Family Fun Planner: Catch a tune, learn about how wheat gets from field to table

MUSIC / TEN PENNY TUNES

April 10: Ten Penny Tunes, the musical duo of Bill Lee and Datta Hartman, performs toe-tapping folk music using an assortment of instruments such as accordion, saxophone, clarinet and penny whistle. 11:15 a.m.; Central Library, 90 W. Fourth St., St. Paul; free; 651- 266-7034 or stpaul.lib.mn.us.

EVENT / STORY TIME

April 10: Minneapolis once supplied a quarter of the nation's flour. Learn how those early millers did it at the Mill City Museum story time. Museum staff will show how wheat goes from field to table with songs and books, such as "The Little Red Hen." Families can grind wheat into flour and taste freshly baked bread. After the 30-minute program, leave time to explore all the hands-on exhibits, including the water lab room where kids can manipulate a model of the Minneapolis milling district, build dams and divert water to run mini water wheels. 11:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.; Mill City Museum, 704 South Second St., Mpls.; $10-$5 (free ages 5 and under); 612-341-7555 or millcitymuseum.org.

MUSICAL / FIDGETY FAIRY TALES 2

April 13: This unusual new work for all ages is a sequel to the 2008 "Fidgety Fairy Tales — The Mental Health Musical" and, like it, the show tackles stigmas and stereotypes

head on, turning the kids who struggle with mental illness into heroes rather than villains or victims. The child and teen actors are co-directed by writer Matt Jenson and composer and lyricist Marya Hart, with puppetry by Chris Griffith and Z Puppets Rosenschnoz. 6:30 p.m.; St. Paul Jewish Community Center, 1375 St. Paul Ave., St. Paul; free; fidgety@macmh.org or 651-268-1238.

MUSIC / SING, PLAY, LEARN!

April 6: Babies and toddlers love rhythm and rhyme, and that's what they get in this early childhood music session led by instructors from the MacPhail Center for Music. Adults with children through age 5 are invited to sing and move. 10:30 a.m.; Rice Street Library, 1011 Rice Street, St. Paul; free; registration 651-558-2223; stpaul.lib.mn.us.

ANIMALS / FARM BABIES AT MINNESOTA ZOO

Through April 30: A new crop of chicks, piglets, lambs, calves, goat kids, bunnies and ducklings have arrived at the Wells Fargo Family Farm, a cluster of bright red, fully-working farm buildings in the zoo's northwest corner. Children can get close to the animals and learn how modern farms run. 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; Minnesota Zoo, 13000 Zoo Blvd., Apple Valley; $13-$7 (parking $5). 952-431-9500 or mnzoo.org.

NATURE / SPRING FLOWER SHOW

Through May 2: The annual spring flower show at the Marjorie McNeely Conservatory features thousands of daffodils, tulips and hyacinth, along with snapdragons, iris, pansies, violas and hydrangea, all nestled along the stone pathways and pools of the sunken garden. Activities include gardener talks, story times, games and crafts. 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Como Park Zoo & Conservatory, 1225 Estabrook Dr., St Paul; free; 651-487-8272 or comozooconservatory.org.

EXHIBIT / DINOSAURS: LAND OF FIRE AND ICE

Through May: Staff at the Minnesota Children's Museum used up-to-date research to design an interactive exhibit where kids can explore two distinct climates — the land of fire and the land of ice. Kids can walk through a bog, meet the animatronic T-Rex, climb icy steps and pretend to be a paleontologist by uncovering fossils with brushes. 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Minnesota Children's Museum, 10 W. Seventh St., St. Paul; $7.95; 651-225-6000 or mcm.org.

HISTORY EXHIBIT / MINNESOTA'S GREATEST GENERATION

Ongoing: The Minnesota History Center exhibit uses recorded interviews, photographs, film footage and hundreds of artifacts to document the experiences of an entire generation, from childhood in the 1920s through World War II and into the present. 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Tuesday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Wednesday-Saturday, noon-5 p.m. Sunday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday; Minnesota History Center, 345 W. Kellogg Blvd., St. Paul; $10 adults, $8 seniors and college students, $5 children ages 6-17, free for children ages 5 and younger. 651-259-3000 or mnhs.org.

FILM / FREE FAMILY FLICKS

Ongoing: The Theatres at Mall of America shows free family flicks every Saturday at 10 a.m. Arrive early to get a seat. See theatresmoa.com to find out what's showing.

NATURE / BIRDING

Ongoing: See songbirds up close and watch experts band birds as part of an ongoing effort to help scientists learn more about bird migrations and habits. All ages welcome. Carpenter Nature Center has been capturing, banding and releasing birds for 26 years. 9 a.m.-noon every fourth Friday of the month, Carpenter St. Croix Valley Nature Center, 12805 St. Croix Trail, Hastings; free; please call ahead to let them know you're coming; 651-437-4359 or CarpenterNatureCenter.org.