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The summer holidays are here and that means it’s time to chill! Now that you have free time for the next two months, why not enjoy with activities that work for you. Spend your time in doing things you enjoy, which also are a value addition as they improve your knowledge and skills. There are today any number of summer workshops that cater to teaching and developing all kinds of skills—be it language or communication skills, creative skills, drawing and painting even through the computer, or practical science skills. Get, set, search So, where do you start? Scour the daily newspapers and the many fliers that you receive every day for information on workshops. Keep the ones you are interested in, phone for more information and visit the premises to find out for yourself, if this is the activity you wish to do. The Internet can also be of great help in this search. Today, there are many programmes being conducted for enhancing your personality and developing basic courtesies and etiquette. A good programme can cover areas such as table manners, social graces, telephone etiquette, body language and self-confidence. Many of these finishing schools, so to speak, energise students to communicate more effectively, understand core elements of friendship, handle peer pressure, and improve inter-personal relationships and creative thinking. Some programmes also provide students with modules on good grooming and communication in a social environment. Guide to grooming In Delhi, there is In Lingua that provides English classes, and Sri Sanskar School of Etiquette and Career Development at Noida, that can put you on the right track. In Chandigarh, a summer workshop is being conducted on etiquette and grooming by Harleen Sekhon at Sector 8. (Contact: 9316121713, 4610013) Many students enjoy sporting and outdoor activities. There are several adventure camping organisations that conduct such programmes. Trekking, climbing, river rafting, living in tented camps, preparing your own meal, learning to fend for yourself are all activities that enable young students to build self-esteem, develop inter- personal skills, be more environmentally conscious and independent. Open learning
Such life skills are the core modules of the ‘idiscoveri’ programme that offers a variety of adventure- related programmes for young people. This institute, started by alumni from Harvard, Insead, IIT and XLRI, offers Youreka, an eight-day adventure programme for nine to 16-year-olds. Students stay in hill or riverside camps and go rock climbing, mountain biking and rafting. It is the ideal exposure for urban house-bound kids to life in the wilds. In the bargain, they learn to be independent with a range of life skills. Many of the students enjoy the camps so much, that they sign on every summer. With a growing demand, there are several other organisations that have started such programmes. Delhi-based Wanderland Kids Club conducts treks in Uttaranchal. They also organise parent-child camps with trekking, bird watching, yoga and workshops on how to deal with fear. In Mumbai, the Empower Activity Club, started by Brigadier Sushil Bhasin for summer and Divali holidays, focuses on imparting life skills like tolerance, patience, team-building and leadership, through activities like rappelling, shooting, treasure hunts, golf and cooking. The fee ranges from Rs 260 per person for a day’s trip to Rs 1,000 for an overnight trip. Mountaineer, wildlife photographer and Bombay Natural History Society member Bibhas Amonkar designs courses for students that revolve around nature education and awareness. His organisation, Tantra, focuses on outdoor activities like rafting,paragliding, cycling, sky gazing and hiking, with the fee between Rs 1,800 and Rs 4,000 per head. The World Wildlife Fund also organises camps and workshops from time to time which inculcate in students a love and respect for animals and the environment. Some students from India also participate in camps in other countries. Les Elfes International, a Swiss organisation and member of the European Council of International Schools, offers students camping experiences in the Swiss Alps. Since 1996, hundreds of children aged between eight and 18 from India have availed of this Dance to a new tune If performing arts is what you are after, then there are many workshops conducted by well-known dance and music artists like Leela Samson, Shubha Mudgal and others. If it is dance you like, Danceworx, the performing arts academy of Ashley Lobo, and the Shiamak Davar Dance School conduct workshops for all age groups. Many students participate in programmes over the summer holidays, which culminate in a stage show at the end of the course. Role playing
Students who wish to develop theatrical and histrionic skills can participate in the summer workshops organised by the National School of Drama in New Delhi. The Sanskar Rang Toli, formerly known as the Theatre-in-Education Company at the NSD, consists of a group of actor-teachers working with and performing for children on a regular basis. Workshops with college students, parents, social organisations and children with special needs are also important activities for the repertory company. The Toli organises a month-long intensive summer theatre workshop for children in May-June. Besides training in theatre and allied arts, personality development and integration of children from various social backgrounds are important aspects of this workshop. Khilona is another organisation of professional/semi-professional artists that conducts people's theatre for children, usually musicals in different cities. Khilona organises short-term theatre and creative writing workshops for children in association with such organisations as Anton Chekhov Drama Studio, Habitat World, Max Mueller Bhawan, Academy of Fine Arts and Literature and North Zone Cultural Centre and some public schools. Umang is a Hindi theatre group, which has been conducting summer theatre workshops with children, giving them a platform to interact. Every summer holidays, Umang opens its admissions for the year's production and after a workshop of eight weeks, two hours a day, the children put up a performance. The summer workshops are conducted at Preet Vihar, New Delhi and Noida. Animated avenues
Want to learn about film-making, photography,
videoediting, multimedia… there are many short courses that teach you the skills to work in these careers, along with the experience of work. The Asian Academy of Film and Television at Noida has several short-term programmes, while animation schools like SAE technology College, Picasso and Gecko put you on to a hands-on animation film project. Space for all For the more academically inclined, there are also many things to do. The Nehru Planetarium has excellent programmes which expose students to the celestial world, while the Science Museum at Pragati Maidan has workshops from time to time on a number of science-based themes. The Centre for Science Education and Communication at the University of Delhi, organises workshops in electronics for schoolteachers and students. Want to be an astronaut? Why not check out the experience of floating in space at NASA? Summer camps understanding space science and sitting in a rocket simulator are just some of the activities you canb expect to do. A visit to NASA’s Learning Technology Projects at the Glenn Research Center can be a learning experience. Globe trotting
What’s more, you don’t have to restrict your activities to India. Several schools organise summer exchange programmes for their students to visit schools in different parts of the world. Some universities have also taken the initiative to allow school students to visit the university and get a preview of what life can be on campus. Some Indian universities have already taken the lead and started exchange programmes with counterparts in different parts of the world. Punjabi University has signed MoUs with three foreign universities, under which the Punjab School of Management Studies (PSMS) students will get a chance to visit these universities to attend workshops, summer internship programmes and the like. Under this, 12 students have visited Kutztown University, Pennsylvania, while 10 students visited Wilkes University, Pennsylvania, so far this year. Another batch of 20 students will be visiting Grand Valley University this month. Many European and American universities conduct summer training programmes in a variety of subjects. Every summer in July, Northeastern University hosts seminars in writing, reading, and teaching on the island of Martha's Vineyard. The University of Iowa conducts summer workshops in journalism, while other universities such as Minnesota, Michigan, Berkeley and Stanford also encourage students to visit the campus for summer programmes. Each summer, the College of Engineering at North Carolina State University offers senior school students the opportunity to experience engineering, science, and technology at NC State. And if you are older and have finished with school, you can even get a summer job—working at a fast-food joint nearby, at a retail mall, telemarketing or helping your father’s colleague with office work. The writer is a noted
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There are many workshops that focus on developing creative skills. There are drawing and painting classes held at several centres in many cities, as well as special programmes conducted by well-known artists. If you are interested in the many traditional crafts of the country, you can learn about making terracotta figurines, Madhubani and miniature painting, crafts from recycled clothes and much
