Leap into leap year in Central Arkansas!
Leap year only comes around once every four years, so it’s definitely worth celebrating! Kids will have lots of questions about what it is, how it works, and why it’s necessary—especially younger ones, who may be experiencing it for the first time. To help make learning about this year extra fun, here are a few themed activities to get your family into the leap year frame of mind.
Leap up and down
Perhaps the most obvious way to celebrate leap year is by doing a little leaping yourself, and there’s no better wintertime location for kids to unleash their inner frogs than a trampoline park. At Altitude Trampoline Park in Little Rock, 200 interconnected trampolines are complemented by trampoline basketball dunks and Arkansas’s largest foam pit. North Little Rock’s Jump Zone indoor inflatables playground will have kids literally walking on air. And if the weather is nice, why not play a good old fashioned game of leap frog? Riverfront, Murray, and War Memorial parks are all great places for outdoor play.
Leap back in time
Central Arkansas offers several museums and historic sites where it’s possible to get a taste of a time gone by. Experience Arkansas’s early days via restored buildings and exhibits at Historic Arkansas Museum and the Old State House Museum in downtown Little Rock. Brave souls should leap across the river to explore what life was like for naval officers aboard the WWII submarine USS Razorback. For a truly immersive experience, groups of ten or more can plan a submarine sleepover—not for the claustrophobic!
Make a mental leap
Little Rock’s oldest museum, the Museum of Discovery, has been expanding minds since 1927. The current featured exhibit, through March, focuses on manufacturing and helps kids learn how the common objects of their lives are made. Hands-on and interactive exhibits will keep kids engaged for hours. If you’ve got a whole day to spend, hop next door to the Central Arkansas Nature Center, where water flows through a series of Arkansas’s natural habitats to show the different types of fish that inhabit each. Check the center’s schedule for fun events like geocaching, live animal feedings (including alligators!) and other fun nature activities. Across town at the Mosaic Templars Cultural Center, exhibits and displays celebrate the history of African Americans in Arkansas.
Leap into a new cuisine
This one might be too big a leap for some little taste buds, but it is never too early for kids to start expanding their palates—and leap year provides a clever excuse to try! Little Rock culinary institutions Flying Fish and Faded Rose both offer frog legs in different preparations on their menus. And as the old saying goes, they do pretty much taste like chicken; kids might enjoy thinking of them as tiny drumsticks. And if not, both restaurants are great, family-friendly places to enjoy a meal together—with or without amphibian appetizers.
Happy leap year, everyone. However your family may choose to celebrate it, remember that the best thing about leap year is an extra 24 hours to spend together.