KIDS GREEN THUMBS. Applications are being accepted for the Pima County Extension Center's annual Kids and Plants Grow program. Young gardeners grades 4 through 8 learn through hands-on activities like planing a garden plot, making a terrarium, rooting plants from cuttings and more. Classes run from 8 to 11:30 a.m. during two weekly sessions beginning on either July 15 or July 22. Call Francine at 628-5628 for information. MYTHS, MASKS AND MUSIC. Tohono Chul Park. 7366 N. Paseo del Norte. 742-6455. Children who've completed grades 3, 4 and 5 can create their own stories and make them come alive with a storytelling festival at the end of this week-long program. There will also be drum and rattle making, and traditional Native American dancing. Program runs from 8 to 11 a.m. July 15 through 18. Cost is $60, $45 for TCP members. Call 742-6455 for registration and information. CABLE COMIC. Learn the secrets to making your comic book characters come alive with cartoonist Jacob Bristol at 10 p.m. Friday, July 5, on channel 63. The show airs every Friday, with a new theme each month. EXPRESS YOURSELF. Artexpress. 601 E. Sixth St. 791-2995. Turn scraps into art. Just stop in during store hours and go to it. There are new projects every two weeks, geared towards kids ages 4 to 12. Cost is $3. STAR STRUCK. Flandrau Science Center. UA Campus. 621-STAR. Watch as our Solar System comes alive with a host of endangered animal friends guiding the way in Our Place In Space at 10 a.m. Monday through Friday. Continuing through August 9, this show introduces kids ages 8 and under to the magic of our universe. Children ages 9 to 11 learn what makes up our Solar System in The Friendly Stars, screening at 11 a.m. Monday through Friday. Tickets are $3 for either show. Call 621-STAR for information. READY TO READ. The Tucson-Pima Public Libraries have put together two reading programs: Go for the Gold-Read! for young children; and Teens Read: Picture This, for kids grades 7 to 12. Both programs encourage reading and library skills over the summer months and offer some cool incentives like Toros tickets, passes to Skate Country, sports trading cards and more. Sign up at any TPPL branch library, or call 791-3213 for registration and information. BIG, BIG BUGS. See an 11-foot locust spread its 22-foot wings, or a 19-foot praying mantis sit up and look for food. This isn't science fiction, it's the Tucson Children's Museum exhibit Big, Big Bugs, on display during regular mall hours through September 2 at Park Mall, 5870 E. Broadway. Admission is $3, with discounts for groups with a reservation. DESERT MUSEUM SUMMER PROGRAMS. The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum offers a number of workshops and activities for children and families throughout the summer. Programs include learning about the stars, a family saguaro harvest and camp-out, desert ecology, and the animals of our region. Register now. Call 883-3018 for information. Parents' Corner COMPUTER LESSONS. Free basic computer instruction is available for children and adults in low-income families at 5 p.m. Sundays. There are 12 computers available for these ongoing classes. Call 889-4876 for registration and information. STUDENT EXCHANGE. Share your home and culture with a foreign exchange student. The American Intercultural Student Exchange, a non-profit educational foundation, is seeking host families for the 1996-97 school year. Call 1-800-742-5464 for information. VOLUNTEERS NEEDED. Do you love spending time with babies? Share your knowledge, support and friendship with a new mom. Grandparents Adopted for Parental Support (G.A.P.S.) needs volunteers. Younger women welcome. Call 293-4620 for information. VOLUNTEERS NEEDED. Children to Children, a non-profit grief support center for children and their families, seeks volunteers to train as support group facilitators. Call 322-9155 for information. THE PARENT CONNECTION. The Parent Connection, 5326 E. Pima St., provides families with educational and support services. The parent/child program allows parents to play together while encouraging the overall development of the child. Learn how to better set limits and nurture young children. Facilities include a library and indoor/outdoor play area, as well as a family-friendly referral index to community resources. Classes, lecture series and support groups for moms and dads are also available. Call 321-1500 for information.

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