A headdress made from feathers of South American parrots. Courtesy of the Horniman Museum.

Looking for somewhere to take your family in the Christmas holidays? - or just an escape from the shopping crowds? We suggest events across London that tell stories from many cultures in December and January.

Search our listings for the coming month.

Last Chance To See

1. The Theatre Museum is closing on 7th January 2007. Grab a chance to see their Black Dance In Britain on until 31st December. The exhibition covers 7 decades of Black Dance.

2. The Horniman Museum's much praised Amazon to Caribbean exhibition takes us back to the earliest peoples of the region, their radiant feathered costumes, their beliefs and technologies. The Horniman runs many activities for children, away from the crowds of Central London.

The exhibition ends on 7th January.

The replica of a 400 year old ship moored outside the Museum in Docklands. Courtesy of the Museum in Docklands.

Travellers tales

3. The Museum In Docklands' new exhibition, Journey to the New World tells the story of the creation of Jamestown, Virginia 400 years ago. What was the London like that the settlers left, what did they bring with them, and what effect did they have on the Native population of their new home?

The show includes events for children like the story of Pocahontas and talks and study days for adults, looking at the winners and losers in the migration story.

You can find out more about North American histories in London here.

The Belonging exhibition. Courtesy of the Museum of London.

4. Another 'migration story' - one that often provokes hostile responses - is the story of asylum seekers, and their lives in the UK. The Museum of London's exhibition Belonging makes the still unusual move of allowing these refugees to speak for themselves. Hook on a headset and hear voices from a Jewish refugee of the 1940s to a modern football-mad Roma teenager.

Again, there are drawing and storybook activities around the edges of the exhibition for younger children.

Detail of a photo of Janusz Korczack. Courtesy of the Ghetto Fighters House Archive.

Stories Of Childhood

5. The Jewish Museum's celebration of the life of Janusz Korczak begins on 5th December and runs until 8th April 2007. Korczack was a Polish doctor, who for many years ran two 'progressive' Jewish and Catholic orphanages for children on the streets of Warsaw. He wrote passionately on the subject of children's rights, and was also author of a much-loved children's book.

His work was threatened by the Nazi occupation of Poland, and his Jewish orphanage moved into the Ghetto. Finally the 200 children in his care were deported to Treblinka and, refusing all chances to escape, Korczack went with them. He died there in 1942.

The Jewish Museum recalls the life of a brave man whose work is not widely remembered in this country.

The toys fly back to their refurbished home at the Museum Of Childhood. Courtesy of the museum.

6. The Museum Of Childhood is reopening with completely new exhibitions inside and out. The museum has been talking to people across Hackney about their memories, and collecting objects from many different childhoods experienced all over the world.

We don't know if the indoor sandpit is still there, but we are expecting the usual scenes of gleefully rioting children the moment the museum opens its doors.

Images of pottery from the Petrie Collection, appearing at the Brunei Gallery this January. Courtesy of the Petrie Collection.

Ancient histories

7. The British Museum is, as usual, running talks almost every day of the year. We like the sound of Games And Sports In Ancient Mexico - a chance to find out how ancient cultures spent their free time more than 1000 years ago.

8. In the new year, the Brunei Gallery discovers A Future for the Past - exploring the earliest cultures of Palestine and what we can learn through the archeological record.

If you've not been to the Brunei Gallery before, don't be deterred from walking into the university campus. Any passing student will point you to the Gallery itself - a large building showing two or three exhibitions at any one time. Admission is free, and all are very welcome.