If you like fairies and monsters, epic battles and poisoned apples, there’s no doubt you will love the Fairytales, Myths, and Fables workshop.

    Over winter break, Uptown Stories will help you unravel the stories we all know, learn about their origins, alt versions, and why they seem to have everlasting staying power in readers' minds. You'll write your own original or adapted magical tales, add to spine-tingling myths, and put a new twist on fantastical fable.

     $25. Monday through Friday from 10 to 2 at the Cornerstone Center in Hudson Heights, on Bennett Avenue at 189th Street.

     Explore arts and crafts with your little one, and come prepared to make a mess.

     The materials are provided for the 45-minute session. All you need to take is your child and some imagination. For ages up to 4 with caregiver. 

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

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

     Take your children to Manhattan’s only untouched forest for Kids’ Week during mid-winter recess. In this program led by the Urban Park Rangers, kids will get to experience nature hands-on, meeting stick bugs to snakes, the animals that call the forest their home.

     Free. Monday afternoon at 1 in Inwood Hill Park; meet at 218th Street and Indian Road.

     Whether you’re working on college applications or trying to figure out what career is best for you, the public library’s College and Career Pathways program is here to help.

     Get customized assistance, with any college- or career-related questions, from one of our trained Young Adult Librarians. Walk in or schedule a virtual one-on-one session today at calendly.com/nyplcollegeandcareer.

     Free. Monday afternoon starting at 3:30 at the Fort Washington branch of the public library, in Fort George on 179th Street between Audubon and St. Nicholas Avenues. On Mondays through February.

     Sometimes images speak louder than words, but what kind of impact can you create if you put them together? In From Flash to Fiction, you’ll explore the writing of, from, and alongside the images that speak to you.

     Using photos you take yourself or ones you find through exploring, you’ll find inspiration for short stories.
     This Uptown Stories workshop includes a field trip to the New York Public Library’s picture collection.

     The two-hour sessions are open to 10- to 14-year-olds.

     Monday afternoons at 4:30 at the Cornerstone Center in Hudson Heights, on Bennett Avenue at 189th Street. Final day.

     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.

     Help your kids explore the physical world during an hour of self-directed play in the children’s area.

     They can get their hands on sensory toys, puzzles, STEM activities, Legos, train sets, and more.  

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

     Even when school’s out, Manhattan’s only untouched forest is still the city’s natural classroom.

     Take your kids to the forest for Kids’ Week during mid-winter recess. In this program, led by our Urban Park Rangers, kids will explore and enter the recently restored Lenape wigwam and enjoy an afternoon by a warm campfire. They will also learn how to use a bow drill and other methods to start a fire.

     Dress warmly for the 90-minute workshop.

     Free. Wednesday afternoon at 1 in Inwood Hill Park; meet at 218th Street and Indian Road.

     Columbia’s women’s lacrosse team opens the home season this week.

     The Lions of Manhattan host the Lafayette Lions of Easton, Pennsylvania, in the second match of 2026.

     Wednesday afternoon at 2 at Wein Field in Inwood, on 218th Street at Seaman Avenue.

     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 February.

     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.

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

     Take your children to Manhattan’s only untouched forest for Kids’ Week during mid-winter recess. In this program led by the Urban Park Rangers, the winter woods will inspire kids as they create crafts from objects found in nature.

     Free. Friday afternoon at 1 in Inwood Hill Park; meet at 218th Street and Indian Road.

     What better way to end the week than playing video games with your friends?

     End the week together when you hook up our Nintendo Switch to decompress. Find a gamer, grab a controller, and let’s play. For teens 13–18.

     Free. Friday afternoons at 3:30 at the Fort Washington branch of the public library, inFort George on 179th Street between St. Nicholas and Audubon Avenues. In February.

      The Lions’ lacrosse team hosts its second home match of the season.

      Columbia welcomes the Lehigh Mountain Hawks in what’s likely to be an early aftenooon match.

      Sunday at noon at Wein Field in Inwood, on 218th Street at Seaman Avenue.

      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 at 4 at Recirculation, in Lower WaHi on Riverside Drive near 160th Street.

     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.

     It may be chilly but it’s still lacrosse weather.

     Columbia takes on the Howard Bison in another mid-week matchup.

     Tuesday afternoon, February 24, at 3 at Wein Field in Inwood, on 218th Street at Seaman Avenue.

     Don’t let winter keep you and your little ones inside.

     On this outing, you can join the Urban Park Rangers for an afternoon of kid-friendly activities and exploring the Inwood Hill Nature Center.

     Free. Wednesday afternoon, February 25, from 1 to 2 in the Nature Center, near 218th Street and Indian Road.

     Get together with your friends for pizza and a movie, watching Pixar’s Soul.

     In the film, Joe Gardner is a middle-school band teacher who gets the chance of a lifetime to play at the best jazz club in town. But one small misstep takes him from New York City to The Great Before – a fantastical place where new souls get their personalities, quirks and interests before they go to Earth.

     Free. Wednesday afternoon, February 25, at 3 at the Fort Washington branch of the public library, in Fort George on 179th Street between St. Nicholas and Audubon Avenues.

     Explore the vastness of the universe from your neighborhood back yard.

     The astronomer Novaugn Miller guides you through the stars and galaxies with his telescope. Take your curiosity, and maybe a thermos of cocoa, to look back in time.

     Free. Friday night, February 27, from 7 to 9 in Fort Tryon Park on the Cloisters lawn.

     Come along on an adventure as Lucky Duck and his puppet friends learn about the heroes who make our communities brighter every day. Kids will learn how each of us has the power to change the world for the better.  

     For kids through elementary school.

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

     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, February 28, at 1 in Fort Tryon Park. On the second and last Saturdays of the month.

     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.

     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 starting March 3 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.

     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 starting March 5 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. 

     The Uptown Record Fair is back for its third sale with specialty items from the Recirculation archives, plus record vendors, vinyl DJs, and more.   

     Volunteers have set aside scores of specialty items, which will make up the core of the Recirculation booth. Several other vendors join the fair, with music from across the spectrumjazz, rock, hip-hop, blues, experimental, and more.

     $5 donation. Saturday, March 7, from noon to 6 at Recirculation in Lower WaHi on Riverside Drive near 160th Street.

    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, March 7, from 1 to 3 in the main hall of the Cloisters in Fort Tryon Park. Monthly on the first Saturday through June.

     In its final non-conference match, Columbia invites a MAAC opponent.

     The Lions host the Rider Broncs this week.

     Wednesday afternoon, March 11, at 3 at Wein Field in Inwood, on 218th Street at Seaman Avenue.

     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, starting March 13, 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.

    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, March 14, 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.

     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 learned about the intricate designs, heartfelt messages, and the secret language of flowers that decorated Victorian Valentine’s Day cards, a tradition that blossomed in the nineteenth century as a way to express love and friendship. Then, they made their own Valentine inspired by the Victorian-era.

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

     Free. Saturday afternoon, March 14, 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.

     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 beginning March 14, 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.

     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, March 20, at 4 at the Fort Washington branch of the public library, in Fort George on 179th Street between St. Nicholas and Audubon Avenues.

       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 meet the Crimson for a double-header in a three-game series. 

     Saturday, March 21, at 11:30 and 3, and Sunday, March 22, at noon at Satow Stadium in the Inwood sports complex, on 218th Street and Park Terrace West. 

     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.

     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.

     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. 

      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.

     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. 

     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.

     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. 

     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.

     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. 

     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.