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Kids at the Reebok Sports Club/NY. (Photo: Yencey Campana/courtesy of Millennium Partners Sports Club Mgmt LLC)
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Type-A parents have their tots’ autumn agendas already locked down, but for the rest of us zhlubs early September is a glorious time: open-house season! Nearly every music center, kids’ club, and arts-and-crafts mecca is likely to be offering free trial classes right now. Shop around. There are too many to mention, but here’s a few standouts worth considering.
WHAT: MiniMasters, 9/4
WHY GO: Normally anyone promising “Harvard prep for tots” makes this mom run the other way, but the copious offerings at this Tribeca membership-based “cultural learning center” consistently earn praise from pleased parents. Experience BabyMuscles, MiniSigners, Gym Rock, MiniBallet, Suzuki Violin, and more.
WHAT: City Treehouse, 9/8–9/12
WHY GO: With inexpensive membership and a relatively chill vibe, this brand-new Chelsea kids’ club offers eighteen different classes, including Karma Kids yoga and Bilingual Birdies in Spanish, French, or Hebrew. The swell tree-house-themed indoor play area with multitiered water table is perfect for rainy days.
WHAT: Brooklyn Arts Exchange, 9/6
WHY GO: Witness some of this Park Slope staple’s unusual dance classes: Hip Hop, Boys Movement, Tumbling, Physical Comedy, and more. Check out the play space, meet the teachers, quaff some free refreshments.
WHAT: Reebok Sports Club/NY, 9/3–9/6
The Sports Club/LA, 8/26–8/29
WHY GO: All gyms should have some sort of child care (Dear Crunch: Are you reading this!?). Lucky you if you’ve got one of these fancy ones in your hood; they offer (not inexpensive) “enrichment classes” for offspring 6 months to 5 years. These include Storybook Oven, Tots and Tutus, Princess Ballet, and even a preschool alternative (is this what overcrowding has brought us to?). Nonmembers’ kids are welcome, but that sort of defeats the parents’ purpose.


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