Free Family Events This Weekend! (May 4-6)

The 17th Annual NYC Irish Dance Festival will take place this Sunday in Riverside Park! Photo via irishartscenter.org.

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

Through Saturday, August 4

“LEGO Bricks: A Celebration!” Exhibit
12-6pm
Scandinavia House
All Ages
Celebrate the 60th anniversary of the LEGO brick with this exhibition at Scandinavia House! Featuring sculptures, play-zones, and mosaics from professional LEGO artist Sean Kenney, the exhibit encourages children to learn through playing. It’s open during regular museum hours.

Through Saturday, May 5

“BambinO”
Various times
Metropolitan Opera House
Ages 6-18 months
BambinO is an opera designed for infants aged 6-18 months. This interactive performance features age-appropriate sounds and encourages babies to engage with the singers, musicians, and each other! Reservations are required, but attendance is free.

Through Sunday, May 6

Opening Week on Governors Island
10am
Governors Island
All Ages
Governors Island opens for the season on May 1! Ferries will be free during opening week so you can enjoy the wide variety of programming the park has to offer, like an exhibit on the history of Governors Island or a guided bird spotting walk.

Friday, May 4-Saturday, May 5

Bike Expo New York
Friday: 10am-8pm; Saturday: 9am-6pm
Pier 12 at Brooklyn Cruise Terminal
All Ages
This free, open-to-the-public bike expo is the biggest on the East Coast and takes place in Red Hook, Brooklyn. Cyclists meet and greet one another and can visit any number of booths related to their two-wheeled passion. On May 4, hours are 10am-8pm, and on May 5, they’re 9am-6pm.

Saturday, May 5

Free Comic Book Day
All day
Participating comic book retailers
All Ages
Just what it sounds like! Grab your free comic book at participating comic book retailers.

Birds: A Festival Inspired by Aristophanes: Bird Walks
8am-5pm
Jane’s Carousel in Brooklyn Bridge Park
Ages 6 and up
Head out for bird-watching tours with Paul Sweet, Collections Manager, Division of Vertebrate Zoology–Ornithology at the American Museum of Natural History, where he’ll point out varieties that thrive in Brooklyn Bridge Park. Though the walks are free, registration is required.

Harlem Children’s Theater Festival
10am-1pm
Aaron Davis Hall at City College
Ages 3 and up
This festival features three new plays that were designed for young audiences: “The Wild Swans” at 10:15am, “Ampata & The Magic Lake” at 11am, and “Persephone & The Four Seasons” at 12pm. The day also includes crafts and activities. Be sure to reserve a spot.

Lift Off: A Waterfront Kite Festival
12-2:30pm
Brooklyn Bridge Park
All Ages
Grab your camera and your kites, and bring the whole family to this incredible kite festival! The fest will demonstrate the science of flight through experiments and kite-flying. Participants include The Brooklyn Robot Foundry, Private Picassos, and STEM Kids NYC. New kites will be available for purchase.

Urban Wildlife Festival
12-3pm
Fort Tryon Park
All Ages
Join NYC Parks, the Urban Park Rangers, and the Fort Tryon Park Trust at the Urban Wildlife Festival to get up close and personal with owls, hawks, porcupines, tortoises, and more at this free festival in Highbridge Park. Learn about their traits and behaviors from New York State licensed rehabilitators and the Urban Park Rangers. Come and enjoy relay races, animal-themed arts and crafts, and dance to live music!

Saturday, May 5-Sunday, May 6

play:groundNYC’s Yard Opening Weekend
12-4pm
Governors Island
Ages 6 and up
Play at the Yard, New York’s only adventure playground. Kids can act like little builders and use nails, hammers and saws, paint, tires, wood, fabrics and more. The Yard is recommended for ages 6 and up. The adjacent Family Play area, however, is designed for children 5 and under.

Sunday, May 6

35th Annual Hippo Playground Spring Fair
10am-4pm
Riverside Park
All Ages
The Hippo Playground is organizing its 35th annual Spring Fair. The Fair is taking place on the Upper West Side and is the primary fundraising event to support the playground financially. The fair will feature pony rides, bouncy castles, a petting zoo, games, and prizes. Spread the word, because the playground is also looking for volunteers to help out. Tickets or a wristband can be purchased for rides and games. Food can be purchased with cash only. The rain date for this event is Sunday, May 20.

Tunes in Times Square
10am-6pm
Broadway Pedestrian Plaza (between 46th & 47th Streets)
All Ages
Head to the Broadway Pedestrian Plaza between 46th and 47th Streets for the 7th annual Tunes in Times Square benefit concert. The event includes a continuous sing-a-long that’s led by child and adult Broadway actors among other professional singers.

Unicorn Celebration
12-5pm
Brooklyn Owl
All Ages
This event celebrates the anniversary of Brooklyn Owl’s opening! The first 50 attendees will get unicorn goody bags. All guests can participate in unicorn art projects, tastings from local businesses, and a visit from a “real live unicorn” from 2-3pm.

17th Annual NYC Irish Dance Festival
1-6pm
Riverside Park
All Ages
New Yorkers will flock to Riverside Park this Sunday to celebrate Irish history, culture, and enjoy Irish dance performances from some of the finest dance groups in the city. There will be plenty of chances for families to participate in workshops and music sessions.

Speakitaly NYC

SPEAKITALY NYC offers stimulating and entertaining lessons for children 0 to 16 years through a wide combination of activities based on the communicative approach anchored in the Common European Framework of Reference: active learning (group work, role plays, etc.) and practice exercises aimed to improve listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills. Kids will start speaking and using Italian in a very natural way.&nbsp; Small classes capped at 6 students to make sure each one gets the needed attention and facilitate learners' progress.&nbsp; Our method is driven by a didactic method that is the result of constant updates, professional certifications and more than 10 years of experience in working with non-native speakers from different native languages and levels of knowledge. Our aim is to develop a range of Italian language skills while improving accuracy that will enable the students and participants to interact without stress or feeling rushed. We want to help those in the community really embrace not only the true culture in Italy but the Italian culture within New York City&hellip; Who doesn&rsquo;t love what Italy represents in the kitchen, in history &amp; in the arts? Speakitaly wants to support multilingual families who want to learn a new language or pass along their ancestor&rsquo;s heritage and culture. Raffaella, the founder said: "We see language awareness and intercultural sensitivity as the milestones for an inclusive society. Italian, like all other languages, is an enrichment and a growth in every way. Vi aspettiamo!"

Music Together

Music Together&reg; is for infants, toddlers, preschoolers, and their parents/caregiver. The classes include songs, rhythmic rhymes and movement, and instrument play activities that are developmentally appropriate for the children and easy for parents and caregivers, regardless of their own musical ability.

The Music Institute of Long Island

Established in 1990, the Music Institute of Long Island (MILI) is a classical music school staffed by exceptional instructors from many of the most prestigious conservatories and graduate music schools in the United States and Europe. Long Island&rsquo;s foremost musical academies, its instrumental programs include violin, viola, cello, piano, flute, clarinet, saxophone and voice classes. MILI has been voted # 1 BEST MUSIC SCHOOL Consistently.&nbsp; They teach the Traditional, Suzuki, and ABRSM methods. Students participate in All-National, All-Eastern, All-State, youth orchestras, and score highly in NYSSMA and Royal Academy Music Festivals. First prize winners of competitions earn solos at Carnegie Hall and with orchestras. MILI offers Fall/Spring semesters plus Summer Sessions. Semesters include 15-17 weeks of private lessons, solo recitals with a final GALA Concert featuring chamber music. About the Directors: Carol &amp; Geri Kushner: The sisters are violinists, violists, chamber coaches &amp; performers. They believe in instilling the love of music, &nbsp;fostering proficiency, success, confidence &amp; believe all MILI students achieve success. Degrees BM, MM (+), K-12 certifications, attended Manhattan School of Music, Queens College &amp; Stonybrook University.They have been adjunct professors at Syracuse University, Aaron Copland School of Music Pre-College &amp; Five Towns Colleges, Stonybrook University &amp; have taught in L.I. public schools.