Kids and Families

Kids 15 & Under Receive Free Admission

Hootenanny Hayrides, Saturday 11am-12:30pm & 1:30-4pm

Jump on the tractor wagon and come along with a rotating cast of players on a magical musical hayride across the fields and through the woods. Sing along to the musicians’ lead and keep the bumpity-bumpity rhythm with provided shakers, tambourines and other percussion instruments (or bring your own)! Rides will run every 30 minutes during scheduled hours. Meet on the road beside the Kids Tent

Kids Harmonica with Cary Moskovitz, Saturday 2:30pm

This kid-friendly workshop will teach participants how to work the harmonica and play a simple old-time tune or two. Harmonicas will be provided for first 15 participants. Donations to cover the cost of harmonicas will be accepted but not required. Ages 7-12 only please! Parents are welcome to participate too! Located in the Kids Tent.

. Located in the Kids Tent.

Kids Activities Tent, Saturday 10am – 6pm

Crafts and activities to entertain the young ones — open crafts with interesting mediums, canjo-making workshop and more. The tent will be open 10am – 6pm on Saturday and is located in the field below the dance tent, near the main stage.

Kids’ Clogging Workshop with Tampa Enoch-Reese, Saturday 10:30am

Suggested for ages 5 and up, this workshop provides a basic introduction to clogging, just for kids! Participants will learn fundamental clogging steps through fun, confidence-building exercises. They’ll also have opportunities to express themselves creatively with this energetic dance tradition. Comfortable, closed-toe shoes are recommended. Tampa Enoch is an educator, dancer and musician from Mebane, North Carolina. At an early age, she learned to flatfoot and buck dance from her grandmother, and she carries the tradition forward by teaching percussive dance to children both in her family and in the wider community. Tampa has been a member of Chapel Hill’s Cane Creek Cloggers since 2014 and has worked in public libraries as a youth services librarian for 19 years. In her free time she enjoys playing banjo and sharing about the rich and complex history of the instrument. Located in the Dance Tent.

Songs & Stories with Tim Wells, Saturday 10:15am

Saturday morning at 10:30am in the Kids Tent! Children ages 3 – 5 will love learning new songs, fingerplays, and stories they can re-visit at home. Parents are welcome to join the circle and participate along with their children!

Tim Wells has been an early childhood educator for more than 20 years and has provided children’s music programming with Hoppin’ John and the Grassroots Festival for well over a decade. Located in the Kids Tent.

Family Learning Square Dance, Saturday 5:30pm

Join caller Sarah Owen and the family band rendition of the Hoppin’ Johnnies for this fun activity that everyone can enjoy — kids, parents, aunts, uncles and friends! No prior experience needed — this dance is friendly for all ages and skill levels. The family dance is followed by the ever-popular cake walk…Located in the Dance Tent.

Cake Walk! Saturday 6:15pm

Need we say more? All cakes will be individually pre-wrapped/covered for public health! Located in the Dance Tent.

Make & Play Your Own Can-jo, Saturday 1pm

Join Hoppin’ John veteran Pierre Lauffer, and his friends, in making your own playable, single-stringed instrument. The Can-jo is traditionally made from an old can and oil-rubbed wood…the traditional spam cans are less hardy, so we’ve done our best to find interesting and perfectly-sized ones. At the end of the workshop, you will have a playable instrument — we’ll all play a tune together, then you can take your masterpiece out into the world and jam. Workshop limited to first 20 participants. Materials donations appreciated. Located in the Kids Tent.