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FOR CHILDREN

FAMILY PUPPET FESTIVAL The Yeshiva University Museum is ordinarily a Jewish institution. But for one afternoon — this Sunday — it will be a Chinese, Greek and Czechoslovakian one too.

Those cultures will all be represented in the museum’s second annual Family Puppet Festival, an international celebration for ages 5 to 12. “We’ll have Chinese hand puppets, Greek shadow puppets and Czech marionettes,” said Gabriel Goldstein, an associate director for exhibitions and programs at the museum. “We were eager to show different kinds of puppetry and different regional traditions.”

The festival will present seven live shows. Chinese Theater Works’ performances will include “Ti-Oh-Oh” (“The Sky Is Getting Dark”), about an elderly couple having a type of marital argument not often heard in the United States (how best to cook an eel), and “Wu Sung Versus Tiger,” whose hero wrestles a tiger with his bare hands. (Young martial arts fans will not be disappointed.)

The Greek Cultural Center will offer “Karagiozis the Teacher” by the Shadow Puppet Theater Company. Karagiozis is a type of character found in many cultures’ folklore: a shiftless yet charming knave who triumphs over the powerful through his wits. In this play the uneducated Karagiozis tries his hand at teaching.

Supernatural entities will take the stage with the help of the Czechoslovak-American Marionette Theater. For example, Vodnik, the water spirit, gets the better of the title character in “The Stingy Tailor” (above), while Kacha, a shepherd, faces a more formidable foe in “Kacha and the Devil.”

Each company will do a postperformance demonstration, and children can get in on the act in a daylong drop-in workshop to make hand puppets with painted plaster heads. “There will also be a small theater for kids to try out their creations,” Mr. Goldstein said.

Of course there’s a taste of Jewish puppetry too. All afternoon in its orientation room the museum will screen “Alef ... Bet ... Blast-Off!,” a series of eight videos in which a friendly magical mouse takes fellow puppets on a journey through biblical history. But don’t call him Mickey or Mighty — he’s the Mitzvah Mouse. (Noon to 5 p.m., Center for Jewish History, 15 West 16th Street, Flatiron district, 212-294-8330, Ext. 8805, yumuseum.org. Free with museum admission: ; for ages 5 through 16; free for under 5.) LAUREL GRAEBER

‘ADVENTURES WITH DORA AND DIEGO’ (Friday through Sunday, and Tuesday through Thursday) The young Latino stars of the Nickelodeon animated television series “Dora the Explorer” and “Go, Diego, Go” have taken their expeditions into new territory at the Children’s Museum of Manhattan. The museum has replaced a “Dora the Explorer” exhibition, up for four years, with this show, which has separate Dora and Diego environments, including Diego’s Animal Rescue Center and Dora’s Fiesta. Intended for ages 2 to 6, the interactive, bilingual displays are designed to teach language, science and music skills, as well as facts about Latin America. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., the Tisch Building, 212 West 83rd Street, (212) 721-1223, cmom.org. Free with museum admission: ; for 65+; free for under 1 and members.

‘THE AMELIA PROJECT, PHASE II’ (Friday through Sunday) It seems appropriate that a company called Fly-by-Night Dance Theater would take on a subject like Amelia Earhart. It too is devoted to soaring through space, though with trapezes rather than planes. In this continuation of its two-year project devoted to early aviators, the troupe, led by Julie Ludwick, will perform aerial dance enhanced by video projections. On Saturday, in a free preperformance workshop for ages 10 and older, it will lead an exploration of flight using pictures and improvisations with sound and movement. Friday and Saturday at 7 and 9 p.m. (Saturday workshop at 4 p.m.); Sunday at 7 p.m.; the Flea Theater, 41 White Street, TriBeCa, (212) 352-3101, flybynightdance.org. All shows except Saturday at 7 p.m. are in advance and at the door; and for 18 and under. Saturday at 7 p.m. is and ; free for 18 and under.

AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY (Saturday through Thursday) Creatures that creep, crawl, slither and even swim are definitely the museum’s stars this season. The popular 2006 exhibition “Lizards & Snakes: Alive!” has reopened, with more than 60 breathing (and hissing) examples, from five continents. The museum is also showing a new Imax film, “Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure,” playing every half-hour from 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Its subject is not the monsters of myth but very real species, like Dolichorhynchops and Styxosaurus, which swam the oceans while T. rex walked the earth. Open daily, 10 a.m. to 5:45 p.m., at Central Park West and 79th Street, (212) 769-5200, amnh.org. Tickets to special exhibitions and Imax films (includes museum admission): ; .50 for students and 60+; for 12 and younger.

‘ARCHAEOLOGY ZONE: DISCOVERING TREASURES FROM PLAYGROUNDS TO PALACES’ (Sunday through Thursday) Children will step into the shoes of an explorer like Indiana Jones in this exhibition at the Jewish Museum, but the adventures will be purely scholarly. Still, there is plenty of excitement in analyzing artifacts like a jar handle, a clay jug and a bangle and figuring out the purpose behind ancient pieces like a Greek helmet and a bull-shaped vessel. This interactive show also includes a recreated room from the Ottoman period (about 1900), where young archaeologists can dress in costume. (Through June 15, 2009.) Sunday through Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 5:45 p.m., and Thursday to 8 p.m., 1109 Fifth Avenue, at 92nd Street, (212) 423-3200, thejewishmuseum.org. Free with admission: ; for 65+; .50 for students; free for under 12 and members.

BISON BONANZA WEEKEND (Saturday and Sunday) New York has sometimes been compared, less than flatteringly, to the Wild West. But in this case the wildness comes from four-legged residents with a genuine prairie pedigree: the bison at the Queens Zoo. The Wildlife Conservation Society, which has played a role in reviving the bison population, will celebrate the species and all things Western with crafts, music and games like Prairie Jeopardy, Pin the Hump on the Bison and Bison Quest, a kind of scavenger hunt. From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., 53-51 111th Street, Flushing Meadows-Corona Park, (718) 271-1500, queenszoo.com. Free with admission: ; .25 for students and 65+; for ages 3 to 12; free for under 3.

CELEBRATESTORY! (Sunday) “Once upon a time” tends to happen over and over again in the summer in Central Park, where stories are told by the statue of Hans Christian Andersen. This Sunday, though, the park will offer something of a marathon, when the second annual CelebrateStory kicks off the season with eight master tale tellers. Led by Diane Wolkstein, who founded the festival, the event will include stories from the Cherokee, Chinese, Sumerian, Cape Verde and Hasidic traditions. From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the statue (accessible from the entrance at Fifth Avenue and 72nd Street), celebratestory.com; free.

THE CHILDREN’S THEATER COMPANY (Saturday and Sunday) In New York you’re never too little for the stage, and this company welcomes actors as young as 7, as well as those much older. Its latest showcase features several short musicals. “The Bread and Butter Battle” and “Yertle & Myrtle , the Tyrant Turtles” are both Dr. Seuss adaptations dealing — in Seussian fashion — with power and its exploitation. “Rescue Me” uses popular song to deal with another aspect of power: how American women acquired it. (Through July 20.) At 4:30 p.m., Bahai Unity Center, 53 East 11th Street, East Village, childrenstheatercompany.org. Reservations required: (212) 633-6629. .

CIRCUS SUNDAYS IN JUNE (Sunday) Brooklyn not only has a floating concert hall (Bargemusic), it also has a floating circus. This attraction, on board the Waterfront Museum and Showboat Barge, presents different entertainers every Sunday of the month. This Sunday’s roster includes the magician Luke Wilson, the acrobat Kenny Lindemann, the aerial ballerina Alice Shi and the Shinbone Alley Stilt Band, which offers what you might call elevated music. At 1 and 4 p.m., Conover Street and the waterfront, Red Hook, (877) 238-5596, waterfrontmuseum.org. Tickets: in advance, ; for under 12. At the door, and .

‘CYMBELINE’ (Friday through Sunday) Where else can you find a theater that welcomes infants, children and dogs? This one is in Central Park, where New York Classical Theater presents outdoor productions at which the actors change location with each scene. Its current production is Shakespeare’s “Cymbeline,” a tale of love, war, jealousy and disguises, with an independent princess at its heart. Audience members are advised to bring a picnic basket and sneakers. Those 7 to 13 can also enjoy a preshow Shakespeare workshop this Saturday, in which they will learn more about the play and act out a scene. Workshop at 5 p.m., shows at 7 p.m., in the park at West 103rd Street and Central Park West, (212) 252-4531, newyorkclassical.org; free.

‘DARWIN’S GARDEN: AN EVOLUTIONARY ADVENTURE’ (Friday through Thursday) Long before children study the theory of natural selection in school, they can become acquainted with its principles in this special display, a junior version of the larger Darwin show that recently closed at the New York Botanical Garden. This display, in the Everett Children’s Adventure Garden, allows young visitors to enter a re-creation of Darwin’s laboratory, see a model of the ship used in his travels and emulate his research, including exploring various bogs and creating a herbarium specimen using the primrose. (Through June 29.) From 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Bronx River Parkway (Exit 7W) and Fordham Road, Bedford Park, the Bronx, (718) 817-8700, nybg.org. Admission, including the Everett garden and all displays: ; for students and 62+; for ages 2 to 12; free for under 2.

FAMILY TOURS AT THE MUSEUM AT ELDRIDGE STREET (Sunday) The Lower East Side has transformed over the last century, but the past still comes vibrantly alive in many of its corners. One is the Eldridge Street Synagogue, the landmark 1887 building where many Jewish immigrants worshiped. Now the Museum at Eldridge Street, the organization that recently restored the synagogue, is leading a family tour every Sunday. Children 5 to 10 can view artifacts, learn neighborhood and cultural lore and role-play a little history, including making a copy of a stained-glass window and putting together a Yiddish newspaper. At 2 p.m., 12 Eldridge Street, between Canal and Division Streets, (212) 219-0302, eldridgestreet.org; ; for 65+; for children.

‘GOSSAMER’ (Saturday and Sunday) Based on the novel by Lois Lowry, this drama, presented in a staged reading by the New York University series New Plays for Young Audiences, focuses on a lonely woman and the embittered foster child she cares for. But entwined with their lives is an entire universe of mystical creatures, responsible for giving humans their good dreams and their nightmares. Saturday at 3 and 7:30 p.m.; Sunday at 3 p.m. (with a discussion afterward), the Provincetown Playhouse, 133 Macdougal Street, Greenwich Village, (212) 998-5867; ; free for children, high school students and those with N.Y.U. IDs.

HARMONY’S HAPPENING! (Saturday) And it will be happening in grand fashion at this event, the concert concluding the third annual Children’s Music Festival presented by Midori & Friends, an educational organization founded by the violinist Midori. In addition to children who have benefited from Midori & Friends’ programs, the performers will include Arturo O’Farrill, Afro-Brazil Arts, Music for Homemade Instruments and Mexico Beyond Mariachi. At 3 p.m., Teatro Heckscher, El Museo del Barrio, 1230 Fifth Avenue, at 104th Street, East Harlem, (212) 767-1300, midoriandfriends.org; free, first come first served.

KIDS GET ARTHRITIS, TOO! FAMILY DAY (Sunday) The title says it all. This event, sponsored by the New York chapter of the Arthritis Foundation, consists of workshops and information sessions in the morning on managing the disease, and family track and field activities in the afternoon. From 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., the Armory Track & Field Center, 216 Fort Washington Avenue, at 168th Street, Washington Heights. Free, but registration is required: (212) 984-8730, or via e-mail to ayanawoods@arthritis.org.

NEW YORK FAMILY ARTS FESTIVAL (Friday through Sunday) This city is made up of many cultures, and this annual event explores several in each of three weekends. Friday begins the second set of festivities at 7 p.m. with “The Power of Drum III: African Diaspora/Universal Voices,” whose offerings include music from Mali, Brazil and James Brown. On Saturday from 3 to 6 p.m. families can enjoy Bumba Meu Boi, with crafts, dance and music workshops devoted to Brazil. On Sunday at 2 p.m. Dr. Glory’s Youth Theater will present a musical about a (peaceful) puppet revolution. At the Riverside Theater, Riverside Drive at 122nd Street, Morningside Heights, theriversidetheatre.org. Free, but reservations requested: (212) 870-6784.

NYC KIDSFEST (Saturday) This annual celebration gathers arts and crafts, storytellers and children’s theater, musical and dance groups all under one roof: the open sky. Highlights will include the young members of Uptown Dance Academy, Galli Theater’s version of “The Frog Prince” and the jazz vocalist Allan Harris performing songs and stories about black cowboys. Noon to 5 p.m., Morningside Park, 113th Street at Manhattan Avenue, Morningside Heights, nyckidsfest.com; free.

‘PICTURE THIS!’ (Friday, and Monday through Thursday) Children are often adorable in front of the camera, but put them behind it, and they can produce fascinating work. This exhibition displays photography, animation and documentary video by students in elementary, middle and high schools in all five boroughs of New York. The pieces were done during residency programs sponsored by Magic Box Productions, an arts education organization that sends teaching artists into the schools. From 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., the Gallery at 180 Maiden Lane, between Front and South Streets, Lower Manhattan, (914) 630-0256, magicboxproductions.org; free.

‘PIPPI’ (Friday through Sunday, and Tuesday through Thursday) Children’s literature had at least one feminist heroine long before the feminist era: Pippi Longstocking, the pint-size, pigtailed dynamo who lived independently and fought off villains with the help of pluck and superhuman strength. Now the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theater is offering a musical based on the Pippi stories and celebrating the centennial of their creator, the Swedish author Astrid Lindgren. With a book by Zakiyyah Alexander and a score by Darryl Kojak, the production features almost two dozen new, handmade marionettes. (Through Thursday.) Friday, and Tuesday through Thursday at 10:30 a.m. and noon; Saturday and Sunday at 1 p.m.; 79th Street and the West Drive, Central Park; ; for 18 and under. Reservations required: (212) 988-9093; cityparksfoundation.org.

STATEN ISLAND CHILDREN’S MUSEUM (Friday through Sunday) The dog days of summer have already arrived, at least in this corner of New York, where young visitors can enjoy three days of pet-centered events. On Friday the Kidz Cook program invites them to make “edible puppy chow” — edible for humans, that is — with peanut butter, cereal and chocolate chips, at 1:30, 2:30 and 3:30 p.m. Workshops on Saturday and Sunday at noon and 1, 2 and 3 p.m. are devoted to making bandannas for family dogs or to donate to the A.S.P.C.A. That organization is also sponsoring a talk on Sunday at 2 p.m., “What Your Pet Wants You to Know!” It promises to help those trying to decide whether to adopt an animal as well as those who already have. At 1000 Richmond Terrace, Livingston, (718)273-2060, statenislandkids.org. Free with admission: ; free for under 1. LAUREL GRAEBER