Have fun with digital illuminations
Bright, multihued illuminations flash on the massive walls of Artechouse DC, displaying an ever-
changing display of dancing skies, animated cherry blossoms and life-size neurons, depending on
the theme. Sophisticated art meets the latest technology involved in powering these cool
animated projections, but all the kids care about is jumping up and down, having
their shadows frozen in the scene and racing all around to see how the art
looks from different angles.

Different themes rotate through, although upcoming programming
has not been announced as of press date. You can bet the programs
will be as captivating as all the rest have been. Past exhibitions have
included “Aurora: The Spirit of Northern Lights,” “In Peak Bloom”
and “Imaginary World of the Nutcracker.” Throughout the visit,
families of all ages can dive further into the themes with hands-on
exhibits and other activities in a series of rooms. Visitation
capacity is limited; timed-admission tickets are required.

Open daily except Christmas and New Year’s Day
artechouse.com COURTESY OF ARTECHOUSE DC
Celebrate the first president’s birthday
The nation’s first president has much going on at his Mount Vernon home
during the winter. George Washington’s birthday is in February, after all,
with plenty of family-fun events planned for Feb. 21—and they’re free.

But families can find many kid-friendly activities to do even without
the birthday.

Pick up an adventure map when you arrive at the orientation center
and go on a scavenger hunt. Nine stops make up the hunt, and if you solve
a word puzzle about George Washington, you win a prize. You can take
a mansion tour—or admire the dollhouse version of the mansion in the
lobby—and play in the hands-on history center, including dressing up in
colonial costumes. Discover interactive exhibits that make learning about
colonial history and our forefathers—and mothers—fun for the family.

Open 365 days a year
mountvernon.org Ar t
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The Smithsonian museums have all types of cool attractions for kids to see. The Moon Rock,
early airplanes, and space rockets, for example, are appealing features at the National Air
and Space Museum. Look for hands-on activity carts throughout the National Museum
of American History. And the David H. Koch Hall of Fossils at the Smithsonian
National Museum of Natural History is always fun to explore, with touch screens,
touchable objects and videos that traverse billions of years of human history.

Did you know the Smithsonian Institute offers free downloadable booklets
that make exploring the museum exhibits more interesting? A discovery booklet
accompanies the National Museum of American History’s “Innovation Across
the Nation” exhibit, for example, with prompts to help kids explore the world of
innovation—including creating their own hypotheses.

Tutorials allow kids to make their own envelopes, mailbox, and time capsule at
the National Postal Museum. And a “Color Our Collection” coloring book highlights
famous portraits at the National Portrait Gallery. You’ll find these projects and more to
download and take with you on the online Learning Lab (http://learninglab.si.edu).

Museums open daily except Christmas Day
si.edu COURTESY OF NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM
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Go on an adventure
It may be winter, but that doesn’t mean your family has
to forego outdoor-type activities—just do them indoors.

The climbing walls at Laurel’s ClimbZone, for example,
were made with kids in mind, with fun themes like Aztec
temples and the Lincoln Memorial. ZavaZone in Sterling
has climbing walls and more, including a glow-in-the-dark
climbing cave, a trampoline park and a ninja course.

How about an indoor water park? Cub Run RECenter in
Chantilly, for example, has a huge pool with two large slides, a
lazy river and a shallow pool for the younger ones.

climbzone.us, zavazone.com, fairfaxcounty.gov
COURTESY OF CLIMBZONE
Go to the theater
Explore a museum just for kids
If you haven’t yet brought the family to the newest iteration of the hands-on
National Children’s Museum—it opened only days before the COVID-19
pandemic unfolded in 2020—now is the time.

You may enter the 20,000 square feet of space via a three-story “dream
machine,” with slides that whisk you to the exhibit space. The museum is all
about sparking creativity and curiosity, with a virtual slime machine, a race car
track that experiments with height and weight, a Nickelodeon-sponsored Art
+ Tech space, a green-screen experience where children gain superpowers to
control the weather, a batting cage that teaches the mechanics of a home run hit
(courtesy of the Nationals) and more.

A small space for babies and another one for toddlers introduces a cloud and
flight theme. The museum frequently offers drop-in “making” programs within
the Tinkerers Studio, weekly “STEAM Storytime” on Thursdays at 10:30 a.m. and
“Baby Jam,” a musical programming adventure, on Fridays at 10:30 a.m.

Open Thursday through Sunday with two timed admission sessions
nationalchildrensmuseum.org PHOTO BY DANIEL SWARTZ PHOTOGRAPHY
Several live theaters in the Washington, D.C., region
offer productions at exactly the right kid-length.

At the Smithsonian’s Discovery Theater, children
can enjoy fairy tales, puppet theater and other live
educational performances. More shows will be
added based on COVID-19 protocols; check the
“What’s Playing” page for details.

Encore Stage & Studio in Arlington—“theater
by kids, for kids!”—offers productions as well as
classes and workshops for budding thespians. At
Bethesda’s Imagination Stage, kids of all ages can
enjoy modern productions. Two new works for
children are commissioned every year, along with
a series of theater programming that helps foster
theater appreciation.

discoverytheater.org, encorestageva.org,
kennedy-center.org COURTESY OF ARTECHOUSE DC
se When the kids simply need to expend excess energy—preferably
not in the house—head for one of the region’s play-oriented
destinations. BusyBees’ indoor playground is made expressly for
little ones shorter than 48 inches. Scramble in Alexandria and Falls
Church has something for every family member: tummy time for
babies, soccer for the older ones and lots of running and jumping
in between.

The Wonder in Arlington and Chevy Chase provides an imaginative,
low-key indoor play space for the 5-and-younger set. At the Arlington
location, for example, youngsters can play with a pile of snow (aka
balls), build an igloo and warm up with hot chocolate in an imaginary
winter scene.

busybeesplay.com, goscramble.com, thewonder.us n
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