Events great for kids, May 21–27

     You don’t have to go to Fifth Avenue to see suits of armor anymore.

     This spring and summer a site-specific art project turns the lawn near the Cloisters into a modern display of medieval costume.

     The Icelandic artist Steinunn Thorarinsdottir positions each of three figures in a suit of armor that was cast from a custom 3D scan of a carefully chosen suit of armor from The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s collection.

      This bilingual children’s program will start with a story about a rabbit on a farm setting. Then, the Linc Read A Loud takes off.

     Activities for the whole family start after the reading.

     Free. Friday afternoon from 3:30 to 5 at the Dyckman Farmhouse Museum in Inwood on Broadway at 205th Street.

     Sign up now for a permit to use one of the city’s tennis courts this spring and summer. The closest are in Fort Washington Park, along the Hudson in the 170’s.

     $20 for children 17 and younger. Adults’ permits run $100, and for those 62 and older, just $20.

     You’ll need a photo. Here’s the link.

     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.

     Kids can learn American Sign Language through songs and activities with other parents, educators, and even children close to their own age.

     Baby Fingers programs incorporate the research supporting the benefits of sign language at all ages and stages, for children with and without special needs.

     In this workshop, children will go home each week with new vocabulary. Open to everyone, whether you intend to incorporate sign language in your life for the long term or simply during you child’s pre-verbal time.

     For more informations, call (212) 569-4112.

     Free. Tuesdays through July 17 on Pat’s Lawn in Inwood Hill Park near Indian Hill Road and 218th Street.

     The Uptown Arts Stroll takes you all over Upper Manhattan during the month of June with an array of gallery shows, demonstrations, performances, and more, all featuring Uptown artists.

     The schedule will be posted here.

     Free. In June all over WaHi and Inwood.

     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, June 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.

     Hike the Heights promotes the use of the Giraffe Path, a trail that connects the Cloisters to Central Park through the escarpment parks of northern Manhattan. This giraffe-shaped trail takes its shape from existing trails and streets that connect Fort Tryon Park, Highbridge Park, Jackie Robinson Park, St. Nicholas Park, Morningside Park, and Central Park.  

     This annual hike is an annual community walkabout and celebration in northern Manhattan’s parks. The family-friendly event invites you to explore and celebrate the area’s natural treasures by combining physical activity, art, and fun.

     Free. Saturday, June 2, from 11 to 3. Meet at the Sunken Playground in Highbridge Park, near Edgecomb Avenue and 163rd Street.

     Get your feet wet on the shore of this island we call home.

     As part of the annual World Science Festival, the Urban Park Rangers will wade into the Hudson River to collect and count what species of fish we find. 

     Great for kids, this waterside event is fun for amateur naturalists of all ages.

     Free. Saturday afternoon, June 2, from 2 to 4 at the 172nd Street Beach (yep, you read that right), just below Jeffery’s Hook in Fort Washington Park.

     After young Riley is uprooted from her Midwest life and moved to San Francisco, her emotions—Joy, Fear, Anger, Disgust and Sadness—conflict on how best to navigate a new city, house, and school.

     The 2015 Pixar film Inside Out helps explain why we feel what we feel.

     It’s part of the Movies at the Palace series, taking place at the stunning United Palace, formerly the Loew’s 175th Street Theatre that first opened as a deluxe movie theatre and vaudeville house in 1930.

     $5 to $15. Sunday evening, June 3, at 4:30 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 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. Sunday, June 3, from 11 to 6, rain or shine, in Inwood Hill Park at Indian Road and 218th Street.

     For an immersive performance that transforms the theatrical space, watch as astounding performers appear where you least expect them, giving each audience member a singular experience.

     Jazz Age Jive brings jazz to life from the Roarin’ 20s to the Rockin’ 50s with a circus celebration that would make Jay Gatsby’s jaw drop.

     In between performances join in with your best Charleston, jitterbug, and swing moves.

     $20; children 13 and under, $10. Adults receive $5 off admission at the door if dressed to the theme of the show. Friday night, June 8, at 7 at Culture Hub in Sherman Creek at 440 West 202, between 9th and 10th Avenues.

    The legendary conga player Ray Mantilla and his exciting quintet head Uptown for an outdoor concert.

     Now in its 14th year, the NY Scandia Symphony  serves Washington Heights and Inwood with free outdoor music programs in Fort Tryon Park that celebrate Scandinavian heritage.  

     Performers for the June series have not yet been determined.

     Take a blanket and enjoy this free performance with backdrop views of the Hudson River.

     Free. Sunday afternoons, June 10 through 24, at 2 on the Billings Lawn in Fort Tryon Park.

     Take a blanket and a snack and enjoy outdoor cinema.

     A group of life-long friends goes on a wild adventure full of laughs in search of one of their closest college buddies who disappeared without a trace a day before their graduation day.

     3 Idiotas, from Mexico, is appropriate for families and is in Spanish with English subtitles.

     The evening’s entertainment starts with Marimba: Mariana Ramirez with Andrew Beall.

     In case of inclement weather, the show will move indoors to Culture Hub in Sherman Creek at 440 West 202nd Street.

     Free. Monday night, June 11, with the concert at 7:30 and the film at dusk on Gaelic Field in Inwood Hill Park.

     For an immersive performance that transforms the theatrical space, watch as astounding performers appear where you least expect them, giving each audience member a singular experience.

    This show blasts off terra firma and into the great unknown. Performers will explore the depth of space, distant stars, and worlds filled with creatures we can only imagine.

     $20; children 13 and under, $10. Adults receive $5 off admission at the door if dressed to the theme of the show. Friday night, June 15, at 7 at Culture Hub in Sherman Creek at 440 West 202, between 9th and 10th Avenues.

     Bust a move at Family Disco, a child-proof event for toddlers, pre-schoolers, and parents looking for a break from the usual playground outing.

     The kid-appropriate dance party is at a real club, featuring real music spun by a real DJ re-blending classic disco tunes sure to get little (and big!) booties going.

     Sponsored by Inwood Art Works in partnership with Bread and Yoga.

     $10. Saturday, June 16, from 11 to 1 at Culture Hub in Sherman Creek at 440 West 202, between 9th and 10th Avenues.

     Set in southern Spain in 1920s, Blancanieves is a moving, eerie, and fascinating silent film that re-imagines the classic fairy tale Snow White.

     Once upon a time there was a little girl who had never known her mother. She learned the art of her father, a famous bullfighter, but was hated by her evil stepmother. One day she ran away with a troupe of dwarves and became a legend.

     Written and directed by Pablo Berger, this is a critically-acclaimed homage to the black-and-white Golden Age of Europe’s silent cinema. From Spain, 2012, the film is appropriate for young adults.

     Before the film you can enjoy a Flamenco performance by Xianix Barrera Flamenco Company.

     In the case of inclement weather, the evening will move indoors to Culture Hub in Sherman Creek at 440 West 202nd Street between 9th and 10th Avenues.

     Free. Monday night, June 18, with the dance at 7:30 and the film at dusk on Gaelic Field in Inwood Hill Park.

     Three eras of art will inspire your children in this one-day class.

     Kids will create three pieces of artwork using images of Michelangelo, Paul Klee and Henri Matisse’s paintings using canvas boards and black scratch-boards.

     For ages 3 through 12.

     $3 materials fee per child. Sunday afternoon, June 24, from noon to 4 at Culture Hub in Sherman Creek at 440 West 202, between 9th and 10th Avenues.

     Jazz Power Youth Workshop, a program for teens  at the United Palace, includes kids ages 8–17 singing and dancing to jazz and blues selections by Hop Wilson and Duke Ellington.

     Scenes from the Jazz Power musical Nora's Ark, about climate change and accepting differences, will also be presented.

     Seating limited to the first 125 people who make reservations: (212) 568-1157.

     Free. Tuesday night, June 26, at 7 at the United Palace Theatre in Lower WaHi on Broadway at 175th Street.

     So you want to direct?

     Learn essential techniques to add to your creative toolbox and up your filmmaking game. In this workshop you will learn fundamental storytelling methods such as getting what you want, misdirection, and the role of the audience.

     Taught by local cinematographer and filmmaker Joe Foley (Forbidden Cuba, Eggs and Soldiers, The High Wire, and Brief Reunion at the Inwood Film Festival).

     Foley has been working as a cinematographer for over two decades, shooting feature films, commercials, television, documentaries and music videos. He received his BFA in film from NYU and an MFA in film from Columbia.

     Open to beginners and above. Limited class size of 30. Registration required.

     Pay what you can. Tuesday night, June 26, from 7 to 9 at Culture Hub in Sherman Creek at 440 West 202 (between 9th and 10th Avenues).

     Teen night begins with a short circus show by youth performers. Then participants will take inspiration from the presentation to create circus-themed abstract paintings using multiple media.

      No previous painting experience needed. You will leave with an abstract painting you will be proud of.

     Free pizza & drinks, so what’s holding you back?

     $3 materials fee. Wednesday evening, June 27, at 6 at Culture Hub in Sherman Creek at 440 West 202, between 9th and 10th Avenues.

     Join author and naturalist Leslie Day for a pollinator walk in the Heather Garden.

     The Columbia Summer Winds perform the finest in  band music throughout the city every summer.

      Summer camp at J. Hood Wright Park includes play, snacks and more, overseen by the park staff.

      Register here.

      Free. July 9 through August 24 at the park in Lower WaHi.

     Try a new experience in music with Taikoza.

     The group creates a new sound using the thunderous rhythms of the ancestral Taiko drums and the magical sounds of the bamboo flutes.

     Roughly translated, Taiko means “big drums,” and that’s exactly what Taikoza brings: big drums, powerful rhythms, and electrifying, room-thumping energy. This exciting group draws from Japan’s rich tradition of music and performance to create a highly visual performance.  

     Free. Friday evening, July 14, at 6 in the Higbridge Recreation Center in Lower WaHi in Highbridge Park, just off Amsterdam Avenue at 173rd Street.

     You live on an island, so take the chance to see it from the Hudson.

     The Hudson River Community Sailing club offers free sails to land-lubbers yearning for open water.

     The club maintains several sailboats Uptown, including a 28-foot picket cruiser and four Hobie Waves.

     Register here.

     Free. Saturday, July 15 at the Dyckman Marina in Inwood. Also on Sunday, August 27.

     The Little Lions Camp is a kid-centered, fun-based day camp whose main focus is keeping kids physically and creatively active.

     For kids entering first grade through age 12, the day camp gives kids the oppotunity to experience Division I sports facilities.

     This week: water wars.

     About $450. Monday through Friday, July 23–27, at the Baker Athletic Complex in Inwood.

     The Little Lions Camp is a kid-centered, fun-based day camp whose main focus is keeping kids physically and creatively active.

     For kids entering first grade through age 12, the day camp gives kids the oppotunity to experience Division I sports facilities.

     This week: Olympic training.

     About $450. Monday through Friday, July 30 through August 3, at the Baker Athletic Complex in Inwood.

     Take a blanket and enjoy a movie under the stars in Manhattan’s only untouched forest.

     Coco, an animated comedy in English with Spanish Subtitles, is a Pixar film based on the Mexican holiday of the Day of the Dead. Aspiring musician Miguel, confronted with his family’s ancestral ban on music, enters the Land of the Dead to find his great-great grandfather, a legendary singer. In English with Spanish subtitles.

     Arrive before sunset for a music performance by Luis Cortes.

     Free. Monday night, August 6, with the concert at 7 and the film at dusk on Gaelic Field in Inwood Hill Park. In case of inclement weather, the event moves to Culture Hub in Sherman Creek at 440 West 202 (between 9th and 10th Avenues).

     When a film crew goes to Skull Island for an exotic location shoot, it discovers a colossal ape who takes a shine to the blonde star.

     Get out and enjoy the autumn warmth while you still can with a festival on the shore.

     Celebrate Manhattan’s only remaining lighthouse with readings of The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Gray Bridge, fishing clinics, live music, food and art vendors.

     The Urban Park Ranger will offer presentations and activities for all ages.

     Free. Saturday afternoon, September 29, from noon to 4 on Jeffrey’s Hook in Fort Washington Park.

     Join the Friends Committee of the Fort Tryon Park Trust at its monthly beautification day, this time planting bulbs for spring blooms.

     The Feast of St. Frances Cabrini honors the patron saint of immigrants, who welcomed newcomers to Upper Manhattan and whose remains are venerated in a shrine in Hudson Heights.

     Over a weekend, the St. Frances Xavier Shrine hosts a series of masses for several nations’ communities, in French, Italian, Filipino, Spanish and English.
     The highlight of the feast is a procession, led by an Italian band, on Saturday at noon. 
     Free. A weekend in early November at the Shrine in Hudson Heights at 701 Fort Washington Avenue near Margaret Corbin Circle.

     Holiday shopping invariably means higher prices. What if you bought for your true love everything mentioned in a famous carol?

     The good news for traditional shoppers last year: the price of the gifts mentioned in The Twelve Days of Christmas increased only 0.7 percent, despite the surge in cost of turtle doves. (Really!)

     Prices for drummers and gold rings go up and down. Here’s where to find the prices for 2017.

     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.