Teens/Tweens

FREE Girls & Science is back at the DMNS

Have you heard the news? Girls & Science is back at DMNS! This free, in-person event on Friday, March 1, 4-8 p.m. will kick off a month of virtual programming and engagement. Show your electric personality and tell the weather with CBS Colorado’s meteorologist Lauren Whitney, dig into your passion for science with DMNS’s female-led laboratories, and create your own story featuring Pingy with Ping’s Technical Enablement Specialist Joany Huang! Girls & Science connects girls and their friends and families with mentors working in various STEAM fields. All kids (and kids-at-heart) can engage their curiosity through hands-on activities and inspire their passion for science with in-person conversations about how to pursue careers in STEAM. Activities are ...

Awesomely immersive space experience coming to Denver

Do you have a child age 8+ who loves space? You won’t want to miss the new immersive space experience coming to Denver next year and tickets go on sale Nov. 1! After having fascinated 300,000 visitors around the world, Space Explorers: THE INFINITE lands in Denver featuring new content captured in space, promising an otherworldly adventure.   Infinity Experiences, Felix & Paul Studios and PHI Studio, in association with Denver Center for the Performing Arts (DCPA) Off-Center is proud to announce the presentation of Space Explorers: THE INFINITE premiering in Colorado this February 3 – May 5, 2024 at Stanley Marketplace.    Space Explorers: THE INFINITE is a captivating immersive experience inspired by NASA missions aboar...

Volunteering with your family at Food Bank of the Rockies during the holidays

As we head into the holiday season, many families choose to spend time together giving back to their neighbors and embracing the values of kindness and compassion to help make other families’ holidays a little bit brighter. Volunteering as a family during the holidays can be a profoundly rewarding experience, as it not only helps people in our communities in need of extra support, but also strengthens the bonds within one’s own family. Volunteering as a family during the holidays can be an excellent opportunity to help children recognize the challenges that other people face and understand how much of an impact they can make by donating their time to support their community. Volunteering at a food bank can be a particularly rewarding experience for people of all ages. In addition to active...

Guide to Denver Holiday Events, Lights and Christmas Fun 2023

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas! Holidays in Denver are downright magical and we have pulled together Holidays in Denver: Your Guide to Events, Lights and Christmas Fun. Check out the very best holiday lights displays in Denver, holiday performances, family-fun activities for families like bumper cars on ice, dreamy candlelight walks, the Polar Express, a trail of lights and so much more.  MORE FUN IDEAS! If you’re lucky, we’ll have a white Christmas so don’t miss our Ultimate guide to outdoor skating in Colorado and 30 places to go sledding in Colorado. And if you need some inspiration with your shopping, check out our Colorado Holiday Gift Guide with 50+ ideas,  Denver’s best holiday markets and the 7 Best Christmas tree farm...

Denver middle schoolers can receive $1,000 for afterschool programs

 In a kids town hall meeting, Denver Mayor Mike Johnston announced My Spark Denver, a new pilot program that will provide 4,000 Denver Public Schools (DPS) middle school students with $1,000 to enroll in afterschool programs. As students enroll in participating programs, My Spark Denver will invest $4 million in after-school activities.  “Many of us have a story about the activities we loved as kids. For me, my spark was soccer and theater. I didn’t become a professional athlete or actor, but the lessons of teamwork and collaboration have stayed with me,” said Mayor Mike Johnston. “While my administration takes on the urgent issues of ending homelessness and ensuring public safety, My Spark Denver addresses many of the underlying causes of these issues by investing in the wellbei...

Educational tech tips for kids in the digital age from Comcast

Do you feel like you’re in the swing of managing your kids’ back-to-school routines or do you feel a bit overwhelmed trying to keep up?  Technology doesn’t have to be part of that overwhelm. In fact, it can be a valuable tool for education. Comcast has some awesome tips for how to use it mindfully and with supervision to ensure a positive and constructive learning experience for your child. Don’t miss these great technology tips for parents to help their children succeed in the digital age. Create a productive workspace. Agree to a dedicated, organized and comfortable workspace for your child with good lighting and all the necessary school supplies. Be sure to find a place that minimizes distractions. Check your internet connectivity. Make sure your home has a stable and reliable inte...

Denver’s best haunted hotels: enter if you dare!

Do you love a fright? These Denver haunted hotels boast spooky histories and if you’re lucky, ghostly apparitions, faucets turning off and on, flickering lights, and eerie sounds for your stay.  Denver’s Best Haunted Hotels THE STANLEY HOTEL Well known as the inspiration for Stephen King’s classic horror novel “The Shining,” this Estes Park hotel is regularly featured as one of America’s most haunted hotels. In 1911, chief housekeeper Elizabeth Wilson was involved in an explosion that blasted her through the floor into a room one story below. The location of the explosion was repaired and converted into Room 217, the same room King visited when writing “The Shining.” Guests staying in Room 217 often report unwanted housekeeping services, including having items put...

2023 Ultimate Guide to Fall Break Fun in Denver

Denver offers a wide range of activities for families to enjoy during the fall break. Whether you’re interested in outdoor adventures, cultural experiences, or simply soaking in the beautiful autumn scenery, there’s something for everyone. Here are some fall break activity ideas for families in Denver: Fall Break Fun in Denver 2023 Fall Foliage Drives: Take a scenic drive in the nearby mountains to see the fall foliage. Consider routes like the Peak to Peak Scenic Byway or the Lariat Loop. Colorado’s best fall colors, ghost towns and drives Visit a Pumpkin Patch: Fall wouldn’t be complete without a trip to a pumpkin patch. You can pick your own pumpkins, enjoy hayrides, corn mazes, and even pet some farm animals at places like Anderson Farms or Chatfield Farms. Guid...

Cell phone power struggles with your kids? What EVERY parent needs to do

Warning: Public Education Rant to Parents Parents. I am an assistant principal in a middle school (grades 6-8). My number one job is to create and sustain a school environment where both students and teachers feel safe (physically, emotionally, and mentally) to teach, learn, innovate, and socialize. I take my job very seriously, as do my colleagues, and we work very hard to grow in our capacity to do our job on a daily basis. I can’t begin to describe how much time I spend every day dealing with issues that stem from unsupervised cell phone usage by our students. In situations where I have to search a student’s cell phone, I often get sick to my stomach at what I find (highly inappropriate photos, videos, messages, social media usage, etc). The things our students are willing to try ...

Maestro Music Institute: Music Classes in Denver and Arvada

Not all music schools are created equally and Maestro Music Institute strives to make instrumental music lessons in Denver and Arvada exceptional for children and adults.  Maestro Music Institute’s Classes Maestro Music Institute teaches group classes, semi-private lessons and private lessons from age 3 all the way to 103. The Arvada and Denver music schools offer a variety of instruments: piano, voice, guitar (acoustic, bass and electric), ukulele, woodwinds (flute, clarinet), brass (trumpet & trombone), drums and strings.  They also started a master class series this year for their students that is open to the public.  Are you looking for singing lessons in Arvada? The music institute also offers in-depth classes in singing, composition, songwriting and music productio...

What Can You Expect at Energy Day Colorado?

Spark your child’s interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) at Energy Day Colorado! Energy Day is a free family festival event on Saturday, Sept. 23, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. that consists of numerous interactive demonstrations that familiarize young students with the different types of energy and get them excited to see how a pathway in STEM could be their future career. Emphasis is also placed on the importance of energy in our world, conservation and efficiency in our daily lives, in schools, and in the home. Exhibits featured at the event range from hands-on demonstrations where students and families can see how each energy process works, to small and even large-scale installations that all can observe. Events such as Energy Day “really drive the point (of the importa...

Breaking Up is Hard to Do: Ideas for Switching your Mobile Phone Carrier

Fun fact: 51 percent of Americans say it’s easier to find a new romantic partner than a mobile carrier according to a new Comcast survey.  Breaking up is hard to do, especially when we don’t want to deal with the hassle of changing things up even though nearly half of Americans (48 percent) have had a negative experience with their current provider.   Parents: Is It Time to Break Up (with your carrier)? Parents have the hardest time most of all and are especially prone to be over their mobile provider. One-third of parents (33 percent) say they are done and ready for a change, more than double that of non-parents (14 percent). The biggest gripe for parents is pricing. In fact, parents report they are four times more likely than non-parents to be always looking for the next n...