Sports, Recreation, & Entertainment

Boston Children's Museum

Boston Children’s Museum welcomes visitors of all abilities and needs, and offers resources to enhance accessibility and inclusion. Our staff are always happy to provide assistance when you are in the Museum - please feel free to ask! 

Morningstar Access

The Morningstar Access program offers children with special needs and medical needs the opportunity to visit the Museum at a time when there are only a few other visitors. During Morningstar Access, we have a limit of 100 guests, and children and their families can explore the Museum with less concern about infections and large crowds. Pre-registration is required for all Morningstar Access programs. 

308 Congress St.   Boston, MA  02210

access@bostonchildresnsmuseum.org          P:  617-426-6500  x327

Pre-visit Social Story Guide - Read a story with your children to learn what your museum visit will be like

ASL Interpreted Programs - Check the museum's online calendar for ASL interpreted programs

Living Shores Aquarium

Living Shores holds over 50,000 gallons of aquarium exhibits and is home to dozens of species of marine life, including 5 interactive touch pools of rays, sharks & invertebrates. With over 30,000 thousand square feet, the Living Shores Aquarium also exhibits dozens of amphibians and reptiles, ranging from our own backyards to all the way across the globe! The aquarium's mission is to educate visitors of all ages on the diversity of nature through the animals under our care, while inspiring compassion, curiosity, and conservation for the environment around us through an immersive and interactive experience.

MFA Boston

Beyond the Spectrum is a specially designed program for children and teens on the autism spectrum and their families. In-person classes meet on select Saturdays from 10:30 AM - 12 PM. Each class consists of a gallery tour focusing on a few specific artworks, followed by an art-making activity in the classroom.

New England Aquarium

The Aquarium is committed to maintaining an inclusive and welcoming environment for all locals and visitors, including those with visual, hearing, physical, and sensory-processing needs. We strive to provide engaging exhibits and educational experiences for everyone. The Aquarium is proud to be certified as a trained and trusted advocate for those with sensory needs by KultureCity. Our frontline staff has received training designed to raise awareness of sensory-processing needs. View our social story (en español | en français) on the Kulture City website. Sensory-Processing Kits and a Sensory Cool-Down Space are available at the museum. Check out the website for accommodations and services for mobility impairment, visual impairment, and auditory impairment. 

North Shore Children's Museum

We support all families and children with different sensory processing needs. To ensure our friends with Autism or other sensory processing disorders can enjoy our museum, every first Saturday at 2:00 PM, we offer a low-sensory play session. This two-hour session has a reduced admission capacity and lower lights and sounds. We have noise-canceling headphones and “sensory boxes” available, as well as a high staff/volunteer:visitor ratio to ensure all of your needs are met. Advanced ticket purchase is recommended due to reduced capacity of these special sessions. Check out our Social Story to help your little one prepare for their visit to NSCM!

Zoo New England (Franklin Park Zoo & Stone Zoo)

We partner with KultureCity to continually improve our ability to assist guests with sensory needs. Through KultureCity's certification process, Zoo staff are trained by leading medical professionals on how to best accommodate guests with sensory needs. 

Six Flags New England

We are proud of our reputation for providing reasonable accommodations Guests with disabilities through our Attraction Accessibility Program. To provide equal access for all Guests, we have developed a program that allows Guests with mobility restrictions or cognitive impairments to access attractions. Guests will present the IBCCES Accessibility Card to Ride Information Center / Guest Services upon their arrival at the park to express their accommodation needs. Some questions are asked to ensure that the Guest has the required physical criteria in order to safely experience attractions. Following that conversation, the Ride Information Center / Guest Services Associate will provide the details needed to participate in the program. Six Flags Attraction Accessibility Program is designed to provide equal access to all Guests and does not provide immediate boarding on to attractions.

Story Land

Visit New Hampshire's best amusement park for kids! With over 50 attractions of all shapes and sizes, Story Land has the right-sized thrills for the whole family. The cost of admission to Story Land will be waived for a government-funded or privately paid Personal Care Assistant (PCA) whose attendance is required to enable a Guest with severe disabilities to enjoy a day visiting the park. A Quiet Dining Area is located behind Poblano Cantina and is a great place for those who are looking to dine in a calmer space. Our Calming Room is designed as a sensory sensitive environment for those who may need a break from the noise and stimulation of a theme park environment. The Calming Room is equipped with bean bags, a soft rug, sensory friendly activities and air conditioning. It is located at the front of the park behind Humpty Dumpty's wall and all are welcome to use it if needed. 

Big Bounce Party

Join us every Thursday from 2 PM - 7 PM, designed for a calmer, sensory-friendly experience. Lower music levels for a more comfortable atmosphere and fun games & social activities to encourage engagement. A welcoming space for all to enjoy! This special session ensures every child can bounce, play, and have fun in a supportive and inclusive environment. 

BoSoma School of Dance

Adaptive dance classes can provide a more flexible, individually supportive environment for young dancers with specialized needs. This Developmental Dance class for ages 4-8 will emphasize building social/emotional skills including self esteem, peer relationships, teamwork and self expression through movement activities; practicing following a classroom routine; movement coordination, body awareness and exploration of new movement styles. This specialized classroom environment will allow more flexibility for all levels of participation and can be adapted to students’ individual needs. Developmental dance will provide experiences that support and enrich students’ development of skills while engaging in fun, expressive activities!

InclYOUsion Sports

A supportive community designed to welcome young athletes of all abilities ages 2-10 onto fields and courts in a spirit of fun, teamwork, and personal growth.

KidSHINE Bike Riding Program

The kidSHINE Bike Riding Program combines OT principles with the Strider Method to create a safe, confidence-building approach to learning how to ride a two-wheeler. kidSHINE’s OT Bike Riding Lessons are perfect for any child over age 6 who has independently expressed that he/she is ready to learn to ride a bike, who has acquired the foundational motor skills to sit on a balance bike, who struggles with learning how to ride a bike and who benefits from a multi-sensory, concrete, sequential approach to motor learning!

Northeast ARC

Northeast Arc’s Recreation program offers individuals the opportunity to participate in active and healthy recreation as well as leisure activities for enjoyment, relaxation, development, and personal growth. Recreation offers a variety of programs that run weekly and seasonally for 8 weeks at a time. Program descriptions, pricing, and staffing ratios can all be found online by clicking the button below. All new participants are required to schedule an introductory meeting with Recreation staff before attending programs, and may include parents, legal guardians, etc.

North Shore YMCA Inclusion Program

INCLUSION PROGRAM

YMCA classes are a place where children of all abilities have fun, explore, try new things, build skills and make friends. YMCA staff are provided with tools and strategies to support children as they participate in classes. The environment and pace of classes can be overwhelming at times so our inclusion Specialists are here to work with families to help children prepare and navigate their surroundings.

WATER WISE PROGRAM

Our Water Wise program helps children with intellectual disabilities learn to swim. This unique program combines the expertise of Northeast Arc and our YMCA swim lesson program. For more information about Water Wise, contact Jerry Justice.

The Trustees

The Trustees is committed to ensuring our special places can be enjoyed and experienced by everyone. In collaboration with partners from the disability community we are committed to learning, implementing, and increasing the accessibility of our properties and programs. Today we have accessible trails and adaptive equipment at multiple locations, accessible programming and events including sensory-friendly activities, programming with ASL Interpretation, and programming designed to accommodate persons with physical, intellectual, and sensory disabilities.

We Rock the Spectrum Kids Gym

At We Rock the Spectrum Kid’s Gym, we provide Play With A Purpose™. Play With A Purpose is exercising and stimulating any of the seven senses through positive physical, emotional and social development. These seven senses include sight, smell, taste, hearing, touch, the vestibular system, and proprioception. Our specially designed sensory-safe equipment and the classes that we offer all work to encourage these!