Abra-Kid-Abra teaches and performs magic and related entertainment, including juggling, animal balloon art, and clowning. The company offers magic camps, afterschool classes, and single workshops; it also can send entertainers to any party locale surrounding the metro area.

Abra-Kid-Abra can entertain with strolling performers, close-up magic, amd short sidewalk shows. For birthdays, entertainers present a 30-minute magic show that incorporates comedy into a story specifically about the birthday child. Photo opportunities are part of the show, and each child takes home a magic kit.

Abra-Kid-Abra hosts camps, classes, and workshops to teach kids the ins and out of performing magic and related entertainment like juggling, face painting, creating animal balloons, and clowning. Summer camp themes include Kids Comedy, Circus Skills, Puppet Theater, Magic, and Let Us Entertain You.

The staff even gets to clown around a bit: They are happy to perform shows for kid or adult parties, street fairs, or school students.

Adventure Learning Center offers care for children beginning at six weeks and extending up to elementary school-aged children. Half-day programs and hourly care are available. The center also offers before- and after-school care for elementary students. The program includes breakfast and an afternoon snack.

ALC's lead preschool teachers are degreed and/or experienced in a child-related field, and all teachers continue their education in the field with mandatory training hours. Qualified outside instructors are often invited to the center for special classes in gymnastics, computers, music, and dance.

Adventure Camp is held in the summer and children between the ages of two and 12 can attend. Daily field trips are available for school-aged children, and weekly field trips are scheduled for preschoolers.

Adventure Learning Center offers care for children beginning at six weeks and extending up to elementary school-aged children. Half-day programs and hourly care are available. The center also offers before- and after-school care for elementary students. The program includes breakfast and an afternoon snack.

ALC's lead preschool teachers are degreed and/or experienced in a child-related field, and all teachers continue their education in the field with mandatory training hours. Qualified outside instructors are often invited to the center for special classes in gymnastics, computers, music, and dance.

Adventure Camp is held in the summer and children between the ages of two and 12 can attend. Daily field trips are available for school-aged children, and weekly field trips are scheduled for preschoolers.

A full-sized gymnasium for basketball and volleyball, meeting room, fitness room, and playground are available for patrons of Affton Community Center.

The center regularly schedules exercise/fitness and recreational programs, including volleyball, basketball, dance, babysitter skills, karate, and tumbling.

Basketball, soccer, dance/poms, karate, volleyball, drama, and drawing summer camps are held here for schoolage children. All require pre-registration; call center for more information.

Specializing in dance classes, Arts in Motion keeps true to its philosophy that dance should be artistic, thoughtful, uniting, and fun. Students form an integral part of the program: As they progress, they are called on to mentor younger participants and choreograph performances, among other duties.

Ballet, jazz, and modern dance are offered for children as young as two and a-half; most classes are aimed at the six-to-ten age range, although many classes and workshops are available for pre-teens, teens, and adults. A variety of dance camps are held each summer, too.

Balls-n-Strikes features top-notch baseball and softball instruction via camps, small groups, and private one-on-one instruction. The facility caters to kids in early elementary school all the way through high school seniors.

Along with offering classes and lessons, the centers help match up players looking for teams, as well as teams looking for players; it also offers cage rentals by the half-hour and hour.

Among Balls-n-Strikes most popular features are its camps, which typically coincide with school vacation breaks. Its winter holiday camps give players a chance to warm up their skills well before spring training begins. Camp schedules vary by location and season; check website for all the details.

Balls-n-Strikes features top-notch baseball and softball instruction via camps, small groups, and private one-on-one instruction. The facility caters to kids in early elementary school all the way through high school seniors.

Along with offering classes and lessons, the centers help match up players looking for teams, as well as teams looking for players; it also offers cage rentals by the half-hour and hour.

Among Balls-n-Strikes most popular features are its camps, which typically coincide with school vacation breaks. Its winter holiday camps give players a chance to warm up their skills well before spring training begins. Camp schedules vary by location and season; check website for all the details.

Balls-n-Strikes features top-notch baseball and softball instruction via camps, small groups, and private one-on-one instruction. The facility caters to kids in early elementary school all the way through high school seniors.

Along with offering classes and lessons, the centers help match up players looking for teams, as well as teams looking for players; it also offers cage rentals by the half-hour and hour.

Among Balls-n-Strikes most popular features are its camps, which typically coincide with school vacation breaks. Its winter holiday camps give players a chance to warm up their skills well before spring training begins. Camp schedules vary by location and season; check website for all the details.

Balls-n-Strikes features top-notch baseball and softball instruction via camps, small groups, and private one-on-one instruction. The facility caters to kids in early elementary school all the way through high school seniors.

Along with offering classes and lessons, the centers help match up players looking for teams, as well as teams looking for players; it also offers cage rentals by the half-hour and hour.

Among Balls-n-Strikes most popular features are its camps, which typically coincide with school vacation breaks. Its winter holiday camps give players a chance to warm up their skills well before spring training begins. Camp schedules vary by location and season; check website for all the details.

Balls-n-Strikes features top-notch baseball and softball instruction via camps, small groups, and private one-on-one instruction. The facility caters to kids in early elementary school all the way through high school seniors.

Along with offering classes and lessons, the centers help match up players looking for teams, as well as teams looking for players; it also offers cage rentals by the half-hour and hour.

Among Balls-n-Strikes most popular features are its camps, which typically coincide with school vacation breaks. Its winter holiday camps give players a chance to warm up their skills well before spring training begins. Camp schedules vary by location and season; check website for all the details.

Balls-n-Strikes features top-notch baseball and softball instruction via camps, small groups, and private one-on-one instruction. The facility caters to kids in early elementary school all the way through high school seniors.

Along with offering classes and lessons, the centers help match up players looking for teams, as well as teams looking for players; it also offers cage rentals by the half-hour and hour.

Among Balls-n-Strikes most popular features are its camps, which typically coincide with school vacation breaks. Its winter holiday camps give players a chance to warm up their skills well before spring training begins. Camp schedules vary by location and season; check website for all the details.

Baskin Farm is a full-service hunter/jumper equestrian facility nestled within the beautiful wooded suburbs of West St. Louis County. The farm boards horses and offers beginners lessons and one-week summer horse camp sessions, which allow "horse-crazy" kids to learn how to ride and how to care for horses and riding equipment.

Baskin Farm is a great place for novice and intermediate riders, with an extensive lesson program focusing on safety and horsemanship. The program features many school horses, private and group instruction, a Working Student program, and frequent participation in local shows.

BounceU is an indoor play arena offering all kinds of inflatable structures. BounceU hosts parties, school vacation specials, and summer camps.

Open Bounce, for ages two to six, takes place Thursday and Fridays from 10:10am to 11:30am. Family Bounce Nights take place on Wednesday evenings from
6:10pm-7:30pm. All Ages Open Bounce is on Friday afternoons from 2:10pm to 3:30pm. Space for all events is limited and reservations are required.

Visit the website for complete information.

BounceU is an indoor play arena offering all kinds of inflatable structures. BounceU hosts parties, school vacation specials, and summer camps.

Preschool Play Dates take place every Tuesday and Thursday from 10am-11:15am; Family Bounce Night is every Monday and Thursday from 6pm-8pm; and All Ages Open Bounce takes place on weekend afternoons; check the website for complete schedules. Reservations are strongly recommended for any of these special events.

Offering an impressive array of workshops, classes, special events, as well as a gallery, theater performances in the Broadway Main Stage Theatre, and educational outreach programs, Broadway Center of Arts serves as a full visual and performing arts center.

The center holds classes in art, dance, and theater, and hosts a youth summer camp and birthday parties.

Camp Jam is a summer program that brings together young musicians and teaches them band dynamics, secrets of the trade, performance skills, and rock history, and provides them with the opportunity to interact with industry professionals. Camp 2008 is scheduled to take place on DeSmet Jesuit Campus in Creve Coeur.

Camp Jam Rock 'n' Roll Summer Day Camp, for kids ages 11 to 17, provides a place for teens to convene with other aspiring musicians, bands, and vocalists. Participants can hone their musical chops by learning from - and performing with - professional musicians with experience in the music industry, in an environment that promotes skills such as teamwork and communication. The five-day camp offers instruction in guitar, bass, keyboard, drums, and vocal performance, as well as a songwriting clinic, an open mic showcase, a class on performance skills, and a course in audio engineering and production.

Camp Jam Kidz is for pint-sized rockers ages seven to ten. This unique program offers a fun, interactive musical experience for younger kids, giving them the chance to play the instrument of their choice under the watchful eyes of the camp counselors. Camp Jam Kidz offers an experience that's similar to that of older campers, but with a more hands-on focus from instructors. Participants play their very first gig at the end of the week, performing on stage with a real rock band.

After-camp care is available until 5:30pm for an additional $20 per week. Advance registration is required and discounts are available for early registration and multiple session enrollment. Registration forms are available online.

Affiliated with Villa di Maria Montessori School , Camp Pegnita is an old-fashioned day camp that is held on a beautiful six-acre campus in Kirkwood.

Activities include swimming lessons, archery, arts and crafts, cooking, sports and games, and campfires. The camp offers a counselor-in-training program.

A full-service community center, the Carondelet YMCA features an indoor pool, full-size gymnasium, and several fitness and weight-training rooms.

Youth sports - including basketball, soccer, and T-Ball - are popular here. A range of childcare and summer camps for children ages six weeks through sixth grade is also offered.

Who wouldn't get excited upon hearing that they're about to embark on a "space mission"? For space enthusiasts, the Challenger Learning Center provides
hands-on, realistic, simulated space missions for people ages six and up (Public missions are geared towards
those 11 and up). The activities here are unique in that they encourage participants to work together and perform activities similar to astronauts, scientists and engineers.

Reservations are required for all public missions, which are held intermittently throughout the year - check the website for schedules. Missions can also be booked for school and scout groups, birthday parties, and corporate team-building sessions.

In the summer, the center's one-week and two-week day camps allow children to engage in all sorts of space themed activities, including hands-on workshops, simulated missions, and field trips. The camps are open to kids between third and eighth grades.

Chesterfield Arts, a non-profit community arts agency, promotes visual, performing, and literary arts throughout the community. It offers summer arts camps, adult classes, and special arts workshops.

The center houses a gallery that showcases artwork by professional regional artists, as well as student artwork, and promotes the placement of public art throughout the Chesterfield area.

City Museum is the winner of our 2008 Parents' Picks quest to find the best museum for big kids in St. Louis!

Truly an architectural wonder to behold, City Museum is constructed entirely out of unique, found objects: Reclaimed building materials, old chimneys, salvaged bridges, construction cranes, miles of tile, and two planes help form the amazing attractions here.

The Enchanted Caves capture any adventurer's imagination: With spiral tunnels in which to crawl and all kinds of nooks and crannies to explore, this is where many young visitors head first.

MonstroCity - the 2008 Parents' Picks winner for best playground for big kids - is an amazing "interactive sculpture" - that is, a giant playground that welcomes kids who climb and explore and includes multi-level caves. The Baby Bob Ball Pit gives little kids the opportunity to leap among, under, and over zillions of balls.

The World Aquarium, located upstairs, is 13,500 square feet and will house more then ten thousand creatures when fully completed. The Aquarium hosts special critter feedings almost every day; check the website for a schedule. Entrance to the Aquarium is an additional fee of $6.

The museum's "everydaycircus" area is where the zany antics of circus performers come alive. Weekly performances and classes designed for young entertainers are held here; pizza buffet birthday parties are, too.

Circus Performance Summer Camps - a unique and intensive circus training experience - teach kids the art of circus performance and are split between two-week sessions starting in late June and extending through the end of August. Camps are geared for ages eight though 16.

COCA swept all three categories of our 2008 Parents' Picks quest to find the best artsy class for little kids, big kids, and teens in St. Louis!

An extensive multidisciplinary arts institution located in the historic U-City Loop district, COCA (Center of Creative Arts) offers classes, camps, workshops, and performances in the visual and performing arts for children, teens, and adults.

The COCA Family Theatre Series, held in the center's 400-seat theater, is a favorite of locals, especially because theater workshops are frequently offered before and after shows for the whole family. COCA also hosts summer camps for kids, as well as art, circus, dance, or theater birthday parties.

In addition, COCA is also home to the Millstone Gallery, which features contemporary art exhibitions by regional and nationally recognized artists.

Calling itself "more than just a bowling center," Concord Lanes is exactly that: The sports center features an 18-hole mini golf course, sand volleyball leagues, as well as the eponymous bowling lanes, which host short season bowling clubs and leagues for all skill levels.

The center's spacious Arizona Action Park Batting Cage is a real favorite here. It provides great practice for slow- and fast-pitch softball players. The batting area also offers nine baseball-pitching machines with various speeds.

The center's birthday parties are a big hit among the young set. Parties are generally held on weekend afternoons. Two packages are offered: The Krazy Koyote runs $8.99 per child and provides two hours of unlimited bowling; the Cool Cactus runs $11.99 per child and provides two hours of bowling plus pizza and beverage.

The Lanes also host a Summer Camp program for kids ages five to 13.

Affiliated with the American Montessori Society, Countryside Montessori School is a preschool/kindergarten that has been in operation since the mid-1960s and follows closely the teachings of Maria Montessori.

The toddler program is offered two, three, or five days a week for mornings or full days. Preschool is offered three or five days a week, mornings, afternoons, or full days. Kindergarten is offered five full days a week.

Countryside's very popular Mom's Day Out is offered September through May and offers care for children ages six to 24 months between 9am-1pm on weekdays.

Countryside also holds a nine-week summer camp for kids ages two to seven. The camps are for students and non-students alike, as well as for those who have no prior experience with Montessori education.

Located in the city's vibrant U-City Loop neighborhood, Craft Alliance focuses on fine contemporary art-craft created in clay, glass, metal, fiber and/or wood; features an on-site gallery and education center; and engages in community outreach programs.

The alliance offers a wealth of classes, including many for children such as kids' clay and pottery, as well as summer camps.

Craft Alliance also has a satellite location inside the Kranzberg Cultural Arts Center.

Young people experience playing, performing, and studying all facets of rock music at Dave Simon's Rock School, which features both private lessons and a performing rock band program. Guitar, bass guitar, piano/keyboard, drums, and brass are taught within the private instruction component. The school offers one-day workshops and summer camps.

Instruction in ballet, tap, jazz, musical theater, drama, art, and music is the focus of DaySpring School of the Arts, a school that infuses Christian values and character training into its classes. Homeschooling families often take part in many of the school's offerings.

The school is home to "The Company," a dance troupe of the school's strongest and most committed dancers, as well as to a musical theater troupe and The Drama Company, all of which perform throughout the year at community events and schools.

The school's summer programming includes two-week musical theater workshops, week-long art camps, preschool art and dance camp, and Shakespeare at the Lake for older children. Private music lessons can be arranged year 'round.

Accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children, Downtown Children’s Center is a not-for-profit childcare center that opened in 1978. The center relies partially on the support of downtown St. Louis businesses to serve parents who work or live in the area. The center moved to its new, state-of-the-art facility in late 2007.

The center accepts children from six weeks to six years of age, has locked entrances to prevent unauthorized access to the lobby area and building, and prepares students for kindergarten readiness. Teachers receive regular professional development.

A summer day camp program for children ages six to 12 is offered with six 2-week sessions; the price is $440 per session or $220 per week.

Started in 1992 by parents Chip and Debbie Rowland, Elegant Child Early Learning offers childcare, preschool, and kindergarten in a state-of-the-art facility. The center is one of the few preschools in St. Louis to be both state and nationally accredited.

The center accepts children beginning in infancy (6 weeks) and offers its youngest students baby music and baby gym classes. For older children, a strong theme-based curriculum is used; specialized instruction also takes place in Spanish, computers, cooking, physical education, health, dance, and gymnastics. Field trips are also regularly scheduled.

The campus is spacious: A music room, three gymnasiums, a children’s cooking kitchen, unique playgrounds, a soccer field, and a café are all onsite.

Elegant Child Early Learning features its Camp Cool Summer Program each year, which is open to children from 6 weeks to 12 years.

Started in 1992 by parents Chip and Debbie Rowland, Elegant Child Early Learning offers childcare, preschool, and kindergarten in a state-of-the-art facility. The center is one of the few preschools in St. Louis to be both state and nationally accredited.

The center accepts children beginning in infancy (6 weeks) and offers its youngest students baby music and baby gym classes. For older children, a strong theme-based curriculum is used; specialized instruction also takes place in Spanish, computers, cooking, physical education, health, dance, and gymnastics. Field trips are also regularly scheduled.

The campus is spacious: A music room, three gymnasiums, a children’s cooking kitchen, unique playgrounds, a soccer field, and a café are all onsite.

Elegant Child Early Learning features its Camp Cool Summer Program each year, which is open to children from 6 weeks to 12 years.

The Emerson Family YMCA features an indoor pool, a full-size double gymnasium, an indoor track, a fitness center, aerobics room, racquetball court, sports fields, a childcare nursery, a family changing area, and equipment checkout for basketballs, volleyballs/wallyball, racquetballs, and racquets. The YMCA hosts a range of classes, workshops, and special events throughout the year.

Forsyth School is an independent elementary school offering instruction in pre-K through grade 6. The school is well known for its strong academic program. Each summer, the school also offers its Forsyth Summer Discovery camp.

The campus at Forsyth has seen dramatic changes in recent years: Renovations and new construction have resulted in a new Visual & Performing Arts Center, FieldTurf field and track, a dedicated outdoor classroom, the Forsyth Adventure Center, the Williams Walled Garden, new playgrounds, and numerous other facilities enhancements.