Family Programming:
The zoo has expanded its popular Toddler Time program to a six session series offered on two different days (Saturdays and Thursdays).  Register for one class or the whole series. The fun interactive program combines music, story time and art projects surrounding an animal theme (and you can mix and match the weekdays so working parents don’t have to miss out). Of course, no program at the Central Park Zoo would be complete with out live animals joining in on the fun, too.   

For families with slightly older kids the zoo is offering special seasonal events.  Fall Fiesta brings all the fun of autumn to the zoo with animal guests, like owls for Halloween, festive apple donuts and cider to snack on, plus carve a jack-o-lantern as a treat for the snow monkeys.  Wintertime Warm & Fuzzy lets the kids make a special edible treat for the polar bears and watch them scarf it down.  When done they can dig into their own treat: cocoa and cookies.

Youth Programs:
The zoo knows that the animals are cool but they realize that so are the people that care for them. And kids really want to know more about the people who do this for a living. So they expanded their youth programs to give older kids a taste of what it is really like to work at the zoo, how to care for the animals and get a glimpse behind the scenes.

Junior Keepers gives kids the chance to work alongside the zookeeper and help care for the animals plus participate in real hands on work, such as sorting fish for the penguins or preparing treats or toys for the animals.  Zoo Vet Tech gives the kids a special tour of the zoo’s clinic where they will learn how the vet tech cares for animals, administers medicine and takes x-rays.  Plus, learn how the Wildlife Conservation Society helps to rehabilitate animals in the wild.

Brand new this year is Wildlife Photography. This isn’t a class on how to use all the bells and whistles on the digital camera but a class in how to understand and anticipate animal behavior to get the best shot. The class is taught by professional zoo photographer, Judith Wolfe. After some private time in the Tropic Zone feeding the birds and photographing them, students will return to the classroom for a group critique of their photos and everyone will get to take home a disk of all photos taken in class.

If your kid can’t get enough of the zoo, they are offering a 2 day winter break camp, where kids aged 6 to 8 can learn all about how animals survive during winter through hands on activities, theater performances, craft projects, zoo keeper led tours and more. As an added benefit, participants in winter camp get early registration privileges for summer camp at the zoo –which fills up fast.

Parents, the Central Park Zoo didn’t forget you. This year they are offering series for adults where you can talk with the zoo director over wine and cheese, have breakfast with the birds and help with the morning bird census and wildlife photography.


Check out our classes guide for more enriching programs for NYC Kids.