A pole and aerial dance studio does not sound like the most G-rated spot for a Sunday morning kids class. As a parent, a visit to Body & Pole’s website certainly didn’t instill optimism: the color scheme, the photos, the skimpy outfits all seemed to translate into a not-so-kid-friendly vibe—but boy was I wrong.

 We’ve written about circus arts, trapeze classes for children and even rhythmic gymnastics, but we’ve yet to review a kids aerial class, where the session next-door might be adults-only Hammock Fluidity or Aerial Contortion. With my brave 9-year-old in tow, we decided to give it a whirl.

It can be hard to find things to do with tweens in New York City. They're too old for little kid activities, but not really into the culture that older teens tend to favor. Our tween only begrudgingly participates in most family outings, so I decided to design a day totally focused on his interests, which, not surprisingly, are pretty much limited to video games, computers and comic books. What was surprising was how much fun we had.  

Within a few blocks of the Astor Place 6 train stop, in a section of the East Village dubbed Japantown or Little Tokyo, are a number of over-the-top fun spots for kids. Packed with funky Japanese-themed collectible stores and awesome eateries, plus some old-school video game and comic spots, we found tween utopia all within a few blocks. We rounded the day out with Japanese snacks for an itinerary that had our usually picky kids over the moon and was just as much fun for the grown-ups.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show, which opened in January this year, just extended its NYC run into April, and we're excited to be able to offer discounted tickets and the chance to win FREE tickets to our readers through a fun contest.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show, is one of our top events for preschoolers this season and among our top theater picks for the winter, so we're thrilled to be partnering with this great children's production, now running through Sunday, April 17.

Now let's get down to business. We're offering readers a chance to win FREE tickets to this adorable puppet play. We will give away ticket packages (some with a slew of extra-cool caterpillar swag) to the families who share the most creative representations of the Very Hungry Caterpillar with us on social media. We are challenging you to bring the Eric Carle text to life in new ways, just as this new show does. Creativity will be rewarded—so think outside the cocoon! As if that wasn't enough, we scored you a terrific money-saving offer on tickets, too.

The Easter Bunny is coming and Spring is on it's way!  Can't wait to get your little bunnies outside to look for eggs?  The wait is coming to an end and  below we have listed great places to take your kids to have some Easter fun in Central CT! If you don't mind the drive, check out the Easter events we've rounded up in Fairfield County.

For well over a hundred years, Bostonians have been celebrating St. Patrick's Day at the South Boston Parade. But if the parade crowds are too much for your little ones, there are still plenty of opportunities to celebrate all things Irish in and around Boston. We've rounded up story times, craft activities, performances, and other celebrations for families with young children. From leprechauns to traditional Irish dance, we're betting the whole pot of gold that you'll find a fun way to get your green on this March. Erin go bragh!

There's little that makes me sweat more than planning a birthday party for one of my kids. 

One August, after I finished the exhausting task of throwing a DIY-birthday party for my 5-year-old, my 8½-year-old said, "Well, great, now that that's over, we can start planning my party." And so it goes that, as a mom of three kids in New York City, party planning seems to be a perpetual state of being. And whether you have one or three kids, or however many, it's easy to lose your sanity planning the perfect bash.

We've round up eight recently opened birthday spots around NYC for when that at-home, more budget-friendly fete isn't in the cards. So in the interest of surviving to celebrate many more birthdays, we're sharing these cool spots with you from STEM-centered parties, where kids can learn and have fun, to foodie adventures and active play spots.

Check out our Party Guide for more ideas like DJs who will host a karaoke bash. 

We've rounded up 14 of the city's best spring events for the preschooler and toddler set just as we near the end (we hope) of sub-zero temps and snow! We've included buzzy shows like Peppa Pig Live!, mellow but lovely performances like Curious George: The Golden Meatball, the always blow-your-socks-off Sakura Matsuri spring festival, a preschooler-friendly ballet and much more happening in April and May 2016 for New York City's younger kids.

Even more family springtime entertainment ideas can be found in our 2016 GoList, March GoList and our Event Calendar. 

With a light at the end of this winter, our first glimpses of spring are just around the corner. This means, of course, that Spring Break is almost here and you may be looking for ways to keep stir-crazy kids occupied during their week off from school.

We've decided to look just past Westchester's borders, to explore mini-camp options in the rest of the Lower Hudson Valley. These camps have a little something for every child, whether he likes to ride horses or she likes to become one with nature. Many have full- and half-day options and some even include extended hours.

Read on for our Spring Break mini-camp picks. For more information on camps throughout Westchester and Lower Hudson Valley, check out our Camp Guide or browse our Camp Directory.