South Street Seaport Museum: Wonderful Family Programming at the Reopened Culture Spot

Feb 9 2012 By Petek

Before it closed due to financial problems in March 2011, we were big fans of the South Street Seaport Museum. In fact, we raved about this lesser known museum in one of our very first posts on Mommy Poppins.

Thanks to being taken over by the Museum of the City of New York, the South Street Seaport Museum is back in business and its revamped slate of family programming is really making a splash. My daughter and I went to check out the reopened space, and even got the chance to participate in a cool Mini Mates program aimed specifically at toddlers and preschoolers.

Mini Mates is the South Street Seaport's signature program for little landlubbers 18 months to three years. Our session began with free play and then we sat for a sea-themed circle time. The kids were really excited about pointing out details in a large picture of a boat in stormy waters exclaiming, "Big waves!" and "Wind blowing on sails!"

The hands-on parts were definitely the most fun. The kids loved the "sink or float" experiment, where they had to guess what would happen when they dropped objects like coins and plastic stacking rings into the water. They were definitely surprised by some of the results! The art project was the biggest hit, as kids made tiny aluminum foil boats and floated them in a tub. After a brief snack time (Goldfish crackers, of course), kids played parachute games and finished with a sea-themed storytime. Mini Mates takes place on Tuesdays 10am-11:30am, and Thursdays 10-11:30am and 12:30-2pm. It costs $15 per session, or $40 for the month. Call 212-748-8786 or email reservations@seany.org to RSVP.

The South Street Seaport Museum also has Saturday Family Programs for children ages 6 to 9. During these kid-friendly tours, families can learn about Manhattan's ecology, geography and history. Afterward, kids work on sea-themed projects like tying knots or making "scrimshaw" (engraved pictures created by whalers). Saturday Family Programs take place every other Saturday 10:30-11:30am. The next session is on Saturday, February 18. Cost is $15 per child. Again, RSVP required.

My daughter and I also toured the reopened galleries. The exhibits are rich with history, not just about sailing but lower Manhattan in general, and really help kids understand what New York City life was like in centuries past. Our favorites included Bottled Up, a display of miniature ships in glass bottles. When my almost four-year-old was asked how people got the vessels into the bottles, she replied, "They pushed very hard." Then we discovered the true secret by lifting the black cloth cover on a how-to box. We also loved looking at Super Models, a fleet of incredibly detailed models of historic ships, and the glowing digital Mannahatta map, which showed Manhattan throughout the centuries.

My daughter really wanted to pick up the cool antique shipping tools used for ice carving, whaling and ship building in the Handheld Devices display, but touching here is a no-no. This is not a museum where your kids can run wild, and there aren't any hands-on stations. Since many of the objects are accessible to curious tots, you may find yourself repeating, "Don't touch!" throughout your visit. That's why Mini Mates or Saturday Family Programs are probably the best way to introduce young children to this culture spot. It certainly worked for my daughter. As she left clutching her handmade boat, she turned to me and said, "This is a special place."

As for the museum's historic ships, they're currently closed for maintenance. However, later this year, the Ambrose, the Lettie G. Howard and the Pioneer are supposed to reopen to the public. 

South Street Seaport Museum is located at 12 Fulton Street between Water and South Streets. Open Wednesday-Sunday 10am-6pm. $5, free for children under 9.


Read about other great exhibits and programs for kids in our Museum Guide.

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