Free Family Events This Weekend! (August 17-19)

The Coney Island Sand Sculpting Contest will take place this Saturday along the Coney Island Beach & Boardwalk! Photo via wearebcs.org.

Have an amazing weekend without opening your wallet! For even more activity inspiration, check out our Weekend Planner.

Through Wednesday, September 5

“Wake” Art Installation
All day
Times Square
All Ages
Check out Times Square’s newest art installation by Mel Chin entitled Wake. Modeled off of the USS Nightingale, Wake features a mysterious figurehead leading the wreckage of a ship.

Through Friday, August 17

Central Park Conservancy Film Festival
6:30-10:30pm
Central Park
All Ages
Enjoy a selection of iconic films including Crooklyn and The Muppets Take Manhattan during the 16th Annual Central Park Conservancy Film Festival.

Friday, August 17

Picnic & Play
5:30-8pm
Randall’s Island
All Ages
Gather with a picnic—or buy a burger—and spread out on the grass with your friends and family in the East River Picnic Area! Randall’s Island will provide all sorts of games, like giant Connect 4, Jenga, hula hoops, and endless board games. The artsier kids will also have plenty of opportunities to create with the projects on-hand.

Family Fridays: “The Art of Symmetry”
6:30-8pm
National Museum of Mathematics
All Ages
Learn how symmetry can be found in the world around us with Albion College mathematics and computer science professor David Reimann. Pre-registration is required.

Friday, August 17-Saturday, August 18

Emerging Music Festival
5-10pm
Bryant Park
All Ages
Want to hear live music in the park? The Emerging Festival, now in its fourth year, offers two days of free concerts performed by up-and-coming bands. Genres include indie rock, soul, R&B, and more; check their website for a full lineup of bands playing the festival.

Saturday, August 18

3rd Annual NYC Math Festival
10am-4pm
Fosun Plaza
All Ages
Mathematical games, intriguing puzzles, and brainteasers will be available for families and kids all day!

28th Annual Coney Island Sand Sculpting Contest
12pm
Coney Island Beach & Boardwalk (between W. 10th and W. 12th Streets)
All Ages
Take your family’s creativity down to the shore this Saturday for the 28th Annual Coney Island Sand Sculpting Contest. There are various categories of competition in which the whole family can compete as a team or against each other to see who has the best sandcastle-building skills. Don’t worry if each of your kids has a different vision—past creations have ranged from traditional castles to extravagant skylines and designs. Make sure to pre-register in order to ensure your spot in the competition.

FlyNYC Festival
12-5pm
Riverside Park
All Ages
Since 2009, the soaring FlyNYC Kite Flying Festival has brought families from all over the city to Riverside Park! With kite-making kits for the kids, kites available for purchase, and plenty of sky for everyone, this festival is a great way to enjoy the last few weeks of summer. Other attractions include a variety of food vendors, live music, and more.

Rite of Summer: Collaborative Arts Ensemble
1-6pm
Governors Island
All Ages
Head to this concert featuring the Collaborative Arts Ensemble, a group determined to use art to create further discussions about the world around us through a blend of text, music, and physical movement.

Saturday, August 18-Sunday, August 19

Harlem Week’s NYC Children’s Festival
12pm
West 135th Street
All Ages
Head uptown this weekend for Harlem Week’s NYC Children’s Festival! The specific children’s portion of Harlem Week includes a “Back-to-School” kids’ fashion show, as well as dance and spoken word performances, a double-dutch competition, games, sports clinics, face painting, and plenty more activities for the entire family.

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A-Game Sports

<div style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; background-color: #ffffff;"> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;">A-Game Sports is a premier provider of sports camps, programming and instruction for kids of all ages ranging from toddlers to teens. As an instructional and recreational youth sports facility, our goal is to make athletics a rewarding experience for all kids. A-Game Sports is located in New Rochelle, NY, and offers camps, lessons, customized programs for more than 10 sports and rental space for private events. A-Game Sports was founded in 2013 by two guys who decided that it was time to do what they truly love in life. Since then, we've made the ideology of fusing hard work and fun into a reality. Our dedicated staff of professional coaches share their enthusiasm with kids of all ages and skill levels that take part in our programs.</p> </div> <div style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; background-color: #ffffff;"> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;"> </p> </div> <div style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; background-color: #ffffff;"> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0px;">With turfed fields for soccer, lacrosse, field hockey and flag football, batting cages and tunnels for baseball and softball, and various basketball programs, A-Game Sports is one of the premiere sports facilities for kids and adults of any age. Aspiring athletes and fitness enthusiasts will benefit from our many strength and conditioning programs, while children new to sports will learn skills and techniques within their chosen sport, all while having a great time and keeping the game fun.</p> </div>

Play On! Studios

<p>Play On! Studios offers theater day camps and after-school classes on the UWS that are guaranteed to give kids a summer full of acting, music, and fun they won't soon forget! Young actors will rehearse and perform in a full production, work with professional NYC actors/teaching artists, build up their skills in a nurturing, non-competitive environment and play lots of drama games!</p> <p>Creative Drama Camps are perfect for kids entering grades K-4. Campers will work each week to put on a brand-new show! Each session, they will receive a script, rehearse a production, make a set and costumes, and perform their play. Kids will also play drama games, play outside (weather permitting), and have tons of fun!</p> <p>Musical Theater Camps are aimed at kids entering grades 4-9. In Musical Theater Performance Camp, campers put on a complete musical production in a professional NYC theater! Campers will stretch their skills with drama exercises and games, vocal coaching, field trips, and building a professional set. Our incredible teaching artists and campers come together to put on a truly remarkable show!</p> <p>During the school year, classes are great for beginners or more experienced actors - sing, dance, and put on a play! Whether your child is just starting out, or ready for Broadway, we’ve got the class for them. Classes are available for grades PreK-8, after school or on Saturdays! Come play with us.</p> <p> </p>

HudsonWay Immersion School

<p><span style="font-size: 10pt; font-family: Arial;" data-sheets-value="{" data-sheets-userformat="{">A pioneer in language immersion since 2005. After school language classes provide a fun and effective way for preschool and elementary children to learn Mandarin or Spanish language skills through project based learning and fun, engaging themes.</span></p>