Gayle's Guide ✨ 28th June 24
Issue 12 - Edinburgh Climate Festival, Critical Mass, Porty Pride and much more!
School holidays are here and I'd imagine that brings both joy and dread to those of you with school aged kids. Never fear, I'll keep scouring the internet every week to keep them entertained! Thanks to everyone who filled in my reader survey last week, there was some great feedback and suggestions. Like returning to indicating which events are for babies with an emoji 🐣 so they stand out to the bleary eyes of sleep-deprived new parents. Also, a few folk wondered if they could send a one-off donation so you can now click the button below to show your appreciation without subscribing. Or don't… it's grand!
🌻ASN 🐣Baby 🐤Preschool 🐔Primary
Friday 28th
🌋 Holyrood Family Adventure (5+) 13.00-15.00 🐔🆓
📍 Broad Pavement Car Park, Holyrood Park
Straight out the school gate, why not head for the hills? This guided walk from the Historic Scotland Ranger Service will allow your kids to learn all about the history, wildlife and volcanic landscape of Holyrood Park.
Saturday 29th
🎸 Dads Playgroup 10.00-11.00 🐣🐤🆓
📍 Gorgie War Memorial Hall (Gorgie Mem)
Organised by the amazing team at Dads Rock, this playgroup runs weekly on Saturdays and Sundays for dads/male carers and their 0-5 year olds.
♻️ Edinburgh Climate Festival 12.00-19.00 🆓
📍 The Meadows
Fingers crossed for decent weather for this fun, outdoor community event. Expect live music, storytelling and family activities with a focus on sustainability.
📚 Summertime Sensory Storytelling 14.00/15.00 🌻🆓
📍 Modern One Gallery, West End/Dean Village
”Join us for a fully inclusive multisensory storytelling event to celebrate the summertime with storyteller Maureen Phillip from PAMIS. This event is for people of all ages with profound and multiple learning disabilities and their families.”
🍿 Family Movie Matinee 14.00 🆓
📍 Newington Library
Bring the kids to watch a free film, which I can only assume is Madagascar from the not-so-cryptic description.
🎮 Game On 29th June - 3rd November
📍 National Museum of Scotland, Chamber St
Quite excited about this! Today is the first official day of this internationally acclaimed interactive exhibition (over 5 million visitors worldwide), celebrating the creativity, technology and culture of video games. Expect loads of playable games, including some home-grown in Scotland. Just keep an eye on the little ones since there will be some with 18+ certification. Under 5’s go free. While you’re there, why not check out the museum’s Marvelous Moths 🆓 drop-in activities for Insect Week? Or their Summer Family Fun 🆓 every Monday and Friday during the holidays? Brilliant!
🐶 Porty Pride Dog Walk 10.45 🆓
📍 Meet at the bottom of Kings Road, Portobello
”The Porty Pride Prom Dog Walk is back… otherwise known at The Porty Pride March! Bring your dogs, flags, banners, voices and friends.”
🚲 Critical Mass 14.00 🆓
📍 Middle Meadow Walk, The Meadows
“We're not blocking the traffic, we are the traffic!” These monthly mass rides happen all around the world as a form of activism, demanding better infrastructure and safer conditions for cyclists. Everyone cycles together as one large vehicle and folk are exceptionally mindful of little ones, keeping them in the centre of the pack, well away from any motorists. We've been to lots of these rides and they're really well run, very safe and great craic for all the family!
Sunday 30th
🎨 Family Print Club (6+) 10.15/14.00
📍 Edinburgh Printmakers 🐔
The entry for this session includes one child and one adult and will introduce your family to printmaking onto fabric, designing and making your very own family flag.
🏳🌈 Rainbow Families: Picnic at Porty Pride 12.00-15.00 🆓
📍 Across from the Beach House, Portobello
”A Pride-themed picnic at the beach to celebrate Porty Pride, for LGBTQ+ families in and traveling to Edinburgh. LGBTQ+ parents, carers and kinship adults are welcome with their children and families to celebrate a fun and informal afternoon together at this year’s Porty Pride. Bring your own picnic goodies to meet your family’s needs.”
☄️ Don't Panic! (6+) 12.00/13.00 🐔
📍 Dynamic Earth, Holyrood
Today is World Asteroid Day (who knew?) and to mark the occasion, Dynamic Earth are showing a special presentation all about natural disasters, asteroids, and volcanoes on their amazing planetarium screen. Showing on Saturday too, FYI. Dynamic Earth are also celebrating their 25th anniversary so will have loads of free science activities 🆓 on offer all summer for under 12s.
🙂 Big Fish Little Fish Family Rave 13.00-15.00 ❌ POSTPONED ❌
📍 La Belle Angele, Old TownWe went to one of these before and it was hilarious, if a bit of a shock to the system. Fully stocked bar for the grown-ups with actual proper dance music, not dancey versions of twinkle twinkle like you might expect. The high point for us was dancing with our 5 month old and 3 year old to Born Slippy by Underworld under the foam cannon. Paint your kids face at home to save queuing for ages.
🐛 Minibeast Safari 14.00-15.30
📍 Hopetoun House, South Queensferry
There will be loads to learn at this fun exploration of the grounds of Hopetoun House. Many wee beasties call the pond and woodland habitats their home and are waiting to be discovered by your mini entomologists. Perfect to mark Insect Week!
Monday 1st
📚 Scots Bookbug 10.30 🐥🆓
📍 National Library of Scotland, George IV Bridge
This special Bookbug will feature stories, songs and rhymes in English and Scots. The next Scots Bookbug at the National Library isn't until September so book your spot for yer wee bairn (sorry). More Bookbugs here.
Tuesday 2nd
🎞 A Quiet Place: Day One 10.10 🐣
📍 The Everyman Cinema, St James Quarter
A bit ironic to watch a film like A Quiet Place with a bunch of babies but here we are. Ticket includes entry for you plus your baby (under 1) plus a hot drink and cake.
🤰🏽 MCFB Pregnancy and Early Years Support 12.30-15.00 🐣🆓
📍 Duncan Place Community Hub, Leith
Run by the Multi-Cultural Family Base, “The Early Years Service supports families, antenatally to 3 years. We work across the City of Edinburgh with Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic families.”
Wednesday 3rd
📚 Author Event with Margaret Lillie (5-9y) 14.00 🐔🆓
📍 Newington Library
Head along to Newington Library for a reading from the book “The Adventures of Millie and Me”, straight from the author's mouth.
🧺 F.A.B. | Family Art Baskets (3+) 14.00-16.00 🆓
📍 Modern One Gallery, West End/Dean Village
Starting today and continuing every Wed/Thu/Fri during the school holidays, kids can pick up a basket full of ideas and art materials to inspire youngsters to engage and create during their visit to the gallery. If you need a basket for 0-3 year olds 🐣, or those who would enjoy a tactile or sensory experience 🌻 they've got those too! There's also a self-guided Sculpture Trail to follow and plenty of lovely spots for a picnic - even indoors ☔
Thursday 4th
✖️ GENERAL ELECTION VOTING DAY!
📷 Don't forget your photo ID!
We’re all busy (and very tired) but please don’t forget to vote. It's important. More information about the election and how to find your candidates lives here. Find your polling place here. Also, remember lots of community centres, libraries and other public spaces will be taken over as polling stations for the day so check before you travel to any clubs/activities.
👶🏻 Polwarth Bumps and Babies 14.00-15.30 🐣🆓
📍 Polwarth Parish Church
This weekly meetup is for expectant and new parents to drink tea, make new friends and chat. It's run by an experienced midwife from the NCT and is usually held in Polwarth Church but because of the election, the group will meet either in the beautiful, canal side church garden, or Cafe Florentin down the road if the weather's rubbish.
Friday 5th
✂ Crafternoon (4+) 14.00-15.00 🐔🆓
📍 Corstorphine Library
This is running weekly all throughout the summer as part of their summer holiday programme which you can find here.
🚲 A Wee Pedal 14.00-16.00 🆓
📍 Bridgend Farmhouse, The Inch
This weekly social bike ride is open to any age and ability and they even have bikes to borrow if you don’t have your own. Places are free to book but a small donation is welcome to support the work of the charity.
🎭 The Festival…
Am I the only one who kind of dreads the festival? Don't get me wrong, I love it and I'm proud that so many people come to our city to experience what's on our doorstep. But it's the anticipation of a different class of FOMO that gets me every time. I'm never organised enough to book the early deals or the sure fire hits and by the time I hear about them, they’re sold out. Now I’m a parent, I worry about my kids missing out too. But I have an idea and need your help. I’m hoping to compile a list of the family friendly shows/events recommended by Gayle's Guide readers, hopefully spanning all the August festivals. So if you loved something you went to during last year's festivities, please click the button below to share your suggestions and help parents like myself avoid Festival FOMO!
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I find the festival programme really overwhelming as well and have terrible FOMO. I just want someone to tell me what’s great for a 7 year old sceptical of gross out humour. We saw a great science show and a myths show last year but there doesn’t seem to be anything similar this year… we have booked to see Cressida Cowell again as she was fab last year.