More MLK Jr. Day Free Admission – ISGM & The ICA

The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum is just around the corner from the MFA. Both museums are offering free admission and activities to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The Gardner limits the number of people in the museum at any given time, so it may be a better option for people who don’t want to deal with the crowds at the MFA on free days. Though you may have to wait in line before getting inside.

The museum opens at 11 AM, and MLK Jr. Day activities run 1-4 PM.

Join social justice project Wee The People for an interactive, family-friendly workshop that guides young and old in unlearning and reclaiming the legacy of MLK. Together we will explore MLK’s practice as a radical disruptor and honor his most important act of love: resistance. Activities include sign-making tributes to protest movements, a #ReclaimMLK photo booth, and timed acts of resistance inside the Museum.”
https://www.gardnermuseum.org/calendar/event/mlk-day-20200120

Free general admission to the Gardner is a rare occurrence. If your name is Isabella or your family is Active Duty in the military, you can get in free anytime. Children 17 and under are always free as well. EBT cardholders can get $2 admission for up to 4 adults. The BPL has a $5/person museum pass available that admits 4 people on weekdays, 2 people on weekends.

Update, January 16, 2020: I’m no longer recommending the ICA as a family destination.

The Institute of Contemporary Art in the Seaport is also offering free admission on Monday 10am to 5pm. One great feature of this free admission day is that there will be FREE, first-come first-served tickets for Yayoi Kusama: LOVE IS CALLING. Right now tickets are sold out through the end of the month, and ticket sales for February go on sale today (1/15/2020) at 10am. So if you want to see Yayoi Kusama’s exhibit and can’t get tickets, head over first thing to the ICA on Monday!

It doesn’t appear that they have any special MLK Jr. Day events, but the ICA is opening two new exhibits that day: Tschabalala Self: Out of Body + Carolina Caycedo.

The ICA is accessible by Silver Line Waterfront out of South Station. You can walk from either the World Trade Center stop or Courthouse. I do not recommend parking for BBHSers because of the expense. The ICA does not have its own parking lot, but you can find their recommendations for parking here.

MFA December Vacation Week Activities 2019

One of our favorite activities at an MFA vacation week was a weather-vane project, where my “avant-garde” 4-year-old made a dog weather vane with a spiraled, yellow pipe-cleaner attached to show the dog peeing 😂😍🎨 The museum educators facilitating the activity were wonderfully supportive of him and even suggested art styles his creation would fit right into. The child has a sense of humor!

Another time we made Polynesian stick charts after looking at a Navigation Chart from Micronesia. This was right around the time the Disney movie “Moana” was big, and my kids really enjoyed an activity relevant to something they loved.

Now, I know as homeschoolers we don’t usually like to go places during school vacation weeks, there are just so. many. people. But I do make an exception for the MFA’s vacation week activities because the quality of the activities is very good and very kid-friendly. The activities are also more low-key and free-form compared to Artful Adventures. Giving my kids a positive experience with art, history and museums is something I highly value, and can usually accomplish at the MFA!

This year’s December Vacation Week Activities are focused on the solstice and light, and runs Thursday, December 26 to Tuesday, December 31, 2019.

Cover image for “Ancient Nubia Now” special exhibit
Source: Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

From 10am to 4pm everyday, you can visit these activities:

Reflected Light – Features a Persian mosaic with mirror pieces and a mosaic making activity.
Light from Above – This activity invites kids to look for the rainbow in a painting called Blue Niagara and to see if they can find rainbows in other paintings. The connected art activity is to make your own picture with colored pencils focused on water and light.
Light of the Sun – After visiting the Ancient Nubia Now exhibit to see how the Nubians used gold to represent sunlight, kids can make their own jewelry.
Infinite Light – Kids can look at a bronze Altarpiece with Amitabha and Attendants, and then make their own mixed-media sculpture as they “imagine a special place filled with endless light.”

On Monday December 30, 2019 at 11 am only, you can visit this activity:

Riley the Museum Dog Book Signing and Scent Training Demonstration – Meet the MFA’s canine volunteer who helps sniff out bugs hiding in the museum that could damage art works. There will be a demonstration of his skills and a book signing.

The MFA full-price admission isn’t cheap, but you can get passes for $10 admission for 2 people at most area libraries. Children 17 and under are free whenever school is not in session. An EBT card will get you $3 admission per person.

Have you gone to any of the MFA’s vacation week activities in the past? What did you think of your experience? Leave a reply below 🙂

Winter Socializing on the Cheap

This BBHS family lives in a tiny apartment. It’s so small, we barely have enough room for all 4 of us to sit and watch TV. If we have one more person over for dinner, we have to move the couch and bring the table out of the kitchen. If you come into our apartment, I would say, “welcome, let me give you a tour, here’s all of it!”

Having playdate, or teaching a class together over here isn’t comfortable or practical. In warm months we can meet people anywhere outside, but when it turns cold we have to be creative about where to spend time with friends. This post is dedicated to BBHSers with similar challenges to having friends visit.

Places that are Free

A Library is a great place to meet up; it’s free, children’s rooms often have board games kids can play together, or other activities such as crafts, movies and more. The downside is that there aren’t many opportunities for gross motor activities if the kids are bigger than toddlers. I always appreciate libraries where the kids’ room is separate from the rest of the library. The Main branches of the Arlington, Boston, Cambridge, Somerville and Watertown libraries all have very nice, seperate kids’ rooms. In Cambridge and Somerville, there are playgrounds right outside as well.

The entrance to the Children's Library at the Copley branch of the Boston Public Library. — *The BPL’s Children’s Library at the Main branch. Source: BBHS*

There is a winter games day meetup at the Arlington Fox Library organized on the Homeschoolting Together Boston group. This is something you might consider starting up at a library nearer to you! This location is convenient to the 77, 79 and 350 MBTA busses.

Hiking/Going for a walk is also a good, cheap activity that’s better with friends. In winter you just have to have good enough outerwear and know where the nearest bathrooms are. If you need some inspiration or ideas on city locations for hiking, check out Outdoors Rx! When you register and sign up for their newsletter you can join their organized activities in and around Boston for free. If you just want information on where to spend time outdoors in nature in the city, check out their brochures on Boston (Roxbury, Dorchester, Mattapan), Chealsea/Revere, Framingham, and Waltham.

Almost Free/Cheap

Go with your friends to a museum’s free/cheap day! Or take advantage of library free admission museum passes. Most of the bigger museums in the area have days and times with free admission or admission by voluntary donation (which can be zero dollars, too). Visit the website of a museum you’re interested in to find out if they offer free admission days/times.

The Museum of Science is a decent place for indoor, gross motor opportunities. You can easily get a free admission pass from various libraries. There’s the Science Playground on the top floor (although they got rid of the running feature) and the Charles River Exhibit on the lowest level for some wonderful sensory play. If it isn’t busy, it’s not much of a problem for the kiddos to run a little bit. I’m not advocating full on running, just noting that it’s an indoor space where it’s more acceptable for the kids to get out some big movements. Also, there’s a lot to see without needing a ticket, such as the little zoo and hands on lab (check schedule for topics and hours) both downstairs from the Discovery Center, the ball machine and the solar system exhibit outside the Omni Theater.

If you have favorite go-to places for meeting up with friends in winter, I’d love to hear about them in the comments!

List of Free admission passes from BPL

Picture of a man's hands holding tickets — *Photo by Kaboompics .com on Pexels.com*

Only some museum passes offered through BPL give you free admission. Many give discounted admission, which can really add up for a family of 4. Below is a list of the free admission passes!

Boston Modern Orchestra Project
Lyric Stage Company of Boston
Mary Baker Eddy Library & Mapparium
Massachusetts DCR ParksPass hang tag
Museum of Science, Boston
New England Aquarium
Old South Meeting House
USS Constitution Museum*
American Repertory Theater
Boston By Foot
Dreamland Wax Museum
Edward Kennedy Institute
Harvard Art Museum
Larz Anderson Auto Museum

Please note that not all passes are available at all branches. Some are only available at a single branch. The online pass reservation system has details. Remember that all residents of Massachusetts can get a BPL card!!

* The USS Constitution Museum offers admission by voluntary donation. You don’t need a pass to get free admission and you are free to walk in and not even talk to the front desk, though the volunteers are very nice! But I admit I’ve gotten the pass because I didn’t want to be rude at not paying. OMG introversion is the worst! 🤦🏽‍♀️🙃

Which are your favorite places to go with a BPL museum pass? Comment below!