KID FEST

What's so funny about peace, love and understanding? Ask anyone who remembers the raging fires, rape allegations and baseball-cap riots during the 1999 reincarnation of Woodstock. But this weekend, New Jersey's Garden State Discovery Museum will attempt to recapture the peace and harmony of the original 1969 celebration, albeit for a less jaded crowd. Headliners for the KidsRock Woodstock Festival include children's entertainers Ernie & Neal and "tot-rocker" Madeline Knott. Ernie & Neal, best known for their hit "Pink Piggie Polka Pancake Picnic," have performed at World Café Live's Peanut Butter and Jams series and the 2005 White House Easter Egg Roll. Knott, known for her hippie flair and music-teacher background, mixes rock 'n' roll with traditional kids' songs. Children are encouraged to jam along on tambourines. Other planned activities include face painting and "spin art," the tie-dye craft where you use squeeze bottles of paint and a salad spinner to squirt concentric designs onto 4x6 pieces of cardboard. Discovery spokeswoman Meredith Young says the Woodstock era embraces both the parents and the grandparents of today's kids. She recalls a previous KidsRock concert when a child sang Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi" with her father accompanying her on piano and another when a girl decked out in full '60s-era Cher regalia sang a few of the singer's oldies. A ticket stub from the '69 Woodstock will be on display as yet another example of how KidsRock '05 parallels the original. As Young puts it, KidsRock is "peace, love and tot rock 'n' roll." Precluding chants of "Me first! Me first!" at the spin-art table, this should be an afternoon devoid of chaos.

KidsRock Woodstock Festival, Sat., Aug. 13, 11 a.m.-3 p.m., free with $7.95-$8.95 museum admission, Garden State Discovery Museum, 2040 Springdale Rd., Cherry Hill, N.J., 856-424-1233, www.discoverymuseum.com.