Spare Times - For Children for June 22-29 This weekend young New Yorkers will learn that the dead can make good company. They may not be great conversationalists, but they can offer visitors a sense of history, a lovely environment and intriguing mysteries just waiting to be explored. "We have families come in all the time on the weekends to walk, and if they're lucky, they get lost here," said Lisa W. Alpert, referring to Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn. Although Ms. Alpert, director of development and marketing for the Green-Wood Historic Fund, which operates this 1838 cemetery, stressed that getting lost was "a really great experience," Green-Wood's inaugural Family Day on Sunday will be more about finding: architectural elements, stone decorations, mythical creatures and famous "residents," like Leonard Bernstein and Henry Ward Beecher. "For example, there are several pyramid shapes within the cemetery," Ms. Alpert said. That was very popular during the 19th century as an Egyptian symbol of eternity. There is a sphinx on a mausoleum. And then on a lot of the mausoleums there are columns with different capitals. Activity books will identify some of Green-Wood's features so that families can create their own walking tours. Unusual details range from the twin cobras and vulture wings in a rather macabre symbol from ancient Egypt, to the cheery crossed bats and glove on the monument for Henry Chadwick (1824-1908), known as the father of baseball. Young visitors can go on scavenger hunts to find carved stone embellishments like the thorny-leafed acanthus, representing life's difficulties, or decorations like anchors, signifying hope. While most activities are geared to ages 5 and older, like a word-search puzzle and a "fun facts" crossword, the handout book has coloring pages for little ones with a character called Captain History, a sort of Superman of the sepulchers. And here's an unusual art project: designing your own mausoleum. All of this illustrates Green-Wood's evolving role as a cultural institution. "We think of it sometimes as an outdoor museum," Ms. Alpert said. But however you look at it, this cemetery is full of life. (Sunday, noon to 4 p.m., outside the chapel - events will move indoors if it rains - 25th Street and Fifth Avenue, Green-Wood Heights, 718-210-3080, green-wood.com/toursevents; $15 for two adults and up to four children; $10 for members. Reservations advised.) ABTKids (Saturday) When children watch ballet, often only the dancers are in step with the story. American Ballet Theater's ABTKids workshops show young people ages 4 to 12 just what all that tiptoeing around is about. This time the agenda is to prepare them to see the afternoon performances of Alexei Ratmansky's "Firebird" and Frederick Ashton's "Dream." And they will get to dance: Teaching artists will divide them into age groups and teach them a brief piece of choreography related to the matinee. At 11 a.m., rehearsal studios, Metropolitan Opera House, Lincoln Center, (212) 419-4231, abt.org/education/workshops.asp; $25. "All-of-a-Kind Family" Walking Tour (Sunday) This event offers an opportunity not to read a book, exactly, but to stroll through it, following in the footsteps of its characters. Participants will emulate Ella, Henny, Sarah, Charlotte and Gertie, the young daughters in Sydney Taylor's 1951 classic children's book about growing up as immigrants on the Lower East Side, "All-of-a-Kind Family." Stops will include the Seward Park Library and the former site of the Hester Street Market. At 11 a.m., Museum at Eldridge Street, 12 Eldridge Street, between Canal and Division Streets, Lower East Side, (212) 219-0888, eldridgestreet.org; $20; $15 for students and 65+; $10 for under 18. "The Amazing Max and the Box of Interesting Things" (Saturday and Sunday) Max Darwin, a k a the Amazing Max, may come across like the M.C. at a raucous bar mitzvah party, but he does know his craft. This Saturday he has added an early performance that has been developed especially for children with autism and other disabilities. Saturday at 1 (for children with disabilities) and 4:30 p.m.; Sunday at 4:30 p.m.; Manhattan Movement & Arts Center, 248 West 60th Street, (212) 239-6200, theamazingmax.com; $20 to $54. Free with museum admission: $11; $8 for ages 2 through 17, college students and 62+; free for under 2 and members; free to all in June on Fridays from 2 to 5 p.m. and Sundays from 10 to 11 a.m. Baby Loves Disco (Saturday) Mommy and Daddy often love disco too, and they can enjoy these afternoon dance parties - with bona fide D.J."s and "70s and "80s hits - along with their offspring. The target age range is 6 months to 7 years. Unlike clubs, these disco gatherings often feature diaper-changing stations, and unlike playgrounds, they usually have snacks and beverages for adults. From noon to 3 p.m., Loews Regency Hotel, 540 Park Avenue, at 61st Street, babylovesdisco.com; $25; free for children too young to walk. The Big Draw: DrawNow! (Saturday and Sunday) The landscape at Governors Island will be the setting - and in some cases also the medium - for making art in DrawNow!, a series of projects this weekend and next that are part of the annual Big Draw, a celebration of creativity patterned after the British festival of the same name. Sponsored by the Drawing Center in SoHo, the Lower Manhattan Cultural Council and the River to River Festival, DrawNow! invites families to participate in site-specific projects run by artists. On Saturday, J Carpenter will lead "Stretch It Out!," in which visitors will wrap bungee cords and trail-marking tape around trees, bushes and chain-link fences to turn the topography itself into a drawing. On Sunday, Valérie Hallier and Andy Deck will operate "Drawing Circle," a workshop to explore and make panoramic views of Fort Jay, the former Army post whose roots date back to the Revolutionary War. At 2 p.m., Governors Island, drawingcenter.org; rivertorivernyc.com; free, rain or shine. Carroll Park Kids Concert Series (Saturday) Summer, parks and children all go together, and some Brooklyn organizers have added another harmonious element: music. This series returns for the season with an opening concert featuring Karen K & the Jitterbugs, who will perform with students and teachers from Public School 58. Each concert will be partly a fund-raiser for a school. The band, which released its first album, "Pancakes for Dinner," last year, travels a spectrum from old-style pop to country rock. And speaking of pancakes, food will be on sale. (Monthly through Sept. At 4 p.m. (food and activities from 2 to 5 p.m.), Carroll Park, President and Smith Streets, Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, carrollparkbrooklyn.org/concerts; free. Family Tour of Rockefeller Center (Saturday) Many New Yorkers probably think they know Rockefeller Center, but this walking tour from the Municipal Art Society, part of the Family Time series for parents with children 8 through 14, will show its more hidden side, including underground passages and little-known treasures. The tour, led by the art historian Sylvia Laudien-Meo, will also offer sketching opportunities, with investigations of murals and sculptures celebrating modern achievements. At 11 a.m., (212) 935-2075, mas.org/tours; $20; $15 for Municipal Art Society members. Reservations required. Saturday at 3 p.m.; Sunday at 1 p.m.; Manhattan Movement & Arts Center, 248 West 60th Street, (212) 239-6200, frecklefacethemusical.com; $45 and $85. "The Jungle Book" (Saturday and Sunday) This Mowgli shouldn't have any trouble swinging through the jungle; he's on strings anyway. Nicolas Coppola, artistic director of Puppetworks, and Adam Kilgour have adapted Rudyard Kipling's tales into a marionette production that features an original score and traditional Indian motifs. Through Aug. 19. At 12:30 and 2:30 p.m. Puppetworks, 338 Sixth Avenue, at Fourth Street, Park Slope, Brooklyn, (718) 965-3391, puppetworks.org; $8; $7 for children. That's what Catherine Fowles and Robert Gilbert are attempting in Off Broadway Family Theater's first production, le Clanché du Rand's adaptation of C.S. Lewis's classic novel. "Little Miss Muffet's Monster-Sitting Service" (Friday through Sunday) This Little Miss Muffet, Molly, a descendant of the original, is certainly a lot braver: not only does she not fear spiders, but she's also willing to go into business with the very one that sat down beside her ancestor. Through Aug. 26, but performances are suspended from Monday through July 4. Friday at 10:30 a.m. and noon (noon is sold out); Saturday and Sunday at 1 p.m.; 79th Street and the West Drive, Central Park, (212) 988-9093, cityparksfoundation.org/swedish_cottage.html; $8, or $5 for under 12. Next week's lineup: on Tuesday Oran Etkin's Timbalooloo, this clarinetist's method of teaching music fundamentals to children through games, stories and rhythms from many cultures; and on Thursday Shine and the Moonbeams, a group combining R&B with rock "n" roll. Monkey Monkey Music With Meredith LeVande (Tuesday) Meredith LeVande is a music video star, but she's never appeared on MTV or VH1. Her projects pop up regularly for public television fans watching shows like "Sesame Street" and "Curious George." At this concert her young fans can directly experience her music, which includes interactive fun like counting odd numbers, singing the praises of fruits and vegetables and doing the Macaroni Dance. At 6 p.m., Mount Vernon Hotel Museum & Garden, 421 East 61st Street, Manhattan, (212) 838-6878, mvhm.org; monkeymonkeymusic.com; $20; $5 for under 12; free for members. Museum tour and a beverage are included in ticket price. Steve Nash Foundation Showdown (Wednesday) What would you pay to see famous basketball players try to play soccer? In this case, it's free. Steve Nash of the Phoenix Suns will gather with other N.B.A. players - and soccer stars, too - for a match that will highlight the efforts of the Steve Nash Foundation, which raises money for education and health programs for underprivileged children. Bleacher seats are available first come first served. At 6:30 p.m., Sara D. Roosevelt Park, Chrystie and Stanton Streets, Lower East Side, stevenash.org/showdown; free. "Pageant Princess, the Musical" (Saturday) The three girls in this show aren't competing for the Miss America crown; they're way too little. For audiences 5 and older, the show, closing this weekend, is part of Planet Connections Theater Festivity, a performance festival whose productions also raise money for charity. At 11:30 a.m. "Sarazad and the Monster-King" (Saturday and Sunday) The original Scheherazade was an alluring woman literally telling stories to save her life. For Sarazad, the protagonist of E. J. C. Calvert's children's play, the circumstances are different: She's only 9, and her tales work to improve the mood of the irascible Monster-King she meets in Storyland. But both heroines learn the redemptive power of their own imaginations; for Sarazad, her art can help her triumph over school bullies. At 1 and 4 p.m., Canal Park Playhouse, 508 Canal Street, near Greenwich Street, TriBeCa, (866) 811-4111, canalparkplayhouse.com; $18. State Fair Meadowlands (Friday through Thursday) It's that time of year again. The fair has returned to the Meadowlands in New Jersey with all the familiar summer fun, like carnival games, high-flying rides, a circus under a tent and a racetrack for pigs. New attractions this year include a live shark encounter, children's karaoke and geocaching, an activity in which young visitors can use GPS-enabled devices to go on a treasure hunt. Through July 8. Fridays, 6 p.m. to 2 a.m.; Saturdays, 2 p.m. to 2 a.m.; Sundays, 2 p.m. to midnight; Mondays through Thursdays, 6 p.m. to midnight; East Rutherford, (973) 450-1073, njfair.com. This Friday, opening night, gates open at 4 p.m., and admission is $2; parking, $1. Otherwise, Fridays through Sundays: $9; $7 for 65+ and 12 and under; free for any child under 34 inches tall. Mondays through Thursdays: $7, $5 and free. All children 12 and under are free this Wednesday. Parking, $4; free Mondays through Wednesdays. The series, for ages 5 and older, continues this week with Diane Wolkstein and Melissa Heckler telling tales from Haiti and Africa. This Sunday's destination: the Brother Islands. "Sustainable Skyscrapers" (Saturday) So what does sustainable mean? Children will learn more than the dictionary definition in this workshop for ages 6 and older at the Skyscraper Museum. Taking cues from the surrounding neighborhood - Battery Park City is a "green" community - young participants will model environmentally healthy buildings and plan a city based on renewable design. From 10:30 to 11:45 a.m., 39 Battery Place, Lower Manhattan, (212) 945-6324, skyscraper.org; $5; free for members. Registration required via phone or e-mail to education@skyscraper.org by Friday at 5 p.m.