Wawa Welcome America Festival Offers Free Events for Children of All Ages

Parents looking to entertain their children during this holiday week can help their children learn, listen, perform and dance for free and virtually this week.

There is fun to be had for children of all ages during the weeklong Wawa Welcome America Festival.

Check out all these great (and free) virtual tours of museums to start. On Monday, the Music Play Patrol got the festival musical with a bucket drumming session. And there was a virtual tour of the Philadelphia Zoo, including a chat with the zookeepers.

The Philadelphia Zoo has found ways to continue to serve the area with virtual offerings when they were forced to closed during the pandemic. Philly Live's Aunyea Lachelle gets a look at those virtual offerings and a look at what visitors can expect when they're able to visit in person again.

Wawa Welcome America is all virtual this year as the Philadelphia region celebrates Independence Day. On Monday morning some fun was being drummed up with Music, Play, Patrol. Check out the rest of the great events.

There are so many more family-friendly events as part of Wawa Welcome America

Here is a pick for each day of the festival:

Tuesday: PECO Go 4th & Learn: Fitness & Fun in Partnership With Penn Athletics and Penn Sports Medicine

It’s time to get active as Penn Athletics coaches and staff get the whole family moving with fun interactive fitness and sports activities. Relive the fitness advice right now.

Wednesday: Music Play Patrol: Playing Pots and Pans

Make sure you tune in from the comfort of your kitchen for this one as the Music Play Patrol brings sound to just about anything. From straws to teapots to pots and pans, children will learn how to play music with everyday kitchen items.

Thursday: PECO Go 4th & Learn: The Wawa Dairy and the Story of Milk

This is a story about how Wawa came to be. Now with 900 stores spread throughout six states and Washington, D.C., Wawa wasn't always known for its Shortis, gas, coffee and soft pretzels. Philadelphia Textile Merchant, George Wood, founded Wawa Dairy Farms way back in 1902. Learn more about Wawa's history.

Friday (7 p.m.): Philly POPS on Independence

Let the kids stay up a little late (It is the weekend, after all) and appreciate some patriotic music care of the Philadelphia POPS. Music director and principal conductor David Charles Abell is making his POPS' debut with special guests including Philadelphia native and Broadway star Allison Blackwell, renowned trumpeter and POPS artistic director for jazz Terell Stafford and POPS fan favorite Michael Cavanaugh. The concert will also feature the newly commissioned, “Fanfare for the Essential Workers.”

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Saturday (3 p.m.): Pennsylvania Lottery Groove Stage

Before the main event featuring pop star Jason Derulo and award-winning singer and actress Cynthia Erivo, fire up the backyard grill and turn up the speakers for an afternoon groove. Radio One’s Mina SayWhat of 100.3 RnB hosts the two-hour jam featuring performances from Zeek Burse, Swing That Cat, De Tierra Caliente, Max Swan, Christine Havrilla, Jada Fête, Laura Lizcano and QuentinThePoet.

Happy July 4th. Stay safe out there.