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More SXSW for kids! The Top 5 kid-friendly things to do

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Editor's note: A previous version of this story listed afternoon events at Auditorium Shores as #4. Those events have not yet been confirmed by organizers.

Two truths about Austin, Texas during Spring Break: The SXSW Music, Film and Interactive conferences bring 250,000+ people to town for day-time sessions and night-time live music shows, film screenings and parties.

Kids of all ages are home for Spring Break and Moms and Dads are looking for fun things to do. Most of the time the two never meet, since a typical SXSW event requires an expensive badge or wristband, is likely to start at 1:00 in the morning and is probably in a bar.

But, while there might be thousands of things you can’t do, there are a few that you can do and who needs more than one or two things to do anyway? It’s easier that way, you don’t have to sift through the enormous schedule of events or search the Internet for hours. Here are my suggestions…

Top 5 SXSW Kid-Friendly Events in 2012

Editors note: This article was first published in GrowingUpAustin.com.

#5. South Congress (SoCo) Walk

Wednesday, March 14 – Saturday March 17, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., South Congress between Annie and Riverside

South Congress walks are free and funky and likely to be remembered by everyone. Bands play for free in just about any spot they can find with room for a drum set and an amp. The people-watching is world-class since SXSW has it’s own sense of fashion, equal parts cowboy boots and tattoos. The day-time is the best because parking (mostly in neighborhoods) isn’t crazy yet, the sidewalks aren’t too packed and it is too hard to keep up with kiddos at night anyway. Bring a wagon if the kids might get tired of walking. The walks are free, but bring a few bucks to tip the bands. If you stop for a bit to eat after the lunch rush or before dinner, Guero’s has great food and free music on the patio.

#4. Moms Rock SXSW

Sunday, March 15, 11am - 5pm, Happy Salon and Spa, 1605 West 6th Street

Moms Rock is a showcase celebrating motherhood and music with live music by Mom musicians and kid's activities including making your own musical instrument out of recycled materials. There isn't a cover charge, but bring a few bucks for food from a few favorite food trailers and raffles for cool prizes. The venue is a little odd, it's in an alley between 5th and 6th streets, behind a hair salon and between businesses that are closed on weekends. It is mostly contained, to be safer for the kiddos. Parking is off-street parking only, so you will want to allow for some time to park and walk. The event is hosted by Texas MILK (Mothers I'd Like to Know), a growing collection of conversations with the Lone Star State's most fascinating Texas Moms.

#3. ScreenBurn Arcade Educational Video Game Play Dates

Friday, March 9 – Sunday March 11, Palmer Events Center (Note: This is part of SXSW Interactive, the first weekend of Spring Break.)

If you have kids 5-13 who like video games and if you like video games to be fun AND educational, this is for y’all. Airy Labs creates educational video games for the iPhone and iPad and they are inviting kids over for a play date to try out what their latest games. They can play “junior scientist” and you can meet Andrew Hsu, the Airy Lab founder. He has a unique perspective on education and games and how they can live peacefully together. To sign up for a play date, email SXSW Airy Labs or visit their Facebook Page. (Thanks Heidi from Free Fun in Austin for the tip!)

#2. KUT SXSW Live Music at the Four Seasons

Wednesday, March 14 – Friday, March 16, 7am – 11am, 98 San Jacinto Boulevard

It makes me giggle to think of the musicians who usually play in a bar late at night playing in a well-lit hotel ballroom at 7 a.m. It feels like an Alice-in-Wonderland potion-gone-wrong, but I’m not complaining because this is a pretty decent venue for my kids. KUT is hosting these morning, downtown shows during SXSW and broadcasting them on-air. The lineup this year includes Jimmy Cliff, Ruthie Foster and Ray Wylie Hubbard. There is a $10 charge for each adult and $5 for parking at the hotel, but the $10 is a fund raiser for the Seton Shivers Cancer Center AND it gets you live music, breakfast tacos and coffee. (KGSR hosts a similar series of morning shows at the W Hotel, but they recommended that theirs might not be great for kids.)

#1. Your Favorite Babysitter and Green Side of the Pond Showcase at Jovita’s

Friday, March 16, 7:30 p.m. – 12 a.m., 1619 South 1st Street

Your Favorite Babysitter isn’t a new band, it is a suggestion. For one night during SXSW, get a babysitter for the kids and head out for a grown-up night of live music. Jovita’s isn’t technically a SXSW venue, but that is good news, since you don’t need a wristband or badge. Four of the five bands are pop, alt country or rock bands from Scotland who also have SXSW gigs. The fifth band plays traditional Scottish music and they are from Austin. Strange, huh? You can check out the music ahead of time at the links below. Get there at 6:30ish to get a table for dinner, then stay for the music. There isn’t a cover charge, but tipping the bands is encouraged. (Jovita’s is an all-ages venue, so you could bring older kids who have a later bedtime, but you can also pretend that I didn’t mention that.)
7:30-8:15 French Wives (Scotland)
8:30-9:00 Tango in the Attic (Scotland)
9:15-10:00 Woodenbox (Scotland)
10:15-11:00 Three Blind Wolves (Scotland)
11:15-12:00 Poor Man’s Fortune (Austin)

Have a great time! If you take one of these suggestions, I would love to hear how it went in a comment!

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About the Author: Carol Ramsey writes GrowingUpAustin.com and helps families find grown-up live music in kid-friendly venues at AustinKidsDance.com . She lives in Austin with her husband and three girls, 3, 4 and 15 years old.

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Study This

Austin is the No. 7 most educated city in the country, says Forbes

Photo by Dan Dennis on Unsplash

UT Austin gets a lot of praise, but this study includes degrees from everywhere — as long as the recipient lives in Texas.

Austin and San Antonio don't get all the same opportunities as the even larger cities in Texas, but in a recent study they prove they're prepared. Both made the top 10 in Forbes Advisor's "Most Educated Cities In The U.S." list: San Antonio was No. 4, and Austin was No. 7.

Other Texas cities made the list of 100, but some fell surprisingly far behind. Dallas made No. 20, followed by Houston at No. 79 and Fort Worth at No. 93. In some even more surprising twists, the smaller city of Garland was the fourth in Texas at No. 26, and El Paso, Corpus Christi, and Laredo all beat Houston.

This study compared the 100 largest cities in the country as of the 2021 census, using metrics like high school dropout rate, percentage of adults age 25 and older with some college, but no degree, undergraduate college completion rate, and percentage of adults age 25 and older with an advanced degree. There were also some lower-weighted metrics about equity, studying racial and gender college completion gaps.

Although many education studies fall into praising the University of Texas, this one considers education as a whole — while still mentioning the university once.

In San Antonio, the bachelor’s completion rate for people 25 and up was 67.30 percent, and 29.56 percent of people in that age group have advanced degrees. The study doesn't have much to say about educational opportunities in the city, focusing instead of its tourist potential. But it did note that the city had one of the smallest racial gaps for higher ed, which was only -5.49 percent. Its gender gap was 0.97 percent, and its high school dropout rate was 4.53 percent.

San Antonio's Trinity University did great in a Niche study that came out in early September. It was the No. 18 best small college in America, and topped the list entirely in Texas. Among bigger fish, it was also the No. 20 best liberal arts college in the country (and again the best in Texas), and made No. 4 in general for best colleges in Texas.

In Austin, 59.89 of people 25 or older completed Bachelor's degrees, and 22.76 percent completed advanced degrees. The racial gap was much worse at -10.87 percent. Its gender gap was a bit less than San Antonio's, at 0.69 percent, and its high school dropout rate was more at 7.56 percent.

Of course, this is where the study mentions UT, which is based in Austin. It made WalletHub's 2024 ranking of the best colleges and universities in Texas and earned the No. 2 spot; clinched the No. 6 spot in Niche's ranking of the best public universities in the country; and earned No. 2 in a list of best undergraduate programs for entrepreneurs by the Princeton Review, among other accolades.

Just breaking into the top 20, Dallas' Bachelor's degree completion rate was 57.05 percent, with 21.37 percent attaining advanced degrees. The racial and gender gaps were −14.99 percent and 1.64 percent, respectively. Much further down the list, Houston's Bachelor's degree completion rate was only 32.99 percent, and only 10.97% achieved advanced degrees. High school dropouts were at 8.90 percent, and the racial and gender gaps were −4.99 and 2.10 percent respectively.

Here are all the Texas cities on the list of 100, in order from most to least educated:

4. San Antonio
7. Austin
20. Dallas
26. Garland
49. El Paso
59. Corpus Christi
76. Laredo
79. Houston
81. Arlington
83. Irving

More information on the study by Forbes advisor, including full city rankings and expanded methodology, is available at forbes.com.

education universities