Communities Create LA! Magical Mini Treasure Chest

If you're scanning the calendar for family events los angeles parents can actually pull off on a Saturday morning without a ticket queue or a parking headache, LACMA's Communities Create LA! series is worth circling. On October 3, the museum's community programming lands at Earvin "Magic" Johnson Park for a free, drop-in session called Magical Mini Treasure Chest, and it's built specifically for kids and the grown-ups who bring them.

What the workshop covers

The project centers on Spanish Colonial baulitos, the small decorated chests once used to store personal keepsakes. Participants design and paint their own miniature version using mixed media, while museum educators walk through the Spanish and Indigenous artistic motifs that inspired the originals. It's a hands-on way to talk with kids about cultural history without it feeling like a lecture: they leave with a finished object they made themselves, not just a worksheet.

This is one of the more approachable kids activities LA has going that weekend, precisely because there's no reservation system to fight. Drop in anytime during the window, work at your own pace, and leave when you're ready. LACMA notes that children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult, so plan on staying for the session rather than dropping off and running errands.

When and where

When: Saturday, October 3, 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM Where: Earvin "Magic" Johnson Park, 905 East El Segundo Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90059 Price: Free Age note: Children under 12 must be accompanied by an adult

Practical info and getting there

Earvin "Magic" Johnson Park has surface parking and is an easy stop if you're already thinking through things to do in los angeles with young kids this particular weekend. Bring a water bottle, since outdoor community programming days can run warm even in early October, and expect a casual, come-as-you-are crowd rather than a formal gallery setting. Materials are provided; there's nothing extra to buy or bring, which keeps the whole outing low-stakes for a first-timer.

Because it's free and untimed within the two-hour block, it also works well as a first stop before an afternoon elsewhere in the neighborhood. Families building out a fuller slate of LA events this weekend can pair it with a nearby park visit or an early lunch without much backtracking.

Communities Create LA! runs recurring sessions across different LACMA community sites, so if this date doesn't work, it's worth checking the museum's calendar for the next installment in the series. For now, this is a solid, no-cost way to get kids making something with their hands and talking about where the idea for it came from.