Your guide to activities and fun things to do with your preschoolers, toddlers and kids in baltimore, MD

Weekend Highlights, 5/15 - 5/17

May 14, 2009

Another great springtime weekend is headed our way.  Get out there and enjoy all of the fun--and pollen--that the next few days have to offer.  Here, for your perusal, are a few weekend highlights:

Weekend Highlights, 5/1 - 5/3

April 30, 2009

So it's May--arguably my most favorite month of the year--and there's so much to do around town this weekend that my head is going all washing machine-like.  Have a look:

Weekend Highlights: 3/27 - 3/29

March 26, 2009

The weekend is now mere hours away, and I know that you're looking for fun stuff to do.  Wanna eat peanuts while oohing and aaahing over fire-eaters and tigers?  Wanna be tricked by Anansi, Brer Rabbit and the Leprechaun?  Wanna save some dough on kids' summer clothing?  With all of this weekend's scheduled activities--plus the ever-improving weather--you're bound to find something great to do around here this weekend.  Following are a few suggestions:

Weekend Highlights, 3/20-3/22

March 19, 2009

Weekend Highlights, 3/13-3/15

March 12, 2009

We’ve got plenty of exciting highlights this weekend, including two opportunities for you to go out, sans kids.  Have a look-see: 

Lively Arts for Little Ones: DinoRock - The Other Barn, 5851 Robert Oliver Place, Columbia, 410-730-4610 

Preschool Garage Band

March 02, 2009

In this age of rock-oriented video games and polished pop stars who don’t play their own instruments, it’s no wonder that many kids don’t really know where their music comes from.  I mean, sure, maybe they’ve seen guitars and pianos, and maybe they’ve attended a kids’ concert or two, but how many kids, while rocking out to Yo Gabba Gabba or Hanna Montana or the newest, hippest songs on their parents’ ipods, just assume that the music has always been there, that some strange force, possibly not even human, is somehow behind those infectious grooves?  Surprisingly many, I’m willing to bet.  And how best to get these kids—and your kids, too, no matter how musically savvy they may be—to understand music, to give them some sense of how songs are made?  Why, of course, by encouraging them to participate in music, by thrusting some instruments, whether real or homemade, into their cute and potentially jammin’ hands.

Weekend Highlights: 2/27-3/1

February 26, 2009

As February melts (fingers crossed) into March, there is plenty to do around Baltimore.  Following are some of this weekend’s highlights:

African American Family Festival – The Walters Art Museum, 600 N. Charles Street, 410-547-9000

Saturday, 10 a.m.- 4 p.m.

Celebrate art of the past, present and future with a wide variety of performances and family-oriented activities.  Revisit the Harlem Renaissance, enjoy traditional dance and music, and build a brownstone!

Karma Dogs – BCPL Rosedale, 6105 Kenwood Avenue, Rosedale, 410-887-0512

Saturday, 11 a.m. (Reservations required)

This program has run for the last few weeks, and I must apologize for only covering it now.  Anyway, Karma Dogs is intended for shy, reluctant readers who may feel too self-conscious to read aloud.  Register your child for this unique program and she’ll be paired with a dog—a real, honest-to-goodness dog—who will sit and listen and pant while she reads. 

Drum-Making Workshop and Drum Circle – Chesapeake Children’s Museum, 25 Silopanna Road, Annapolis, 410-990-1993

Saturday, 1-3 p.m.

Use ordinary, household materials (provided) to create a drum or other rhythm instrument.  Then, once your instrument is made, beat your heart out in the drum circle. 

Make It Take It :  Gourd Windchime Workshop – Eden Mill Nature Center, 1617 Eden Mill Road, Pylesville, 410-836-3050

Saturday, 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

March winds are just around the corner, so why not craft a great-sounding windchime out of a bottle gourd, some beads and a little bamboo?

Musical Mystery Tour:  Community Concerts – Second Presbyterian Church, 4200 St. Paul Street, Baltimore, 410-759-3309

Sunday, 3:30-5:00 p.m.

Follow “Melody,” the musical protagonist, as she develops harmony, rhythm and counterpoint on her way to becoming a full-grown composition.  Performed by musicians from the BSO, and intended for children ages 4-12. 

Have a great weekend! 

School of Song

February 23, 2009

A long time ago, before my kids were in the picture, my husband and I used to pretend we were a band.  I sang, wrote lyrics and sort of banged on the keyboard, while he did pretty much everything else.  We had a lot of fun, crafting brilliant songs about soured love and tornadoes, but when the kids came along, and our lives grew more complicated, we left some of our musical ambitions behind.  But because we are both such huge fans of music, and because—often to my six-year-old daughter’s horror—I can communicate very little without turning it into song, our house, even without the screech of feedback, is rarely a quiet place (though seriously, what house filled small children is a quiet place?).  Drop a microphone into our kitchen on an average morning and you’ll hear me crooning unapologetically about spilled corn flakes, the need for raincoats, or whatever else happens to be going on around me.  It’s a sickness, really, this singing about everything, and I sometimes worry that my poor, embarrassed daughter might report me to Social Services just to get it to stop. 

Weekend Highlights, 2/20-2/22

February 19, 2009

Well, another weekend is nearly here to divert us, and it’s time again for me to provide you with some entertainment suggestions.  Here are five widely varied activities to keep you and the kids amused all weekend long.

The Golden Dragon Acrobats – Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts, 801 Chase St., Annapolis

Friday, 7:30 p.m.

If you’ve never seen a Chinese acrobatic show, you should definitely take advantage of this opportunity.  Count on amazing feats of strength and grace, as well, most likely, as improbably high stacks of spinning plates. 

Performing Arts Celebration of Black History Month – Pascal Center for Performing Arts, Anne Arundel Community College, 101 College Pkwy

Friday, 8-9:30 p.m.

While perhaps a little late for the littlest of little ones, this extravaganza of dance, music and theatre should prove engaging for children who can stay up past 9:30.

Rumplestiltskin – Pumpkin Theatre, St. Timothy’s School for Girls, 8400 Greenspring Ave., Stevenson

Saturday and Sunday, 1:00 and 3:00 p.m.

It’s hard not to love the story of Rumplestiltskin, what with the crafty dwarf and the peculiar name and the trickery all around.  Enjoy this musical rendition of the classic comeuppance tale. 

Motion Mania Dance Company – Port Discovery Children’s Museum

Saturday, 1 & 2 p.m.

Enjoy a special performance by this excellent troupe of dancers.

Baltimore Chamber Orchestra with the Peabody Children’s Chorus – Goucher College, Kraushaar Auditorium

Sunday, 3 p.m.

This concert, which features pieces by Mozart and Villa-Lobos, among others, is not, per se, a children’s concert.  But watching real kids perform such beautiful music might inspire your child to indulge his musical side. 

And enjoy art activities this weekend at The Walters, The Creative Alliance at the Patterson and Lakeshore Learning Store. 

Whatever you do, have fun! 

Weekend Highlights, 2/13-2/15

February 13, 2009

First, I'll give you the bad news:  You know that nice weather we've been enjoying all week?  That absence of ice and snow and chill that's permitted us to return, with glee, to backyards and playgrounds and walking trails?  Yeah, well, it isn't April just yet, my friend, so you'd better get accustomed to the idea of another blast of winter.  But with the bad news, luckily, comes this good news:  It's the start of the weekend-and it's a holiday weekend-and there's lots of fun stuff happening all over town.  So bundle up, warm up the car, and make the most of what this weekend in Baltimore has to offer.

Weekend Highlights, 2/6-2/8

by Laura Stallard Petza

February 06, 2009

It's Friday, you're sick and tired of winter, and you're probably looking for fun stuff to do . Right? Well, the weather's supposed to be pretty decent this weekend, which means, unless you enjoy Seasonal Affect Disorder, lethargy and isolation, that you should make an effort to get outside with the kids. Most of the hiking trails, thanks to ice, snow and mud, are a little on the messy side  Read more...

A Mid-Winter's Playlist

by Laura Stallard Petza

January 22, 2009

It's mid-winter, it's freezing, and you and the kids are sorely in need of some exercise. Why not dance those winter blues away with my sure-to-rock, not-at-all-saccharine, totally awesome dance mix? All the cool kids are grooving to the tunes this winter, so what's the matter with you? Turn the TV off, put the corn chips away, and get off that couch and dance! Following are five albums  Read more...

Weekend Highlights: 12/4-12/7

by Laura Stallard Petza

December 04, 2008

Everybody's looking for ways to save a little money, especially in the midst of these dicey economic times, and especially in the midst of the holiday season. So what could be more welcome than Downtown Dollar or Less Days, a program sponsored by participating attractions this weekend and designed to get you--guess where?--downtown. Visit such popular, family-friendly destinations as The  Read more...

Five Local Holiday Traditions

by Laura Stallard Petza

December 02, 2008

Baltimore's always been a festive town, or at least it has been since the long-ago days of my childhood, and with so many fun, local holiday traditions, it's hard to choose which ones to write about first. Anyway, here are five ways to get your holidays started (provided, of course, that you haven't gotten them started already). And trust me--there are plenty more holidays suggestions to come.  Read more...

Santa? Seriously?

by Laura Stallard Petza

November 20, 2008

So the other night, as the family and I were driving to the least festive of places--the computer supply store--we spotted Christmas lights dangling from the eaves of someone's home. And my daughter, who rarely hesitates to tell it like it is, shouted, rightfully, "Christmas lights? What? But it's not even Thanksgiving!" before settling into her booster seat in quiet disgust. And just as I was  Read more...

Get Your Weekend Groove On

by Laura Stallard Petza

November 06, 2008

Looking for some musical fun this weekend? Following are five programs sure to get you and the kids moving, grooving, rocking and rolling. Friday, November 7 Lively Arts for Little Ones!: Rocknoceros Three fathers, all musically inclined, set out to teach your youngsters about dental hygiene, the 50 states and more. I'm so charmed by the name Rocknoceros that I think I may be  Read more...

History Lessons: Touring Fort McHenry with the Little Ones

by Laura Stallard Petza

October 18, 2008

Though there's a lot for kids to learn about Fort McHenry , the most logical starting point, particularly for younger children, is a lesson about "The Star-Spangled Banner." Written in 1814 by Francis Scott Key, "The Star-Spangled Banner" has been a hit among patriots and baseball fans for ages, and even the youngest kids can learn and appreciate the anthem's highlights. Before you  Read more...

Making Music with Your Preschooler

by Laura Stallard Petza

October 10, 2008

Chances are that you've read at least one article on the myriad benefits of music education. Research, as you probably know, shows a strong correlation between academic success and musical aptitude, and there's no better time to introduce a child to music than during the preschool years. I'll be writing a lot more about kids and music in the months to follow, but here, as a start, is a short  Read more...