Free Oklahoma Family Fun Events This Week: Part 3
It can be hard to find the motivation to get out and do something in the winter, especially as a family. Luckily, we are here to help! There are plenty of family fun events happening all throughout the state to give you and your family some fun family time.
Every Friday for the month of January, ONIE will be highlighting different family fun events in all regions of the state! Find something nearby or take the long way and make a road trip out of it!
Free Family Fun Events: January 20th – 26th
Central Oklahoma
Jan. 21st: Connection Corner: Sustainable Craft Supply Swap
Location: Norman West
Time: 12:00-4:30 pm
Age Group: All ages
Event Type: Arts, crafts
Make new friends while swapping supplies from your craft stash. Connect with fellow creatives and makers while finding the pieces for your newest project! Designed for all ages.
Join us as we come together to swap materials and meet people who share similar interests. Discover new techniques and perspectives as we meet with others to learn about their experiences while sharing your own.
Please bring any gently used art and craft materials that you are ready to part with! There is no limit to the amount of craft supplies you can bring, and donating items is not necessary to take materials home. This event is focused on providing a sustainable way to share art and craft supplies with other creatives who would love to give your supplies a new life!
Jan. 25th: YMCA FitCrew Free Demo Class
Location: Scissortail Park
Time: 12:00pm-1:00 pm
Age Group: All ages
Event Type: Physical activity
Small group personal training. This four-week variable-intensity interval training (VIIT) program is led by a certified personal trainer. Participants will get a complete workout by rotating through high-, medium- and low-intensity phases each class. Whether their goal is to lose a few pounds or improve posture and balance, there’s a place for everyone in FitCrew.
Northeast Oklahoma
Jan. 23rd: Free Tai Chi Class
Location: Miami Public Library – 200 N Main St. Miami, OK
Time: 1:00 pm- 2:00pm
Age Group: All ages
Event Type: Physical activity
Join us for 16 Form Tai Chi with Instructor Rick Pulley!
This program is part of our Health Literacy Grant funded by The Oklahoma Department of Libraries and the Institute of Museum and Library Services
Jan. 26th: G.R.O.W. Mobile Library (Gather and Read on Wheels)
Location: Williams Lodge at the Gathering Place – 2650 S John Williams Way E
Tulsa, OK 74114
Time: 9:30 am – 11:30 am
Age Group: All ages
Event Type: Reading/Fine arts
Gather and read with GROW (Gather and Read on Wheels) Mobile Library in partnership with Tulsa City-County Library! The GROW Mobile Library gives Gathering Place guests the opportunity to browse through hundreds of books and read together in the Park, or use their TCCL cards to check out books and take them home to read. Be on the lookout for the GROW Mobile Library near Williams Lodge every Thursday from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Southeast Oklahoma
Jan. 21st: Eagle Tour & Loon Watch
Location: Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge & Tenkiller State Park
Vian, OK 74962
Time: 9:00 am at Sequoyah Wildlife Refuge & 2:00 pm at the Driftwood Nature Center
Age Group: All ages
Event Type: Outdoors, nature
Come to the Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge and see southern bald eagles in their natural habitat. Guests will begin the tour by watching eagles from the refuge’s webcam before taking off on the caravan tour in their own vehicle. Don’t forget those binoculars as stops will be made at two nesting sites as well as other points of interest where eagles frequently appear. Two spotting scopes will be provided for a close-up look at these incredible birds.
After spending the morning at the refuge, take a break and have a leisurely lunch in Vian. Then, make your way to Tenkiller State Park’s Driftwood Nature Center to continue your bird-watching adventure with more eagles and lots of loons, including the common loon, the red-throated loon, the pacific loon and the yellow-billed loon. Come out and catch sight of this famed winter migrant of the northeast and beyond. Tours will occur unless there is a travel advisory for the area.
Tuesday – Sunday: Museum of the Red River
Location: The Museum is located at 812 E. Lincoln Rd, on the South Highway 70/259 Bypass, in Idabel, Oklahoma
Time: Tues – Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 10am-3pm, Closed Mondays & National Holidays
Age Group: All ages
Event Type: Museums, History
A surprising gem of southeast Oklahoma, the Museum of the Red River in Idabel not only offers visitors free admission, but also an up-close-and-personal view of the museum’s reconstructed Acrocanthosaurus atokensis dinosaur, excavated only 12 miles from the museum. Escape the winter cold on a trip through the scenic southeast region by heading indoors for archaeological collections, American Indian artifacts and ethnographic art at this fascinating museum
Monday-Friday: Atoka Museum, Civil War Cemetery & Visitors Center
Location: 2902 US-69, Atoka, OK 74525
Time: 9:00am – 4:00pm
Age Group: All ages
Event Type: History, Museums
Back in 1959, the cemetery on the grounds of the Atoka Museum was declared the state’s first official Civil War Confederate cemetery – and today, you can visit it on your next family day out in Oklahoma, for a chance to really immerse yourselves in the rich history of the region.
Today, you can explore the cemetery, the museum, and a Visitor Center, bringing to life a piece of Oklahoma’s history which dramatically altered the course of its future.
Throughout the museum you have a unique look into the varied history of southeastern Oklahoma, from pre-historic bones, the Choctaw Trail of Tears and a stop on the Butterfield Stage Line, to homegrown talents like Reba McEntire, and the late legendary bull rider Lane Frost!
The exhibits feature actual historic artifacts, as well as re-created displays of what life would have been like during certain moments in history.
Western Oklahoma
Jan. 24th: Early Reader’s Academy – Big Adventures
Location: Lawton Public Library- 110 SW 4th St, Lawton, OK
Time: 10:00 am – 10:30 am on Tuesdays, January 17, 24, 31
Age group: Ages 3 – 6 & Caregivers
Event Type: Games, music
Adventures in early literacy through fingerplays, rhymes, stories, songs, & music. Thirty minutes of singing, talking, reading & moving.
Jan. 26th:Sit, Stay, Read: Literacy Dogs!
Location: Lawton Public Library- 110 SW 4th St, Lawton, OK
Time: 5:00pm-5:45pm
Age group: Ages 5+
Event Type: Reading, literacy
Read to a dog! 15-minute sessions will be available to each child to help boost their reading skills. Bring a book of your own or borrow one of ours. Co-sponsored with local Paws with Love volunteers.
