KidsOutAndAbout Weekly Newsletter for the Ann Arbor / Detroit Metro Area |
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Fri, Jun 12: Taylor Recreation Friday Family Fun Days
Sat, Jun 13: Mom 2 Mom Sale at Southfield Pavilion
Sat, Jun 13: Juneteenth Celebration 2026 at Leanna Hicks Public Library Thu, Jun 18: Riverview Summerfest 2026
Fri, Jun 19: Bank of Ann Arbor Music in the Air Friday Night Concerts
Fri, Jun 19: Emagine Summer Kids Series
Fri, Jun 19: Auburn Hills Summerfest 2026
Fri, Jun 19: 20th Annual Hamburg Family Fun Fest Sat, Jun 20: Motor Muster in Greenfield Village
Sun, Jun 21: Father's Day in Nature
Sun, Jun 21: Father's Day Lunch & A Movie at Emagine
Sun, Jun 21: Motor Muster in Greenfield Village Fri, Jun 26: Downtown Dearborn Drone Show Under the Stars
Sat, Jun 27: 41st Annual Michigan Challenge Balloonfest Sat, Jun 27: Highland's Red, White & Blues Festival + Fireworks
Sun, Jun 28: 41st Annual Michigan Challenge Balloonfest
Sun, Jun 28: Livonia Spree 2026 Fri, Jul 3: Emagine Summer Kids Series
Sat, Jul 4: Salute to America in Greenfield Village
Sat, Jul 4: 2026 Free Entrance Days in the National Parks Sat, Jul 4: Salute to America in Greenfield Village Sat, Jul 11: Crossroads Village & Huckleberry Railroad Jurassic Weekend Sun, Jul 12: Crossroads Village &
Huckleberry Railroad Jurassic Weekend
Sat, Jul 18: Crossroads Village & Huckleberry Railroad Touch-A-Truck Sun, Jul 19: Sensory-Friendly Concert: Joe Reilly
Fri, Jul 24: GOAT The Movie at Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge |
Dear KidsOutAndAbout readers: When I was homeschooling Madison and Ella, one of my favorite sanity-saving tools was the Theme of the Week. If the theme was "Birds," then yes, we'd go on a bird walk. But we'd also read my favorite-ever children's book, talk about the physics of flying and of colors, and probably also do some math and logic involving eggs and
baskets. The theme made ordinary learning feel like an adventure, but more important, it gave us a focusing tool: It helped the girls connect with what they were seeing and doing, and it helped me feel that we weren’t wandering randomly through our days. Summer planning can benefit from that same kind of gentle structure. Last week, I wrote about how summer is not supposed to be a guilt-inducing race to cram in every concert, splash pad, festival, hike,
camp, road trip, library program, ice cream stand, and sunset before the school buses roll again. Trying to grab everything is a good way to miss the point; instead, to plan the summer without overstuffing it, we need to consider the kinds of experiences that make our family feel more awake, connected, and alive. The five summer lenses I keep coming back to are: music, motion, making,
nature, and food. Music helps kids hear the world differently and live what they love. Motion lets bodies teach what words cannot. Making reminds us that we can bring something new into the universe. Nature offers perspective and wonder. And food connects us to place, culture, and each other. Over the next
few weeks, I’ll address these one at a time—not as assignments, but as invitations. Even as the days fly by, a summer seen through some useful lenses can still be lazy, loose, spontaneous, and wonderfully imperfect.
—Debra Ross, publisher of KidsOutAndAbout.com, co-author of The Eclipse Effect: How to Seize Extraordinary Moments to Build Strong
Communities
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KidsOutAndAbout.com: Discover more. Do more. Connect more. If you like my publisher's column, you can easily scroll through past columns in the "Notes from Deb" section of our site. |
Please click through to our 2026 survey to vote for your top 3 places to take kids... it will be used to compile our 2026 Top 20 Places to Take Kids in the Ann Arbor / Metro Detroit area. Voting is live through June 20; believe me, winning a place on the Top 20 list matters
to the people who create amazing family-friendly experiences. Take 3 minutes to choose your favorites as your way of saying thank you... and use the list to build your summer bucket list at the same time! |
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June 23-25, 2026: Enjoy the outdoors and get away from the electronics! Campers will enjoy stream exploration, nature inspired crafts, a wagon ride, a trip to the water slide and so much more. Campers will be walking between ½ mile to 1 ½ miles each day. They will be getting dirty, so an extra change of clothes is recommended. They are required to wear water shoes when getting into the stream for stream exploration. Most activities will be outdoors, so get ready to get dirty and dress for the weather!
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... by reading to the furry friends at the Humane Society of Huron Valley! For ages 6-11 on select Saturday mornings, Rescue Reading is a win-win-- helping kids read and animals socialize. The animals serve as an encouraging audience (bending on every word!), helping kids gain confidence. The program includes time reading to our adoptable animals, a group read-aloud and a dog meet-and-greet. This is a drop-off event designed for ages 6-11. For children under 6, please check out Little Paws Toddler Time at hshv.org/youth.
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Summer Camps are filled with both Gymnastics and Ninja Warrior skills/games. Other Activities Include: Creative Movement, Free Play, Arts & Craft, Fun Games, Friendship Building, Outdoor Water Play. This year we are offering 8 weeks of camp and every day will contain both gymnastics and ninja skills and games! Best of both worlds! Campers can register for full or half days throughout the week. We are limiting the number of campers to 40 per week, and campers must be at least 6 years old to attend. 5 year old campers will be allowed if a sibling 6 or older is attending camp.
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A2SF champions performing arts, outdoor entertainment, and community spirit. In addition to a nearly four-week festival each June that attracts a diverse audience of over 80,000 people and offers over 200 concerts, art exhibitions, kids activities, spectacle, and film screenings, A2SF presents compelling experiences throughout the year. Today, A2SF produces two concurrent programs, one ticketed, and one free outdoor at various venues and spaces across the University of Michigan campus and across Washtenaw County.
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Spend select Friday evenings with us at Stony Creek Metropark enjoying music from different local bands. These Friday evenings, Eastwood Beach becomes a concert venue. From rock to country to R&B and oldies, there is a concert for everyone. Lounge in a lawn chair or get on your feet and dance. Concessions will be open during the performances. We invite you to join us this summer!
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Get ready for an unforgettable summer of FREE family fun! Join us at three exciting locations this year: Heritage Park Petting Farm, Sheridan Pavilion, and Northwest Park. Each event will feature special character appearances, music and entertainment by Audial Entertainment, fun activities for all ages, and vendors from the Taylor Made Market. Bring your family, invite your friends, and come make some amazing summer memories with us!
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Wander the rows, pick a bundle, and make a summer memory. Our U-Pick lavender is offered on select weekends in June and July. Reserve online so every visit feels relaxed, unhurried, and easy to enjoy.
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Enjoy a FREE fun day at the farm! All events at the Heritage Park Petting Farm run from 11 a.m.-4 p.m. and are $5 per person (one and under free). The cost of admission includes all photo opportunities as well as the activity for the day. All events feature a gift shop with themed souvenirs.
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Pick up your Syndicate beverage and join us in Riley Park for the free Friday night concerts from 7 - 9 p.m. in Downtown Farmington. Everyone will have a blast listening to a select collection of talent from Rock, Country, Americana, Rockabilly and Blues. Averaging crowds of 1000 each night, it's the perfect way to spend a summer evening. Chairs, blankets and dancing shoes suggested!
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The Ann Arbor Comic Arts Festival is a two day celebration of a lifelong love of comics with workshops, art activities, and one-on-one encounters between comics readers and comics makers.
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Join the Oakland County Water Resources Commissioner's Office, The Art Experience, & the City of Pontiac for the 11th annual art fish fun festival! The Art – Fish – Fun Festival is a family friendly, no cost event sponsored by the WRC, Pure Oakland Water (POW), The Art Experience, Clinton River Watershed Council, The City of Pontiac and many others. This interactive water festival includes environmental education, arts & crafts, games and so much more!
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Join us for the 18th annual Jackson Road Cruise June 13th! 9am registration, car parking at Tesla and LaFontaine Infiniti Ann Arbor. (public parking at Quality 16) Enjoy cruising up and down Jackson Rd, 10am checkpoint Prize Drive,12pm Car Show judging. Local raffle prizes & 50/50, all proceeds go to our chosen Charity, SafeHouse Center. 2pm remarks, awards and trophies at the main tent at LaFontaine Infiniti. Food & coffee trucks, beer tent, Live DJ, and games for all ages.
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Come out for the Parade, Entertainment, Genealogy, Food and Fun! There will be a ceremonial program featuring youth, historical exhibit and Juneteenth activities.
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Dust off your cowboy hat and boots and step back into the Old West at Crossroads Village & Huckleberry Railroad! This action-packed weekend is full of frontier fun for the whole family, with live music, interactive activities, and plenty of hands-on adventure straight out of the Old West. Test your skills and try your luck with stick horse racing, pony rides, gold mining, and line dancing, or get deputized by the Crossroads Village Sheriff and help keep the town in order. New this year on Saturday, June 13 saddle up for Axe Throwing and see if you’ve got what it takes to hit the bullseye or on Sunday, June 14, slow things down and enjoy some wholesome fun with Goat Snuggling, perfect for kids and animal lovers alike.
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Guests will marvel, climb, honk, and explore the many "wheeled wonders" & enjoy a wide variety of entertainment for the whole family! Inflatables, face painting, train rides, crafts… plus much more! This event runs rain or shine, so come out and have a good time!
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Join us on our fishing pier located on Cass Lake to share in this great outdoor pastime! Never been fishing before? No problem! We will have staff on hand with fishing poles and bait provided for hands-on instruction to get you and your child started. Win a fishing themed prize if you catch the smallest or the largest fish! A simple craft and game will be available in case the fish aren’t biting.
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Bugs on Wheels 10am-Noon | Festival Park
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Mark a historic milestone with The Henry Ford during the grand opening of the Dr. Sullivan and Mrs. Richie Jean Sherrod Jackson Home the weekend of June 12-14. We invite you to the Greenfield Village Block Party, a joyous celebration of community, courage and culture featuring special programs, Southern-inspired food, musical performances, a Black-owned business market and more as we welcome the Jackson Home to the Greenfield Village neighborhood.
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Click here to discover Birthday party locations in the Dallas area. From Arcades to Ziplines our Big List will help you think outside the box and plan the party of your kids' dreams! KidsOutAndAbout has dozens of ideas!
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The KidsOutAndAbout annual guide to summer camps in the Ann Arbor - Detroit area is back! You can search by date, age, or categories like day/overnight, sports, drama, music, theatre, arts & crafts, technology, robotics, horseback riding, preschool,
& more. Our guide puts summer fun right at your…
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It's almost time for fruit picking! Fruit picking is a great activity to do together as a family. It helps little ones understand where their food actually comes from, and it's a fun tradition to share every year right through the teens.
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Have a great weekend!
Debra Ross
Publisher, KidsOutAndAbout.com
Mom of Madison and Ella |
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