You’re never too old— or too young— to learn something new. Celebrate the joy of learning as a family with a class you can take alongside your kids. From language and art to dance, cooking, and yoga, there’s a subject to interest everyone. Read on for all the details on classes in Portland for parents and kids.
Cooking
The Portland Cookshop
This cooking school in the Clinton neighborhood has a popular weekend series for kids to take with their parents. Sign up for a Family Workshop and learn how to make your own bagels! The next one is coming up on April 4, from 10-11:30. There will be another in May before the kid-oriented offerings shift to a focus on their popular summer camps. Got an older kid? They can sign up to take an adult class with you if they’re over 12. Put on your aprons and learn to make pasta and macarons!
2627 SE Clinton Street
503-314-6868
Online: portlandcookshop.com
Feed the Mass
Feed the Mass offers affordable, intergenerational cooking education. Along with classes for adults, this nonprofit offers Little Chef and Family courses, where you can learn to prepare healthy, sumptuous fare like dumplings, Pad Thai, and salad rolls. Your little chefs can even learn to make their own peanut butter and jelly! For kids-only options, check out their spring break camp. And if you’re hungry for more cooking, read our handy guide for even more ways to get your kids in the kitchen.
2930 NE Dekum St. (inside Faubion school)
971-350-8291
Online: feedthemass.com
Photo By Lori Sparkia via shutterstock
Languages
Tierra Educational Center
Learn Spanish with your children, and get your friends and their little ones involved, too! Group learning is ideal for languages, and the private family classes at Tierra Educational Center are designed specifically for children and their caregivers. Sign your child up for a family class and you can attend for free. Make learning Spanish a fun way to spend quality time together.
5745 NE Glisan St.
503-213-3677
Online: tierracenter.com
Alliance Francaise of Portland
Parlez-vous francais? Non? Well, you’re in luck: the Alliance Francaise offers parent-child classes for children ages 2-6, with play-oriented activities designed to get kids– and grown-ups– practicing French and having fun. Sing, dance, play games, and pretty soon you’ll be speaking a new language with your child.
1425 SW 20th Ave.
503-223-8388
Online: afportland.org
Portland Early Learning Project
You and your kiddo can pick up new skills in Spanish or American Sign Language at the Portland Early Learning Project. Parents with children ages 6 months all the way up to preschool can sign up for engaging, play-based courses in sign language. Family Spanish classes, for grown-ups with children from 18 months to 5 years old, teach language skills through song, movement, and games.
Locations vary depending on class
503-284-0610
Online: portlandearlylearning.com
Art and Creativity
Assembly PDX
Get crafty as a family at Assembly PDX, a storefront studio in the Southeast that hosts DIY and craft workshops. Kids ages 10 and up and their grown-ups can learn a wide range of interesting craft skills, from needle-felting and woodworking to shibori and indigo dye. You can even make DIY bath bombs and melts together to use at home or give as gifts. Enjoy a beverage and light snacks while you craft, with local craft beer and wine available for you, and hot chocolate or sparkling water for your little maker.
2520 SE 26th Ave.
hello@assemblypdx.com
Online: assemblypdx.com
Spark Arts Center
During Messy Art studios at Spark Arts Center, grown-ups join in the fun for free. Caregivers and kids ages 2-5 have access to “imagination stations” during weekday drop-in hours, so you can both get your hands on paints, craft supplies, and process-based art activities. Put on a complimentary smock and apron, and let your creativity loose– together! Pop in on a Tuesday or Thursday for storytime and an art project related to the story.
1835 NE Cesar E. Chavez Blvd.
503-281-6757
Online: sparkartscenter.com
Vine Gogh “Gogh Kids”
You and your budding artists can learn to paint a unicorn, a puppy, or a llama at Vine Gogh’s special Saturday kids’ classes, Gogh Kids, hosted at their Sellwood Studio. These project-based painting classes are for kids ages 6 and up with their caregiver. Kids over 10 can attend any daytime Vine Gogh class, on their own or with you, and kids 12 and over can also attend evening classes.
Gogh Kids at Sellwood Vine Gogh
6802 SE Milwaukie Ave.
(Plus multiple other locations)
Online: vinegogh.com/gogh-kids
Movement
Yoga Union
At Yoga Union’s weekly Preschool Yoga and Storytime, kids 2 and older and their caregiver enjoy 30 minutes of yoga, mindfulness exercises, stories, and games. Stick around for the last half hour for open playtime, and you and your yogi can connect with other families. This class takes place on Wednesdays from 11-11:30 a.m., led by the head teacher of the Hive childcare center at Yoga Union. If you’re in need of a little solo time, the Hive offers affordable, engaging onsite childcare for parents who want to attend classes or just chill in the Fern Kitchen. Or read up on other fitness centers with childcare.
2305 SE 50th Ave.
503-235-9642 (YOGA)
Online: yogaunioncwc.com
Ready Set Grow
Baby-wearing Ballet, Family Yoga, and Baby & Us Yoga are just a few options from an impressive list of family-oriented classes at this movement studio, with locations in NE Portland and Vancouver. If you’ve been wanting to take your kid to a movement class, but you just know they’re going to climb all over you, check out Multitasking Mamas & Papas Yoga, a Vinyasa practice dubbed “yoga meets playdate.” Let your wiggleworms choose to get involved with the yoga poses, or play with the other kids in the room. Now that’s freedom. Need even more ideas? Read our full guide on family yoga classes.
5433 NE 30th Ave.
Portland, OR 97211
605 Esther Avenue
Vancouver, WA
503-505-6989
Online: https://andreadysetgrow.com/
Zumbini
It’s Zumba meets Baby First, a 30-minute active class that gets your heart rate up while you dance, play, and bond with your children (ages 0-4). Sign up for the next session (typically 6-12 weeks) at the Firstenburg Community Center in Vancouver. They say kids learn by example, so encourage a lifelong passion for movement by getting active with them.
700 NE 136th Ave
Vancouver, WA
zumbiniwithkimberly@gmail.com
360-606-4349
Online: zumbini.com
Stroller Strides with Fit4Mom
This popular stroller fitness franchise has five Portland-area chapters ready to get you and your kiddo moving. Your little one can attend a 60-minute class with you in a stroller (special jogging strollers not necessary!), with classes designed to keep children engaged through songs and props to keep. Is your kid too big for a stroller? Sign a “Big Kid Waiver” and they can help entertain the littler ones by blowing bubbles, as long as they stay close to mom between exercise “stations.” Classes usually meet at local parks, with playtime and socializing afterward for both mom and kiddo.
Locations in SE Portland
NW & NE Portland
SW Portland
Gresham
Bethany & North Beaverton
Online: fit4mom.com
-Melissa Poulin
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