Free Family Events This Weekend! (January 12-14)

The 6th Annual Black Comic Book Festival will take place this weekend at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture! Photo via eventbrite.com.

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

Friday, January 12

Chartreuse String Trio: By the Water
7-9pm
Bloomingdale School of Music
All Ages
Join the Bloomingdale School of Music for an evening of live music performed by the Chartreuse String Trio. The group’s musical selection will feature women composers whose work explores various forms of water and other natural elements. This wonderful event is part of the school’s free concert series.

Friday, January 12-Saturday, January 13

6th Annual Black Comic Book Festival
Friday: 10am-8pm; Saturday: 10am-7pm
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture
All Ages
Learn all about the rich history of black comic book artists and their work at the 6th Annual Black Comic Book Festival at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. This fest will feature film screenings, panel discussions, arts and crafts workshops for kids, and much more. Expect an action-packed day! Pre-registration is required.

Saturday, January 13

Family Art Project: Freedom Quilting Bee
10am-1pm
Wave Hill
All Ages
Join Wave Hill this Saturday for its Freedom Quilting Bee! In honor of Martin Luther King, who established the first Freedom Quilting Bee in 1966 in rural Alabama, families can create their own quilts using squares of donated fabric. Please note: Admission to the garden is free until noon only.

Read-to-Skate StoryTime
12-1pm
Bryant Park
All Ages
Listen to riveting stories while earning free skate rentals at The Rink during Read-to-Skate StoryTime in Bryant Park! Kids will receive a stamped StoryTime card. Visitors who attend two StoryTime programs and also attend one program at the NYPL’s Children Center (or read one library book there) will be awarded a free skate rental for The Rink in Bryant Park. Participants can also score free books courtesy of Penguin Random House. While supplies last.

Sunday, January 14

“Breaking Ice: The Battle of the Carmens”
2:30pm
Denny Ferrell Riverbank State Park Skating Complex
All Ages
This Sunday, Alice Hall Moran will present a new vocal work featuring the Ice Theatre of New York. Part of PROTOTYPE’s Out of Bounds installment, a series of free performances of new works in public spaces, this piece takes place on the ice and is inspired by the artist’s childhood and the 1988 Winter Olympics. Please note: Skaters are encouraged to watch the performance while on the ice. In order to do so, please arrive 20 minutes prior to show time.

Adventuring Portal

<a name="m_-1473885667065203258__Hlk72147528"></a>Adventuring Portal runs Dungeons and Dragons (D&amp;D) games for kids.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;We have created a safe online space for tweens and teens to learn and play D&amp;D. Our D&amp;D Summer Camp session are a one-week experience.&nbsp;&nbsp;Monday &ndash; Friday.&nbsp;&nbsp;Each day will be 3 hours of gaming (with 2 breaks build in).&nbsp;&nbsp;15 total gaming hours for $180.&nbsp;&nbsp;If you have played with us before, you are entitled to 10% off.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Need your kids, nieces or nephews, grand kids or neighbor&rsquo;s kids to be occupied for a bit so you can get work done &amp; take care of your to-do list? Maybe your tween or teen is still a bit isolated and craves connection with their peers? Whether your teen/tween has played D&amp;D before or is brand-new to the experience, this safe space brings players together to have fun and solve problems as a team in ways few other online opportunities do. All our games focus on experiential learning.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Our players leave knowing all the basic game play as well as experiencing: teamwork, bravery, compassion, generosity, negotiation, improvisation, gamer etiquette, strategy, critical thinking, problem solving, cartography and probability - all through online D&amp;D adventuring! We are an inclusive organization and welcome gamers who are LGBTQIA+ and those on any spectrum.&nbsp; All girls&rsquo; groups available.&nbsp; I am a parent, a certified elementary school and middle school math teacher and last summer in the midst of the mess started&nbsp;Adventuring Portal, an&nbsp;online Dungeons &amp; Dragons&nbsp;business&nbsp;for kids. There are so many benefits to playing D&amp;D and I hope you will consider us as a great way for your child to safely socialize, grow as people and have a great time.

Visit Schoharie County

The Schoharie Valley is home to things grown well - trees, crops, produce, people. It is filled with inviting farms and businesses beckoning visitors to experience what locals love about the region. Its enchanting vistas, rich farmland, and strong sense of community are what make Schoharie County such a fascinating place to visit and to live.

British Swim School - Long Island

The premier learn-to-swim provider for people of all ages, offering programs for children ages 3-months through adults.&nbsp; British Swim School uses gentle teaching methods and a survival-first approach to help people of all experience levels become safer, stronger swimmers. British Swim School&rsquo;s safe, fun, and effective instructional program has made it the preferred choice for parents and students for over 40 years. Come see the British Swim School difference!