Is your teen interested in the sciences? Maybe she’s thinking about a career in medicine?

     If so, consider the Lang Youth Medical Program at the Columbia Medical Center. It’s a free opportunity to expose high school students to the science of medicine and aims to inspire teens to achieve their college aspirations through hands-on learning and mentorship.

     It’s open only to students in WaHi who are enrolled in Community School District 6. The program meets on seventeen Saturdays through the year and during the entire month of July. Find out more here.

     The deadline for the next session is in March.

     Whether you’re working on a class assignment, homework, or just want to explore, the public library is the best resource in the neighborhood.  

     Join our tutors and Teen Reading Ambassadors for homework help, reading recommendations, fun writing, STEAM, and enrichment activities—and even snacks.

     For ages 6 to 12. No need to register—just show up.

     Free. Monday afternoon at 2:45 at the Fort Washington branch of the public library, in Fort George on 179th Street between Audubon and St. Nicholas Avenues. On Mondays in March.

     Look, listen, sing, and have fun with storytime at the Met cloisters. The museum and Literacy INC shares tales through picture-book readings in English and Spanish connected to objects in the  Cloisters’ collection.

     Recommended for families with children ages 18 months to 6 years. Participants will receive a free book with onsite registration.

     Space is limited; first come, first served.
     Free with Museum admission; admission is pay as you wish for New York state residents, and free for children under 12 with an adult. Tuesday mornings at 11:30 at the museum in Fort Tryon Park.

     There’s always more to learn, fiction writers!          Join your fellow bibliophiles and build on the skills you’ve already got, digging deeper into the qualities that give the best stories that extra pop.

     Whichever genre of fiction you prefer (historical, fantasy, realistic …) is welcome. The advanced fiction workshop from Uptown Stories focuses on the fine details that will take your writing from good to great: natural, character-driven dialogue; proper pacing; inciting incidents; raising the stakes; plot-twists; and, of course, the art of the satisfying ending. 

     This workshop is for writers who feel familiar with the basics of character, setting, plot, and description, and want to continue to grow. For writers ages 14 to 18.

     Tuesday evenings from 5:30 t0 7:30 at the Cornerstone Center in Hudson Heights, on Bennett Avenue at 189th Street. No meeting on April 7. Through May 19.

     Get creative with building toys like Legos, train sets, and more in the community room. The New York Public Library will help develop your child’s spacial and problem-solving skills.

     For children 5–12 with caregiver.

     Free. Wednesday afternoons at 3:30 at the library’s Fort Washington branch in Fort George, on 179th Street between St. Nicholas and Aububon Avenues. Weekly in March.

     When you think of storytelling through time, what usually comes to mind are oral history and the written word, but storytelling through arts and crafts has made just as big of an impact.

     Crafting Stories is a storytelling class made tactical, through Uptown Stories. In this series you’ll explore all kinds of handicrafts through history, such as bookbinding, weaving, paper sculptures, and clay modeling, to tell tales that spring to life.

     For children ages 8 to 11. Every young person is a visual storyteller. Crafting Stories will give them all new skills to share their wonderful imaginations.

     Thursday afternoons from 4 to 6 at the Cornerstone Center in Hudson Heights, on Bennett Avenue at 179th Street. No classes on April 2, 9, or 23. Through June 4. 

     Get some stress out during a creative session of arts and crafts.

      It’s collage night, when you can repurpose old book materials, magazines, and more.

     Supplies & vibes will be provided. 

     Free. Thursday evening at 6:30 at Recirculation in Lower WaHi at 876 Riverside Drive near 160th Street. Monthly on the third Thursday.

     Are you the kind of person who wants to be wild and break out of the typical limitations? Poetry is the answer.

     Join a group who’s strapping on their shoes, grabbing their pens, and going on a poet’s adventure. It’s a workshop put together by Uptown Stories.

     Poetry is a way of seeing things outside the boxes they are always being put in. You’ll be rejuvenated by the nature of Fort Tryon park and emboldened by Uptown’s resilient neighborhoods. Explore the wilds of language out in the world, allowing a stream of poetry to flow from the river of possibility.

     For ages 8 to 13.

     Friday afternoons from 4 to 6; meet at P.S. 187 Hudson Cliffs, on Cabrini Boulevard in Hudson Heights, before heading to the park. No meetings on April 3 or 10. Through June 5.

     How do bees help plants grow our food?

     In this workshop, Esther and her puppet, Bernie the Bee, will assist kids in creating bee, bat, and butterfly puppets to teach how these creatures pollinate fruits and vegetables.

     Materials will be provided, but kids are encouraged to bring recycled toilet paper and paper towel rolls for the base of the puppets, and any other reused materials such as colored paper, fabric scraps, beads, sequins, and pipe cleaners. 

     For kids from 3 to 12 years old.

     Free. Friday afternoon at 4 at the Fort Washington branch of the public library, in Fort George on 179th Street between St. Nicholas and Audubon Avenues.

     What better way to end the week than by just being creative?

     End the week together with arts and crafts and anything you can dream up. For kids 6–12.

     Free. Friday afternoons at 4 at the Fort Washington branch of the public library, in Fort George on 179th Street between St. Nicholas and Audubon Avenues. In March.

       Winter is just giving way to spring but the boys of summer are on the diamond. After five weeks on the road, from Tampa to Manhattan (Kansas), Columbia’s baseball team hosts its home opener and conference opener on the same day.

     The Lions (2-10) may have a weak record, but they’re the favorites when they meet the un-undefeated Crimson (0-11) for a double-header in a three-game series. 

     Saturday at 11:30 and 3, and Sunday at noon at Satow Stadium in the Inwood sports complex, on 218th Street and Park Terrace West. 

     Take a trip to the top of the Heights.

     The Urban Park Rangers invite you to tour the Highbridge Water Tower. You’ll learn about the history of the city’s water supply and enjoy panoramic views from the top of the 200-foot structure.

     Wear comfortable shoes: You’ll be climbing stairs. Arrive before 2:45.

     Free. Saturday afternoon from 1 to 3 in Highbridge Park, at the base of the water tower behind the Highbridge Recreation Center and Pool.

     Uptown Stories welcomes you to Snobby Poetry, should you be up for the challenge.

     They’re a self-motivated, uber-supportive band of misfits who read, write, and share poems. They love words, rhyme (only when used sparely, thank you), observation, and Walt Whitman (obviously).

     Poetry is an illogical measuring device, filled with seemingly impossible comparisons and instructions; that is why we are called to write it. We are the liars who tell the truth.

     If this sounds like you, or if you’ve already taken a class with Jane LeCroy and want more, Snobby Poetry is the workshop for you.

     Saturday afternoons from 3 to 5 at the Cornerstone Center in Hudson Heights, on Bennett Avenue at 189th Street. No meetings on April 4, 11, or May 23. Through June 20.

     Step under the big top as Pied Piper Theatre presents Barnum. This Tony Award-winning musical about the life of the legendary promoter P. T. Barnum combines circus spectacle with a story of ambition.

     Uptown kids make up the entire cast. The show and features music by Cy Coleman.

     $27.18; seniors and students, $16.78. Saturday at 4 and 7, and Sunday evening at 6 at the Hebrew Tabernacle in Hudson Heights, on Fort Washington Avenue at 183rd Street. Also on March 28 and 29.
 

     Like all New Yorkers, wildlife in the city loves to explore the parks, like this peregrine falcon near the Hudson River.

     Use the city’s wildlife calendar to learn about what’s happening with Uptown wildlife neighbors each month, and find parks where you might be able to better see them in action.

     Most of New York’s wildlife is not dangerous; however, maintaining a safe distance is the best way to protect your safety and the safety of your wild neighbors. If you see an injured animal, leave the animal where it is, give it some distance, and call 311.

     Can you find the flora and fauna in an Uptown park?

     The next time you’re exploring Isham Park, head to Bruce’s Garden. Then, click this link on your cell phone for clues to find the treasures in this prized patch of greenery.

      Isham Park is in Inwood, at 213 Park Terrace East (not West!) and is open every day.

     Where are you going?

     Use a compass rose to help you get there. A video from the Hispanic Society will show you how to make one with a potato, some paint and a few more household objects.

     You’ll also learn a bit about maps through the centuries and how explorers used them to travel to places they’d never seen.

     Here’s a way to make your next outing with the kids a little different.

     Print out a family scavenger hunt booklet and take a walk through Fort Tryon Park’s historic estate remnants.

     Find, draw, and map natural marvels and constructed treasures while you explore the path network that leads from Billings Lawn to the Palisades Overlook.

     The booklet is provided by the Fort Tryon Park Trust.

     Need something new for the kids to do?

     The Hispanic Society of America offers several coloring pages, each based on one of the most famous paintings in the museum’s collection. Recognize the Duchess of Alba? Download the pdf below.

      For adults, the society has posted several lectures here.

      ¿Necesita algo nuevo para que hagan los niños?
      La Hispanic Society of America ofrece varias páginas para colorear, cada una basada en una de las pinturas más famosas de la colección del museo. ¿Reconoces a la duquesa de Alba? Descargue el pdf a continuación.
       Para los adultos, la sociedad ha publicado varias conferencias aquí.

     The NYPL’s bookmobile provides access to the library’s riches.

      While it used to make a regular stop Uptown, the closest weekly visit is now in East Harlem.

      Of course, there are the branch libraries waiting for your visit. In Fort George you can visit the Fort Washington Branch, which offers new resources after an extensive renovation.

      The hours are here. Thursdays from 11 to 4 at East River Plaza, on 117th Street and Pleasant Avenue.

     Explore Manhattan’s only untouched forest from the renovated exploration space.

     The Urban Park Rangers host an afternoon of kid-friendly activities and exploring the Inwood Hill Nature Center.

     Free. Wednesday morning, March 25, at 11 at the center in Inwood Hill Park, near 218th Street and Indian Road.

     Catch the Lions before they head back out on the road to Hanover and the Bronx.

     The mid-week game sees Columbia hosting hometown rivals Manhattan.

     Wednesday afternoon, March 25, at 3:30 at Satow Stadium in the Inwood sports complex, on 218th Street and Park Terrace West. 

     Take your kids to a one-hour yoga bootcamp, a unique take on fitness for children. 

     The leaders combine aerobic fun with powerful breathing techniques from yoga to take the children on an energy rollercoaster. First the group calms down, then they dance and jump, and then they come back to our breath. 

     Free. Saturday morning, March 28, at 11 at the Fort Washington Branch of the public library, in Fort George on 179th Street between St. Nicholas and Audubon Avenues.

     Celebrate Easter in advance with face painting, races, games, and a visit from the Easter bunny. 

     And of course, an egg hunt for the little ones.

     Free. Saturday, March 28, from noon to 3 in Roger Morris Park, in Lower WaHi on Jumel Terrace.

     Mushrooms come in a variety of colors, sizes, and shapes. Some of them are even edible.

     On this 90-minute hike, the Urban Park Rangers take you through the forest to learn how to identify fungi. Participants will learn about the crucial role that mushrooms play in an ecosystem and how natural decomposition takes place. You’ll also experience the sometimes stinky world of decomposition.

     Free. Saturday afternoon, March 28, at 1 in Inwood Hill Park. Meet at Isham Street and Seaman Avenue.

     Sketch from works of art in The Met Cloisters galleries and experiment with different drawing approaches. Build your skills with a teaching artist and share your works of art with other teens.

     Thinking of applying to an art high school or college? These classes are a great way to build a portfolio. For ages 12 to 18.

     Museum admission is free, with registration, for teens as part of this program. All experience levels welcome; all materials provided.

     Free with registration. Saturday afternoon, March 28, at 1 in Fort Tryon Park. On the second and last Saturdays of the month.

     Treat your children to a storybook accompanied by music.

     Storytime with the Symphony features A Day with No Words, by Tiffany Hammond and illustrated by Kate Cosgrove. The Washington Heights Chamber Orchestra’s winds and percussion sections join the fun. 

     The narration happens in English and Spanish.

     $11.25. Sunday afternoon, March 29, at 4 at Recirculation, in Lower WaHi on Riverside Drive near 160th Street.

     Holy Saturday is also the day of the Fort Tryon Park Conservancy’s Easter egg hunt.

     Take your basket to search for prizes and stay for the games, music, and face painting.

     Free. Saturday, April 4, from 10 to 4 in Fort Tryon Park on the Dongan Lawn.

     Lend a hand to help clean up Manhattan’s Hudson River shoreline. Volunteers will collect trash to keep the waterfront clean.

     The ninety-minute effort is organized by the Inwood Canoe Club and Friends of Inwood Hill Park.

     Trash bags, work gloves, latex gloves, and grabbers will be provided. Wear clothes to get wet in, and take a water bottle and a snack. The canoe club asks that you release it from its potential negligence before volunteering. 

     Free. Saturday morning, April 4, at 10:30 at the Inwood Canoe Club, where Dyckman Street meets the river—then look to your left.

     Carnival may be over, but your kids can still get a feel for a Cajun celebration.

     Jazz WaHi Jazzy Jambalaya Storytime offers a special musical performance by musicians from Jazz WaHi. 

     Open to children of all ages and their caregivers as long as they’re ready to dance in this one-hour program. Knowlege of zydeco is not required.

     Free. Probably on Saturday morning, April 4, at 11 at the Fort Washington branch of the library, in Fort George on 179th Street between St. Nicholas and Audubon Avenues.

     Back from Hanover and a jaunt to the Bronx, Columbia resumes Ivy League play.

     The three-game stand opens with a double header with the Lions hosting the Quakers of Pennsylvania.

     Saturday, April 4, at 11:30 and 3, and Sunday, April 5, at noon at Satow Stadium in the Inwood sports complex, on  218th Street and Park Terrace West. 

    Share ideas and enjoy hands-on gallery activities that bring medieval works of art to life.       

     The drop-in event provides all the materials you and your child need to think creatively. Best for families with children ages 3 to 11 years.

     Free with museum admission. Saturday afternoon, April 4, from 1 to 3 in the main hall of the Cloisters in Fort Tryon Park. Monthly on the first Saturday through June.

      Conference season opens in women’s lacrosse this week.

      Columbia hosts Brown in the Ivy League matchup.

      Saturday afternoon, April 4, at 1 at Wein Field in Inwood, on 218th Street at Seaman Avenue.

Our Urban Park Rangers are well versed in outdoor lore.

     Learn tips and tricks that will enhance your knowledge of the natural world, and might just save your life.

     Whether you’re preparing for an extended journey through the woods or just want to be more prepared for any situation, you can learn the basic skills of outdoor survival including fire-making, shelter-building and water collection among others.

     The hour-long program is hosted by the Urban Park Rangers.

     Free. Sunday afternoon, April 5, at 1 in Inwood Hill Park. No meet-up location is listed; try the Inwood Nature Center.

     Even when school’s out, the parks are still the city’s natural classroom.

     The Urban Park Rangers welcome you to Kids’ Week during Spring Break. Children will get to experience nature while learning all about the geological landscape of Manhattan. The hour-long program takes place in the island’s only untouched forest.

     Free. Monday afternoon, April 6, at 1 in Inwood Hill Park; meet at Seaman Avenue and Isham Street.

     Kids’ Week continues in the parks, offering Spring Break programming.

     Led by the Urban Park Rangers, this program offers an hour of crafts, games and other fun activities to celebrate all things spring.

     Free. Wednesday morning, April 8, at 11 in Inwood Hill Park; meet at 218th Street and Indian Road.

     In the middle of seven games at home, the Lions take a break from conference play.

     Columbia hosts Fordham in a midweek matchup.

     Wednesday afternoon, April 8 at noon at Satow Stadium in the Inwood sports complex, on 218th Street and Park Terrace West. 

     Kids’ Week concludes in the parks with one more opportunity for a spring break activity.

     This one’s always popular: The Urban Park Rangers share stick bugs, snakes, and more at a meet and greet with Uptown’s outdoor crietters. Children will get to see the animals that call the nature center their home.

     Free. Friday afternoon, April 10, from 1 to 2:30 in Inwood Hill Park near 218th Street and Indian Road.

     Uptown’s own rite of spring takes place in the three-acre Heather Garden: the Shearing of the Heather parade.

     Take your musical instrument and join neighbors in a parade through the Heather Garden, led by traditional bagpipers. You’ll learn why Fort Tryon Park has the largest heath and heather collection in the northeast.

     Make flower-themed crafts, take home your own propagated heathers, get your face painted, make some chalk art, chat with our gardeners, enjoy at tour of the Heather Garden, and celebrate spring while enjoying the garden’s beauty and panoramic views of the Hudson River and Palisades.

     Free. Saturday morning, April 11, at 10 in Fort Tryon Park; enter from Margaret Corbin Circle in Hudson Heights. The celebration lasts until 2 p.m.

    Do some digging, then get in some riding with your BMX buds and ride the most progressive urban bike park in America, with the help of the New York City Mountain Bike Association.

     There will be light trail maintenance tasks for all ages in the morning. Every volunteer receives a free 20-minute clinic and, in the afternoon, a guided ride throughout the trails from 12:30 to 3. Even better, bikes and helmets are provided, so you don’t need your own.  

     Uptown is the home of the city's first mountain biking course, 3 miles of trails of varying difficulty and a free-ride trail that includes drops, steeps, and berms. The park also features a dirt jump park and pump track, making it a good place to develop different skills at all levels.

     Free. Saturday morning, April 11, from 10 to 3 in Fort George at the BMX trailhead in Highbridge Park, on Fort George Avenue, just northwest of the Buczek Ballfield. Monthly on the second Saturday.

     Columbia opens the weekend with a three-game Ivy League series. 

     The Lions host the Tigers of Princeton, starting with a double-header.

     Saturday, April 11, at 11:30 and 3, and Sunday, April 12, at noon at Satow Stadium in the Inwood sports complex on 218th Street and Park Terrace West. 

     Let your kids explore life in colonial New York at Manhattan’s oldest remaining house, where the Morris-Jumel Mansion offers family-day programming with a fun, hands-on activity for children and their care-givers.

     Last month, kids will celebrated the arrival of spring by creating their own paper plant terrariums, inspired by the vibrant gardens and historic grounds of the mansion. 

     All materials will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis. 

     Free. Saturday afternoon, April 11, from 1 to 3 in the colonial kitchen in the basement of the mansion; enter on the east side. On Jumel Terrace in Lower WaHi. On the second Saturday of the month.

     Ivy League lacrosse continues in Uptown.

     This week, Columbia hosts Princeton in the conference competition.

     Saturday afternoon, April 11, at 1 at Wein Field in Inwood, on 218th Street at Seaman Avenue.

     Take the whole family to meet the instruments at a petting zoo, when even the youngest listeners can get up close and personal with their favorite instruments before seeing them come alive onstage.

     The Washington Heights Chamber Orchestra invites their curiosity before performing an enchanting family concert.

     Narrator Sarah Ziegler will guide you through musical selections from the evening concert, The Places That Inspire Us.

     Best for children ages 1 through 10 and their families.

     $16.25. Saturday afternoon, April 18, with the petting zoo beginning at 2:45 and the concert at 3. At Our Saviour’s Atonement Lutheran Church in Hudson Heights on Bennett Avenue at 179th Street.

    Pamela L. Laskin and Ellen Paige read and discuss their new middle-grade, a neurodivergent love story. What I Forgot to Tell You is an engrossing coming-of-age story, without any sugar-coating, about two neurodivergent young people. The book follows them as they deal with the ableist world and their right and ability to find love and joy. 

     Laskin is a retired teacher of children’s writing and the former director of the Poetry Outreach Center. Ellen Paige is a clinical social worker who sits on the board of directors of Family Residences and Essential Enterprises. 

     $5. Saturday afternoon, April 18, at 4 at Word Up Community Bookstore in Lower WaHi, on Amsterdam Avenue and 165th Street. Rescheduled from earlier this winter.

     Join Edu Díaz for a workshop in learning to perform as a clown. No experience is necessary.

     It’s part of the monthly NoMAA Labs workshops from the Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance. The session lasts two hours.

     $10; free to members. Tueesday evening, April 21, at 6 at the NoMAA studio in Fort George on Broadway at 176th Street.

    Join the Urban Park Rangers for an afternoon of kid -riendly activities and exploring the Inwood Hill Nature Center. 

     The Rangers’ tot-time presentations let the younger set encounter Uptown’s wildlife in a safe and friendly seeting. The program lasts an hour.

     Free. Wednesday morning, April 22, at 11 in the Inwood Hill Nature Center, near 218th Street and Indian Road.

     Back from trips to Fairfield and Providence, the Lions are set for their final mid-week game of the regular season.

     Columbia hosts Stony Brook in what’s also the last non-conference match-up.

     Wednesday, April 22, at noon at Satow Stadium in the Inwood sports complex, on 218th Street and Park Terrace West. 

     It’s senior day when Columbia’s lacrosse team closes out the season.

     The Lions host the Crimson in the final regular-season match.

     Saturday afternoon, April 25, at 1 at Wein Field in Inwood, on 218th Street at Seaman Avenue.

     Columbia closes out the season at home and says goodbye to its seniors with a three-game stand.

     The Lions’ final visitors are the Elis of Yale. 

     Saturday, April 25, at 11:30 and 3, and Sunday, April 26, at noon at Satow Stadium in the Inwood sports complex, on 218th Street and Park Terrace West. 

      Get ready for the year’s first Storytime with the Symphony.   

      The children’s book Because, by Mo Willems and Amber Ren, shows us how music can inspire big dreams in small moments, making it a perfect match for Storytime. Music performed by the Washington Heights Chamber Orchestra brings the story to life for young listeners and their families.

     To help your child feel familiar with the story, watch a read-aloud version of Because with the narrator, Diego Chiri, together at home.

     $11.25. Sunday afternoon, May 17, at Recirculation, in Lower WaHi on Riverside Drive near 160th Street. Rescheduled from February.

     This performance invites kids to move and sing along with Elmo and his friends as they dance, stretch, and play along to songs  including “Sunny Days,” “Elmo’s Got the Moves,” and “Letter of the Day.” Everything from yoga to cartwheeling will be on display.

     $41.80 to $79.20. Saturday afternoon, June 6, at 2 at the United Palace in Lower WaHi, on Broadway at 175th Street.

     The annual Drums Along the Hudson began in 2002 as a traditional Pow Wow to celebrate Native American heritage and culture, and also to commemorate the Lenape people who first inhabited Inwood Hill Park, or Shorakkopoch (“edge of the water”).

     The celebration will be led by Louis Mofsie and the Thunderbird American Indian Dancers with Host Drums Heyna Second Sons. Mohawk Elder, Tom Porter, will give the opening Thanksgiving Address and ceremonial Tree of Peace Planting.
     Free. Sunday, June 7, from 11 to 6 in Inwood Hill Park at Indian Road and 218th Street.

     Little Lions Camp is a kid-centered, fun-based day camp focused on keeping kids physically and creatively active, hosted by Columbia University.

     Programming features a combination of classic PE games, backyard favorites, sports, and special surprises to keep kids happy and engaged. A highly trained, eclectic staff turns physical education into games are always changing. The counselors tailor programming to fit children’s needs and likes. 

     August 3–7 Tie-Dye Week

     August 10–14 Fall College Sports

     Register online. At the Baker Athletic Complex in Inwood on 218th Street.