The Alphabet Forest at the Minnesota State Fair

The Alphabet Forest is an absolute must see attraction at the Minnesota State Fair! Laidback and fun, this exhibit is perfect fun for the whole family.

Debra Frasier, author of nine children’s picture books, is proud to be from Minnesota. She loves the State Fair, too!  She wrote and illustrated an alphabet book based on her trips to the Minnesota State Fair — A Fabulous Fair Alphabet. So it seems appropriate that she brought us this annual Minnesota State Fair attraction.

Girl showing her 'OLIVIA" name poster at the Alphabet Forest attraction at the Minnesota State Fair

The Alphabet Forest is open in Baldwin Park (across from the 4-H Building) each day of the fair (August 24 – September 4, 2023) from 10:00 am-8:00 pm.

This is a very laidback activity, and it’s in one of the more shaded spot of the entire fair (hence the “forest” part of the name). Activities for kids in the Alphabet Forest include:

  • Take pictures with Fair Letters. If you do this annually, you can watch your kids grow as they create their name every year.
  • Create alphabet Ferris wheels
  • Add your fair words to the Fair Dictionary
  • Participate in the Fabulous Forest Alphabet Word Game by printing the Fabulous Fair Alphabet Game Card and looking for letters as you stroll the fair.
  • Meet real life authors at the Blue Ribbon Homegrown Author Showcase.
Kids playing in the Alphabet Forest at the Minnesota State Fair
Alphabet Forest

Meet Local Authors at the Alphabet Forest

Each year a line up of Blue Ribbon Homegrown children’s book authors join the Forest to promote literacy, learning and fun. See this year’s schedule below.

Alphabet flags at the Minnesota State Fair Alphabet Forest
The Alphabet Forest

2023 Blue Ribbon Author Schedule

Thursday, August 24, 2023      David La Rochelle, 100 Mighty Dragons All Named Broccoli
Friday, August 25, 2023            Mélina Mangal, Jayden’s Secret Ingredient
Saturday, August 26, 2023       Phuoc Thi Minh Tran, All About Vietnam: Projects and Activities for Kids
Sunday, August 27, 2023          Bao Phi, You Are Life
Monday, August 28, 2023        John Owens, One Summer Up North  
Tuesday, August 29, 2023        Monica Rojas & Emiko Rainbow, Nana and Abuela  
Wednesday, August 30, 2023  Karlyn Coleman and Cori Doerrfeld, The Great Get-Together
Thursday, August 31, 2023      Nancy Bo Flood, I Will Dance
Friday, September 1, 2023       Aimée Bissonette, When Fall Comes
Saturday, September 2, 2023  Magdalena Mora, Tomatoes in My Lunchbox
Sunday, September 3, 2023     Sarah Warren, Everything a Drum
Monday, September 4, 2023    Patricia Bauer and David Geister, Making Minnesota

Collage of kids having fun at the Alphabet Forest attraction at the Minnesota State Fair


More Family Fun at the Great Minnesota Get Together:

202 Minnesota State Fair Guide

43 thoughts on “The Alphabet Forest at the Minnesota State Fair”

  1. Favorite fair memory – just being with my family and having fun walking around the fairgrounds. My mother-in-law lives a few blocks from the main gates, so we are able to spend time at the fair, then go home to rest, then go back to the fair, then go home to rest, etc:) I also really enjoyed watching my son’s reaction the first time he saw the robot guy walking around:)

  2. Best Fair Advice ever received – Bring in a water bottle to refill throughout the day, this way we stay hydrated and save money to be used on all the yummy fair food:)

  3. Favorite fair memory was trying to combat the nausea of being 8 weeks pregnant while not letting up to my parents we were with because we hadn’t announced yet!

  4. The best fair advice for moms with little kids is to visit the nursing/changing room on the north side near the eco building. Tons of fans, chairs, changing tables, diapers, wipes etc!

  5. Best fair advice I ever was given was go to the fair with a group of people and share lots of different types of foods.

  6. My favorite fair memory is going one year while in college with some friends and going on the water bumper cars. We all walked around the rest of the evening with wet bums!

  7. Best advice as parents: take a digital picture of your kids before you go to the fair. Then, if they get lost you will have a current photo of them. Thank goodness we have never had to use the photos.

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