Your guide to activities and fun things to do with your preschoolers, toddlers and kids in Long Beach, CA

I've taken my daughter to LACMA and the Geffen in L.A., but one of our favorite Southern California museums is the Museum of Latin American Art, right here in Long Beach. I like that it's small in scale, the perfect size for a preschooler with a short attention span. Kids are drawn to the rounded, childlike figures in the Botero paintings, as well as the vibrant colors in the traditional folk art. Best of all, the museum is free on Sundays, and after walking around the galleries, kids can participate in hands-on projects like making clay skeletons for Day of the Dead.

If your preschooler isn't interested in art for its own sake, a museum visit can also be a springboard for a conversation about concepts like numbers, shapes, and colors. At our most recent trip to MOLAA, we looked at a still life of a basket of mangoes. Bella thought they looked red, while I pointed out the oranges and greens. "How many mangoes do you see?" I asked her, and we counted them together.

Another way to help children understand art is to connect museum pieces with the projects kids create at home or school. Recently my mother gave me a jar of vintage buttons, which we used to make a button collage on a wooden box. I noticed at MOLAA, Bella was drawn to a collage of two little girls wearing dresses made of buttons.

After visiting the museum, you can follow up by reading books featuring the artists' works. Or your child can create a painting, collage or sculpture inspired by a favorite piece at the museum.