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Letterland at Tweetsie Railroad Brings Learning to Life; Theme Park Hosts Sixth Annual Letterland Event

Lyn Wendon

May 13, 2012. BLOWING ROCK — See the alphabet come to life on May 16 and 17 when Tweetsie Railroad transforms into the magical world of Letterland. Tweetsie and the popular reading program have teamed up for the past six years to celebrate students’ learning achievements and provide a fun, educational event for all ages.

Visitors to Tweetsie will have the chance to meet some of Letterland’s favorite characters including Clever Cat, Yellow Yo-Yo Man, Eddy Elephant, Harry Hat Man, Kicking King and Red Robot, just to name a few. In addition, guests can ride on Firefighter Fred’s Ferris Wheel, Talking Tess’s Train, explore Zig Zag Zebra’s Zoo and much more.

Also, the author and originator of Letterland, Lyn Wendon and her son, Letterland Managing Director Mark Wendon, will be coming in all the way from England to greet visitors and join the fun at Tweetsie on May 16 and 17.

While Tweetsie Railroad is known for its Wild West adventure and steam locomotives, Letterland is known for its child-friendly multi-sensory approach phonics program.  Letterland has been successful in raising literacy standards among children in North Carolina and around the world. For the past six years, Tweetsie Railroad’s Letterland Days have served as both a reward and celebration of North Carolina children’s literary achievements.

Local reading specialist Kathy Oliver brought the Letterland vision to life at Tweetsie in 2007, and Tweetsie continues help that vision come true more than five years later.  

As part of the park’s continuing education efforts, Tweetsie visitors can experience the Learning Express, which will be offered every Friday starting until May 25 and every Friday after Labor Day through October 26. The Learning Express provides a full day of fun at Tweetsie Railroad including a ride on the Learning Express Train, which pulls out of Main Street several times daily. This ride presents a unique opportunity for teachers and parents to make history, math and science memorable, exciting and fun. In addition, Tweetsie offers curriculum guides for parents and teachers at Tweetsie.com.

Tweetsie Railroad is open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, including Memorial Day Monday, and seven days a week from June 1 through August 19. The park returns to the weekend schedule from August 24 through October 28, including Labor Day Monday. The 2012 season ends Sunday, October 28. The park’s regular hours are 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., but will be open until 9:00 p.m. on July 4 and July 7, 14, 21 and 28 for Cool Summer Nights. In addition, the park will be open at 8:00 a.m. both Saturdays (June 2 and 9) for the popular Day Out With Thomas event. The Ghost Train Halloween Festival will take place Friday and Saturday nights September 28 through October 27 from 7:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m., and price of admission is $28 for adults and children, with children 2 and under admitted free. Daily admission to Tweetsie Railroad is $35 for adults and $22 for children ages 3 through 12. Children 2 and under are admitted free. Print at home tickets and Golden Rail Season Passes are available at Tweetsie.com.

Tweetsie Railroad is located in the Blue Ridge Mountains on U.S. Highway 321 between Boone and Blowing Rock, North Carolina. For more information about the 2012 season at Tweetsie Railroad, visit Tweetsie.com or call 877-TWEETSIE (877-893-3874). Find Tweetsie on Facebook or follow Tweetsie on Twitter @TweetsieRR.