Autumn Sea Fair at Cabrillo Museum

The folks at Cabrillo Marine Museum, 3720 Stephen White Drive, San Pedro, are taking the theme of today’s Autumn Sea Fair quite seriously.

A marine-themed kite-flying contest will take place in front of the museum at 2 p.m.; food vendors will sell fish sandwiches, and the entertainment will feature sea chanteys.

This second annual daylong event is being held inside and outside the museum and down to the sea. Teams of sand sculptors will spend the morning creating entries for the 1:30 p.m. judging.

Kids can have their faces painted, walk through a man-made kelp forest that hangs in a corner of the museum courtyard and look for buried treasure. Giant marine-animal origami will be on display, and ongoing demonstrations will teach visitors how to make paper fish. Other demonstrations include scrimshaw, “fish printing” and making ships in bottles.

Geoff Agisim will stroll the fair grounds from 10 a.m. to noon singing sea chanteys. Picnics are permitted on the beach. The day ends with a display of fireworks on the beach at 4:15 p.m. Regular museum displays will be open. Admission is free, but parking is $4 and carnival games are 25 cents each. Fair hours are 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Information: (213) 548-7562.

SPECIAL EVENTS

The L.A. Moving Van and Puppet Company will perform “Armando and His Dream of the Aztecs” in English and Spanish at 1 p.m. today at the Westside Children’s Museum, 1302 11th St., Santa Monica. The company has a rather unorthodox approach: Featuring puppets made largely of “found objects,” the puppeteers dress in black and work both behind and in front of the stage. Tickets are $5 for adults, $2 for children 12 and under. At 2:15 p.m., kids can participate in a mask-making or puppet-making workshop. A $5 fee covers supplies. The show and workshops are suitable for ages 3-12. Information: (213) 451-5524.

Kids will learn that there’s more to bears than a favorite teddy at the Whale’s Tales program at 3:15 p.m. Sunday at the Ralph M. Parsons Discovery Center of the Natural History Museum, 900 Exposition Blvd., Los Angeles. “The Bear Facts” will feature Chris Nagano, the museum’s naturalist, who will discuss types of bears--from the polar bear to the spectacled bear--their habits and threats to their existence. Three taxidermied bears are displayed in the Discovery Center. The program, which begins as the center officially closes for the day, is free with museum admission: $3 for adults; $1.50 for students with ID and seniors 62 and older; 75 cents for children 12 and younger. Information: (213) 744-3335.

The Garden Grove Symphony’s program tonight should appeal to adults and children. “Legends of Music” features KFAC radio personality Rich Capparela narrating Wolfgang Soering’s “Rumpelstiltskin,” and a performance of Rossini’s “William Tell Overture” and “In the Hall of the Mountain King” from Grieg’s “Peer Gynt Suite.” The concert by the 85-member symphony begins at 8 p.m. at Don Wash Auditorium, 11271 Stanford Ave., Garden Grove. Tickets are $10, $15 and $25; students with ID and children 18 and under, $7. Get tickets at the door or call for reservations: (714) 534-1103.

OUTDOORS

Sunday evening’s full-moon hike at Franklin Canyon Ranch, 1936 Lake Drive, north of Beverly Hills, is at 6 p.m., when kids are still wide awake and chipper. The 2-hour walk will begin at the ranch house and head for the ridge for a view of the surrounding city. Bring sweaters and walking shoes. Rain or cloud cover cancels. Early arrivals may picnic on the ranch’s broad lawn. Information: (213) 858-3834.

Send items at least two weeks before event (Saturday and Sunday events only) to Family Spots, View section, Los Angeles Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles 90053. Phone calls will not be accepted. All items must include date, time, exact address, phone and ticket prices.