Balloons and the sounds of children filled the air early Saturday morning, as the Tufts campus played host to the 2005 Kids' Day fair for Medford and Somerville children.
The fair, which takes place annually, drew hundreds of boys and girls in kindergarten through 6th grade to the various activities on the Hill.
"[The fair] was a great success," said Somerville resident Carolyn Richard as she stood in line for the inflatable jungle gym with her four-year-old daughter.
Activities were located all around campus and included two shows, a carnival and a number of activity booths organized by both student groups and non-Tufts organizations.
Many of the standard carnival attractions were present, including the inflatable "Fun House" and several amusement park rides located on Fletcher field. Other big draws included the Traveling Treasure Trunk show in the Carmichael Hall lounge and activity booths for face painting and a variety of other arts and crafts on the Residential Quad.
Senior Elizabeth Siteman, who helped run the Programming Board's potato-sack race, said, "[The fair] is a nice tradition because it gives back to the local community and provides a place for children to play safely."
The fair began at 8:30 a.m. as the children were dropped off and assigned by age to Tufts students serving as group leaders, who showed them around campus into the afternoon.
Many student volunteers said that there were relatively low numbers of parents on campus throughout the day, as children were left in the volunteers' hands. According to sophomore Yuya Morimoto, who led a group of eight second graders, a few parents were clingy at times, but for the most part they put their faith in the volunteers.
"[The day was] fun for everyone, but could be important as an educational tool for the children as well," Siteman said.
Several activities did try to create a fun yet educational experience. One popular event was the "Chemistry Show" held in Pearson, which demonstrated the fun side of chemistry. The show filled Pearson's large lecture hall.
"The kids seemed to love [the show and] were really active," junior Tara Cocchiarella said. The different experiments included freezing a flower with liquid nitrogen and creating grape juice from water.
Shape-up Somerville, a group of volunteers working through the University's Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, set up a similar event during the day. The volunteers showed children the importance of healthy eating and exercise and sent them home with daily fruit and vegetable intake charts so they can track their own progress.
