Illustration of animal families enjoying a park: jump roping, skating, having a picnic, sitting on a bench playing ball, and reading.

46 things to do with your little ones this summer

Summer is here, and with it comes so many ways to play, explore, learn, and connect as a family. In partnership with the Collaboration for Early Childhood, we’ve gathered a selection of free and family-friendly events, activities, and local resources to help you make the most of the season with your little ones.

Here’s to joy, wonder, and sunshine this summer!

Activities

  1. Sign up for this year’s summer reading program: Plant a Seed, Read! Kids ages 2 through rising 6th graders can keep track of books they have read and those read to them to earn prizes. Activity sheets with fun early learning activities for babies and toddlers are available for pickup at any library location.
Illustrations of children in nature, a worm peaking out from under a tented book, and a rainbow spreading above.
Artwork by Sarah Ferone.
  1. Dial-a-Story service at 708.816.2800 to listen to new books every month–and make sure to log your reading for summer reading, too! Everyone can read with their eyes, ears, or even their fingers!
  2. Explore this year’s updated recommended reads for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers (plus titles for kindergarteners through rising sixth graders, too) and lists that focus on genres and identities. Plus, watch videos with more great books to read in June for Pride and July for Disability Pride!
  3. The Collaboration for Early Childhood has a brand new podcast! Miss Shelley talked about autism acceptance and neuroaffirming supports with Erica Norman of CAYR Connections, and Mr. Hal shared what a Rainbow Librarian is, just in time for Pride Month.
Three people stand in front of a brick wall with a banner showcasing the logo for the Collaboration for Early Childhood.
(pictured left to right) Collaboration for Early Childhood Family Ambassador Whitney Brooks, Rainbow Services Librarian Hal, and Collaboration for Early Childhood Family Engagement Partnership Coordinator Michelle Howell.
  1. Have you ever played “Book Bingo”? Play Pride Book Bingo throughout the month at the Oak Park Public Library and neighboring community libraries, too! On the other side of that sheet is Community Bingo Black History. Learn more about that in the next item.  
  2. Juneteenth weekend is a perfect time to explore and celebrate Black history and stories right here in our community. You can get a Black History Community Bingo sheet from the Oak Park Public Library and read more about the sites listed.
  3. The Collaboration for Early Childhood is starting a Family Advisory Committee! If you have a child ages 0-5 and a passion for advancing early childhood work in Oak Park and neighboring communities, apply to join the committee. The application closes on June 28. 
  4. Your child’s ready for kindergarten, but are they registered? Do you have a future kindergartener in your family who plans to start kindergarten at a District 97 school this fall? Make sure to get started on registering them! This helps schools plan for class sizes and make staffing preparations. Hint: The Children’s Clinic provides back-to-school physical and dental exams, too! 
  5. The Collaboration’s Kindergarten webpage includes school PTA, afterschool, and community resources that were distributed at Blast Off to Kindergarten, a podcast all about kindergarten readiness, and a workshop recording for caregivers about all the ways families can help their child prepare for this special milestone.
  6. Watch Shelley’s Guide to Reading Readiness and Early Literacy presentation on YouTube (75 minutes) for advice and recommendations on how to get your child ready for kindergarten learning. (Spoiler alert: You’re already doing it!)
  7. Use your Oak Park library card to check out passes to area museums and attractions, including Brookfield Zoo, the Chicago Botanic Garden (pictured below), and the Museum of Science and Industry! The Museum Adventure Pass offers local suburban options, and Explore More Illinois has locations across Chicago and Illinois, plus a few in Iowa and Wisconsin.
Child holds up oversized library card that reads A Library for Everyone, outside in a garden.
  1. Is a changing routine or warmer, sweatier weather hard for your child? Here is a video with 10 co-regulating techniques you can use during hard times and before the hard times happen.
  2. Celebrate Disability Pride Month this July with programs for kids, families, teens, and adults, including Come Over to Our House by Eliza Hull on the windows inside and outside the Main Library Children’s Services Area. Curious about how to talk about disabilities with kids? Miss Shelley has suggestions of words to use in this short video.
  3. You know you can check out books, but did you know we also have activity kits and early learning kits? Check out our kits and learn through play! You can try birdwatching, explore Thatcher Woods, or garden with accessible tools, among many others.
  4. Explore the Collaboration for Early Childhood’s free garden curriculum: Growing Gardeners Lessons!
  5. Park District of Oak Park programming is within reach! Did you know that the Park District of Oak Park offers financial assistance opportunities in the form of scholarships and child care discounts? Learn about the financial assistance program.

Storytimes

  1. This summer, attend Storytimes in the Park throughout Oak Park.
A library staff member stands in front of a group of families with young children sitting on picnic blankets under some trees in a park.
  1. Supported Storytime & Family Play, for kids with disabilities ages 3-11, is now on Tuesdays at 4 pm.
  2. Spanish Storytime With Kathy is on Fridays at 11 am in July and August.
  3. Head over to the Oak Park Conservatory for a storytime on Wednesdays at 10 am (the first Wednesday of each month is a Bilingual Spanish Storytime). Classes are free, but require registration.
  4. June 24: Enjoy a special Pride-themed Shake, Rattle & Read storytime.
  5. July 8: Get ready to celebrate disabilities and inclusion in our Disability Pride storytime! Best for kids ages 4-8 with a caregiver.
  6. July 14: Miss Shelley is hosting storytime at Brookfield Zoo, and everyone is welcome. (Dinosaurs will be visiting the zoo, too!)
  7. August 25: Join Miss Jenny to zoom zoom zoom into a Space Out! storytime and craft. Best for ages 4-8 with a caregiver.

Places

  1. Planning your first visit to the Main Library? Share this social narrative as a family and get tips for successful visits.
  2. All summer long: The book bikes will be all over Oak Park, including some storytimes. Summer readers can get a special bike bead, too.
A library staff member helps two young children seated on a blanket in the grass select beads from a container; a book bike displaying children's books stands in front.
  1. Get out your picnic blanket and watch a family-friendly movie or community concert under the stars in Scoville Park this summer.
  2. Thursdays through August: Discovery Garden Exploration Time at the Oak Park Conservatory! Learn about native Illinois ecosystems and have fun playing in the garden every Thursday from 9 am to 12 pm in June, July, and August, weather permitting. Registration is required.
  3. Every Thursday through August 27: Stop by Thursday Night Out for fun and community—and to visit the book bike! On June 25, don’t miss the special “Kid’s Night” edition with activities and giveaways from local family-friendly organizations, including the Collaboration for Early Childhood, and August 13 has a Back-to-School theme!
  4. Every Saturday: Visit the Oak Park Farmers’ Market, and be sure to visit the Collaboration for Early Childhood, who will be there on August 22! 
  5. Saturdays through August: Drop in for free nature fun at Austin Gardens with the Park District.
  6. Visit the Community Sensory Garden at Maze Branch Library and harvest some herbs! Disabled kids and adults will be tending the garden all summer for the community and Beyond Hunger.
A library staff member holds a flowering plant while a young child pats the top of the flowers and a caregiver looks on.

Events

  1. June 22: Put on your PJs and grab a stuffed animal for a Stuffed Animal Sleepover at Maze. The stuffie will spend the night, so don’t bring the favorite!
  2. June 27: At the “Try-It” Mental and Behavioral Health Fair, caregivers are invited to explore simple, practical ways to support the mental and behavioral health of young children. Participants can move through engaging stations focused on awareness, tips, tools, destigmatization, and action.
  3. June 30: Our littlest friends can celebrate Pride at our Baby/Toddler Rainbow Nature Exploration, where we’ll read and talk about the colors in the Pride flag while we explore nature. We’ll meet again on August 28. 
  4. July 1: Wendy and DB are back for a joyful family concert!
  5. July 4: Celebrate Independence Day at the Village of Oak Park’s Fourth of July Parade.
  6. July 6: First Mondays are for Mess and Sensory Play! Dress accordingly.
  7. July 8: Is there a Fuzzytown fan in your life? Join us for an episode of Carl the Collector, and afterward, kids can share their favorite things with the group.
  8. July 12: Join our fourth annual Disability Pride March! We kick off at 11 am, but supplies to make a march sign and ribbon wand are available between 9 and 11 am. Everyone is welcome, disabled people and allies alike!
  9. July 13: It’s time for our monthly Stroller Strides with Alison of Fit4Mom Oak Park! This class is open to ALL caregivers—moms, dads, nannies, grandparents, and anyone who shows up for the littles in their life.
  10. July 15: It’s time to kick off the Supported Gardening season, when kids with disabilities meet at the Maze Branch Library Community Sensory Garden for stories, tending the garden, and making a snack with what we harvest. Join us monthly through September. 
  11. July 18: Bring your little racers to decorate bull costumes and race around Scoville Park in honor of Hemingway’s Birthday. Save the date and find more info closer to race time on the Hemingway District’s events page! 
  12. July 18: Step outside the library and into a tiny wild world during this Family Seed Hunt with a botanical artist.
  13. July 24: We’re going to dive deep into nature and see what kids notice in Preschool Nature Photography! This is a child-led program; caregivers are encouraged to take their own photos when they spot cool things.
  14. August 7: Back to School Celebration and Backpack Giveaway at Percy Julian Middle School, 5-7 pm, hosted by the Oak Park and River Forest Townships.
More activities for early learners
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