CityParks Play: Offering Free Sports Activities To Thousands Of Kids Across NYC
Last week City Parks Foundation kicked off the CityParks Play program, providing sports instruction, coaching, and equipment free of charge to more than 12,000 kids at NYC parks in all five boroughs. The program is designed to help kids stay active and healthy durning the summer months while learning new sports and meeting new friends.
The program includes tennis, golf, track & field, soccer, and fitness for kids. Online registration for the programs is now closed but walk-ins are welcome and on-site registration is open at each park site (based on availability). See below for what’s being offered at Brooklyn area parks.
CityParks Tennis – CityParks’ Tennis program promotes physical fitness and builds self-confidence while providing free tennis instruction to kids in a fun, relaxed environment. Lessons are offered to kids (ages 6 to 16) at 38 parks across the city with free beginner lessons, tournaments, leagues, excellence programs and special events. Equipment is available to use free of charge for those who do not own a tennis racket, but sneakers are required.
The tennis program runs through August 13 and concludes with a tournament for beginners at the Central Park Tennis Center and the BNP Paribas Aces Tournament for intermediate players at Flushing Meadows Park in August.
Dyker Beach Park
Bay 8th Street & Cropsey Avenue
Tuesday & Thursday, 1pm to 4pm
Fort Greene Park
DeKalb Avenue & S. Portland Avenue
Monday & Wednesday, 9am to 12pm
Highland Park
Elton Street & Jamaica Avenue
Tuesday & Thursday, 9am to 12pm
Jackie Robinson Playground
Malcolm X. Boulevard & Chauncey Street
Tuesday & Thursday, 9am to 12pm
Kaiser Park
Neptune Avenue & Bayview Avenue
Monday & Wednesday, 9am to 12pm
Kelly Playground
Avenue S & E. 14th Street
Monday & Wednesday, 9am to 12pm
Leif Ericson
8th Avenue & 66th Street
Tuesday & Thursday, 9am to 12pm
Lincoln Terrace
Buffalo Avenue & East New York Avenue
Monday & Wednesday, 1pm to 4pm
Marine Park
Fillmore Avenue & Stuart Street
Monday & Wednesday, 1pm to 4pm
McCarren Park
N. 13th Street between Bedford Avenue & Berry Street
Monday & Wednesday, 1pm to 4pm
McKinley Park
7th Avenue & 75th Street
Monday & Wednesday, 1pm to 4pm
Tuesday & Thursday, 1pm to 4pm (Intermediate)
Prospect Park
Parkside Avenue at the Parade Ground
Tuesday & Thursday, 1pm to 4pm
CityParks Golf – CityParks’ Golf program makes it fun and easy for kids ages 6 to 17 to learn the sport of golf. The free lessons include the use of equipment and teach kids the basics of the sport while helping them develop self-esteem, discipline, and sportsmanship.
After completing the introductory program, young golf lovers can move on to the CityParks Intermediate Program or the Junior Golf Academy, two specialized programs offered at the CityParks Junior Golf Center located in Bay Ridge. Located next to the Dyker Beach public golf course in Bay Ridge, the Junior Golf Center offers free instruction and use of equipment for all ability levels, practice time, educational workshops, and weekly tournaments. Practice facilities at the Junior Golf Center are open to NYC residents between the ages of 7 to 17.
The CityParks Golf program will be held in two four-week sessions, running from July 2 through July 27 and from July 30 through August 24.
Kaiser Park
Neptune Avenue & Bayview Avenue/Bergen Street & Troy Avenue
Monday & Wednesday, 9:30am to 10:30am (6- to 8-year-olds)
10:30am to 12pm (9- to 17-year-olds)
St. John’s Park
Bergen Street & Troy Avenue
Monday & Wednesday, 9:30am to 10:30am (6- to 8-year-olds)
10:30am to 12pm (9- to 17-year-olds)
CityParks Track & Field – CityParks’ track & field program teaches kids ages 5 to 17 the basics of the sport, from hurdles and relay races, to long jump, shot put and javelin throw. The program runs from July 2 through August 15 with sessions twice a week. All participants will have the opportunity to show off their new skills at the end of the season at a track meet held at Icahn Stadium on Randall’s Island.
Betsy Head Playground
Strauss Street between Livonia Avenue & Dumont Avenue
Monday & Wednesday, 9:30am to 10:30am (5- to 8-year-olds)
10:30am to 12pm (9- to 17-year-olds)
Linden Park
Vermont Street between Linden Boulevard & Stanley Avenue
Tuesday & Thursday, 9:30am to 10:30am (5- to 8-year-olds)
10:30am to 12pm (9- to 17-year-olds)
Kaiser Park
Neptune Avenue & Bayview Avenue
Tuesday & Thursday, 9:30am to 10:30am (5- to 8-year-olds)
10:30am to 12pm (9- to 17-year-olds)
CityParks Soccer – CityParks’ Soccer program will offer free youth soccer lessons for five weeks beginning July 2 through August 9, with twice-weekly sessions for kids between the ages of 8 to 12. Participants will receive tips and training from coaches before being organized into teams for “pick-up” style games.
Marine Park
Stuart Street between Avenue S & Avenue T
Tuesday & Thursday, 9:30am to 11:30am
Sunset Park
44th Street & 6th Avenue
Monday & Wednesday, 9:30am to 11:30am
CityParks Kids Fitness/Everyday Play – After a successful launch last summer, the City Parks Foundation brings back the Everyday Play program, Monday through Friday from July 2 through August 24. The program offers children ages 6 to 17 a half-day (9:30am to 12pm) of sports activities, including tennis, soccer, golf, track & field, and multi-sport instruction. Breakfast and lunch will be included daily at the Kaiser Park location, courtesy of Friends of Kaiser Park and the Alliance for Calvert Vaux Park.
Kaiser Park
Neptune Avenue & Bayview Avenue
Monday through Friday, 9:30am to 12pm
CityParks Kids Fitness/Get Up And Go – This twice weekly, educational, multi-sport youth fitness program helps kids ages 6 to 11 stay active over the summer with aerobic activities including obstacle courses, relay races, and team games like soccer and ultimate frisbee. Get Up and Go will run from July 2 through August 10.
Seth Low Playground
W. 12 Street between Bay Parkway & Avenue P
Tuesday & Thursday, 9:30am to 10:30am (9- to 11-year-olds)
10:30am to 11:30am (6- to 8-year-olds)
Kaiser Park
Neptune Avenue & Bayview Avenue
Monday & Wednesday, 9:30am to 10:30am (9- to 11-year-olds)
10:30am to 11:30am (6- to 8-year-olds)
City Parks Foundation will also host Family Adventure Races at one park in each borough. The one-hour adventure races provide fun for family teams (kids ages 8 to 12 with their parents) on Sunday mornings. Timed races will take place on an obstacle course featuring 12 activity stations, including javelin throw, jump rope, hurdles, a mini climbing wall, and more. Teams must find each station and perform the required exercise together before advancing to the next station and then on to the finish line.
Family Adventure Race (Brooklyn)
Marine Park
Stuart Street between Avenue S & Avenue T
Sunday, July 22
City Parks Foundation will also host Senior Fitness programming for New Yorkers aged 60 and over with activities including tennis, yoga, and fitness walking. Learn more here.
City Parks Foundation is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to offer programming in public parks throughout NYC’s five boroughs. The organization is “dedicated to invigorating and transforming parks into dynamic, vibrant centers of urban life through sports, arts, community building, and education programs for all New Yorkers.” City Park Foundation offers programs in more than 350 parks, recreation centers, and public schools across the city and reaches more than 400,000 people annually.
Learn more at cityparksfoundation.org.