Park Voyagers
Family Programs

Family Programs

Family Programming and Events

Upcoming Family Programs Spring 2025

Explore programming and events from our partner museums. 
Adler Planetarium

Adler at Night

Wednesdays 4:00pm-10:00pm

Join us after work, after school, or for date night at the Adler Planetarium. You’ll find hands-on, minds-on activities, experiences, and shows about the universe that will blow your mind! Free museum admission with proof of Illinois Residency.

 

The Art Institute of Chicago

Ryan Learning Center

Thursdays – Mondays 11:00am-3:00pm

Free, family-friendly activities are always on offer in the Ryan Learning Center Art Exchange.

Create your own one-of-a-kind museum tour using the award-winning digital interactive, JourneyMaker. Find books, blocks, and other resources to spark your curiosity. Art Exchange activities are designed with children in mind and are open to all visitors to the museum.

Family Day

Saturday, May 17, 11:00am–3:00pm

Family Day welcomes family and friends to the museum for creative making, performance, and play. All
activities in the Ryan Learning Center are free for all, and registration is not required.

Drop In Programs

Family Studio

Saturday, March 15 and April 19, 11:00am–3:00pm

Drop by the Ryan Learning Center, Studio A on select Saturdays for free workshops created just for families. Inspired by our latest exhibitions, Family Studio is hosted in collaboration with Chicago teaching artists.

The Artist’s Studio

Thursdays–Mondays, 11:00am–3:00pm
Take part in a free studio project inspired by a work of art in the museum’s collection or a special
exhibition. Designed by museum educators and artists, these activities are accessible to children but just as satisfying to adults.

 

Chicago History Museum

Programming

Explore the city with our expert guides, delve into our exhibitions through thematic programs, or discover Chicago history through family-friendly activities.

Upcoming Events

Commemorative Day | President’s Day

Monday, February 17th, 10:00am-2:00pm. Included with General Admission.

FREE for IL Residents. 

This Presidents’ Day, get more civically engaged through family-friendly activities! Write a letter to the new President of the United States to tell them what matters to you. Participate in arts-based activities and create a piece that reflects your social and political interests! 

Commemorative Day | Black History Month

Saturday, February 22nd, 10:00am-2:00pm. Included with General Admission.

Celebrate Black History Month at CHM as we look at the ways art has been a vehicle for social change in Chicago’s African American community. Enjoy handson arts activities, music, and speakers!

Click below for events calendar. 

DuSable Black History Museum

Special Hours in February

Special Hours in honor of Black History Month 2025

Monday – Sunday 10:00am-5:00pm

 

Upcoming Events

Historic Change: Celebrating the Life and Legacy of Ida B. Wells 

Wednesday, February 12th, 2025 6:30pm-8:30pm

The United States Mint and the National Women’s History Museum, in partnership with the DuSable Black History Museum and Education Center, invite you to join us for a special evening celebrating the life and legacy of Ida B. Wells and the launch of the new quarter in her honor.

This inspiring program will include a brief film screening and remarks by special guests.

All attendees will receive the Ida B. Wells commemorative quarter.

This event is free and open to the public. Advanced registration is required.

Other events coming up this spring – registration and more information can be found on our website closer to the dates.

Click below for events calendar. 

The Field Museum

Crown Family PlayLab

Monday – Sunday 10:00am-3:30pm

Designed for children between two and six years old, the Crown Family PlayLab is an interactive, hands-on space that makes learning an adventure. Early learners are invited to explore world cultures through music, experience everyday life in a recreated pueblo, create artwork in a Discovery Studio, or play paleontologist with dinosaur bones—and that’s just the beginning. With so many opportunities for discovery, this exhibition presents a new adventure every time you visit.

PlayLab PlayDate Series

The Crown Family PlayLab offers families with 2-6 year olds a weekly PlayLab PlayDate on Wednesdays. PlayLab PlayDates are free, drop-in activities featuring storytime sessions, music and movement circles, science experiments and more.

PlayLab PlayDates are free to museum guests, don’t require pre-registration, and take place on IL Resident Free Days

Upcoming PlayDates

PlayLab PlayDate: Black History Month Storytime

Wednesday, February 26th 11:00am-12:00pm

For this week’s PlayLab PlayDate, families with 2-6 year olds are invited to a free, drop-in storytime session hosted by the Chicago Public Library (CPL). Black History Month is celebrated throughout the February. To honor this important month, readers from CPL will shared stories honoring Black identities, communities, history and culture. Join us for a fun-filled PlayDate with stories, songs and more!

PlayLab PlayDate: Storytime with a Paleontologist

For this week’s PlayLab PlayDate, families with 2-6 year olds are invited to a free, drop-in storytime session with Dr. Jingmai O’Connor, a punk-rock paleontologist and the Field Museum’s Associate Curator of Fossil Reptiles— aka the dinosaur expert. Stop by the PlayLab for an interactive read aloud session and dinosaur fossil exploration celebrating Women’s History Month! 

Wednesday, March 5th 11:00am-12:00pm

PlayLab PlayDate: Clover Craft and Scavenger Hunt

Wednesday, March 12th 11:00am-12:00pm

For this week’s PlayLab PlayDate, families with 2-6 year olds are invited to a free, drop-in scavenger hunt and craft celebrating the curious world of clovers. Learn all about the three, sometimes four, leaved plants by completing our clover craft + scavenger hunt.

 

Upcoming Events

Dozin’ with the Dinos

Multiple Dates, 5:30pm-9:00am

See the Field Museum in a whole new light! Families and groups with kids ages 6 to 12 can spend the night at the museum during Dozin’ with the Dinos.

Stay up late with scientists as the Field Museum comes to life in games, challenges, and stories throughout the night. Will you dissect owl pellets and identify animal tracks to become the next great wildlife detective? Or, will you embark on a paleontologist’s expedition to uncover and identify fossils? Take on these adventures and more with one of the Field Museum’s dinosaurs as your guide. Then, grab your flashlight and explore the halls as the lights go out. This is a night at the museum you won’t forget!

Museum of Contemporary Art

Family Days at the MCA

Every second Saturday of the month, October through May, enjoy free admission and interactive events that redefine the way that children and families explore and create art together.

Designed for children under 12 and their grown-ups, MCA Family Days invite our youngest visitors to be the museum’s artists, thinkers, and collaborators. Witness an artist’s first creation. Experience inspiration spark from play and wonder. Do something nearly unheard of in a contemporary art museum—sit on comfy pillows and eat free snacks. Every second Saturday, joyfully disregard the boundaries between adult and child, artist and visitor, museum and studio, teacher and learner.

Admission is free to Family Day attendees. ASL interpretation is provided.

Upcoming Family Days

Family Day | Future Past

Saturday, March 8th 11:00am-3:00pm

See if you can hear echoes of the future or the past in Wafaa Bilal: Indulge Me.

Family Day | It’s Alive!

Saturday, April 12th 11:00am-3:00pm

Wait . . . did that sculpture just move? Celebrate spring as Chicago’s natural world comes to life again.

Family Day | Playoffs

Saturday, May 10th 11:00am-3:00pm

Play to win on the final Family Day of the season while catching the opening day of Paul Pfeiffer: Prologue to the Story of the Birth of Freedom.

 

 
National Museum of Mexican Art

Upcoming Programming

Studio Saturday: Felt Plushies

Saturday, February 15th, 10:00am-11:30am

Do you have a young budding artist at home? Children 7-12 years old are invited to NMMA for Studio Saturday! In this workshop, participants will draw inspiration from Semilla: Cecilia Beaven, Solo Exhibition and learn to make simple sewn plushies of animals that are currently deemed endangered species in Mexico. 

Advance Registration Required. Non-Refundable $20 Registration Fee includes all materials. 

To Register, Email:

angela@nationalmuseumofmexicanart.org

Listos Para El Museo with Nancy Alvarado Rosas

Saturday, February 15th 12:30pm – 1:30pm

Explore your child’s creativity with NMMA! Families with children 6 and younger are invited to our next Listos para el museo to make paper puppets with artist, Nancy Alvarado. Inspired by Semilla: Cecilia Beaven, Solo Exhibition, participants will design, color, and decorate puppets using markers, gems, and other materials! 

This event is FREE. 

To Register, Email:

angela@nationalmuseumofmexicanart.org

Other events coming up this spring – registration and more information can be found on our website closer to the dates. Click below for events calendar. 

 

 
National Museum of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture
Hours of Operation

Tuesday – Thursday: 10:00am-5:00pm

Friday: 10:00am-4:00pm

Saturday: 10:00am-2:00pm

Admission is FREE.

Click below for events calendar. 

 

 

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Griffin Museum of Science and Industry

Upcoming Events

Black Creativity Career Showcase

Saturday, February 22nd 9:30am-2:30pm

Have you ever wondered what it’s really like to be an artist, scientist or engineer?

In celebration of Black Creativity, kids and families can talk with African American artists, scientists and engineers about innovative work happening right here in our city. Professionals will be stationed throughout the Museum’s Main Level. This is an opportunity to learn from experts during dynamic demonstrations, hands-on activities and one-on-one conversations. Discover how to turn your passions into a career!

This event is included with Museum Entry and open to all ages.

Low-Sensory Mornings

Sunday, March 2nd 8:30am-9:30am

Low-Sensory Mornings provide exclusive early access to Griffin MSI from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m., allowing you to explore with exhibits with modified lighting and sound. Your tickets also include Museum Entry for rest of the day, with most Museum experiences remaining in sensory-friendly mode until noon. 

Science Snoozeum 

Saturday, April 5th 5:30pm-9:00am

Stay overnight in the Griffin Museum of Science and Industry! Enjoy a rare chance to explore the Museum after everyone else has gone home.

Join us overnight for a new and improved Snoozeum experience! Spend the evening exploring the Museum, take part in a scavenger hunt and other science activities, take a Coal Mine or U-505 tour, catch a big-screen adventure in the Giant Dome Theater, then curl up next to an iconic exhibit. The Museum is yours for the night!

 

 
Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum

Daily Programming 

Free Daily programming included with admission. Click the Events Calendar button below for more information. 

Upcoming Events

Low Sensory Morning

Wednesday, March 12th 9:00am-12:00pm, FREE

Join us for a low sensory morning event for guests to explore our exhibits and experiences in a relaxed and accepting environment with their family members and companions. Exclusive access for registrants 9-10am. Tickets include museum admission for the day. Exhibits and experiences modified to be low sensory until noon.

Let’s Play!

Saturday, March 8th 10:00am-12:00pm

Experience special pop-up experiences for young children throughout the museum along with our partners at The Alliance for Early Childhood and Park West Cooperative Nursery School. This event is included with admission.

Epiphytes Workshop

Tuesday, March 11, 6:00- 7:30pm

Learn about epiphytic plants, and a new way of displaying plants in your home with our manager of horticulture, Seth! Guests will get to take home their mounted plant. All materials and tools will be provided.

Conservation Celebration

Saturday, March 29, 1:00-4:00pm

Meet some of our resident biologists and explore science in this hands-on celebration of their work! Guests of all ages will be able to participate in activities that simulate the conservation work that our scientists do out in the field.

Other events coming up this spring – registration and more information can be found on our website closer to the dates. Click below for events calendar. 

Shedd Aquarium

Daily Programming

Free Daily programming included with admission. Click the Program Calendar button below for more information. 

Animal Spotlight

Times vary throughout the day

Animal Spotlights introduce you to select animals that call Shedd home. Stop by the Abbott Oceanarium and join us as our animal care experts highlight amazing animal adaptations.

Upcoming Events

Calm Waters

Sunday, February 23rd / Sunday, April 6th 2025 9:00am-11:00am

Calm Waters is an exclusive event for guests with disabilities and Veterans to explore Shedd Aquarium’s exhibits and experiences in a comfortable and accepting environment. Modifications for this event will include limited capacity and streamlined entry with advance registration.

Modifications for Calm Waters Include:

  • Limited capacity and streamlined entry with advance registration
  • A low-sensory animal spotlight with American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation 
  • An animal encounter opportunity
  • Complimentary 4D Experiences during the event

Family members and companions are welcome.

Shedd Aquarium Action Days

Multiple Dates and Sites

Looking to make a difference in your own backyard? Shedd Aquarium Action Days provide hands-on opportunities to restore and protect nearby beaches, waterways and forest preserves. Litter cleanups, river planting and coastal and woodland habitat restoration ensure that our natural spaces are thriving while also safeguarding the wildlife that call them home.