1 . Are you looking for a great day camp program for your little ones this summer? Here we have rounded up some of the best summer camps close to New York.

Atletico de Madrid

This camp once worked with Arsenal Football Club. It offers boys and girls aged 5-16 chances to train with one of the world’s most successful soccer colleges. Two players from the camp will be chosen by coaches to play a game in Madrid in October. This year, this camp will be running for two weeks.

Abrons Art Center

The Abrons Art Center offers learning experiences in dance, music and theater to campers aged 5-13. Campers will take part in an exchange with professional artists and arts workers, who will explain the artistic process. Extended (延长的) day classes provide more chances for arts learning.

A Montessori Summer

A Montessori Summer is for children aged 3.5-14. Each week, the program provides the students with a day trip away from school. Usually, children can enjoy the trips to beaches, parks and wildlife preserves(保护区) and they also go mountain-climbing. Certainly, these activities make students’ life more colorful.

92Y

The 92Y offers all kinds of experiences to every camper, from their outdoor day camps in beautiful Rockland County (县) (suitable for kids from 5-13 years of age) to their Preschool Day Camp for kids from 3-5 years of age. They also include more camps in the city for kids aged 3-18. From sports to language learning to adventure camps, every kid can pick whatever they like.

3 . If you are interested in art, there are four art activities to be held in Beijing.

Over 100 paintings by modern China's painting master Xu Beihong are on show at the National Art Museum, including his oil and ink (墨) works.

Xu is skilled at describing birds and animals. His works creatively combine Western methods with traditional Chinese art, which has a big influence on modern Chinese artists.

If you go:

9:00am-5:30pm, from September to November (closed on Mondays). 1 Wusi Avenue, Dongcheng district, Beijing. 010-6403-4951

Music Fans Classical Orchestra will provide a performance for Japanese anime and music lovers, bringing together great works by famous Japanese writer Joe Hisaishi, including melodies (旋律) in Hayao Miyazaki's Castle in the sky and director Takeshi Kitano's film Kikujiro.

If you go:

7:30pm, November. Beijing Concert Hall, 1 North Xinhua Street, Xicheng district. 010-6605-7006.

The French opera film Carmen will be shown in Beijing on Saturday. It will be played in French, with English and Chinese subtitles (字幕).

Based on the novel of the same name by Prosper Merimee, Carmen was the last work of the famous French writer Georges Bizet, telling stories of the working class and ordinary people. It's also one of the popular operas in the world.

If you go:

1:30 pm, September. National Center for the Performing Arts, 2 West Chang'an Avenue, Xicheng district. 010-6655-0000

Beijing Comedy Theater will put on William Shakespeare's work The Merchant of Venice. It will be played in Chinese.

If you go:

7:30 pm, Dec 15-17; 2:30 pm, Dec 16. Beijing Comedy Theater,11 Chaoyangmen North Street, Dongcheng district, Beijing. 400-610-3721

4 . A year ago, we bought our son a bike for his birthday. In this way he could stay more active. Plus, we didn't have to push a tricycle around the neighborhood.

I thought he even wanted to sleep with his bike. He got on, rode, and had a huge smile on his face. When we went out for a walk, he would ask me politely if he could ride his bike. I said yes. Then he would play for a long time and didn’t want to go home. He rode in every season: winter, spring, summer and fall.

This year, we had him join in a program called SprocKids started by our local mountain bike club. As you can imagine, my little mountain biker showed great interest in it. On the first night, he tried riding over the obstacles (障碍物), which made me worried and frightened. One obstacle was even taller than me, but he persisted.

Later, one day, he found an old bike in the storeroom. It was mine. He called me out and said, ''Mommy, will you go biking with me? '' I was surprised because I hadn’t biked since high school, but I decided to cycle with him.

I was highly rewarded for my efforts. On the one hand, I took part in an activity with my child. And I didn't have to do all the work by pushing or carrying him. It was an activity he loved and he told me about every path and every move excitedly. On the other hand, we developed a closer bond (关系).

In my opinion, it's very important for kids to stay active. And parents' encouragement is very important for them to stay active. But words of encouragement are not enough. It's better if parents can do a physical activity together with their kids.