Children and families in New York City can find a multitude of activities to pass the day, including an outdoor skate at Wollman Rink, a ride on the Central Park carousel and a visit to the Children's Museum of the Arts. Children can interact with animals at the zoo, learn about outer space at the Hayden Planetarium and learn about the history of policing and forensic science at the New York City Police Museum.
New York offers children the opportunity to explore art, science and history at museums throughout the city. The American Museum of Natural History offers educational programs and exhibits that appeal to children and adults. Kids can explore the museum's Discovery Room, where they will find artifacts, assemble skeletons, learn to use seismographs and meet scientists. Short-term exhibits change on a regular basis and include live snakes and lizards, such as komodo dragons, prairie rattlesnakes and Great Plains skinks. Day camps and workshops also take place at the museum, and children can learn about the solar system and observe the stars from the museum's Hayden Planetarium Space Theater.
The Central Park Zoo is a small venue spread across two acres with animals from habitats ranging from tropical to arctic. Animals at the zoo include tamandua, polar and red panda bears, snow leopards, gentoo penguins, and poison frogs. Visitors can watch sea lions perform tricks at feeding time and explore a special section of the zoo designed specifically for children. The Tisch Children's Zoo is full of animals, such as sheep, pot-bellied pigs and alpacas, and interactive activities. Children can try on a turtle's shell, climb a spider's web, leap across lily pads, and feed ring-necked doves and peacocks.
The Little Orchestra Society offers classical musical productions in their "Lolli-Pops" program, for children between three and five years of age and the "Happy Concerts for Young People," for kids between six and 12 years of age. In addition to regular performances, the Lolli-Pops program includes interactive activities, such as "Meet the Maestro" concerts, where children get to take part in leading the orchestra with their own batons. The Happy Concerts for Young People program includes song and dance performances of productions such as "Amahl and the Night Visitors" and "Peter and the Wolf." The society's "Live In Concert" program also provides complimentary tickets to families and students at various times throughout the year.
The New York City Police Museum offers a variety of exhibits, including the "Hall of Heroes," "Policing a Changed City" and "9.11 Remembered." Also on display at the museum are artifacts, photographs and uniforms that document the chronology of New York society and policing over the past 400 years. Interactive programs at the museum include police officer skills training for children, with crime scene investigation experiments, sketch artistry and mystery solving. The museum also offers school programs for elementary through high-school groups, as well as birthday party packages.
