Category: Activities for Kids

Activities for children in Newton, Massachusetts.

Autism-Friendly Performance of OKLAHOMA! for Kids
The Boston Conservatory is about to do something that’s never been done by any school in Boston before: make theater accessible to children on the autism spectrum.

The Boston Conservatory is very excited to present an Autism-Friendly Performance of the hit musical, OKLAHOMA! on Sunday, October 20 at 2 p.m. at The Boston Conservatory Theater.

It’s a special, first-of-its-kind performance in Boston, which is being presented as part of The Boston Conservatory Program for Students on the Autism Spectrum.

For many families, attending the theater with an autistic child isn’t an option. The strange environment, the noise level and large audiences can be upsetting to the child and parents often are unsure of the reaction from other attendees.

To address this, The Conservatory has created a number of online resources to help families with this experience, including a plot synopsis, character guide, FAQs and a “Coming to the Theater” video, which walks children through the process of arriving at the theater, getting a ticket, being seats, starting the show and exiting the theater.

The show itself is specifically designed for families with children who are on the autism spectrum or who have other sensory issues and The Boston Conservatory is making adjustments to ensure a safe and judgment-free environment for families. Among them:
- dimming house lights slightly, rather than completely
- keeping audio levels relatively balanced to avoid jarring, loud sounds
- avoiding intense lighting that may be stressful
- extending the intermission period
- allowing children and their families to talk during the performance and leave their seats with parental supervision
- allowing snacks and non-glassware drinks in the theater, along with headphones and earplugs
- creating a special “Quiet/Activity Room” for children who become over-stimulated and may need a break, featuring mats, chairs and tables with coloring activities, sticker books and fidgets (hand-held manipulatives)
Additionally, all staff present at the performance, including ushers, cast members and crew members, will be trained specifically for this performance and an E.M.S. worker will be on site at all times.

The Autism-Friendly Performance of OKLAHOMA! will be Sunday, October 20, 2013 at 2 p.m. at The Boston Conservatory Theater, located at 31 Hemenway Street, Boston, MA, 02115. Tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for children, with group rates available. Families interested in attending can call the Box Office at (617) 912-9222 or purchase tickets online and choose seats according to where they feel most comfortable by visiting.
October 20, 2013
Book Party with Catherine Gilbert Murdock
Upcoming Book Party with Catherine Gilbert Murdock at Brookline Booksmith on Nov 3rd from 1 to 3 pm.

Catherine’s new book Heaven is Paved with Oreos is a perfect read for tweens/early teens.

Any purchases made that afternoon will help support the Foundation for Children’s Books, a special organization that brings authors and illustrators into under-served schools in Boston.
- Hear about Catherine’s great new novel for ages 10 and up, Heaven is Paved with Oreos, from the author herself
- Learn about how the FCB brings amazing authors into under-served schools in Boston
- Find lots of other great new books for younger and older kids and adults with the help of the Brookline Booksmith staff
- Enjoy some awesome refreshments (you can guess which kind of cookies!)
- Support a great cause: 20% of your purchases will support the FCB’s work in urban schools
This event is free and open to the public, but please RSVP to admin@thefcb.org by Tuesday, Oct. 29 to reserve your seat.

Brookline Booksmith

279 Harvard St., Brookline, MA 02446
October 19, 2013
Join NewTV for FREE Halloween Event

For one night only, NewTV will be hosting its first haunted house. Don’t miss the scares and screams, games and goodies from this free family event at the NewTV Studio on Friday, October 25th from 4-9pm.

October 18, 2013
Trick or Treat at The Prudential Center Shops

The Shops at Prudential Center, Boston, will host its annual Pru Boo indoor trick-or-treating and family fun event to benefit The Home for Little Wanderers on Sunday, October 27.

For the nineteenth year the Prudential Center will open its doors to hundreds of families from Greater Boston to enjoy “store-to-store” trick-or-treating, a performance by Vanessa Trien and The Jumping Monkeys as well as a variety of activities including:

Boston Ballet – Nutcracker costume/photo opportunity.

New England Aquarium –Tide Pool Open House! This program allows children to handle and observe a wide range of live tidal pool animals from local waters. Also, an appearance by one of NEAQ’s aquatic characters.

Magic Beans – Elmo character appearance (11-11:30AM and 12-12:30PM)

Museum of Science –Dinosaur activities, including Dino Size Me, a dinosaur math activity; dino facts; and make your own Dino puzzles or bookmarks.

NECCO –Craft activities using Necco candy.

Boston Duck Tours – Appearance by official mascot, Kilroy.

The Freedom Trail Foundation – Have your picture taken in the stocks! Learn more about The Freedom Trail.

As well as a number of other activities by Blue Man Group, Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum, Mary Baker Eddy Library, Microsoft, and Zipcar.

Schedule of Events

11:00am – 1:00pm: Trick-or-treat and children’s activities

2:00pm: Vanessa Trien and the Jumping Monkeys

With a $4 donation to The Home for Little Wanderers, participants receive a trick-or-treat bag that provides access to trick-or-treating at more than 50 stores and restaurants at the Prudential Center, along with other fun family-friendly activities.

Presenting sponsor, NECCO, The New England Confectionery Company, will provide all candy.

Trick-or-treat bags can be purchased at The Shops at Prudential Center’s Customer Service Desk starting October 1, and at check-in stations located in the Food Court and Center Court starting at 9am the day of the event.

Parking for the day is $16. Parking passes can be picked up at Pru Boo check-in stations.

Halloween Costume Photo Costume Contest:

Submit a photo of your little one in costume October 1 – 23, 2013 for a chance to win a prize pack from The Shops at Prudential Center valued at $100. Share your photo on our Facebook Page, Twitter and/or Instagram. For details visit here.

October 16, 2013
Grand Opening of Chungdahm Readwrite

Chungdahm Readwrite is thrilled to announce the grand opening of our brand new state of the art Learning Center in Newton! Our research-based program that offers customized, advanced reading and writing enrichment courses for grades 3-12.

Our goal is to help students improve their ability to critically analyze different types of texts, discuss and defend opinions, write persuasively and creatively, and problem solve. We offer a variety of programs such as Literary Analysis, Expository Analysis, Issue Analysis and SAT Prep. Our advanced courses will aid students in fostering high academic achievement by providing them with the tools they need to excel as intellectuals and lifelong learners.

Contact us today for tour and to meet with an instructor to learn how our rigorous and engaging curriculum will provide your child with tools for scholastic excellence.

Enrollment is on a rolling admissions basis; tuition prorated accordingly. Ask about our First Time Student Discount!

Visit www.bostonreadwrite.com, call 617-960-8877, or write to info@bostonreadwrite.com for more information.

October 8, 2013
Sign Up for Halloween Window Painting!

Newton Halloween Window Painting Contest

Saturday, October 26th, 2013 from 9 am – 4pm. Open to Newton kids in grades 3rd through 8th.

Special awards ceremony with Mayor Setti Wareen at the Newton Cultural Center.

To enter, sign up here.

Cost is $10 and each artist supplies his or her own tempera paints, brushes, newpaper, rags and masking tape.

October 6, 2013
NewTV’s House of Haunts: A Free Family Friendly Event

NewTV’s hosting its first ever Halloween event! NewTV’s “Haunted Haunts” event is happening on Oct. 25 at the NewTV Studio.

Join them for a FREE fun and kid-friendly after school event that will unite families and kids from our community and the different elementary schools.

NewTV’s House of Haunts: A Free Family Friendly Event

Where: NewTV Studio at 23 Needham Street, Newton MA

When: 4-9pm on Friday, October 25, 2013

While You’re Here You Can:

— Take a Haunted Tour

— Play Ghoulish Games

— Decorate Pumpkins

— Create your own Trick-or-Treat Bag

October 2, 2013
Children’s Book Event at Boston Public Library

Literary Lights for Children SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 29, 2013, 2 – 4:30 P.M.

Where Central Library in Copley Square
Bates Hall
700 Boylston Street
Boston, MA 02116

Location Central Library
Neighborhood Back Bay

Type of Event: Author Talk, Food & Dining, Non-Profit Fundraiser, Talks & Lectures
Cost: Tickets start at $40
Audience: Children (Ages 6-12), Teens (Ages 13-18), Adults, Families
Link: www.literarylightsforchildren.org

The Associates of the Boston Public Library is hosting the 15th annual Literary Lights for Children tea party on Sunday, September 29th in the beautiful Bates Reading Room of the Boston Public Library.

Meet Rick Riordan of the Percy Jackson series, Jeanne Birdsall of The Penderwicks series, Helen Frost and Kadir Nelson!

Literary Lights for Children seeks to raise awareness of children’s literature, promote literacy, honor children’s authors, and raise funds for the Boston Public Library’s Special Collections. Students selected from Boston area schools will introduce and present the awards to each of the honored authors. The honorees will then discuss their writing careers and share their love of books with the audience of 350 children and adults. Tea refreshments will be served. Immediately following the tea party, there will be a book signing session. Books will be available for sale, or children are welcome to bring their own books.

To purchase tickets, please go here

September 25, 2013
Meet the Female Scientists at Discovery Museums Acton! FREE

The Discovery Museums Continue Popular

First Friday Nights Free! Program for 2013 – 2014

Special “Meet the Scientists” Event on October 4

The Discovery Museums are pleased to announce their First Friday Nights Free! program for 2013-2014, offering free admission to both museums along with extended evening hours on the first Friday night of the month.

Between October 2013 and June 2014, both the Children’s Discovery Museum and the Science Discovery Museum will be open until8:30pm, with free admission beginning at 4:30pm. Families are invited to picnic under the stars when the weather permits, and enjoy the Museums at night.

Special program October 4: Meet the Scientists

During the season’s opening First Friday Nights Free!, the Museums will be host to several scientists participating their ongoing Portal to the Public program, a national network of museums bringing scientists and the public together in face-to-face interactive programs. The “Meet the Scientists” event will take place from 6:00pm to 8:00pm on Friday, October 4. Visitors will have the opportunity to talk to real scientists and do hands-on activities that they have developed, including:

Laura Proctor of MathWorks – will lead participants in performing numeric sorting of numbers to determine patterns that would be helpful in sorting hundreds of numbers, similar to how a computer might apply an algorithm, or pattern, to finish a task.

Professor Melissa Kosinski-Collins of Brandeis University – will be exploring how scientists tag molecules in a cell using fluorescent markers. Participants will “search” for hidden items in a cell model.

Dr. Sarah Sundelacruz of Tufts University – visitors will explore how scientists grow tissues to help our bodies heal.

Dr. Jocelyn LeBlanc from Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School – will show how the brain is the most remarkable part of the human body through “tricks” demonstrating the amazing ways the brain can adapt.

Dr. Dimitra Pouli of Tufts University – will demonstrate the multifaceted nature of light.

Dr. Mathangi Krishnamurthy of Fitchburg State University – will lead an activity showing how we can affect the speed/rate of chemical reactions, namely decomposition, by using chemical substances called catalysts.

Suanna Selby Crowley, PhD, RPA of Boston College – will lead several activities exploring the textures, components, and facts about archaeological soils and sediments and how they help tell the story of ancient sites.

Dr. Casey Wade of Brandeis University – will explore the relationship between chemistry and electricity.

First Friday Nights Free! is an important component of the Museums’ Open Door Connections program, which provides opportunities for those who face a variety of barriers—financial, geographic, developmental, or cultural—to experience the Museums. The program is sponsored by Emerson Hospital with additional support from the local cultural councils of Acton-Boxborough, Billerica, Carlisle, Chelmsford, Harvard, Hudson, Leominster, Lexington, Littleton, Maynard, Waltham, Wayland and Westford.

Collections for Local Food Pantries

The Discovery Museums will collect non-perishable donations for Open Table of Concord and Maynard and the Acton Food Pantry on Fridays as party of this special family promotion. Suggested items include peanut butter, canned proteins, coffee, tea, cereal, pasta sauce, juice boxes, jam/jelly, canned vegetables, and baking mixes.

September 23, 2013
Lego Event at Wellesley Books

Legos with Sean Kenney

Wednesday, Sept. 18th @ 2 pm

at Wellesley Books, 82 Central Street

Wellesley

Come flex your LEGO creativity with artist, author, and LEGO certified professional Sean Kenney. He’ll be giving a LEGO demonstration, signing books, and leading young builders in guided play This is a ticketed event and seating is limited. Tickets are $5 per seat and can be purchased on our website, over the phone(781.431.1160) or by stopping into the store.

September 15, 2013