Educational, Fun Maple Sugar Adventures BY carrie wattu Treat your children to an educational day full of all-natural sweetness at one of the following Massachusetts maple events. For more information on sugar houses and pancake breakfasts, call 413-628-3912 or visit www.massmaple.org. blackstone valley sugaring association It is maple month in Massachusetts, and our calendar is boiling over with information on where your family can take a sweet tour or enjoy a pancake breakfast. Also visit www.massmaple.org for more maple-sugaring fun. Saturday, March 8 Maple Magic Pancake Breakfast. Natick Community Organic Farm at Memorial School Cafeteria, 107 Eliot St., (next to the farm). Breakfast: 8 - 11 a.m. Tours: 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. Plus, music, raffle, hands-on demonstrations, hot soup and warm bread. Just drop-in. Breakfast: A $8, C (3-6) $4. Tours: $5pp, Under 3 free. 508-655-2204. www.natickfarm.org. Pancakes at the Farm. Overlook Farm, 216 Wachusett St., Rutland. 9 a.m. - 1 p.m. Observe the maple sugaring operation, tour the farm, and enjoy a hearty pancake breakfast with maple syrup and pork sausage. A$5, C 10 and under $3, C under 3 free. Reservations required: 508-886-2221. www.heifer.org. Also March 8, 15, & 29. Sunday, March 9 Maple Harvest Day. Storrowtown Village, West Springfield. noon - 4 p.m. Focuses on the history and folklore of maple sugar making in New England. Demonstrations of tree tapping, sumac spile making, and sap boiling; fireplace cooking, basket weaving, and wool spinning demonstrations inside. Free. 413-205-5051. www.thebige.com Saturday, March 29 Sweet! History Workshop. Historic Deerfield. 12 - 4 p.m. During this maple sugar season, learn the history and science behind three favorite sweeteners: maple syrup, sugar, and honey. Watch open hearth cooks prepare a variety of dishes with these sweeteners. Understand the science of sugaring and participate in a maple syrup tasting. Learn all about how and why bees produce honey. Make a recipe book and honey-scented candle to take home. Sample syrup, honey, and sugar and cast your vote, which is sweetest? Included with general admission: A $14, Y (6-21) $5, Under 6, free. 413-775-7175 or www.historic-deerfield.org. Sugaring Off. Land's Sake Sugar Shack, Rte. 30, Weston. 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. Celebrate the craft of maple sugaring with food, music, and displays. 781-893-1162. www.landssake.org. Ongoing Events Throughout March Maple Sugaring Days in the Blackstone Valley. The whole family can learn how to tap a tree, see how sap is boiled in evaporators and then enjoy samples of this delicious natural treat. Groups of eight or more are urged to make reservations by calling 508-278-5274 or via their Web site www.blackstonevalleysugaring.org. Daily Pancake Breakfasts, Tours, and Animals. North Hadley Sugar Shack, 181 River Dr., Hadley. 413-585-8820. www.northhadleysugarshack.com. Sturbridge Area Maple Days. Pancake breakfasts, maple gathering dinners, theatre specials, a crafters marketplace, and sugaring tours at local sugarhouses. www.sturbridge.org. 508-347-2761. Maple Sugaring Tours. Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary, Topsfield. Sat. & Sun.: March 1, 2, 8, & 9 and 15 & 16. 10 a.m.; 12:30 p.m. & 2:30 p.m. No 10 a.m. tour on March 16. Tour the sugar bush and identify sugar maples. Observe tapping and sugar collection methods. Discover how sap becomes syrup in the sugarhouse. Taste the final product. Rain or shine. Tours last one hour. Advance registration req. A $8.50, C $7.50, C under 3 free. www.massaudubon.org/ipswichriver. Maple Sugar Days Weekend at River Bend Farm, 287 Oak Street, Uxbridge. March 1, 2, 8, 9, 15, & 16. Open for groups at 9:30 a.m.; to the public at 11 a.m. www.blackstonevalleysugaring.org.   Please e-mail your August listings and photos to calendar@baystateparent.com by Monday, July 7th at 6 p.m. The deadline for September calendar listings is Thursday, Aug. 7th at 6 p.m. For bonus calendar listings that missed our print edition, please visit the magazine's BLOG at http://baystateparent.blogspot.com/ and click on "bonus calendar listings link," found on the right side of the page.