Registration is now open for Hill House’s spring athletics and programming, which begins Monday, March 12, with more than 90 selections to choose from for children ages 0 to 12.
“Young children aren’t receiving enrichment at school yet, and Hill House is a warm and inviting environment for moms, dads and caretakers to bring their children,” said Lauren Schmeig, executive director of the non-profit community center based at the Firehouse at 127 Mt. Vernon St. “The early years are about exploring and learning new things while as they get older, more skill-building is involved.”
Baseball remains the most popular, seasonal offering, drawing between 150 and 200 kids to the Teddy Ebersol’s Red Sox Fields on the Charles River Esplanade. T-Ball teaches 4- and 5-year-olds the fundamentals of the sport before kids eventually progress to AA and AAA baseball as 6- and 7-year-olds, and 8- and 9-year-olds, respectively. Children ages 10 to 12, meanwhile, can compete against teams from surrounding communities in Majors Baseball.
“Majors Baseball is coached by professional Little League staff, as well as parent-volunteers,” Schmeig said. “The parents are vey dedicated and love spending time with us on the fields every weekend.”
Some athletic offerings include soccer, tennis and flag football on the Boston Common, girls’ field hockey and basketball on the Red Sox Fields, basketball at 74 Joy St., and fencing, and karate at the Firehouse, or children can instead learn a foreign language or indulge their interests in chess, cooking and music, among other extracurricular activities. Young children can partake in tumbling and movement instruction or join playgroups, while Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) classes allow children to experiment as they learn. A class called “Mind Your Manners” even aims to improve children’s etiquette and social skills.
Moreover, Hill House offers a wide array of age-appropriate art classes and workshops at the Firehouse.
Open Art is introductory arts and crafts for 1- to 4-year-olds while kids ages 19 months to 3 can opt for Hands-On Art and Self-Expression, which teaches them about color coordination and spatial relationships as they draw, paint and make collages.
Art Travelers allows 4- and 5-year-olds to complete a project in a different medium each week. Clay Creations and Meant to Bead offers clay crafting for 6- to 8-year-olds and jewelry-making for 6- to 12-year-old, respectively, while Spring Crafts is a workshop in which kids ages 6 to 12 create 3-D flowers using watercolors and common household items.
All this culminates in an art show at the Firehouse on Saturday May 12, featuring work created by kids from the spring and throughout the year.
Parents and caretakers are encouraged to get involved at Hill House this spring, too.
A New Parents Group offers moms and dads of children 0 to 6 months old an inviting community to discuss the joys and challenges of parenting, while “Move Baby Move” classes emphasize the developing the sense of balance in infants as they develop. On the other hand, Friday Night Out allows parents and caretakers to enjoy an evening without the kids one night each month as they drop off their 3- to 10-year-olds off at the Firehouse under the supervision of professional staff.
“A lot of people tell us they’ve made their friends in the neighborhood by bringing their kids to Hill House,” Schmeig said.
For more information on Hill House, visit www.hillhouseboston.org. For the full spring program guide, visit https://goo.gl/Q7o1Ci. Call 617-227-5838 for more information.