A little of this, that & the other with shine

My little artiste

Millie was invited to attend a pop-up class with Shine recently, and we were only too excited to participate. Founded by Aaron Goldschmidt in 2004, Shine is all about creative enrichment programs for children (ages 6 months to 12 years old). Completely customizable, Shine will tailor a class to fit the interests of the child (private is an option) or group of children. While a variety of art, music, science and nature-based activities are available, if your child is obsessed with dinosaurs (like mine!), Shine will create an entire program around prehistoric creatures. I honestly don't know of any other area class that does that, and I love this feature.

Shine is currently offering pop-up classes at Freshmade NYC, which offers cooking classes, catering and events/birthday parties for children. In a gorgeous studio space in Nolita, Freshmade was the perfect setting. We attended Shine's "Little Luminaries" class and had such a fun time! That week's theme was shapes, and Millie completed several art projects, from watercolors to painting with stamps, got active with yoga and a couple games and the session ended with story time.

Aaron led the class himself and shared the works of the Russian painter Vasily Kandinsky, who enjoyed a shape or two in his work. I love that Aaron chose this example for the kids, and it left me with visions of taking Millie to art museums when she's a bit older. Can't wait! Aaron was also quite good at keeping the class moving from one project to the next, which is so important when dealing with the short attention span of toddlers.

I also love that Shine is mobile. If you live in Upstate (!) Manhattan like myself, sometimes a schlep downtown with the kids isn't the most appealing idea. Shine's instructors will come anywhere, even to your doorstep. Yet another reason that NYC is the convenience capital of the world, right?

I encourage you to check out Shine's offerings for your child!

Demonstrating the work of Kandinsky

Disclaimer: Shine provided Millie with a free session so that we could try out a class firsthand. All opinions expressed herein are my own.