June-August Family Programs at the New-York Historical Society
Kids + History = Serious Fun this Summer at the New-York Historical Society and DiMenna Children’s History Museum
WHAT: The DiMenna Children’s History Museum at the New-York Historical Society is pleased to offer a large and diverse selection of activities for the whole family during the Summer of 2013 designed to make history come alive. This exciting series of programs take place at the DiMenna Children’s History Museum—the first-ever children’s museum bringing American history to life through the lives and times of children of the past.
What burning questions do you have about the Civil War? Kids and dads (and moms) are invited join renowned scholar Harold Holzer and ask them all this Father’s Day, June 16 at 2pm:http://www.nyhistory.org/programs/historian-hot-seat-civil-war-and-harold-holzer
WHEN: June-August 2013. Specific program dates/times listed below and athttps://www.nyhistory.org/dchm-calendar
WHERE: All family programs take place at the New-York Historical Society
170 Central Park West between West 76th and West 77th Streets
HOW: To RSVP for a family program please e-mail: familyprograms@nyhistory.org
INFO: For more information on family programs and the DiMenna Children’s History Museum, please call (212) 485-9293 or visit www.DimennaChildrensHistoryMuseum.org
June
Sunday, June 2 1:30 pm
Ages 4 and up. Free with Museum admission
Families will be amazed to see an entire circus emerge from one suitcase! A tent, band, lights, and a boisterous ringmaster and magician will all be joined by the most important performers – the audience! Kids will be engaged and physically involved in the performance in this unique circus program.
Saturday, June 8 2 pm
Ages 4 – 10. RSVP required, $5 per person, includes Museum admission
Venga y acompañenos! Families look, discuss, and create in this Spanish-language monthly family program, combining time in the galleries with art-making in the studios. In June’s program, families will visit the Tiffany lamps and discuss the themes of flower, insects and other nature forms. After the gallery visit families will design their own colorful lampshade.
For more information, please e-mail Rosa Tejada at rosa.tejada@nyhistory.org.
Let’s Talk About History and Art: Educational Workshops for Families is sponsored, in part, by the Goodman Memorial Foundation.
Sunday, June 16 12pm
Special Father’s Day family program for ALL AGES. Free with admission.
What burning questions do you have about the Civil War? Kids and dads (and moms) join renowned scholar Harold Holzer and ask them all! Mr. Holzer will engage young historians in a thoughtful conversation about a wide range of topic – battles, Abraham Lincoln, slavery, soldiers – whatever you would like to ask him. What did soldiers eat while on the march? How did “Stonewall” Jackson get his nickname? What was “Bloody Kansas”? Did brothers and cousins really fight each other?
Stick around and play our Choose Your Own Adventure game as a Civil War soldier, and do our Civil War scavenger hunt, taking you throughout the New-York Historical Society to see real Civil War related objects. Harold Holzer will be signing copies of his new book The Civil War in 50 Objects and his recent young reader’s companion book for Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln movie Lincoln: How Abraham Lincoln Ended Slavery in America.
A SOLDIER’S LIFE: CHOOSE-YOUR-OWN-ADVENTURE GAME
Sunday, June 16, 1:30 pm
After asking Harold Holzer Civil War questions, kids can come play this interactive game and become a soldier in the Civil War! Led by a New-York Historical Society educator, participants will make choices about what you would do in realistic Civil War situations. At the end of the game, participants find out whether you would have lived or died, come home happy or with "Soldier's Heart." Prizes for participation!
Wednesday, June 19 3:30 pm
Free with Museum admission. Ages 9-12.
Come celebrate the first anniversary of the Reading into History Family Book Club and Juneteenth! We will enjoy some celebratory snacks and discuss this novel set in 1850s Seneca Village, a community of immigrants and free African-Americans that was destroyed to pave the way for Central Park. After our discussion, Book club facilitators Katie and Rachel will lead the group on a tour of the remains of Seneca Village, just a short walk from the museum.
Sunday, June 23 2 pm
Free with Museum admission. Rated PG. 93 minutes.
Too hot outside? Join us for these family classic while you kick back and enjoy some popcorn. Come explore Manhattan with the silliest of mischief makers, the Muppets! Join Miss Piggy, Kermit the Frog, Fozzie Bear, Gonzo, and the whole muppet crew as they work to get their new musical on the Broadway stage. After the film, see if you can spot a muppet balloon in our Thanksgiving Day parade photographs in the DiMenna Children’s History Museum.
Sunday, June 30 2 pm
Free with Museum admission. Rated PG. 152 minutes.
Too hot outside? Join us for this family classic while you kick back and enjoy some popcorn. Get a glimpse into the rough-and-tumble world of 1950s New York City through the epic love story of Tony and Maria. The lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and score by Leonard Bernstein bring the streets of New York alive – many of the scenes were filmed on location near the current location of Lincoln Center. After the film, discover photographs of the five boroughs from the 19th and 20th centuries in the DiMenna Children’s History Museum.
Ongoing June Programs
Thursdays 3:30 - 5:30 pm
Ages 6 and up. Free with Museum admission.
Drop in to try your skills at one of the oldest forms of embroidery in the world. Beginning cross stitchers and younger children will learn the basic stitch and create a bookmark with their new skill. More seasoned stitchers and older children and adults can continue working on their bookmark or branch into more complicated designs—make a handcrafted gift for someone!
Tuesdays and Fridays 3:30 – 4:15 pm
Ages 3 – 5. Free with Museum admission.
Held in the cozy Barbara K. Lipman Children’s History Library, this program introduces New York and American history to the littlest New Yorkers with age-appropriate themes and engaging hands-on activities. Each class includes story readings, time with historic toys, free exploration, a special Little New-Yorkershello song, and a related craft project.
MACY’S SUNDAY STORY TIME
Sundays, 11:30 am
Ages 4 – 7. Free with Museum admission.
Hear tales of New York and learn about your city’s history in these stories for young children. Themes are related to New York and American history, current holidays, and New-York Historical Society exhibitions.
Support for the Macy's Sunday Story Time provided by the Macy's Foundation.
June 2, 2013
Share your own subway adventures after reading about a sparrow that flies aboard the D train, then try to guess what the next stop is on My Subway Ride!
Subway Sparrow by Leyla Torres, My Subway Ride by Paul Dubois Jacobs and Jennifer Swender
June 9, 2013
Put New York in your rear-view mirror, and rhyme your way across the country with Jack Kerouac as he answers the call to “Hit the Road!”
Hit the Road, Jack by Robert Burleigh
June 16, 2013
Do you know how to scat? If not, then learn all about vocal improvisation from Cool Daddy Rat! If so, then show off your skills during this jazzy, call-and-response storytime!
Cool Daddy Rat by Kristyn Crow
June 23, 2013
Where can you flip your fins and jump, dance, and stroll? Coney Island’s Mermaid Parade, of course! Celebrate summer by learning about this artistic parade’s history.
Mermaids on Parade by Melanie Hope Greenberg
June 30, 2013
Prepare for our nation’s birthday by guessing which silly tall tales about our founding fathers are true or not in Lane Smith’s John, Paul, George & Ben, then hear an extraordinary true story about how a bookseller helped chase the British army out of Boston during the Revolutionary War.
John, Paul, George & Ben by Lane Smith, Henry and the Cannons by Don Brown
July
CELEBRATE INDEPDENCE DAY AT THE NEW-YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Thursday, July 4 10 am – 6 pm
All ages. Free with Museum admission.
Find out what life was like in 1776 and celebrate Independence Day at the New-York Historical Society! Speak with Benjamin Franklin firsthand about his experiments with lightning and electricity, his inventions, and his involvement with Congress in drafting the Declaration of Independence. Listen to the fun and interactive stories and songs about eighteenth-century life from the Hudson River Ramblers, who will be entertaining visitors throughout the museum galleries.
Thursday, July 4 10 am – 6 pm
All ages. Free with Museum admission.
Hunt high and low in the New-York Historical Society on our scavenger hunt celebrating our nation’s independence. Families will search for the horse tail from King George’s statue, George Washington’s cot, and other 4th of July treasures. When finished, enter our raffle for Liberty the Dog!
Thursday, July 4 12pm – 4 pm
All ages. Free with Museum admission.
I scream, you scream! Come experience popular flavors of the past and help us crank up batches of 18th and 19th century ice cream recipes. Families will experience both familiar flavors like mint, and unfamiliar flavors like orange flower water; use a historic ice cream crank, and then taste test the results!
Sunday, July 14; 2 pm
Free with Museum admission. Rated PG. 128 minutes.
Too hot outside? Join us for this family classic while you kick back and enjoy some popcorn. One, two, three, strikes you’re out! Not for the ladies in this story of the first professional female baseball league. During World War II, when much of the male population was in the trenches, the first all-women’s baseball league was formed. Dottie Hinson (Geena Davis) and Kit Keller (Lori Petty) are sisters recruited to keep the sport alive. Their teammates range from a former dance hall hostess to a home run slugger to a jersey girl to a couple of farmer’s daughters. After the film, learn more about other baseball firsts in the DiMenna Children’s History Museum, like Esteban Bellán, the first Latin American to play professional baseball in the United States!
Sunday, July 21; 2 pm
Free with Museum admission. Rated PG. 105 minutes.
Too hot outside? Join us for this family classic while you kick back and enjoy some popcorn. Come see the Ghostbusters save New York City in this classic family comedy. Unemployed parapsychologists set themselves up as "Ghostbusters" to rid New York of evil monstrous apparitions that are taking over the city. Keep an eye out for all the shots on location – the New York Public Library, Columbus Circle, Hook and Ladder 8 Firehouse, and many more! After the film, discover photographs of the five boroughs from the 19th and 20th centuries in the DiMenna Children’s History Museum Historical Viewfinder!
Wednesday, July 24; 3:30 pm
Free with Museum admission. Ages 9-12.
Alan Gratz takes us through nine generations, or “innings” of one Brooklyn family. The tie that binds each generation is baseball. This book combines the thrills of America’s Pastime with compelling historical detail about New York from the 1800s to the present day. From the Booklist starred review “Gratz builds this novel upon a clever enough conceit…and executes it with polish and precision.” After a reading and discussion, we’ll play game and toss the ball around like they did 100 years ago—no gloves allowed!
Sunday, July 28; 2 pm
Free with Museum admission. Rated PG. 125 minutes.
Too hot outside? Join us for this family classic while you kick back and enjoy some popcorn. Extra! Extra! Read all about it! Well, maybe not read, but come watch as the characters in Newsies! sing and dance their way through the famous New York City newsboy strike of 1899. Determined to make their dreams come true the courageous group of newsboys become unlikely heroes when they team up to fight an unscrupulous newspaper publisher. Make sure to visit our newsies exhibit in the DiMenna Children’s History Museum to learn more about what life would have really been like for these young lads and lasses.
Ongoing July Programs
Thursdays 3:30 - 5:30 pm
Ages 6 and up. Free with Museum admission.
Drop in to try your skills at one of the oldest forms of embroidery in the world. Beginning cross stitchers and younger children will learn the basic stitch and create a bookmark with their new skill. More seasoned stitchers and older children and adults can continue working on their bookmark or branch into more complicated designs—make a handcrafted gift for someone!
Tuesdays and Fridays 3:30 – 4:15 pm
Ages 3 – 5. Free with Museum admission.
Held in the cozy Barbara K. Lipman Children’s History Library, this program introduces New York and American history to the littlest New Yorkers with age-appropriate themes and engaging hands-on activities. Each class includes story readings, time with historic toys, free exploration, a special Little New-Yorkershello song, and a related craft project.
MACY’S SUNDAY STORY TIME
Sundays, 11:30 am
Ages 4 – 7. Free with Museum admission.
Hear tales of New York and learn about your city’s history in these stories for young children. Themes are related to New York and American history, current holidays, and New-York Historical Society exhibitions.
Support for the Macy's Sunday Story Time provided by the Macy's Foundation.
July 7, 2013
Explore 20th century Harlem with Cassie Louise Lightfoot while she flies through the city and dreams about her family and her future. Featured story: Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold.
July 14, 2013
Share what you love about your neighborhood after reading El Barrio and learning what makes Spanish Harlem special. Featured story: El Barrio by Debbi Chocolate.
July 21, 2013
Relive the summer of 1899 through the eyes of the New York Newsies and read all about how they managed to beat The World by sticking together. Featured story: Kid Blink Beats The World by Don Brown.
July 28, 2013
Join American folk heroes Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox as they embark on a great pancake adventure across the country, changing its landscape forever! Featured story: Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox by Matt Luckhurst.
August
CAMP HISTORY FEATURING PIXEL ACADEMY
Monday, August 19-Thursday, August 23, 9am - 4pm
Cost: $500 for the week ($400 for members). Cost includes daily snacks and materials. Advanced registration required; contact camphistory@nyhistory.org before August 9th, 2013.
Middle School students ages 11-13 are invited to put their imaginations to work to design, program, and play their very own digital history games about the American Revolution. Led by Museum educators, campers will become Revolutionary War experts in the galleries and behind the scenes with the help of curators, historians and conservators. Pixel Academy will introduce campers to the principles of game design and guide them towards making their very own games that they can download and take home.
Wednesday, August 28; 3:30 pm
Free with Museum admission. Ages 9-12.
Hear the story of Alexander Hamilton, the New Yorker and founding father who immigrated here as a poor boy and rose to become a star in Washington’s army and established our nation's economy as the first Secretary of the Treasury. Then, examine actual documents penned by Hamilton and go on scavenger hunt through the New-York Historical Society’s galleries.
Ongoing August Programs
Thursdays 3:30 - 5:30 pm
Ages 6 and up. Free with Museum admission.
Drop in to try your skills at one of the oldest forms of embroidery in the world. Beginning cross stitchers and younger children will learn the basic stitch and create a bookmark with their new skill. More seasoned stitchers and older children and adults can continue working on their bookmark or branch into more complicated designs—make a handcrafted gift for someone!
Tuesdays and Fridays 3:30 – 4:15 pm
Ages 3 – 5. Free with Museum admission.
Held in the cozy Barbara K. Lipman Children’s History Library, this program introduces New York and American history to the littlest New Yorkers with age-appropriate themes and engaging hands-on activities. Each class includes story readings, time with historic toys, free exploration, a special Little New-Yorkershello song, and a related craft project.
MACY’S SUNDAY STORY TIME
Sundays, 11:30 am
Ages 4 – 7. Free with Museum admission.
Hear tales of New York and learn about your city’s history in these stories for young children. Themes are related to New York and American history, current holidays, and New-York Historical Society exhibitions.
Support for the Macy's Sunday Story Time provided by the Macy's Foundation.
August 4, 2013
Follow Phillipe Petit’s performance as he crawls, climbs, and balances one thousand three hundred and forty feet in the air, between the World Trade Center Towers, nearly 40 years ago. Featured story: The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein.
August 11, 2013
Hear the Statue of Liberty speak through Emma Lazarus’ poem “The New Colossus,” and discover why Emma’s poem was so important to the statue’s construction! Featured story: Emma’s Poem: The Voice of the Statue of Liberty by Linda Glaser.
August 18, 2013
Ever wonder when the best time to start making art would be? Artist Clementine Hunter never had the perfect time to paint but taught herself and started to paint anyway; and today her artwork is in museums across the country. Featured story: Art From Her Heart: Folk Artist Clementine Hunter by Kathy Whitehead and Shane W. Evans.
August 25, 2013
Celebrate the 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech by reading We March by Shane W. Evans and reflecting on what it means to gather and march together for civil rights. Featured stories: We March by Shane W. Evans, Martin’s Big Words by Doreen Rappaport.
ABOUT THE NEW-YORK HISTORICAL SOCIETY
The New-York Historical Society, one of America's pre-eminent cultural institutions, is dedicated to fostering research and presenting history and art exhibitions and public programs that reveal the dynamism of history and its influence on the world of today. Founded in 1804, New-York Historical has a mission to explore the richly layered history of New York City and State and the country, and to serve as a national forum for the discussion of issues surrounding the making and meaning of history.
About The Dimenna Children's History Museum
The DiMenna Children’s History Museum is a new museum-within-a-museum and occupies the New-York Historical Society's entire lower level. It covers 350 years of New York and American history and includes character-based pavilions, interactive exhibits and digital games, and the Barbara K. Lipman Children’s History Library. Families explore and learn together, through visiting the museum and through participating in our intergenerational family learning programs. All ages can enjoy and learn in the DiMenna Children's History Museum, but the exhibits are targeted at age 8-13.
MUSEUM AND STORE HOURS:
Tuesday- Thursday: 10 am – 6 pm
Friday: 10 am – 8 pm (pay-as-you-wish from 6 pm – 8 pm)
Saturday: 10 am – 6 pm
Sunday: 11 am – 5 pm
MUSEUM ADMISSION:
Adults- $15
Teachers and Seniors- $12
Students- $10
Children (5-13) - $5
Children (4 and under)- free
