Chinatown Kids Neighborhood Guide

We continue our spotlight on Chinatown with a post about one of the neighborhood's leading cultural institutions: the Museum of Chinese in America. Originally founded in 1980, MoCA moved into its current Centre Street home in 2009. Designed by artist Maya Lin (who created Washington D.C.'s iconic Vietnam Veterans Memorial), the museum is small but striking, and showcases the history, heritage, culture and experiences of Chinese-Americans through technology, photographs, art and relics. MoCA also regularly offers programs for kids and families.

My husband is Chinese-American and our daughter is biracial, yet we had never visited MoCA as a family, so I was very excited to go on this outing with them.

Since Mommy Poppins started four years ago, we've tried to write about neighborhoods all over the city and not just well known family-friendly areas. What we've found is that any NYC community can be fun for kids—all you need to do is explore. So beginning this month, we're going to highlight one neighborhood a month. October's pick is Chinatown, and this is the first in a series of posts about some of the cool things your family can see and do there.

One of New York City's busiest and most colorful districts, Chinatown hosts popular annual events like the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival and the Lunar New Year Parade and Festival, as well as joint celebrations with its neighbors like the East Meets West Christmas Parade (with Little Italy) and the Egg Rolls and Egg Creams Festival (with the Lower East Side).

But there's no reason to wait for one of those special festivities to visit. Chinatown's got great places for kids to eat, play, look and learn a bit about Chinese culture all year round. One of our writers and her three-year-old son played tourist in Chinatown for a day. Here's what they discovered.

Summer in the city is all about free alfresco entertainment. There are complimentary concerts (for kids and grown-ups), no-cost movies and lots of free festivals.

But don't forget about free storytimes in city parks! Because you know your kids don't want to hear a tale told in a hot, crowded library. (And even if your local branch is swanky enough to have air conditioning, your children shouldn't be cooped up indoors.)

We've rounded up a dozen storytelling series for families to enjoy all summer long.