June in the Neighborhood: A toy swap, children’s concert, yoga in the park, Create by the Creek, and more

Artists have been drawn to Rock Creek and Peirce Mill for decades. (1924 photo of an artist and friend in Rock Creek Park from the Library of Congress)

Spend a fun day at Forest Hills Park. Thanks to Van Ness Main Street’s Good Clean Fun initiative, June 6 is a day of service, community and music, with an all-ages cleanup, a community toy swap, and a performance by Grammy-nominated children’s music artist Mamá Elena.

Create a work of art at Peirce Mill. Artists have been inspired by the natural beauty and manmade architecture of Peirce Mill for decades. Create by the Creek celebrates that tradition with free workshops and more on June 13.

Do yoga in the park. Forest Hills Park, that is. The outdoor class on June 13 is thanks to the same folks behind Yoga on Connecticut classes taking place Tuesdays and Saturdays at 4340 Connecticut Avenue. Registration for all classes is via Eventbrite, with the links appearing on the group’s Instagram page each week.

Assist some locals. By which we mean native plants. Volunteers have been working on the invasive weeds at 36th Street and Nevada Avenue, and are meeting there again on  June 1 and June 13. Rock Creek Conservancy is also hosting several invasive cleanups and one trash cleanup at local parts this month.

Explore the stars and the planets. Starting at 9 p.m. on June 20, National Capital Astronomers will set up their telescopes by Rock Creek Park’s Picnic Grove #13 and invite us to check out the night’s featured stars, planets and constellations.

Make your contribution to a community quilt. Stop by Peirce Mill at and after noon on June 28 to craft a design for a patch that will be added to a quilt commemorating America’s semiquincentennial.