Welcome to Evanston!

Evanston is a charming town, just 12 miles north of Chicago. It borders Lake Michigan and boasts beautiful, white sandy beaches. Evanston and the surrounding areas offer many family-friendly activities, including the following:

Chicago Children's Museum – creates a community where play and learning connect. The museum's primary audience is children up through the fifth grade including their families, along with the school and community groups that support and influence children's growth and development.  http ://www.chicagochildrensmuseum.org/

Chicago Parent – is a newsmagazine featuring a calendar of family events, articles on parenting, classified ads for child care, shopping tips and restaurant reviews. Free copies are available at the library, various local child care centers and many children's stores. To find out more about a subscription, call (708) 524-8300.  http://chicagoparent.com/

Creative Kids Corner of Kendall College – offers classes for children ages 6 months to 6 years. Classes include songs, fingerplays, dance, rhythm activities, large and small motor activities, much more.  http://www.creativekidscorner.org/

Crown Sports Pavilion (NU's Athletic Center also referred to as SPAC) – 2379 Sheridan, (847) 491-4300, offers memberships for students and their families. Membership grants you access to all facilities and enables you to participate in family swim times, pre/post-natal exercise classes, and children's swimming classes.  http://www.fitrec.northwestern.edu/

Evanston Public Library – offers special programs and story hours for preschool age children at least 20 months old. The library also offers children's video tapes, and computers with children's programs and CD-ROMs. There are also two branches with similar programs.  http://www.epl.org/

Evanston Recreation Department – offers many reasonably priced classes including moms/dads and tot classes, gymnastics, ice skating, dance, tumbling, and childbirth classes as well as their regular preschool program. These 6-9 week courses are held at their two centers - Chandler-Newberger Community Center, 1028 Central, (847) 866-8490, and Robert Crown Play Center, 1701 Main, (847) 328-9401. Look for a complete list of activities in Evanston's Arts and Recreation magazine.

Evanston Review – Look in the "Diversions" section of this Evanston weekly paper under "Child's Play" for a listing of current and upcoming children theater productions, exhibits, and shows. Usually $3-5 per person.

Family Room – provides supportive and educational programs for families with children under the age of four. Located at 3009 Central Street in Evanston, the Family Room creates a community that nurtures healthy family development and parenting. http://www.famroom.org/ Call with questions or to register: 847-328-PLAY (7529)

Gymboree – Old Orchard Mall, 4999 Old Orchard Center, Skokie, IL (847) 568-9880, has classes which focus on sights and sounds through music and games and specially built play equipment. For parents and children ages 3 months to 5 years.  www.gymboreeclasses.com

Kohl Children's Museum – is a unique hands-on museum that caters to children ages 2 to 10 and is the perfect place to go when it's too cold to play outside. There are ongoing and regularly replaced exhibits, and workshops available.  http://www.kohlchildrensmuseum.org/

Lambs Farm – north of Libertyville (about half an hour from Evanston), (847) 362-5050, includes a petting zoo, train, fire truck, hay rides and ice cream - kids love it! www.lambsfarm.org

Lincoln Park Zoo – is a world of wildlife in the shadow of skyscrapers. Located within a verdant park just minutes north of Chicago, the zoo has been a natural, free oasis for generations of animal lovers, who come to hear a lion’s roar echo off nearby apartment buildings, see gorillas climb trees as the Sears Tower looms in the distance, or forget where they are as they immerse themselves in tropical rainforests, dry-thorn forests or spacious savannas.  http://www.lpzoo.com/

McGaw YMCA – Located in Evanston at 1000 Grove Street, the McGaw YMCA provides an abundance of activities for infants, toddlers and children through grade 5.  http://www.mcgawymca.org

The Parent Circle – is a non-sectarian and nonprofit organization for families in Evanston and the surrounding area with infants and young children. Founded in 1974 and run by the parent members, our goal is to promote a positive family experience through education, support, and social interactions. We provide our members with playgroups, workshops, family activities, and a monthly newsletter. We currently have a membership of over 100 families with young children seeking to learn, share, and enrich their family experience.

www.theparentcircle.com (847) 604-0989 or info@theparentcircle.com

Shedd Aquarium – engages and inspires, entertains and informs.  We are a vital teaching and learning resource, conservation leader, neighborhood partner and global collaborator. We are passionate about our animals, their habitats and the planet we share.  http://www.sheddaquarium.org

Wagner Farm - The Glenview Park District’s 18.6 acre Wagner Farm is one of the last working dairy farms in Cook County and is open to the public for recreation and learning. The farm provides a unique opportunity for families to learn about our farming heritage and experience first hand “the way things used to be.” In addition to the cows in the pasture, Wagner Farm has chickens, draft horses, and pigs as well as a restored farmhouse and barn and the award-winning Wagner Farm Heritage Center. Wagner Farm is located at 1510 Wagner Road in Glenview Illinois. No Admission/Free  http://www.wagnerfarm.org/