Gymnastics: Our kids took gymnastics, originally, at The Little Gym. While this is a great option for younger kids (I'd say up to 2 years old), it is also quite expensive, and most of the locations near us have closed. We signed them up for actual classes at Five Star Gymnastics, in the Brusnwick Industrial Park. We really liked the teachers here. Tuition is charged monthly and classes are in terms that consist of 3 months. At the end of each term, they have a "show what you know" day where kids get to bring parents into the gym to demonstrate skills on the equipment, and this is followed by distribution of medals and ribbons. Classes start out with parent-child classes, then a 3 year old, 4 year old and 5 year old class. Some classes focus on competitive gymnastics. I am not going to put down an address, as the place is in the process of moving to another location within the Industrial Park. Their website is www.five-stargym.com. They also host birthday parties here, and it is where we had Lindsey's last party!
Medina Rec Center: I also had my kids in gymnastics at the Medina Rec Center. The program is called Tumble Stars and it is much less expensive than a typical gymnastics place. Lindsey even got a ribbon at the end. The website for the rec center is: www.medinarec.org. It is located at 855 Weymouth Rd. in Medina.
the Medina Rec Center.
Dance: I have had Kaylee in dance lessons since she was 3 years old. Her first class was at the Medina Rec Center for their class. There were 4 classes. Kids could wear whatever they wanted and they provided the props. At the last class, they did a show for the parents. It was relatively inexpensive and worked out well in the summer. The problem was during the school year, when the times conflicted too much with my work schedule.
Following that, both girls took dance lessons at a local place in Brunswick. Since my review of the place is not a positive one, I will not put their name in here. Lindsey was in a Mommy and Me class and Kaylee was in the 4 year old class. We paid full tuition every month and usually got 3 classes in a month, though there were several months with only 2 classes. They only had 4 classes in a month twice. There was no break in tuition, even though other classes usually had 4 sessions per month AND there were two times when they canceled classes, and it had nothing to do with weather. Lindsey quit in February. Kaylee stuck it out. There were 5 kids in her class. There was no control over what kids were doing, and the teacher spent more time chasing kids around who didn't listen than she did teaching. Basically, we wasted time and money that year.
Last year, I signed both girls up for a preschool dance class at Dancexcel in Brunswick. Granted, both girls were older, but I cannot say enough good things about them. There were 16 kids in the class. There was one teacher and 2 helpers. When I peeked into the classroom, ALL of the kids were behaving. The girls would dance around the house and tell me the names of moves. When it was time to go to class, they were happy. The price was similar to what we paid the previous year, but I was so much more satisfied with what the kids got out of it! Their website is www.dancexcelstudio.com. They are located at 50 Pearl Rd. #102. We had Kaylee's 5th birthday party at Medina Centre for Dance Art in Medina. We have never taken dance lessons there, but they did a wonderful job with her party. Their website is www.mcda.com.
Sports: Kaylee played t-ball through JumpStart Sports. They offer t-ball, soccer, cheerleading, football and basketball. Kids get a free t-shirt and some sort of award at the end. Kaylee got a trophy. Their website is www.jumpstartsports.com.
for it too much!
Swimming: Though they have gone through phases of being scared of going under water, swimming is a necessity for safety reasons. Kaylee took lessons at the Brunswick Rec Center last year and didn't care for it. This year, they took lessons at the Old Mill Village pool, which is where we live. Lindsey was not into it and quit, but Kaylee took lessons and really liked them. The Brunswick Rec Center has an indoor pool, and therefore, offers lessons all year long. Obviously, Old Mill Village only offers lessons in the summer. The nice thing about our pool (aside from it being close) is that there were only 4 kids in a class and 2 teachers. The Brunswick Rec Center website is www.brunswick.oh.us and the Old Mill Village website is www.oldmillvillage.net
pool.
Ice Skating: My kids have never officially taken formal skating lessons. We have taken them skating before, though, at Hoover Arena in Strongsville. When we went one time in the winter, it was National Ice Skating week and they offered free mini lessons. The instructor was wonderful and both girls took (and liked the mini lesson).
Roller Skating: The Brunswick Skate Station is located in the Industrial Park. They offer group skating lessons on Saturdays, and for $5, you get a lesson and skate rental. The kids were not all that thrilled with it, but that might be based on age. It is located at 1261 North Industrial Pkwy. The website is www.statestation.net.
Cooking: We took Kaylee and a friend of hers to Young Chef's Academy in Strongsville last summer. I had high expectations, especially since the class was $15 for an hour long class and there were probably 8 kids in there. It is cute in that the kids each get to pick out an apron to wear, and then are instructed to wash their hands. They sit around a counter on stools and make a different food each time. When we went, the kids made elephant ears. I was somewhat disappointed with it. They didn't get their own ingredients or anything, instead, the whole class made one batch of them and so Kaylee ended up dumping in a cup of flour, which was measured out and leveled by the teacher. After it was mixed, each group of kids was given a small amount of dough to spread on the table (it stuck) and then the teacher brushed it with butter and sprinkled on cinnamon and sugar. They got to share rolling it up and then the teacher cut it. Worst of all, the kids didn't really like the end product. On a positive note, however, Buehler's in Brunswick offers cooking classes for kids. I believe they need to be 5 or 6, so it is not really for younger kids. With that said, they offer reasonably priced cooking birthday parties for kids. This is where Lindsey's birthday party will be. From what I am told, the kids get to make pizza, dip for veggies, punch, and a popcorn snack. They get to decorate their own cupcake at the end and then the kids all will sign an apron for the birthday girl. Twelve kids...$125, and it is not in my house! Can't beat that! Review of birthday party to follow...
Storytime: We haven't done it lately, but last year, we took the girls to Buehler's on Mondays for story time. They would read the kids a book, do a related craft and then make and eat a related snack. The cost is $2 currently. It was pretty cute, and worth the $2. At the end, they would raffle off the book.
Crafting: Well, the Brunswick Library has free crafts that the kids can make via make and take. There is always something there for them to do. Additionally, Pat Catan's has classes that they can take, and so does Joann, Etc. We haven't done these classes, so I can't really comment on them. Additionally, Young Rembrandts offers art classes at most Michael's stores, and there is a place called The Light Academy in Fairview Park that offers art classes for $15 per class. I have the girls signed up at Light Academy next week for a class, so I will post a review of it!
Bowling: We have taken the kids to several different bowling alleys, usually Dick Hoover, in Brunswick. It is not too expensive and you can do it any time of the year. They will put up the bumpers for the kids. They have enjoyed it!
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