Kids Culture 12.22.16

A Camp for the Break

Even with new toys to play with, kids might get a little stir-crazy at some point during the upcoming 10-day school break, and not every parent gets a similar break from work. Enter the Y.M.C.A. East Hampton RECenter. From Monday through Friday, Dec. 30, and again on Jan. 2, the Y.M.C.A. will run a school break camp for kids ages 4 to 14 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day, with the chance to extend the day by an hour in the morning and evening. The camp will include swimming, cultural arts classes, sports, and maybe even a field trip. The cost is $32 per day per child, and an additional $10 for the extended-day option. Advance registration is with Sondra Vecchio by phone or at [email protected].

Budding Chefs and Ball Drops

Budding chefs ages 4 to 7 will be right at home at the Children’s Museum of the East End’s daily Kids Club cooking program next week. The program, which runs Monday through Friday, Dec. 30, from 9:30 to 11:45 a.m., will have kids making a different dish each day. Pasta is on the menu Monday, Tuesday it’s quiche, Wednesday sushi, next Thursday deviled eggs, and Friday, Dec. 30, samosas. The cost is $400 for the week, $325 for museum members, and advance registration is required.

Looking ahead to New Year’s Eve, the museum will host ball drops for families, complete with the excitement of a countdown, at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. Kids will make noisemakers, share resolutions for 2017, and revel in a confetti-filled grand finale. The cost is $14 per person; members get in free. Advance registration is a must as this event often sells out.

Movies and Night Scenes

While school is out, the East Hampton Library will offer a number of extra programs to keep kids busy. On the free family movies front, today’s is “The BFG,” based on the novel by Roald Dahl, at 2 p.m. “The Secret Life of Pets,” an animated feature about what pets do when their owners leave the house, will be shown on Monday at 1:30. Next Thursday’s flick is “Pete’s Dragon” at 2, and on Jan. 2, the library will show “Storks” on the big screen at 1:30.

In an art program on Tuesday, kids will explore the night scenes of van Gogh, Magritte, and other artists and then create scenes of their own. “Winter wonderland” is the theme of another art program on Wednesday. Both begin at 2:30 p.m. and are for kids 4 and older.

In the library’s young-adult room, high school students can make New Year’s crafts on Wednesday and next Thursday from 2 to 5 p.m. Advance registration has been requested for most programs.

Art Workshops Galore

Children’s art workshops Monday through next Thursday at the Parrish Art Museum in Water Mill will have a different focus each day: abstract wooden sculpture inspired by the work of Louise Nevelson on Monday, landscape painting on Tuesday, Alfonso Ossorio-style assemblage on Wednesday, and watercolor portraits of friends and family next Thursday.

Classes will run from 10 a.m. to noon for 4 to 6-year-olds and from 1 to 3 p.m. for ages 7 and up. The cost is $40 per day or $30 for museum members; advance sign-up is required.

On Friday, Dec. 30, the museum will screen award-winning short films from the New York International Children’s Film Festival in an hourlong program that begins at 6 p.m. The 12 films are geared to children 3 to 7 but are appropriate for all ages. They include one live-action short and 11 animated films from Australia, Brazil, France, Germany, Poland, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The program costs $10, but is free for members, children, and students.

Animals in Winter

The South Fork Natural History Museum in Bridgehampton will present nature programs for children each morning from 10:30 to 11:30 next week. On Monday, they will explore evidence of animals in winter. On Tuesday, winter trees and plants are the focus. Kids can make an orange birdfeeder on Wednesday, look at how animals adapt to winter next Thursday, and talk about winter birds of the field on Friday, Dec. 30. Advance registration has been requested. The cost is $7.50 for children 12 and under.

Henna Tattoos, Anyone?

Henna, Lego, an animated movie, and a New Year’s craft are on the agenda at the Montauk Library next week. On Tuesday at 3 p.m., kids will work to make an abstract “painting” using Lego. “The Secret Life of Pets” will be shown on Wednesday at 7 p.m. Next Thursday, kids in grades four and up will learn about the art of henna and choose a temporary henna tattoo of their own in a program that runs from 2 to 3:30 p.m.

New Year’s party hats will be the craft of the hour on Friday, Dec. 30, at 3 p.m. This one is for those in kindergarten and above. Advance sign-up has been requested for most programs.