March Break activities in the GTA

Keeping kids entertained over March Break can be a full-time job, so here's a list of activities in the GTA to keep the family busy.

Even though schools are closed, there are opportunities for education across the city. The Royal Ontario Museum is hosting day camps starting at $155 per child, with topics like ancient civilizations, wildlife and global fairy tales.

The Ontario Science Centre has special March Break exhibits including movie special effects demonstrations, dog shows and live reptile presentations all week, all included in general admission prices.

The Toronto Zoo's rainforest pavilions are just like a tropical vacation without the expensive plane ticket. The zoo's featured creatures for the week are Egyptian fruit bats and a baby polar bear. Admission starts at $13 for children.

For the whole family, most city pools offer family swims for $1 per child, and indoor rinks are extending their free leisure skating hours for the week.

If you don't have time off and you're looking for day camps, the Toronto School of Rock is hosting a five-day camp for kids ages 9-17 with some musical experience for $299 each.

Second City has an acting camp for kids in Grades 5 to 8 designed to build improvisation, communication and teamwork skills for $390 per child.

The Harbourfront Centre has a variety of camps that cost between $240 and $350. Themes include comic books, learning to cook, circus performing and fashion design, among others. 

For a unique March Break, kids can become a pirate on March 15 at Casa Loma, with singing and swordfights, for $32 each. While you're there, you can take the ghost tracking tour for $16 per child, $28 per adult.

A Gift of Art studio in Newcastle has winter art classes through the week for $40 each. Children can learn to make birdhouses, puppets and sculptures.

For older kids, Napp Canada is hosting two summer job and job training fairs – one in Mississauga and one in Scarborough – with more than 60 companies attending. There's a resume workshop for teens in Richmond Hill on March 11.

And while they're thinking ahead, most universities and colleges in the GTA, like the University of Waterloo and Sheridan College in Oakville, are hosting campus tours through the week.

For more unusual exercise, kids can bounce all week at trampoline camp in Barrie, at $110 for a week of half-days, or $200 for full days. Wake Robin Farm in Uxbridge has a March Break riding camp for $60 per day or $280 for the week.

Richmond Hill has a fitness camp for teens with a climbing wall, rope course and a "vertical playground."

The City of Brampton is running a variety of day camps with themes like gardening, gymnastics, exercise video games, cooking and basketball, starting at $72 for the week. It's also hosting drop-in classes starting at $3.75 at community centres and parks in the area. Whitby has a March Break "Kidz Camp" for the week, featuring songs, crafts and swimming, for $150.

The town of Ajax has day camps for future scientists, movie directors and fitness gurus starting at $118.

Clarington, meanwhile, is hosting chef, hockey and day-trip camps for $150-197 for the week.

Oshawa has full-week camps for explorers, artists, dancers and athletes, starting at $75 for half days and $148 for full days.

Hamilton's Whitehern Historic House and Garden has a Wizard of Oz themed game set up, included in regular admission prices. The Children's Museum is hosting a week of 1950s-style "madness, where kids can cook, dance and dress up.

In Pickering, kids can try out science and sleuthing. The five-day camp teaches children to follow scent trails, make secret codes and build a telescope for $220. In Barrie, head to the Kozlov Centre for free magic shows all week.

The National Film Board's Mediatheque offers a 90 minute tour for $5, where children are led through activity stations that teach them to use senses other than sight. The exhibit teaches kids what it feels like to be blind with Braille, walking canes and a descriptive video.

For teenagers or children with adult supervision, there are volunteering options. The Toronto Humane Society is looking for volunteers to help build traps for street cats on March 10. Feral cats are caught with the traps, neutered and returned to their streets or adopted.

There are more volunteer opportunities across the GTA, like tutoring, visiting retirement homes and working in the toy library, all posted online. The website can be searched based on location, language or activity.