'Penguins' dance away 2013 at whaling museum

Wearing a winter hat with a penguin-face, Brandon Kuang, 1,  of Bethpage, teetered around on a dance floor Sunday inside the Whaling Museum and Education Center of Cold Spring Harbor. Kuang was among dozens of other children who showed up in black and white attire for the museum’s Penguin Dance Party.

There were not real penguins at the event, but the museum staff did field a number of calls from people who thought the flightless, aquatic birds would be there, said museum educator Nicole Kuffo.

Brandon’s aunt, Fara Sininsky, 32, of Massapequa, said although her family was expecting to see some penguins, the kids didn’t seem to mind.

“They are having the best time,” she said.

The party featured a DJ, a screening of the movie “Happy Feet,” which features dancing penguins, ice pops and penguin-themed crafts and face-painting.

Kuffo said the museum will also hold Penguin Camp on Monday from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., during which kids ages 5 to 10 will learn about different types of penguins, their habitats and behaviors. They’ll play games mimicking how penguins use their feet to carry their eggs around and create a penguin nest out of straw.