Can’t-Miss Activities with Kids at Dragon Con

In some circles, Dragon Con has a reputation for being less than ideal for kids. But in fact, there’s the Kids track (previously known as Kaleidoscope) dedicated to 7-12-year-olds and a lot of activities for them.

Not only that, but children under 7 get into the con for free.

New this year, Dragon Con is offering wristbands for “baby sharks.” They don’t have badges, which makes it hard for all the sharks responsible for the convention to know whether they’re missing a badge or don’t need one. Dragon Con recommends that if children attend multiple days, they keep the same wristband, but they can get new ones from registration if they need to. The wristband this year is light blue and contains a spot for an emergency contact number in case they are separated from their guardian sharks.

While you can filter the events in the app to the Kids track, there are a few things in other tracks you won’t want to miss, including:

• Star Trek Kids Fest at 1 p.m. in Hilton Galleria 2-3 is kid-focused activities for 14 and under. Time for them to learn some Klingon.
• The EFF track is hosting “Sending Secret Messages: Codes & Ciphers for Kids and Adults” on Saturday at 4 p.m. in Hilton 208-209. Learn how to create simple codes and ciphers!
• The Charity Coloring Book this year is $10 and full of great Dragon Con memories for your kids to color. Or for you. Buy two.
• The Space track will hold a Kids’ Space Workshop on Saturday at 1 p.m. in Hilton 313/314. In this two-hour session, kids will make bristlebot robots, touch a 5,000-year-old meteroite, check out the solar telescopes, and see a demonstration of a rocket in a briefcase.
• Apocalypse Rising is talking about “Disaster Preparedness & Prepping” on Sunday at 1 p.m. in Westin Chastain F-G. It’s kid-friendly, but children alone won’t be allowed in.
• Aspiring costumers ages 4-11 can build their own soda bottle rocket packs of underwater SCUBA tanks with the Costuming track on Saturday at 1 p.m. in Hilton 306.
• Robot Battles. Pretty self-explanatory name. Believe it or not, it’s their 29th year at Dragon Con!
• The Character Encounter (check out last year’s!) is part of the Kids track, but worth a mention. It gives kids a chance to meet their favorite characters in costume. It’s drop-in, but there will be a line, so don’t wait until the last minute.
• And of course, the parade! It starts at 10 a.m. Saturday, but you’ll want to get a spot early. Take a look at the map to find where you want to be.