Category Archives: Arts & Culture Events for Preschoolers

Arts & Culture Events for Preschoolers, What to Read

Story Time at Subterranean Books

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Looking for a different and almost magical story time in the St. Louis area? If you haven’t experienced one with Georgy Rock at Subterranean Books at 6275 Delmar Boulevard, you’re missing something quite unique.

YouTube Video of January Story Time.

A favorite storyteller in the region, Georgy Rock (recently named the best storyteller in St. Louis Magazine’s A-List 2010) spins tales, shares stories, warms hearts, sings, and generally captivates kids and their parents on Thursdays from 11:30 to noon at Subterranean Books. She has 30 years of experience telling stories and in 2009, was ordained a maggid, or Jewish itinerant storyteller.

Last Fall, when one of our usual Thursday morning classes was canceled, my daughter and I had a chance to hear Georgy Rock at Subterranean. Up in the cozy second loft like floor of the bookstore, Georgy welcomed all the children by name and sang/spoke her way through four books. She has a beautiful ability for creating a seamless tempo in her readings and integrating song and humor throughout the event. She also sang a couple of songs that involved hand and arm movements which the kids enjoyed. There were only about six children there when we went, infants to preschoolers.

Tips

* It is lunch time for most kids at this time, so many of the children ate a few quiet snacks and sucked down milk/juice boxes. Come prepared with some fruit or semi crumb-free snack.
* Parking on Delmar during the week at lunch time isn’t too bad–you can usually find some street parking. There is also a public ramp about a block from the bookstore. Be sure to bring your quarters!
* A few doors down is a great kids store, City Sprouts. They have a lovely play area with trains and kitchen toys, plus plenty of kids clothes, gifts, furniture, and design ideas. City Sprouts also has a pretty extensive selection of Tea Collection clothing.
* Want to spend the afternoon in the area? Nice map of Delmar.

 

An important note: Subterranean Books is struggling financially to stay afloat, as are many independent bookstores. If you have time, browse the store before or after story time. There are some incredibly thoughtful and smart selections of children’s books. We are library and bookstore junkies and were happily surprised at some of the new titles we discovered. Please remind your kids to be gentle with the books while browsing–this tiny store doesn’t have much wiggle room on their inventory.

Read more about story time from UniversityCityPatch.com.

Arts & Culture Events for Preschoolers, Little ways to make life easier, Visual Art at Home

Captivating coloring

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Recently, my three-year old daughter has started enjoying coloring more. She is mildly interested in the coloring sheets that come with the kiddie menus at restaurants and the handful of Miffy pages I’ve printed from web sites (although we love Miffy books!). She doesn’t really care much for Melissa and Doug coloring pages or TV character pages. But for some reason, Taro Gomi doodling and coloring books hold her concentrated attention for 30 minutes plus. Yes, that’s enough time to have a real conversation with someone or cook most of your dinner!

The author of Everyone Poops and other books, Taro Gomi is an award-winning writer and illustrator. His doodle, scribble, coloring, activity, and painting books and postcards will keep 3 to 7 year olds engaged. The clean line drawings are bold, expressive, and humorous with ample space to color and also space for embellishing (some of the pictures ask kids to add worms or apples to certain scenes for instance). If you love white space, these books are for you, uh, I mean your child. Some of the Taro Gomi books focus more on learning how to draw/doodle while others are geared more towards preschoolers who just want to color, draw simple lines, or practice counting. There is usually a nice balanced assortment of different age appropriate pages in each volume.

Here are some sample Taro Gomi color pages to download on Chronicle Books’ site.

Here are a few of our favorites to buy:

Doodles: A Really Giant Coloring and Doodling Book
Doodle 123!: A Really Giant Doodling and Drawing Book
Doodle All Year

Be sure to check Amazon for good prices on Taro Gomi titles and possibly Barnes and Noble or Borders if you have a coupon. Many of these books are pretty thick and heavy, so feel free to remove a few pages for a restaurant outing.

We also like the Melissa and Doug triangular crayons for color, durability, and no paper wrapper to peel away.

Arts & Culture Events for Preschoolers, Arts & Culture for Kids, Little ways to make life easier, Toys, Visual Art at Home

Let’s get the blue tape

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You know how it goes. Your child gets a great present from the grandparents and all she/he wants to do is play with the bubble wrap and wheel stuffed animals around in the big box the toy came in. Yes, sometimes the cheapest and insignificant items are what holds little ones’ attention the most.

Hence, blue painter’s tape. I’m not sure how our love affair with this tape began, but my daughter has been playing with blue painter’s tape for a couple of years now and it is a big part of her daily play. The beauty of this tape is that it comes off of all surfaces (well maybe not so much hair), is reasonably priced, is reusable, and really does build spatial, construction, and motor skills. There’s something intriguing about blue painter’s tape for kids–I think that they feel like they have some control over it and what they can create with it. Most kids can rip their own tape by the age of 3 or so. We recently bought a 9 pack from Amazon for $31.12 that lasts about a year.

Here are some ways to get creative with blue painter’s tape:

  • pretend bandages on stuffed animals
  • build anything and everything with blue tape, paper, cardboard, paper plates, etc…
  • decorating or dressing up stuffed animals
  • “wrapping” objects (see the mini-pumpkin above) or pretend gifts
  • fixing things–of course this involves “breaking” or ripping something apart first!
  • attaching dolls or other objects to cars, play houses
  • art projects when you don’t want to use glue or just don’t have any glue on hand
  • airplane ride entertainment
  • pretend bridges (attach it between chairs)
  • create “do not enter” sections of a room
  • mini kites
  • fun abstract greeting cards or wall/window art
  • marking off a pretend house on a wooden floor
  • pretend jewelry
  • play food

Add some packing peanuts to the blue tape mix sometime and you’ve got an afternoon of non-battery powered fun.

Arts & Culture Events for Preschoolers, Dance

New Ballet Studio Opens in Crestwood

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Kay Tabisaura, who has been teaching in the Dance Co-Op space inside the Crestwood Mall, has just opened up her own space in the same mall. Her studio, East West Ballet, is located near Sears. A former dancer with Ballet Philippines and Singapore Dance Theatre, Kay is a certified and registered teacher with the Royal Academy of Dance. In addition to her time in St. Louis, she has taught in Toronto and Hamilton (Canada) and in Los Angeles and Orange County.

Her current schedule includes classes for preschoolers up through adults.

I’ve been taking her adult classes for about a year and have really enjoyed the small class sizes, thoughtful technique corrections, musicality, and ability to get her students moving across the floor. I’ve taken adult ballet classes all over the country in more urban areas and greatly appreciate Kay’s dedication to adult dancers and well thought out barre (yes, adults take a little longer to warm up!). She even offers a Sunday afternoon intermediate ballet class–the only one I know of in the St. Louis area. (There is a beginning class at COCA on Sundays, but it is designed for dancers new to ballet, is not available year-round, and requires you to sign up for a whole semester.)

My preschooler has also had fun in Kay’s Music and Movement class–it’s a bit of a Kindermusik/creative movement hybrid class.

The new studio space is on the small side, but the floor is wonderful. It features new Marley on a subflooring that has some nice spring to it. You will feel secure in your turns. There is also ample, free parking in the Crestwood Mall parking lot.

Class prices at East West Ballet are one of the best values in St. Louis County. Adult class cards are $53 for 5 classes ($10.60 per class) or $12 for one drop in class. Tuition for the kids classes start at $40 a month with discounts available when multiple family members enroll. For adult dancers (non-professional) in St. Louis, you can expect to pay $15 to $20 per class at other studios in the region, so again, I reiterate, East West Ballet is an incredible value!

One last note, East West Ballet embodies more serious ballet teaching but without the scariness or formality of some studios. (You know, those studios where the teacher has a stick, rolls his/her eyes at the adult dancers, and the girls have troubling eating concerns.) Kay is very knowledgeable and experienced, but practical, patient, and warm in her teaching approach. Also, East West Ballet is not a competition studio and it is not a “dress up in princess costumes and prance in recitals so we can get your parents’ money studio.” Just straightforward, smart teaching in a clean and serene space.

More information at 314.398.9960 or East West Ballet.

Arts & Culture Events for Preschoolers, Community, Holidays

The year-end ask (not from your kid).

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Your mailbox is probably overflowing with letters from nonprofit organizations asking for year-end donations. If you don’t already have a personal connection to a cause, what to pick? Who is more worthy than the rest?

Tough call. It’s particularly challenging at the end of the year for cultural organizations to compete with other nonprofits whose missions involve urgent and tangible needs like feeding the hungry, providing shelter for the homeless, advocating on behalf of battered women, giving medicine to needy children, and more. But as you know, cultural organizations can also feed the mind, offer solace, inspire, and bring joy (and of course contribute to our economy in a major way). Please keep them in mind as you consider donations this month.

Here are a few recommendations that focus on family friendly places in the St. Louis region and whose memberships include useful benefits that can save you money on your visits. Donations to these companies are tax-deductible (check with each membership level for the exact amount). Do you work for a mid to large size for-profit company? Ask your human resources department about matching gifts. You can often double your donation and the nonprofit typically bumps you up to the next membership level with the match.

Missouri Botanical Garden: Memberships come with complimentary tickets to The Children’s Garden (open April-October), an incredible place for kids to run around, engage in pretend play, climb, play with boats, hang from ropes, slide, stack, play with musical instruments, and more.

Museum of Transportation: This museum is a little on the scrappy side, but perfect for your little one who loves things that go. A membership includes visits to the Creation Station (a wonderful indoor play area that is great for infants to 5 year olds) and train rides that go around a big parking lot two times (kids still love it!). There are great old trains to ramble around in on the museum grounds as well.

The Magic House: People travel from all over the country and beyond to delight in The Magic House, a fantastic children’s museum that caters to infants through 9 year olds (or so). Most museum memberships offer complimentary admission, free visits for playdates, cafe and class discounts, and more. We’ve been visiting The Magic House for the last year and my three-year old often ends up crying/whining about leaving. She has way too much fun. There is an enormous amount to play with and it is all smartly designed. Admission is usually $8.75 per person above one year of age (including you!), so if you end up being a frequent visitor, a membership is definitely worth it.

St. Louis Zoo: Yes, it isn’t exactly warm weather to be romping around at the zoo, but there is an indoor area of the Children’s Zoo as well as some other indoor animal exhibits. With a membership, you get passes for the Zooline train (regularly $5 per person over the age of 2), parking (comes in handy when there is no street parking for blocks and your kid is saying “hold me!” The parking lot is regularly $11 per car.), the Children’s Zoo (regularly $4 per person over the age of 2), and the carousel (regularly $3 per person over the age of 2, that includes a caregiver who is holding the child on the carousel animal).

St. Louis Science Center: If you have a high energy child who likes a little “organized” chaos, this place is for you. The free areas of the Science Center are fairly limited. Special exhibitions, the Discovery Room, the OMNIMAX, and the planetarium among other activities, require admission fees. Parking is $9 per vehicle. Membership benefits include free or discounted admission to all of these and parking passes. If you have a 3 to 7 year old who likes things a little calmer (the rest of the Science Center is really loud on a busy day), the Discovery Room is perfect. Interactive magnet exhibits, a water table, reading areas, pretend play and more help your kids learn a bit about science. The Discovery Room sessions are 45 minutes each and start at the top of the hour.

Opera Theatre of St. Louis: This professional opera company is nationally and internationally respected. It is fiscally sound, bursting with creativity, and produces some fantastic productions. Opera Theatre of St. Louis also has an extensive education and artist training program. About 26% of Opera Theatre of St. Louis’s income comes from ticket sales, so they rely heavily on donations to make their magic happen. We are very lucky to have them in Webster Groves.

Naturally, any of these memberships/donations can be given as thoughtful gifts.

Want to check on these nonprofits’ fiscal management? Check guidestar.org for more or contact the organization directly.

Happy Holidays and enjoy the gift of experience!

Arts & Culture Events for Preschoolers

Play at the Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis

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The Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis started a great program for kids this Fall. Stroller Tour Tuesdays (ages up to 24 months) and Wednesday Morning Play Dates (ages 3 to 5) are engaging ways to introduce your child to art, the museum space, other kids, stories, and yummy pastries generously donated by Companion Bakery.

I attended the Wednesday Morning Play Date in October with my three year old and enjoyed a somewhat overly complicated (but fun!) craft followed by a wonderful story time. It was a small group of about six kids, but I’m guessing that number will increase as word gets out about this creative event. Art critic Jerry Saltz happened to be in the galleries for his talk later that day which made for some laughter when he came over to “critique” the kids’ art projects. My daughter and I ended up walking around in the galleries after the play date was over and enjoyed talking about all the images and then lounging on the lobby furniture.

The complimentary coffee, pastries, and beautiful light in the museum made for a very relaxing morning. These events are free and a delightful arts opportunity for kids and their caregivers.

Free street parking fills up fast when we were there, so make sure you have a few quarters for metered parking.

Wednesday Morning Play Dates (ages 3 to 5)
December 1, 2010  |  10 to 11 am

Stroller Tour Tuesdays (ages up to 24 months)
December 7, 2010  |  9 to 10 am

Photo: Contemporary Art Museum St. Louis

Arts & Culture Events for Preschoolers, Date Night

Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions

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Want to hear some of the newest and greatest emerging artists sing their hearts out?

The 51st Annual Metropolitan Opera National Council St. Louis District Auditions take place on Saturday, November 13, 10:30 am to 2:30 pm at Ladue Chapel. This year’s panel of judges includes soprano and Opera Theatre of St. Louis’s English Diction Coach Erie Mills.

The event is free and open to the public. Audience members are (quietly!) welcome to come and go throughout the day.

Read more about the auditions on the Metropolitan Opera’s site.

Look at this prestigious list of past winners.

Arts & Culture Events for Preschoolers

COCA Family Theatre Series

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In addition to being a great arts education facility, the Center of Creative Arts (COCA), located in University City, has a fun and entertaining performing arts series with reasonable ticket prices, good programming, and a small hall (400 seats) that makes each performance easy to see and enjoy.

We saw Michael Moschen last weekend–a juggler extraordinare and MacArthur Foundation “genius” grant recipient. He demonstrated some incredible feats of physics, illusion, perception, and rhythm. The show seemed more suitable though for 8 year olds and up. Most of the preschoolers in the audience at the Sunday matinee were getting a little squirmy and bored (including my 3.5 year old–but she’ll sit through opera, go figure), although the show was billed as a performance for all ages. Be sure to ask the COCA staff if you’re unsure about age suitablity and do some of your own research about the artist or performing group before you buy tickets.

Most performances are about an hour long. Tickets range $14 to $18 each (everyone entering the theater must have a ticket). Arrive at least 10 minutes early to find parking and well, 20 minutes early if your kid needs to use the potty. The COCA parking lot fills up fast and street parking can be tough at times.

Two upcoming productions you’ll want to bring your preschooler to this season (be sure to read the original books with your child before going):


COCA Family Theatre Series 2010-2011 Season Brochure

Box Office Information

Seating tips

  • There are booster seats available in the coat room outside the theater doors.
  • Try to buy your tickets early so that you can get an aisle seat (if you anticipate that you’ll have to take your little one out for a potty break mid-performance). Each seating section does not have a center aisle (see web site for seating chart–scroll down to Founders’ Theatre seating chart), so it is at times tough to climb over a lot of people if you have to head out before the show ends.
  • The padded and cushioned seats fold up like in a lot of movie theaters. If your child is under 35 pounds, he or she probably won’t be able to lean back in their chair and not fold up! Be prepared to hold the seat down for your child throughout the performance or put them on your lap.
  • If you can, don’t buy tickets too far over to the right or left. Your neck will thank you.
Arts & Culture Events for Preschoolers

Halloween family fun in St. Louis

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Being somewhat new to St. Louis, I am amazed at how many Halloween events there are in the region. If you have a child under the age of five, there are many not so scary fun opportunities to choose from. Here are a few highlights:

The Magic House’s 10th Annual Not-So-Haunted House. October 22-24 and October 29-31. Kids are invited to dress up and enjoy trick or treating throughout the museum. Special visits from 15 storybook characters from Harry Potter, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, and The Wizard of Oz will make the event a festive one. Cost: Free with regular admission ($8.75 ages 1 and above. A membership is well worth it if you come often.)

Boo at the Zoo Spooky Saturday. October 30, 9 am to 4 pm. FREE, no reservations needed. Costumes are welcomed. Trick or treating along the Pumpkin Trail, costumed characters, clowns, and entertainment.

Botanical Garden: Ghouls in the Garden. Sunday, October 24 , 1 to 4 pm. Advance reservations required by October 21. Trick or treaters enjoy treats throughout the Garden and visit the Children’s Garden. $5 non-member children (ages 3 to 12); adults included with Garden admission. Garden members are free.

Missouri History Museum Storytelling (ages 2 to 7). Friday, October 29 at 10:30 am and October 30 at 1 pm. FREE. Kids can wear their costumes and listen to not-so-scary Halloween stories.

The Butterfly House “Bootterflies” Halloween Party (ages 3 to 10). Saturday, October 23 and Sunday, October 24, 11 am to 2 pm. Non-spooky Halloween family fun, featuring bug inspired games and crafts. Kids receive game prizes and a goody bag. Admission FREE to $6.

Eckert’s Costume Carnival (Millstadt Farm location). Sunday, October 31. Any child, 12 years old or younger who comes in costume, receives FREE admission to the entertainment farm. More about all the Fall fun events available at the Millstadt Farm throughout October.