Fort Greene Clinton Hill Kids Neighborhood Guide

We continue our month-long focus on adjoining Brooklyn neighborhoods Fort Greene and Clinton Hill with a look at our top spots for kids' classes and indoor play. One of the busiest and biggest romping spots in the area is the beautiful Ft Greene Park, which offers playgrounds, ball courts, and lots of open lawns, hills and a huge set of stairs to explore. But there are plenty of places for kids to play and get creative indoors, too.

True to the artistic spirit of the neighborhood, many programs are focused on movement, music and art, while the drop-in tot spots are great places for the younger set to work on their budding social and motor skills. There are also spots that accommodate the whole family with Mommy & Me sessions, play groups and all-ages swim times.

Known for their picturesque tree-lined streets and historic architecture, adjacent Brooklyn neighborhoods Fort Greene and Clinton Hill have lots of attractions for families. There's the amazing Ft. Greene Park, a 30-acre oasis with two playgrounds, tennis and basketball courts, a nature center, a running track, soccer fields and great hills for sledding. Plus the park's hard-working conservancy organizes popular annual events for families like the beloved Halloween Festival and the Music In the Grove kids' concert series during the summer.

The area has lots of excellent culture spots, too, notably the Brooklyn Academy of Music, which launched its BAMfamily series in 2013, and the state-of-the-art Barclays Center, which hosts live Disney extravaganzas, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, and Brooklyn Nets home games. Plus Fort Greene and Clinton Hill have great kid-friendly restaurants, the Brooklyn Flea's Fort Greene flagship location, easy subway access and a pair of active parent listservs: Fort Greene Kids and Parents Around the Hill.

This month, we'll offer an in-depth look at everything Fort Greene and Clinton Hill have to offer families, including our favorites spots to play, eat and experience. For the purposes of our posts, our geographical boundaries are Flushing Avenue to the north and Atlantic Avenue to the south between Flatbush Avenue and Bedford Avenue. But today we're starting with our top 35 things to do with kids in the neighborhood.

Many of my favorite memories from growing up in NYC involve snow days. The outdoor parking lot on my corner would plow all the snow into one corner, making our own private sledding hill. We would use garbage can lids or pieces of cardboard to sled down this very short, but very steep hill. We also liked to tunnel in between the parked cars to create forts.

Ah, but times have changed. My street urchin days are over and now we use real sleds and real hills to go sledding. Here are some of the best places to go sledding in New York City, as recommended by my family and our readers. Feel free to add your favorites in the comments.