The Ultimate List Of Things To Do During The June Holidays
In other words, countless fun-filled ways to distract your child from the iPad when school’s out from May 26 to June 24.
Giant inflatable bouncy playgrounds? Storytelling sessions? Dancers in a digital forest (yay, no leeches!)? If it sounds like the National Museum is all geared up for the school holidays, that’s because it is. Children’s Season 2018 is on like Donkey Kong at the museum. Parents, reminisce your own childhood with your kids at the ongoing The More We Get Together: Singapore’s Playgrounds 1930-2030 exhibition, get tangled up in interactive installations or nurture your budding young cineaste by taking them to watch a collection of animated short films at TimeScapes — A Singapore Anthology. Pencil in some colourful bonding time — hands-on activities such as therapeutic art workshops for parents and children are available as well.
Until June 24. Free admission; separate charges may apply. Register for select programmes at www.cs2018.peatix.com. More info at www.nationalmuseum.sg.
Photo: National Museum Singapore
In other words, countless fun-filled ways to distract your child from the iPad when school’s out from May 26 to June 24.
For the kid who seeks cheep thrills.
So what if you’ve taken the little ones to the Jurong Bird Park a gazillion times? Flights of fancy await at the park which has a whole host of special activities lined up for the holidays. There are fact-finding games, feathered displays, an art colouring wall, puppet shows and even a meet-and-greet with Sunny the hornbill. Surely a way more interesting method to learn about birds than reading a textbook.
Jurong Bird Park at 2 Jurong Hill. More info at www.birdpark.com.sg.
Photo: Wildlife Reserves Singapore
For the arty farty kid.
We don’t know if your child would one day become a Cultural Medallion award recipient, but how about letting them step into the shoes of one for now? The National Gallery’s Children’s Festival: Small Big Dreamers shines the spotlight on Lee Wen, one of Singapore’s pioneering performance artists who’s made a name for himself with his Yellow Man series. This special commission by NGS comprises five experiential installations which allows you and your mini-mes to enter Lee Wen’s dreamscape and even manoeuvre an obstacle course of ribbons. Parents and kidults can also Instagram their way through complementary works by teamLab from Japan (the same folks behind those dazzling, Insta-ubiquitous FutureWorld exhibition at ArtScience Museum) and other international artists.
June 9 to Sep 9, at National Gallery Singapore, 10am to 7pm. General admission applies. More info at www.nationalgallery.com.sg.
Photo: National Gallery Singapore
For the kid who wants to be Nemo.
If sea-ing is believing, take your lil’ munchkins to Resorts World Sentosa for the month-long Ocean Fest. There are educational games and underwater performances (like Dupi and Plastic Pete in the above picture) that’ll keep the young ’uns entertained, and weekend eco-friendly markets (upcycled home décor products or organic beauty products, anyone?) and art installations to keep the adults happy. Learn more about ocean conservation at the National Geographic Ocean Exploration Children’s Workshop (on select days till June 3), which is the first and only marine science and exploration kid’s workshop here, and takes them on an adventure at S.E.A. Aquarium (includes an back-of-house look at the aquarium’s Open Ocean Habitat) and Maritime Experiential Museum.
Until June 24 at Resorts World Sentosa. More info at www.rwsentosa.com/oceanfest and www.rwsentosa.com/oceanwonders.
Photo: Resorts World Sentosa
For the kid who's all about the #cartoonlyfe.
Trying to get your child to stop watching cartoons is so fun, said no parent ever. But we bet the kids would willingly tear themselves away from the TV when you declare that you’re taking them into the universe of Powerpuff Girls, We Bare Bears, Adventure Time and Ben 10 at Cartoon Network’s Animate Your Life festival. We’re talking massive inflatable obstacle courses, photo opps with cute mascots, carnival games and art workshops. Whee!
May 26 to June 10 at Bayfront Plaza at Gardens by the Bay. Open Mon to Thur, 3pm to 9pm, Fri to Sun, 3pm to 11pm. Last admission is one hour before closing. More info at http://animate.cartoonnetworkasia.com/.
Photo: Cartoon Network
For the kid who loves good ol' books.
Parents will get nostalgic, while kiddos will be delighted by this perennial childhood bookworm fave. Enid Blyton’s The Magic Faraway Tree is coming to a sunny spot not so far away. At Gardens by the Bay’s Children’s Festival, you get to journey through the Land of Enchantments, Land of Tea Parties, Land of Toys and Land of Nursery Rhymes brought to life at Asia’s first large-scale Enid Blyton-themed event.
Until June 10 at Supertree Grove @ Gardens by the Bay, 10am to 9pm. Admission is free; charges apply to select programmes. More info at www.gardensbythebay.com.sg.
Photo: Gardens by the Bay
For the kid who's oh-so-dramamama.
Keep the younger kids entertained with six original theatre productions from countries like England, Italy and, of course, Singapore, at the ACT3i Festival For Children. Plus, they’re interactive too, so you don’t have to worry about the little ones getting restless. Don’t fret if your little tyke doesn’t have aspirations to be the next Fann Wong or Christopher Lee (yet) — get them started by signing them up for a drama workshop anyway to help build their imagination.
Until June 3 at ACT 3 Drama Academy, 126 Cairnhill Rd; Asian Civilisations Museum, 1 Empress Pl. Tix and more info at www.act3international.com.sg.
Photo: Act 3 International
For the kids who are ready for their big break.
We know we're only halfway through the year, but it’s not too early to think about Christmas — especially not when your child may just be performing at a Christmas show at Marina Bay Sands alongside profesh thesps from UK, Australia and Singapore. Producers of light-hearted festive pantomime Corporal Crumble’s Christmas Crisis are holding open auditions to search for over 100 child performers (aged seven and over) to sing, dance and act, and basically perform as toys come to life for the big opening number.
Open auditions are on June 11 and 12 at the Sands Theatre at Marina Bay Sands. Register at https://centre-stage.com/home/christmas-show-2018/. Catch Corporal Crumble’s Christmas Crisis on Dec 1 and 2 at the Sands Theatre.
Photo: Base Entertainment Asia
For the kid who thinks the sky's the limit.
Forget tuition classes. How about teaching them to fly a plane instead? Okay, so your child isn’t exactly going to be able to fly a real plane by the end of flight school SG Aviation Training’s Basic Aviation Course with Aptitude Flying. But they’d come close enough after the end of this 20-hour programme ($385). Designed for kids aged 10 to 17, the course introduces flight theories, flight instruments, basic flight operations and aviation language to students. The course culminates in students putting their new knowledge and skills to the test in a Cessna 172 flight simulator.
Course starts June 2 and runs for four Saturdays. SG Aviation Training is at #01-02 Haite Building, 15 Changi Business Park Crescent. More info at www.sgatraining.com.
Photo: SG Aviation Training
For the kidult who wants to multi-task.
Need some retail therapy or just need to run a million errands with the kids in tow? Malls with special school holiday programmes are the way to go. Go on a space adventure at White Sands’ Star-mazing Space Adventure, where you can expect balloon mazes and exhibitions taking over the mall’s main atrium (Jun 15 to 25), talks and even a stargazing sesh on select nights. Or you could go chasing giant inflatable rainbows in the East. Happy Rainbow by Los Angeles art collective FriendsWithYou is a travelling pop-up exhibition will be at Tampines Mall (June 1 to 5), SingPost Centre (June 6 to 12) and Bedok Mall (June 13 to 19). Let your kids frolic in a kaleidoscopic play zone which includes a rainbow-themed playground, interactive bounce house and larger-than-life sculptures, or attend badge, tote bag and colouring workshops. Now that’s something that’ll definitely spark joy.
More info at http://www.whitesands.com.sg/, www.bedokmall.com.sg, www.tampinesmall.com.sg and www.singpostcentre.com.
For the kid whose imagination is out of this world.
No June school holiday is complete without a trip to Imaginarium, the Singapore Art Museum’s annual family-friendly exhibition at SAM at 8Q. This year’s shindig is titled Imaginarium: Into the Space of Time, and explores time, memory, the past and the future, via interactive artworks by 10 artists and art collectives from around the world. If you wanna get cheem, you can ponder how animated video paintings that depict the four seasons represent the transience of life, and how things never stay the same. More likely, if you’re a kid, you’ll just enjoy jumping around and seeing yourself appear in a pretty spring painting on screen, and laughing at your face superimposed on snowmen heads in the winter scene. And that’s the beauty of Imaginarium. It’s always been about how kids have fun and are entertained, while giving the adults something to think about. Not to be missed.
Imaginarium: Into the Space of Time is on till August 26 at SAM at 8Q. Admission is free for Singaporeans and PR.
For the toddler who loves Elmo.
The furry monsters of Sesame Street continue to delight the young and the young-at-heart at Changi Airport. And especially for the June hols, Elmo, Cookie Monster and friends are putting on a show that’s guaranteed to get you bopping along. The ‘S is for Sharing’ live show debuts at T3, and features six Sesame Street characters singing a medley of songs and acting out an actual storyline — suffice to say it’s way better than your usual mall mascot meet-and-greet. The show is free, but to take pics with the gang, you have to spend $60 in a single receipt. While you’re at T3, check out the cardboard art installation featuring seven iconic landmarks in Central and Eastern Europe, along with 3D paper Sesame Street characters dressed in European costumes. Also not to be missed: The Europe Bobsleigh Adventure, where you can whizz down a 30-metre curvy slide. Can we tell you how to get to Sesame Street? Yeah, it’s at Changi Airport Terminal 3 Departure Hall.
The Live show is every Sat and Sun at 2pm and 7pm till June 24. For details, go to http://changiairport.com/discovereurope.
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