BENGALURU: Ten-year-old Manju is attending a summer camp for the first time, and absolutely loves all the activities. “I love to dance and I am so happy that I got to make new friends,” says the little girl who is part of the first summer camp to be organised by Department of Education in Karnataka for a state-run school.
This month-long camp at Government Girls’ High School in Malleswaram is for 5 to 16 year olds and charges nothing from the attendees. Children can participate in a range of activities from meditation, yoga and sports to arts, crafts, music and theatre.
Abhishek, 15, says “I had stage fright at first but thanks to our drama sir, I feel more confident now.”
“We want to focus on their all-round development,improve their basic skills and facilitate better social interaction,” says Vijay Kumar, teacher and organiser. Shantala Suresh and Kaveri Kadarnath, the volunteer organisers make sure that all the children are provided with art materials, notebooks and other necessary items for their activities.
“Since these children come from poor families and can’t afford to go to summer camps like other children, we decided to conduct this event for them,” says Shantala.
H Krishna Murthy, a retired government school headmaster and science professor has prepared some fun science experiments for the children. He calls them “1-rupee science experiments” because he uses inexpensive items such as old bottles, cans and rubber bands. The children show a lot of interest and curiosity. Some of the popular experiments among the children are “Magic Mirror” and “Come Come Rain.” “They can learn scientific laws and principles from these simple and cheap experiments,” he adds.
In Magic Mirror, he places one half of a celebrity’s photo against the mirror and it appears whole. This hopefully inspires curiosity in the children to learn the Law of Reflection. Come Come Water is a water can with holes at the bottom. “You make rain or stop it by simply closing these holes and it is about the mechanics of air pressure,” says Krishna Murthy.
Kajal Bangera, Anthony Vignesh and Pallavi Manjunath are the dance instructors. “Children have a lot of energy, we just need to find the right outlet for it,” says Pallavi, adding, “We begin by giving them a few warm up exercises and try to get them involved by asking their suggestions on dance styles and songs.” Kajal says, “Most of them ask for bhangra and hip hop.”
The children are also given basic singing classes, starting with Saraswati and Ganapati Shlokas. When asked about their favourite activities most of younger chidren preferred dance and music while the older ones preferred activities like meditation and theatre. The summer camp that started on April 17 will continue till May 14.
Pics: Vinod Kumar T