Harlem with Kids: 50 Things to Do for NYC Families

NYC is constantly changing, but one neighborhood that's undergone a particularly striking transformation is Harlem. Like most residents who have lived here for a while (or all their lives), I have mixed feelings about the influx of luxury condos, chain stores and high-priced restaurants. But one thing I don't feel conflicted about is raising my kid here. In many ways, Harlem reminds me of my youth on the Upper West Side: beautiful tree-lined brownstone blocks next to big apartment buildings, lots of parks to play in, and a multicultural community where neighbors stop and chat with you even if they don't know your name. Of course back in my day, we didn't have online groups like Harlem4Kids, where local families trade parenting info, kids' items and passionate messages. (Such is life on lively listservs.)

Throughout March, we'll be focusing on all that Harlem has to offer families, both residents and visitors. For the purposes of our posts, our geographical boundaries are 110th to 160th Streets from Manhattan to Fifth Avenues, and 125th to 160th Streets from Riverside Drive to Fifth Avenue. (Sorry East Harlem! We'll get you next time.) We have lots of posts about Harlem coming up that will go more in depth on specific topics, like places to play, family-friendly restaurants, cool kids' classes and other local fun. But we're kicking off our month-long focus on Harlem with the top 50 things to do with kids in the neighborhood.

1. Shake your booty at Sundae Sermon, a free outdoor dance party in Morningside Park
2. Hoot, holler and boo at Amateur Night at the Apollo
3. Go fishing in Central Park's Harlem Meer or West Harlem Piers Park
4. Skip the chain stores and buy funky wares from the vendors on 125th Street
5. Rock out to family concerts at Kidberry's Live Music Fridays
6. Take a family yoga class at Land Yoga
7. Go skating or swimming in Riverbank State Park
8. Watch the talented students of Dance Theatre of Harlem in action at monthly Sunday matinees
9. Take a spin on the kid-designed Totally Kid Carousel
10. Learn about the culture, traditions and history of Harlem at the Dwyer Cultural Center
11. Catch a SummerStage performance at the recently renovated Richard Rodgers Amphitheater in Marcus Garvey Park
12. Take an amazing drop-in kids' art class at the LeRoy Neiman Art Center
13. Have the wait staff sing your kid "Happy Birthday" on the big day at Sylvia's
14. Cheer on the players at a Harlem RBI or Harlem Little League game
15. Search for treasures at the well stocked Harlem Goodwill Store, which has an extensive kids' section in the basement
16. Go ice-skating at Central Park's Lasker Rink
17. Attend a Sunday service at Abyssinian Baptist Church
18. Share a plate of succulent samplers at the always packed Dinosaur Bar-B-Que
19. See a CityParks PuppetMobile performance in the summer at Jackie Robinson Park
20. Make art at one of the Studio Museum's free family Sundays
21. Get your hair done with extensions at a local salon
22. Enjoy a family night at the Harlem YMCA
23. Try your hand at colonial crafts at Morris-Jumel Mansion, Manhattan's oldest house
24. Enroll in a class at The Harlem School of the Arts
25. Take a behind-the-scenes tour of the Madame Alexander Doll Company Unfortunately, this historic venue closed in 2012
26. Marvel at the landmarked town houses on Strivers' Row and Sylvan Terrace
27. Bring your preschooler to a Harlem4Kids storytime
28. Explore Hamilton Grange, the home of founding father Alexander Hamilton in St. Nicholas Park
29. Shop for toys at old-fashioned store Grandma's Place
30. Enjoy a free family program at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
31. Try collard greens, corn bread, bread pudding and other soul food staples at Miss Maude's or Amy Ruth's
32. Go bowling at Harlem Lanes, the least expensive bowling alley in Manhattan Sadly, Harlem Lanes closed in August, 2012
33. Have a picnic in southern Morningside Park and enjoy the view of the waterfall and the Cathedral Church of St. John the Divine
34. Peruse African art, crafts, wears and jewelry at the Malcolm Shabazz Harlem Market
35. See free kid-friendly Shakespeare in Riverbank State Park courtesy of Pulse Ensemble Theatre
36. Groove to jazz, gospel, Latin and blues concerts at the free Harlem Meer Festival on summer Sundays
37. Try to choose just one cupcake at Tonnie's Minis
38. Check out a Saturday night drum circle in Marcus Garvey Park
39. Enjoy games, giveaways and activities at Harlem Week's annual Children's Festival
40. Enter the lottery for free swimming lessons at the Hansborough Recreation Center
41. Go on a DIY black history tour by visiting statues of Adam Clayton Powell, Frederick Douglass, Duke Ellington and Harriet Tubman
42. Get your kid's picture on a red velvet birthday cake at Make My Cake
43. Take your teen cinephiles to the Mayles Institute, an independent movie theater founded by renown documentarian Albert Maysles
44. Book a birthday party for your kid at Chuck E. Cheese's (you'll hate it, but they'll love it and it's the only Manhattan location)
45. Hear the Church of the Intercession's annual reading of Clement Clarke Moore's Twas the Night Before Christmas—it's a century-old tradition
46. Take a free family art workshop at the Cooper-Hewitt Design Center
47. Top your fro-yo with Fruity Pebbles and coconut at Chill Berry
48. See if Grandma Done Gone Totally Nuts Old Fashioned Candy Store is open—it's often closed, but if you catch it open, the kindly owner serves you through the window and rarely charges
49. Head to Marcus Garvey Park for the first annual Harlem Arts Festival, which debuts this June
50. Explore the Museum for African Art, which is scheduled to open in 2013

Read all of our posts about what to do with kids in Harlem.