What free things will you force your kids to do this summer in Queens?

It’s the time of year where parents everywhere are wondering what in God’s name they will do with their children when school gets out. You have a little over one month to figure it out. Yes, you could always make them play tag inside the airconditioned apartment complex of a friend (or “maze” as we called it), but that gets old pretty fast. You will probably force them to go eat free lunch at whatever local public school is nearby, but that only kills about one hour. Queens Mamas has composed a lengthy list of possibly boring activities that may make your kids dislike you, but who cares because at least they won’t be home.

In all seriousness, props to Queens Mamas. Of these activities, the one we have actually tried and can endorse is the New York Junior Tennis League, a seriously fantastic and healthy way for kids to spend the summer. Children ages 6 to 18 learn to play tennis for hours at different borough locations. They will learn that love is not just a fuzzy feeling, it’s also losing at Tennis. Besides, the U.S. Open is in Queens, so we need to show some borough pride for that.