Drew Kristofik

Drew Kristofik's early career editing teen magazines somehow morphed into a seven-year stint at MacNeil/Lehrer, followed by a very long sojourn at Nickelodeon/Viacom as Director of Content for Nick online and then Editor-in-Chief of ParentsConnect.com local. She was a founding member of the WebbyAward winning GoCityKids, has written for Family Fun Magazine, Vanity Fair, and New York, and her novel for middle schoolers, The Time Boat, is available on Amazon Kindle. She strives to keep the MommyPoppins New York Events calendar packed and accurate, and can be reached at events@mommypoppins.com.

Latest posts by Drew

Weekend Fun: World Science, Hudson River Festival, Free Movies

Submitted by Drew Kristofik on Wed, 05/30/2018 - 1:50pm

Play outdoors at the Go Green Brooklyn Festival in McCarren Park. Photo courtesy of the event

The first weekend of June bursts with summer-vibe, STEM-filled fun for New York City kids. The always mind-boggling 11th annual World Science Festival packs Washington Square Park with FREE hands-on activities. Families are also invited to join the citywide NYC Fish Count, an evening of stargazing, release live ladybugs, join the Carnival and Science Spectacular, or Go Green at McCarren Park.

This weekend's summer launches include a biggie: the Hudson River Park's 20th-anniversary blowout, which runs from 9am to just a little past bedtime on Saturday, ending with a free outdoor movie. Also revving up for the season: storytelling at the Hans Christian Andersen Statue in Central Park, a Google mini-golf pop-up, Union Square's It's My Park Day, and the 16th annual Drums Across the Hudson Fest. Inwood Art Club's Culture Hub kicks off on Sunday, and ice cream enthusiasts won't want to miss Bryant Park's annual ScooperBowl, doling out delicious brain freeze options all weekend.

FREE outdoor movies abound, and we have a massive list up already, so you can also plan ahead. The options include The Lion King and The Lorax on Staten Island, Deep and The Greatest Showman in Manhattan, and Zootopia in Brooklyn. Looking for something a little more, um, active? Give young cyclists a leg up at one of the FREE Learn to Ride workshops.

Festivals and fairs, indoor fun, kid-friendly theater, and outdoor art installations—all that and more have our calendar bulging! Also, see our guide to accessing any beach in New York City and check out our list of nearby farms for strawberry picking. We're banking on at least one dry day.

For even more ideas, dive into our new June GoList, and don't miss our shiny Summer Fun Guide! There's no excuse to sit inside...except air conditioning. Pace yourself.

Memorial Day Weekend in NYC: Parades, Festivals, Beaches, Cirkus

Submitted by Drew Kristofik on Wed, 05/23/2018 - 1:46pm

The Splash Pad at Prospect Park opens this weekend. Photo courtesy of the Prospect Park Alliance

Memorial Day weekend, the unofficial start of summer, is here at last! New York City's big seasonal attractions open on Saturday, like local beaches, Prospect Park's Splash Pad, and the Victorian Gardens in Central Park. If it reaches 80 degrees, the city's destination playground sprinklers might be on, too. Need more water play options? Dynamic H2O, with its 16-foot interactive water table, opens for the summer at the Children's Museum of Manhattan this weekend.

While beaches are open all summer from this weekend on, events like Fleet Week, Memorial Day in Prospect Park, DanceAfrica, and a passel of parades (the always entertaining Loisaida on Sunday, and Memorial Day marches on Monday in Brooklyn and Queens) are on tap this weekend only. There's also a floating glass museum with live demos parked in Brooklyn Bridge Park through the long weekend, and a rooftop Imagination Playground at the Brooklyn Children's Museum.

This holiday weekend is also the perfect time to visit the FREE Socrates Sculpture Park in Queens, the floating food forest known as Swale in Brooklyn, or The Yard, an adventure playground open for the season on Governors Island. By the way, Governors Island is debuting an ice rink this weekend! Yes, really—the synthetic ice rink will be here all season and even offer FREE weekday morning skate sessions.

Our NYC Parks and Playgrounds Guide is always a safe bet for staycations, too, as is our Indoor Play Spaces Guide for the possible rain headed our way. Unless... thinking about a last-minute getaway? We've pulled together great family day trips on Long Island, Westchester, and the Hudson Valley, as well as our favorite nearby beaches like Fire Island's Ocean Beach and those down the Jersey Shore. You might also try a day at a nearby amusement park or water park for early summer fun!

Read on for our top picks for Memorial Day weekend events for kids in NYC. Oodles of family fun can also be found in our Event Calendar, Spring Fun Guide, and our fresh-out-of-the-oven Summer Fun Guide.

However you spend the three-day holiday weekend, we hope you have a blast!

Weekend Fun: Dance Parade, Movies, Fairs, and Superheroes

Submitted by Drew Kristofik on Wed, 05/16/2018 - 3:00pm

Join CMA's Kids Fair for FREE outdoor artistry. Photo courtesy of the museum

Dance is everywhere this weekend in New York City, from the spectacular 12th Annual Dance Parade, which ends with a flourish in Tompkins Square Park, to the debut of Tetris at Lincoln Center. There's also a family dance matinee at NY Live Arts and the Parsons Family Matinee at the Joyce.

Fairs and festivals are everywhere, too! The 9th Avenue International Food Festival sprawls through the west side all weekend—though vegetarians might want to detour to 18th Street for the Vegetarian Food Fest. Family-friendly fests in Queens promise bouncy castle and face painting fun at three locations (St. Albans Park and Turtle Playground on Saturday, Rufus King Park on Sunday). Superhero wannabes can don their capes to join the NYSoM's SuperHero Showdown in Brooklyn. Plus, the weekend-long ImagiNATIONS! Children's Festival debuts a brand-new activity center at the National Museum of the American Indian.

On Sunday, don't miss Brooklyn's Fabulous Fifth Street Fair, the 35th Annual Hippo Playground Spring Fair, and the Children's Museum of the Arts' annual FREE Kids' Fair or its CMA Family Day spring benefit. There's also a Party on Wheels benefit happening at the NY Transit Museum.

Looking for evening entertainment under the stars? Shakespeare dips his initial toe into summer park programming with an abbreviated version of A Midsummer Night's Dream in Bryant Park. Bring blankets and other critical movie watching paraphernalia to FREE evening screenings of Coco on the UWS or Sing in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. On Sunday, catch a screening of the new Jumanji in Brooklyn's Coffey Park or Indiana Jones at Habana Outpost.

Planning ahead? Today would be the perfect time to sign up for a 4th of July cruise to maximize fireworks fun (before they all sell out!).

Let's hope the rain stays away, so we can enjoy all these great outdoor events.

Weekend Fun: Cinco de Mayo, Governors Island, Swale, and Festivals

Submitted by Drew Kristofik on Wed, 05/02/2018 - 1:00pm

Swale, the floating food forest, arrives in Sunset Park this weekend. Photo courtesy of Swale

So much to celebrate and things to do, now that spring finally seems to be sticking the landing in NYC.

If it's May 5, it's Cinco, and you can celebrate at Flushing Town Hall's Cambalache dance workshop and concert. The Brooklyn Children's Museum hosts a celebration that includes Papel Picado (paper cutting), stories, and Talvera Tile design—and you can catch a screening of Coco in Maria Hernandez Park. On Staten Island, Cinco de Mayo signals the opening of the Willowbrook Park carousel, and a screening of Coco at Clove Lakes Park.

May 5 is also FREE Comic Book day, so be sure to check with your local comic haunt for goodies—or get one at the Children's Museum of Mahanttan this weekend (while supplies last) where kids can also make comics of their own.

It's opening weekend—at last—on Governors Island, which means The Yard is ready for kids to jump back in and start constructing (or deconstructing), and the Adventures on Governors Island mini adventure park is back online with its zip line, maze, and climbing walls. Bonus: The ferries are FREE for opening week!

Highbridge Park and The Cloisters are both hosting Urban Wildlife Fests on Saturday, where kids can meet real critters. A bumper crop of school fairs are happening this weekend, including Calhoun (West 81st), PS 84 (on West 92nd), and Columbia Greenhouse (West 116th). There's also a kite fest in Brooklyn Bridge Park, and the annual Hippo Playground Fair romps onto the calendar with pony rides and bouncy castles.

Sunday's Spring Family Scavenger Hunt at Green-Wood Cemetery introduces the “Agents of Discovery” app, which the historic site developed in partnership with the US Forest Service. And Swale, NYC's forage-able floating garden, sails back into Brooklyn for the summer.

Be sure to check the newly released May GoList, our comprehensive guide to May Fairs and Festivals around NYC, and maybe get a leg up on Mother's Day (next weekend!) by perusing our updated Mother's Day Brunch picks or top 25 activities. This weekend is especially packed with possibilities, so don't forget to review our calendar for more ideas.

Weekend Fun: Sakura Matsuri, Legos, and Family Festivals

Submitted by Drew Kristofik on Wed, 04/25/2018 - 4:37pm

Sakura Matsuri is celebrated at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Photo by Julie Markes for BBG

Warm, cold, rainy, sunny (please, no more snow)...whatever the weather has up its sleeve for NYC, Legos don't care. And there are TWO Lego events happening this weekend for NYC kids: Saturday (for FREE!) and Sunday (for a fee). The Legopalooza begins at Scandinavia House on Saturday, and the good news is that this new exhibit, aptly titled Lego Bricks: A Celebration, is open through August 4 (hot, rainy days = already sorted for you).

On Sunday, Lego Build for Habitat for Humanity at the World Trade Center invites kids ages 5–12 to compete for prizes, working in teams of four to build their own version of a Habitat for Humanity home.

National Arbor Day is April 27, so naturally this weekend includes lots of tree-themed outings. For starters, the massive Brooklyn Botanic Garden Sakura Matsuri festival takes place all weekend, celebrating those fleeting cherry blossoms and Japanese culture.

More tree hugging can be accomplished at Wave Hill's Arbor Day Fest, which includes a chance to don hard hats and harnesses to climb an ancient sugar maple, The Evergreens Cemetery, and the Queens Botanical Arbor Fest.

All that, plus street festivals are in season, including this weekend's Street Games, the Puppetry Arts Fest in Brooklyn, the Jack and Jill School Spring Fair, and the Friendship Circle Upper East Side Carnival (with ponies), to name just a few.

Check out our Spring Fun Guide, the best upcoming family festivals this season, events for the pre-K and toddler crowd, and more outdoor fun like the May 1 opening of Governors Island, or maybe a little mini golf (did you know there are 12 miniature golf courses in NYC—at least one in each borough?)!