Fun activities to keep kids occupied during spring break
Spring break has arrived for many parents in the Twin Cities.
For families staying in town, there are plenty of activities that will make the week fly by, whether you're looking for a staycation or just need to keep kids occupied for a few hours.
Force the issue and put thoughts of summer in your life by heading to a conservatory. The mossy, earthy-smelling Marjorie McNeely Conservatory is a reliable bet for a pleasant afternoon at the Como Park Zoo and Conservatory. Plus, it's a great chance to check out the recently revamped Sunken Garden and its spring flower show. There's also the Meyer-Deats Conservatory over at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum.
The Walker has programming geared toward younger audiences during spring break. It's not a bad spot to go under any circumstances — it's always free for people 18 and under — but here are the special events you'll find at the museum this week.
April 2: Teen Maker Break, 11 a.m.–4 p.m.
April 3: Woven Textiles with Andy Jacobs (during free Thursday nights), 5–8 p.m.
April 3: Art & Sound Lounge (during free Thursday nights), 5–8 p.m.
April 5: Free First Saturdays: Earth Elements, 10 a.m.–3 p.m.
The Twin Cities is packed with museums, some of which offer free admission. The Minnesota Children's Museum will be open on Monday during spring break (it's normally closed on Mondays), and there's plenty to see at the Science Museum of Minnesota, Minneapolis Institute of Art, Bakken Museum, Weisman Art Museum, Mill City Museum, and American Swedish Institute, among other places.
Here are a few special events taking place during the week.
April 1: Makers Mornings (virtual) with American Swedish Institute
April 2: Open Studio: Visual Verses at Weisman Art Museum
April 3: "On the Shoulders of Giants" w/ films, DJs, and food trucks at Minneapolis Institute of Art
April 4: Preschool Program: Easter Witches, Feathers, and Fun at American Swedish Institute
April 4: Museum Nights at Science Museum of Minnesota
April 5: Art Play! at Minneapolis Institute of Art
Any clear night is an opportunity to stargaze with kids. However, if stargazing feels daunting and unfamiliar, join the Bell Museum for one of its free star parties, which will take place at 9 p.m. on April 4. Inside the museum, there are hands-on activities that will illuminate the night sky. Outside, experts have telescopes ready for young eyes and can help kids spot planets and other exciting night sky objects.
Here's an easy one: Catch a movie. There are plenty of family movies in theaters right now (Dog Man, Paddington in Peru, A Minecraft Movie, The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie), but some theaters are hosting special screenings that will entertain younger audiences.
March 29: Barbie (2023) at Minneapolis Institute of Art (free)
Mar. 29–30: Flow (2024) at Riverview Theater
March 30: The Mummy (1999) at Emagine Willow Creek
Mar. 30–31: Grease (1978) at Oakdale Cinema, Parkwood Cinema, Rosemount Cinema, and West End Cinema
March 31–April 3: Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (2024) at Cinema Grill
April 3: Hoosiers (1995) at Emagine Willow Creek
April 3: Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) at The Parkway Theater
April 4: Dune (1984) at Alamo Drafthouse
April 5: Spirited Away (2001) at The Parkway Theater
April 6: Empire Records (1995) at Audrey Rose Vintage
April 6: Little Big League (1994) at Niccolet Island Pavilion (free)
Sandbox VR, with locations in Eden Prairie and Roseville, offers a unique virtual reality gaming experience. It doesn't last hours, if you're looking to occupy kids for any length of time, but it will delight.
Adventurers don a headset and, for some games, weapons to dive into a fully immersive VR world with multiple adventures available, including a zombie wasteland, a pirate ship, a dragon attack, and a Squid Games-themed experience. It'll pull you into its world as your group follows instructions to complete quests inside each game.
The St. Paul arcade and mini golf course — recently named one of the best mini golf courses in the country — is operating with extended hours during spring break, opening at 11 a.m. daily. (And don't forget admission is just $10 on Tuesdays and kids 5 and under are free every day.)
There are dozens of arcade games to keep kids entertained for hours. Additionally, it's hosting a skateboard art workshop on Saturday.As always, there are storytimes for kids of all ages all around the Twin Cities. That includes community gathering places like Wild Rumpus bookstore, as well as libraries. (There are multiple storytimes over the week at Hennepin County Libraries and Ramsey County Libraries.)
While there are plenty of other activities around the Twin Cities like zoos and indoor adventure parks (see Bring Me the News' list of winter activities for kids for more details on some of those), it's also nice enough to get outside. Go to a park, take a hike, or explore a state park. (And don't forget, many libraries will let you check out a free pass to Minnesota's state parks!)
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- Los Angeles Times
King of the kazoos
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Want to Try Driving a City Bus, Hauling Trash or Building a Skyscraper?
A museum worker climbed behind the steering wheel of a teal-blue city bus, and in place of a windshield, a flat-screen monitor displayed a crowded street in Queens. Eyes on the screen, the worker swerved around jaywalkers and double-parked trucks while picking up passengers at bus stops. A car suddenly backed up to nab a parking spot. On another block, a food cart blocked traffic. 'I think this gives you so much empathy for bus drivers,' said the worker, Dana Schloss, associate vice president of exhibits at the museum, the New York Hall of Science in Queens. The stress-inducing bus drive is the first stop in an interactive exhibit called 'CityWorks,' opening May 3. It unabashedly celebrates cities by exploring how they were developed and built, and has fun getting hands-on with the complex technology and often messy infrastructure required to provide water, sanitation and transportation to millions of residents. 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As predicted, New York is coming back, along with other big cities, though their recovery is still in progress, said John Mollenkopf, director of the Center for Urban Research at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. More workers have returned to downtown offices, and trains and buses are filling up. Yet, high living costs and a shortage of affordable housing are still pushing many families out. New York, America's biggest city, is even growing again after its steep slide during the pandemic, reaching 8.48 million people in July 2024 in the latest census estimates. Among the newcomers are tens of thousands of migrants who have arrived in the city since the spring of 2022. They have helped replenish its diverse neighborhoods. At the museum, a graphic of a block of apartment buildings is overlaid onto a towering panel that rises up to 16 feet high. Pulling a cord sends rain racing down in blue lights. Pulling again intensifies the shower. 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A model of an industrial Brooklyn neighborhood, which can be built from blocks with sensors on an interactive table, was based on data on traffic density, waste generation and flooding risk from Red Hook and the surrounding waterfront to illustrate the impact of development and climate change. There are two other models of neighborhoods in Midtown Manhattan and Queens to play with. 'We really want the exhibit to be a platform for broader conversations,' said Katie Culp, the museum's chief learning officer. CityWorks highlights not only the physical city but also the municipal work force that keeps it running. Sprinkled through the exhibit are recordings by New York City workers, including a bus dispatcher, wastewater scientist and subway conductor. The garbage truck display was designed to show the hard job of a sanitation worker. When it was tested at the museum last summer, some parents were overheard dismissing the career choice. So a sign was added to the display: 'Do you have what it takes to be one of New York's strongest?' In no time, the conversation shifted, museum workers said. As parents learned, it takes a lot of skill to be a sanitation worker. CityWorks will become a permanent exhibit at the science museum, which draws more than 400,000 visitors annually, Ms. Gugenheim said. 'People are drawn to cities,' she said. 'The energy, the complexity, the design are all part of what makes cities special.'
