New & Notable Fall Classes

Every season brings some exciting additions to the landscape of children’s enrichments and activities in the city. Here’s the latest:

Asphalt Green: After years of planning and expectation, Asphalt Green has opened up its second major facility in the city. Based in Battery Park City, the new location offers their trademark menu of classes for kids in swimming, sports, fitness, cultural arts and more. asphaltgreen.org

BookNook: Within their comfortable and welcoming ambiance, this early childhood literacy enrichment program offers classes in everything related to literacy, from reading and phonics to handwriting and kindergarten readiness. booknook.nyc.com

Fastbreak Sports: The popular children’s sports program (primarily focused on basketball and flag football) opens its first home, transforming an old movie theater into gorgeous facility that will offers classes for little kids and serious training and coaching for older athletics. (See story here.) fastbreakkids.com

Fukasa Kai: Weekday afterschool children’s martial arts classes are held at the World Yoga Center on the Upper West Side. Classes are taught in the context of a non-competitive, supportive and safe environment, and there are offering of specialized classes for children with physical and cognitive challenges (including autism and cerebral palsy). In contrast with contemporary martial arts training, the traditional Asian martial arts are taught and structured within a framework of discipline, some benefits of which are: conscience building, increased self-esteem, and increased sense of inner peace. fukasakai.com

Kidville: Kidville has plans to bring their big popular menu of classes and birthday parties for little kids to three new sites this year, in the Financial District, Tribeca/Soho, and Williamsburg. (See profile here.) kidville.com

Let’s Gogh Art: The new mobile art program for kids 18 months to 5 years brings a variety of art-based education and enrichment programs—not to mention birthday parties—to schools, daycare centers, private homes, parks, and stores around the city. nyletsgoghart.com

New York Kids Club: They’re on a roll. The children’s activity and enrichment centers opened new locations in Tribeca a few months ago and in Park Slope in August; a new site in Williamsburg is scheduled to opening in January of 2014 and a Long Island City location will follow in September 2014. nykidsclub.com

Prenatal Yoga Center: Starting in September, the Prenatal Yoga Center will be offering their beloved prenatal classes at a new satellite location, the Jennifer Brilliant Yoga Studio, in Brooklyn’s Park Slope neighborhood. prenatalyogacenter.com

92Y: This fall marks the inauguration of 92Y’s new, state-of-the art Gymnastics Studio in the Sky. Skylights in the expansive new studio provide an open, airy atmosphere for a new slate of gymnastics programming for kids of all ages, whether they’re beginners or aspiring gymnasts. There are also programs for children with special needs. 92Y.org

For our guide to the best Fall 2013 classes, click here.

Cucu's PlayHouse

<div style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; background-color: #ffffff;">Interactive, live-streaming music and movement class in Spanish for babies, toddlers and preschoolers!<br />Join us every day from Monday through Saturday at 1:30 pm EST to sing, dance and play together while learning Spanish from your home.</div> <div style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; background-color: #ffffff;">&nbsp;</div> <div style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; background-color: #ffffff;">This class is part of a Spanish Immersion Program where your child will be introduced to basic concepts like the animals, colors, numbers and letters. All of these through the universal language of Music. Each session is fun, interactive and engaging.<br />A selection of Children Songs in Spanish guides the class from start to finish. Activities are related to the lyrics, in order to familiarize the children with the words and their meanings. Some of the songs encourage the children to dance. Nilda uses puppets, musical instruments, and props to teach children basic vocabulary through action and interaction, rather than through translation.</div> <div style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; background-color: #ffffff;"><br />The classes are streamed on Zoom's webinar platform. Participants (children, parents, nannies) are able to join the video from their homes and interact with us in real-time, it is a fun and engaging experience.</div>

Speakitaly NYC

<p>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;</p> <p>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.</p> <p>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?</p> <p>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!"</p>

Academics West

<p>Academics West is an accredited high-support college preparatory school designed to meet the academic and social-emotional goals of its students. Our unique model allows for each student to benefit from a customized educational experience to ensure they are acquiring the skills necessary to navigate their post-secondary lives whether they attend college or pursue another path to future success. Students can select different tracks to construct the most beneficial program to suit their needs and goals. Unlike conventional education, this innovative model enables students to prepare for an ever-changing world that requires young people to have advanced executive functioning, interpersonal and leadership skills to become independent and resilient adults. &nbsp;</p>