Happy Holidays!

Zoo-Mates mentors and mentees were able to celebrate the holidays and a successful first quarter on Wednesday at UC. Friends from Fidelity Investments organized games, pizza, music and some original gifts!

Eating some pizza!

Playing the piano.

A big thank you to Ricky Nye who came and played beautiful holiday music.

Some games and activities.

A hula hoop pro.

Fidelity organized holiday gifts for Zoo-Mates. Everyone got a different hoodie and some warm weather gear to go along with it!

Everyone looked great in their new hoodies and jackets!

A final group picture.

A big thanks to Fidelity Investments and Ricky Nye for a great holiday party! Zoo-Mates will take a break until January. See you then!

A crafty day

Mentors and mentees met at Hays/Porter Elementary school and had a very crafty day! They made holiday ornaments and picture frames. Happen, Inc. brought clay and paint to make wild snakes!

Working together.

Thank you Happen, Inc!

Making holiday frames.

Next week is the Zoo-Mates Holiday party at University of Cincinnati, with Fidelity Investments.

Adventure at the Cincinnati Zoo

Zoo-Mates mentors and mentees met on another rainy Wednesday, but this time the activities were inside!

Everyone watched The Polar Bear Express in 4-D. With 3-D glasses and seats that moved, Zoo-Mates felt like they were riding on a train. After the movie, Lucy, from the Cincinnati Zoo, made hot chocolate!

On the walk to and from the movie, mentors and mentees saw polar bears and a female lion.

Then the zoo brought out a Japanese Bantam chicken named "Foghorn". Lucy laid out three types of food for foghorn: pellets, mealworms and corn. Everyone voted on what type of food they thought Foghorn would eat first. He ate mealworms before anything else.

Walking through the zoo to see The Polar Bear Express in 4-D.

Getting ready for the movie.

Cool 3-D glasses.

A Japanese Bantam chicken.

Next week, Zoo-Mates will be at Hays/Porter Elementary with Happen, Inc.

It's all UC

Mentors and mentees met at the University of Cincinnati this Wednesday. Together, they were able to explore the campus and learn a little bit more about each other. Not even the rain could stop us!

Mentors and mentees begin their tour with the UC Office of Admissions.


Our tour guides were former Zoo-Mates!




"Who likes to swim?" Our tour guides told us about UC's swimming pool.


We even saw Nippert Staduim, UC's football stadium.



Football practice.

Mentees made "All About Me" books with their mentors.

Thank you to UC's Office of Admissions for a wonderful tour. We will take a break from Zoo-Mates next week for Thanksgiving. See you in December!

Art and energy

Zoo-Mates celebrated our first regular meeting at Hays/Porter Elementary with two very special activities. Happen, Inc. came and presented a special art activity. Happen, Inc. will come to Hays/Porter once a month for Zoo-Mates. Project Connect also arranged for a moon bounce to be set up behind the school.

Happen, Inc. taught us how to make monkeys out of clay, step by step.


Mentors and mentees worked to make great works of art!






Thanks Happen, Inc. We'll see you again next month!


The moon bounce was a chance to jump around and practice some acrobatics.


Waiting for the moon bounce.


There was even time to play on the playground.

It was a good day! We'll see you next week at the University of Cincinnati!

Exploring the Zoo

Wendesday was the first day that mentors and mentees were free to explore the Cincinnati Zoo. Groups took full advantage of their time at the Zoo by observing lots of different animals!

Zoo-bration

Zoo-bration, the open house for families and mentors, was held at the Cincinnati Zoo on Wednesday evening! We got to meet lots of Zoo animals, including the giraffes, and ate a delicious meal provided by City Barbeque.

The education department from the Cincinnati Zoo brought lots of animals for us to see and learn about.

We meet an Anatolian Shepherd, a dog that guards sheep to keep them safe from cheetahs in Africa.

Mentors and mentees learned about a bearded dragon.



Project Connect made placemats with games and questions.

Next Wednesday we will be at the Cincinnati Zoo again. Mentors and mentees will be using the Zoo's "Wild Research Packs" to investigate animal behavior.

Meeting & Greeting

Mentors and mentees met for the first time today at Hays/Porter Elementary school. The annual Zoo-Mates Meet & Greet had games, snacks and a lot of smiles!

We did a scavenger hunt to get to know each other.



Snack time!







We played some board games in the school gymnasium!

Thanks for a fun day, Zoo-Mates!