EXPLORING THE CITY WITH TEENS
When my children were babies and toddlers, we explored the city all the time. They came with me to Baby Fingers classes and we took other classes too – music, art, sports… We went to all the museums, checked out library story times, saw some children’s theatre. Sometimes we spent all day in the park – we had our choice of playgrounds.
As they got older, they went on school trips to these places and still do, now and then. What might be lacking in the schools due to space is easily made up for in the larger classroom – the city itself. It’s hard to escape the culture all around us here – and why would we want to? But schedules get so busy, with baseball, music school, religious school, homework…
So we’ve decided to re-discover the city. It’s a different experience going to all these places with teens this time – a new perspective for sure! In the past several weeks, we’ve gone to exhibits at the main Public Library, the Museum of Natural History, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and of course walked through both Riverside and Central Parks. Since they’re not always up for family “game night” anymore, these adventures have guaranteed us weekly interaction that’s separate from dinner conversations and helping with homework.
Parents aren’t always a teen’s first choice of company. But it has been fun, for all of us, I think. We’ve re-discovered old interests and unearthed new ones, opened up doors to new learning and old memories. The conversations are more enriched and insightful this time around. I look forward to our weekly outings and our re-discovery of our own home town.
