Family Programs

A man and a woman help two young children with an activity at a table.

Family Programs

Cooper Hewitt welcomes families to learn about design together through fun and interactive ways at the museum or at home. Drop in at the museum on the second Saturday of each month from December through June for immersive hands-on activities, discover the museum on your own, or explore Design at Home videos and more resources.

This summer, drop in on Wednesdays from July 8 through July 29 to apply your creativity to fun design challenges as a family!

Activities are designed for youth ages 5–12 and their adult guardian/caregivers. Family programs are included in the price of museum admission, and youth 18 and under are always free.

An adult and young child are sitting together at a table. The light skinned adult with long black hair and glasses is holding a marker and they are drawing a square using a template. The child has light toned skin, wears a black long sleeve jacket with a hood over their head, and an orange puffer vest over the top.

A photograph of a medium-dark skinned child building a structure out of cardboard and paper materials and has a very concentrated look on their face. Craft materials are scattered around the table, and more children are building and creating objects in the background.

Many youths look on as a person holds up a popsicle stick construction

A photograph of a light skinned bald adult and medium skin toned child with long black hair are building a model of a swing set out of pink craft paper. The adult and child look invested in what they are making.

A photograph of a young light skinned child with curly blond hair holding up a piece of paper that has their t-shirt design, which has many different coloured scribbles all over. A light skinned, blonde haired adult sits beside the child smiling and helping the child hold up the drawing.

A photograph of a medium light skinned child with dark pigtails and wearing a pink shirt holds up a blue purse close to the camera lens. The blue purse has neon pink stitched sides and pink and blue tassels on bottom corners.

A light skinned adult and child with short brown hair each hold up a white cube that has a face. Their cubes have googly eyes, a pointy nose, and a light up mouth. At the top of the cube there are protruding strands of green and white lights, almost looking like hair.

A photograph of a miniature garden constructed out of clay, paper, and cardboard. In the background are scattered craft materials across the table.

Upcoming Family Programs

To learn more about the July Family Drop-Ins on Wednesdays, see below or view our Calendar.

Upcoming Events

Two children sit at a table with their smiling mother and construct something out of materials

07/08

Wednesday

Family Program | Summer Design Series

Wed. July 8, 2026
1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET

Drop in to the museum on Wednesdays in July to flex your creative muscles, imagine new possibilities, and take on fun design challenges as a family! Check out inspiring and innovative objects in Design Across Time: Exploring the Smithsonian's Design Collection, on view on the first floor. On July 8, PLAY like a designer and experiment with paper as a building material. View full event details here.

Event Address:
2 E. 91st Street
New York, NY 10128

Free with museum admission

07/15

Wednesday

Family Program | Summer Design Series

Wed. July 15, 2026
1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET

Drop in to the museum on Wednesdays in July to flex your creative muscles, imagine new possibilities, and take on fun design challenges as a family! Check out inspiring and innovative objects in Design Across Time: Exploring the Smithsonian's Design Collection, on view on the first floor. On July 15, COLLABORATE like designers and work together as a family team to design a restaurant or store, from soup to nuts. View full event details here.

Event Address:
2 E. 91st Street
New York, NY 10128

Free with museum admission

Museum educator talking to and assisting a young child who is making something three-dimensional

07/22

Wednesday

Family Program | Summer Design Series

Wed. July 22, 2026
1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET

Drop in to the museum on Wednesdays in July to flex your creative muscles, imagine new possibilities, and take on fun design challenges as a family! Check out inspiring and innovative objects in Design Across Time: Exploring the Smithsonian's Design Collection, on view on the first floor. On July 22, PROTOTYPE a solution to a "carry it" challenge. View full event details here.

Event Address:
2 E. 91st Street
New York, NY 10128

Free with museum admission

07/29

Wednesday

Family Program | Summer Design Series

Wed. July 29, 2026
1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET

Drop in to the museum on Wednesdays in July to flex your creative muscles, imagine new possibilities, and take on fun design challenges as a family! Check out inspiring and innovative objects in Design Across Time: Exploring the Smithsonian's Design Collection, on view on the first floor. On July 29, ITERATE like a designer and dream up a new take on an everyday object. View full event details here.

Event Address:
2 E. 91st Street
New York, NY 10128

Free with museum admission

Check out our GALLERY GUIDES AND online resources

Text and a digital illustration on a bright yellow background. Bold that reads, “Explore the Carnegie Mansion”, to the right side of the text is a hand-drawn illustration of a brown and tan mansion with many windows and growing vines climbing to the top of the building. Explore kids’ gallery guides, design activities you can try at home, and more.

Family Resources→