Aquarium is located beach level, beneath the Santa Monica Pier, at 1600 Ocean Front Walk. More information is available at www.healthebay.org/smpa.”