Stonehurst: Public Programs

Ongoing Programs
Waltham Public School Programs

Ongoing Programs

Try out our new self-guided tours and quests in the landscape any time!

"Walk Around Stonehurst." Explore connections between nature and architecture on this short outdoor walk around Stonehurst

"Kids' Walk Around Stonehurst." Use visual clues to answer questions about the past.

"Stonehurst Quest of Giants." Have fun trying this family-friendly treasure hunt about the 3 giants of Stonehurst. Pick up clues from the architecture to crack the code that opens the treasure box.

"Stonehurst Nooks and Crannies Quest." Peek into the hidden spaces inside Stonehurst, following the footsteps of the Paine children, George and Lily.

"Stonehurst Quest of Ruins." This treasure hunt goes farther afield into the woods that surround Stonehurst which were once part of the thriving family estate and farm. Discover the history of the land by reading clues from the past.

Waltham Public School Programs

Waltham third-graders playing on Glacier Rock

Because Stonehurst is municipally owned, its relationship with the local public school system is unusually close. School programs are presently offered to all of Waltham's third-grade students and to several Waltham high school classes. Schools from towns outside of Waltham interested in participating in our "Shaped By Nature" program for grades 3-5 may contact Stonehurst at 781-314-3293 for more information about scheduling and tailoring this program to meet specific needs.

"Shaped by Nature" School Program

This school program, designed for grades 3-5 uses historical artifacts, documents and the the city-owned site itself to teach timeless ideas about our relationship to the natural and built environment.

Stonehurst teachers visit each classroom beforehand to introduce students to museum archival practices and the importance of primary source materials in learning about the past. Students are introduced to Lily Paine, the youngest daughter of the Paine family, through hands-on artifacts and Lily's travel journal, which she hand wrote during a trip her family took to Europe and the Middle East in 1890-91. Through Lily's own words, students come to see that Lily was a child who not only admired and respected, but lived in complete harmony with nature.

Lily's father Robert Treat Paine, was a philanthropist and housing reformer. Her family loved the natural world and believed that all living things are shaped by their environment. They hired architect Henry Hobson Richardson and landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted who shared their love of nature to design their country home, an earth-friendly house in Waltham built of boulders taken directly from its hilltop site. Within and without, Stonehurst has strong connections to the earth.

Visiting the estate itself, students look through the lens of history at sundials, life cycles, vernal pools, open space and architecture designed for healthy living, and learn that habitats for humans--like all organisms--provide for their basic needs.

These "old" ideas that are so powerfully expressed at Stonehurst are forward looking even today.

A collaboration between the Waltham Public School System, the Friends of Stonehurst and the City of Waltham, Jeannette A. McCarthy, Mayor.

Waltham third-graders
in the Great Hall at Stonehurst