Lower East Side Tenement Museum050

Children love to interact, so best choice of the three possible tours at the Lower East Side Tenement Museum is to "Visit the Confino Family Apartment." The Confino tour lasts approximately 45 minutes, and consists of a simple visit to one apartment in an old tenement, inhabited by a 14-year-old girl named Victoria.

The fact that "Victoria" is actually an actress considerably past her teenage years doesn't matter in the least. Kids readily enter into the fiction that they're also new immigrants, visiting Victoria to seek advice on how to succeed in the new world, and the docent who leads you to the apartment introduces visitors to Miss Confino as "Italians right off the boat," or newcomers from the country of your choice.

Kids are allowed to touch anything, help work the new-fangled gramophone, which plays a creaky Second Hand Rose with the aid of a hand-crank, and experiment with the agitator for washing clothes in the kitchen sink. Our kids were tickled to note that "Victoria" fell out of character by referring to a hat as "cool" when trying to talk a seven-year old into taking work as a news boy. With remarkable circumspection, they waited until we'd left the museum to crow over the discrepancy.

Two other tour options include a one hour walk with a docent through several apartments in the building, and a one hour Lower East Side Stories Walking Tour.

Weekends are the busiest times and tours sometimes sell out by early afternoon (all tours are limited to 15 people). Advance reservations are recommended; visit the website for ticketing information.

To make reservations for Sign Language Interpreted tours call 212.431.0233 ext. 224 (TTY: 212.431.0714) or email signlanguage@tenement.org (three weeks advance notice is required).

The Museum Shop is a great place to browse for funky gifts and an expertly curated selection of New York history and culture books.

A 40-minute movie plays on a loop in the Visitor Center.