Mark the holiday at a free art-making workshop for families who will get the chance to create art and celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and his legacy.

     The projects may be inspired by modern and contemporary artists. No prior art-making experience necessary, and all materials will be provided.
     Registration by parent or guardian when you arrive. (Please allow 15 minutes for the paperwork.)

     Free. Monday morning from 10 to noon at the Highbridge Recreation Center in Lower WaHi in Highbridge Park, near 173rd Street.

     Need some help with homework or a place to log in? Maybe a chance to spend time out of the house with your friends?

     Drop by the Y’s computer lab, open to any 14 to 24 years old who lives, works, or goes to school in WaHi.

     Free. Monday through Thursday evenings from 6 to 8 at the YM & YWHA of Washington Heights and Inwood, in Fort George on Nagle Avenue between Broadway and Ellwood Street.

     Toddlers and their parents or caregivers can enjoy interactive stories, action songs, fingerplays and spend time with other growing kids in the neighborhood at the branch library.

     For children from 18 months to 3 years old.

     Free. Wednesday mornings at the Fort Washington branch of the public library in Fort George on 179th Street at St. Nicholas Avenue.

     Seasonal stories and a fun activity await children at this reading-and-craft event.

     Best for kids ages 3 through 8.

     Free. Thursday evening at 5 at the Fort Washington Branch of the Public Library in Fort George on 179th Street at St. Nicholas Avenue. Also on January 31.

     Take your kids to a community book shop to hear their favorite stories read out loud by experienced, trained readers. Just like their teachers in the classroom, but with new faces and new friends.

     Free. Saturday mornings at 11 at the Word Up Community Book Shop/Librería Comunitaria, in Lower WaHi on Amsterdam Avenue at 165th Street.

     Join in guided tours and art activities led in Spanish. La experiencia medieval: Talleres bilingües y educativos para la familia.

     For families with children ages 3–11.

     Free with museum admission. Saturday afternoon at 1 at The Cloisters in Fort Tryon Park.

     In this 2018 thriller, a woman fights to protect her family during a home invasion.

      Breaking In stars Gabrielle Union and was directed by James McTeigue. Rated PG-13.

      Free. Saturday afternoon at 2 at the Fort Washington branch of the public library on 179th Street between St. Nicholas and Audubon Avenues.

     Every Saturday (weather permitting), Northern Manhattan Parks Inwood Astronomy Project offers free star and planet gazing in Inwood Hill Park. These free, family-friendly events aim to spread the joys of the evening sky, and help you to learn more about the nature of our Solar System and current happenings in Astronomy.
     This week’s sky updates come from StarDate.
     Saturday nights from 8 to 10 on the ball fields near Seaman Avenue and Isham Street in Inwood. A map is here.

     The Urban Park Rangers present a weekend adventure to keep you warm. 

Join us around a campfire for an afternoon of stories, songs, and fun activities.

     Participants are chosen by lottery. To register, please visit nyc.gov/parks/rangers/register.

     Free. Sunday afternoon at 1 in Inwood Hill Park at a location shared with the lottery winners.

     The Washington Heights Music Fest in collaboration with W.H.A.M. hosts a monthly open mic for artists, poets, singers, writers and performers. Refreshments will be provided.

     All ages are welcome, so the acts should be appropriate for everyone. 

     The first monthly musical open mic will be followed by session on the first Friday of the month. Hosted by Jason Rosario.

     $5. Friday night, February 1, from 6 to 9 at the Word Up Community Book Shop in Lower WaHi on Amsterdam Avenue at 165th Street. On the first Friday of the month.

     Nick Kozak’s installation Opposition Position challenges us to examine our education system and to stage our own educational interactions in this classroom in the park.

     All are welcome to attend free workshops led by local students, which will cover topics related to personal narratives and educational systems. 

     Opposition Position is one of two artworks presented as part of the exhibition Persuasive Visions in Inwood Hill Park, Manhattan. Inspired by W. E. B. Du Bois’s conviction that propaganda through the arts can create social change, Persuasive Visions presents the work of two local artists, Gina Goico and Nick Kozak, who respond to today’s constant deluge of (mis)information. 

      Free. Saturday, February 2, from 11 to 2 on Pat’s Lawn in Inwood Hill Park, near Indian Road and 218th Street. Also on March 2 (rain date: the second Saturday of the month).

    Unity Earth: Lift Off is a multigenerational, intercultural, interactive concert in celebration of U.N. World Interfaith Harmony Week. The celebration will bring together First Nations leaders, musicians, diplomats, artists, scientists, peacemakers, interfaith and faith-based activists, along with guests of all ages in a colorful celebration of our common humanity.

     The concert will feature Kim Funk Buddha’s Bonsai Lab, right, as well as a cast of globally renowned touring artists including Bella Gaia, a NASA-powered live concert that blends music, technology, and satellite imagery to illuminate our interconnectedness and turn the stage planetary. International artists include British reggae legend Pato Banton and Chinese meditative chanting artist Mystic Voice.

     $20 to $100; children 12 and under, free. Saturday afternoon, February 2, at 2 at the United Palace Theatre in Lower WaHi on Broadway at 175th Street.

     In February, the Morris-Jumel Mansion will be celebrating Black History Month.

     Families will be working on special art activities and other fun projects.

     Free with admission. Saturday, February 9, from noon to 2 at the mansion in Lower WaHi on Jumel Terrace.

     Have a talent you want to share? Or try out a new song?

     Prepare your family-friendly bit for open mic night, sponsored by Pied Piper Children’s Theatre. A pianist will be ready to help.

     Take the kids and dinner, too — tables will be set up for meals.

     $5. Saturday night, February 9, at 7 at Holy Trinity Church in Inwood at 20 Cumming Street (at Seaman Avenue).

     Uptown’s home to children’s theater, Pied Piper, is losing its own home. Holy Trinity Church, which has hosted the troupe’s shows for years, is changing its mission, leaving Pied Piper to find a new location.

     The organization’s leaders are offering an open meeting to inform parents and friends of their plans and needs. One change is that the theater is now a non-profit, with $12,000 donated in the just the last few months.

     Join your neighbors to find out how you can help.

     Wednesday night, February 13, at 7 at Holy Trinity Church in Inwood at 20 Cumming Street.

     Give your kids the antidote to cabin fever at a morning filled with non-stop action and hip-shaking music. 

     The Rock Show is best for kids up to 8 years old with a  parent or caregiver.

     Free. Wednesday morning, February 13, at 10:30 at the Fort Washington branch of the public library in Fort George on 179th Street at St. Nicholas Avenue.

     Join in guided tours and art activities led in Spanish. La experiencia medieval: Talleres bilingües y educativos para la familia.

     For families with children ages 3–11.

     Free with museum admission. Saturday afternoon, February 23, at 1 at The Cloisters in Fort Tryon Park.

     The Latin boy band CNCO delivers its fan-pleasing show Uptown, turning a cold winter’s night hot.

     $69 to $1,000. Saturday night, February 23, at 7 and Sunday night, February 24, at 8 at the United Palace Theatre in Lower WaHi on Broadway at 175th Street.

     Where to find magical beasts Uptown? At the Cloisters.

     Join a journey seeking griffins, dragons, unicorns and more on a special tour of the medieval collections.

     Free with museum admission. Sunday afternoon, February 24, at 1 at the Cloisters in Fort Tryon Park.

     The Inwood Film Festival showcases the sights, sounds, people, and talents of Inwood.

     Every film screend at the event is made in Upper Manhattan or made by current or past Inwood  filmmakers. And there’s even a category for students!

      Awards are given in categories including documentary, short, feature, and spirit of Inwood.

     Want to enter? The deadline is January 15.

     Festival: Thursday through Saturday, March 14 through 16 at the Campbell Sports Center at the Columbia Athletic Complex at 218th and Broadway,

      Hot Chip founder Alexis Taylor presents an intimate electro-acoustic concert featuring special guests including visual artist Nick Relph, Beastie Boys keyboard player Money Mark on the Echolodeon, an invention inspired by the player-piano, Annie Hart, and Jonny Lam.

     Expect modern-day secular "spirituals," playing with your expectations of artificiality and authenticity, responding to The Met Cloisters' space and history.

     $25; children ages 6 to 16, $1 (<—not a typo). Friday night, March 15, in the Fuentidueña Chapel at the Cloisters in Fort Tryon Park.

     Auditions for A Festival of Folk Tales are open to Uptown children.

     In April on days and times to be announced later at Holy Trinity Church in Inwood at 20 Cumming Street (at Seaman Avenue).

     He’s big, he’s green an he’s ugly. Shrek! The Musical features kids from Lower WaHi to Inwood.

     Friday night, April 5, at 7, Saturday, April 6 at 3 and 7, and Sunday, April 7, at 4 at Holy Trinity Church in Inwood at 20 Cumming Street (at Seaman Avenue). Also on April 12 through 14.

     The three-acre Heather Garden is the site of an annual rite of spring: the Shearing of the Heather by members of the Northeast Heather Society and Heather Garden staff.

     Led by a bagpiper, a community parade through the garden delights children, who are invited to take an instrument with them (adults are, too). Throughout the morning you will learn why Fort Tryon Park has the largest heath and heather collection in the northeast, and how to propagate your own heathers with clippings from the shearing.

     Free. A Saturday morning in early April in the Heather Garden in Fort Tryon Park, near the entrance at Margaret Corbin Circle in Hudson Heights.

     Family Day at the Morris=Jumel Mansion offers arts, crafts and sometimes even snacks to kids and their parents who want to learn a little more about life when New York was a Colonial outpost of the British empire.

     Free with museum admission. Saturday morning, April 13, starting at 11 at the mansion in Lower WaHi on Jumel Terrace.

     Take part in a morning of music-making and discovery.

     Students in kindergarten through 5th grade are the honored guests for an interactive adventure to tame The Mighty Cacophonous Orchestrasauras and learn what makes the orchestra such an amazing creature.

     Tickets available in January.

     Saturday morning, April 27, at 11 at Fort Washington Collegiate Church in Hudson Heights on 181st Street at Col. Robt. McGaw Place.

     Making good after he had to postpone his autumn concert, Christian Nodal, the Mexican mariachi songwriter, performs Uptown.

    $70 to $660. Saturday night, April 27, at 7 at the United Palace Theatre in Lower WaHi on Broadway at 175th Street.

     Have fun with friends and neighbord at Dance Night, sponsored by Pied Piper Children’s Theatre.

    Saturday night, May 4, at 7 at Holy Trinity Church in Inwood at 20 Cumming Street (at Seaman Avenue).

     Family Day at the Morris=Jumel Mansion offers arts, crafts and sometimes even snacks to kids and their parents who want to learn a little more about life when New York was a Colonial outpost of the British empire.

     Free with museum admission. Saturday morning, May 11, starting at 11 at the mansion in Lower WaHi on Jumel Terrace.

     The Latin pop lengends Yuri & Pandora visit Lower WaHi for what promises to be a spectacular concert.

     $70 to $193. Friday night, May 24, at 7 at the United Palace Theatre on Broadway at 175th Street.

     Take in the lessons from A Festival of Folk Tales, directed the Actors’ Society.

     Saturday, June 8, at 3 and 7, and Sunday, June 9, at 4 at Holy Trinity Church in Inwood at 20 Cumming Street (at Seaman Avenue). Also on June 15 and 16.

     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 Shorakapok (“edge of the water”).

     The event features dancers and drummers from around the world, combining Native American heritage, culture and art with the diversity of New York City. Activities include a Tree of Peace planting, international cuisine, Native American storytelling, a Pow Wow and crafts.
     The event has attracted a growing audience, numbering from 400 in the first year to over 8,000 in recent years.
     Free. A Sunday in June in Inwood Hill Park at Indian Road and 218th Street.

     After the intensity of the summer workshop, seniors are ready for their recital.

     Free. Saturday, June 29, at a time to be announced later in the Parish House of Holy Trinity Church in Inwood at 20 Cumming Street (at Seaman Avenue).

     Little Lions Camp is Columbia’s kid-centered, fun-based day camp with the focus on keeping kids physically and creatively active.

     Programming features an ever-changing combination of classic P.E. games, backyard favorites, sports, arts and crafts, and special surprises to keep kids happy, active, and engaged.

     A highly trained, eclectic staff who utilizes physical education teachers, athletes, camp veterans, creative types and child care specialists, ensures that games are always changing and that counselors can tailor programming to fit children’s needs and likes.

     The camps run one week at a time. For kids ages 6 to 12. After care and swim lessons are available too.

     $485 (discount of $25 if registered by May 1). Monday through Friday, August 5 through 9, is Superhero Week; August 12 through 15 is Game Show Week. At the Baker Athletic Complex in Inwood on 281th Street.

     Come swim the mighty Hudson! 

     The Spuyten Duyvil 10K is an event hosted by New York Open Water. It starts at Yonkers and finishes in Inwood, with the current assisting the intrepid souls  through tumultuous and storied Spuyten Duyvil, where the Harlem River meets the Hudson.

     The route, which actually covers 6.5 miles despite the name, offers scenic views of Yonkers, Riverdale, Spuyten Duyval Bridge, and the George Washington Bridge.

     Sign up here. If you’re a land lubber, you can watch the finish in Uptown.

     A Sunday in September, with the course’s end at La Marina in Inwood where Dyckman Street meets the Hudson.

     The scariest—and silliest—dogs of Uptown turn out for the Fort Dog Halloween contest and parade.

     Prizes go to costumes in a variety of categories.

     A Sunday morning in late October at Sir Williams’ Dog Run in Fort Tryon Park.

     What if you bought for your true love everything mentioned in a famous carol? The CPI — Christmas Price Index — has your answer.

     In 2018 the price of the gifts mentioned in The Twelve Days of Christmas increased only 1.2 percent over 2017 prices, despite the surge in cost of geese-a-laying (up 8.3 percent), which were offset by a drop in gold rings (down 9.1 percent).

     Total cost: $34,094.93.

     Prices for drummers and golden rings go up and down. Here’s where to find the prices for 2018.