The Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) is launching its Back to School 2019 programme, featuring a diverse range of activities and events as part of the Maktaba initiative, which encourages children to read more regularly and motivates them to visit libraries.
The host of exciting activities will take place from 15-26 September at Khalifa Park Library, Al Bahia Library, Al Wathba Library, Zayed Central Library in Al Ain, and Al Marfa Library.
The Back to School 2019 programme is aimed at public and private school students from kindergarten age upwards, especially those who live near Maktaba branches, and will include classes for People of Determination.
“We are organising the Back-to-School programme for the second year running, offering participants unique opportunities to enjoy an interactive educational experience in creative and innovative settings. We also see a huge turnout of mothers and children at the various events held across our library branches,” said Abdullah Majed Al Ali, Acting Executive Director, Dar Al Kutub Sector at DCT Abu Dhabi.
“Designed to engage and cater to visitors’ interests and needs, the Back-to-School activities and shows helped children to better transition back into their schools after the summer break, while coupling new students with older students to make them more enthusiastic about school.”
Among the activities will be a number of workshops where participants can acquire intellectual and creative skills. These include the Programming Skills – Little Cody workshop for students aged 6 to 9, which allows them to learn about the principles of computer programming. There will also be the Shadow Theatre workshop, which will encourage children aged 4 to 10 to unleash their imagination by learning to read and write stories.
The Mosaic Art and Skills workshop for students aged 9 to 12 will teach how to tell a story through mosaics, paintings or murals. The Scrapbooking workshop teaches the cutting and pasting of materials, such as cloth, wires, balloons, seashells, and wool, to create art. The Clothing Decoration workshop will allow students to decorate and embellish clothing in an exciting and fun way.
There will also be the Electronic Circuits workshop for students aged 10 to 14, which will cover the basics of electronics and circuits, such as the differences between open and closed circuits and between conductive and non-conductive materials. Journey into Space and Big Data are more advanced workshops, with the first discussing how to build a satellite, and the second looking at the importance of large data sets and how to analyse these in the field of space and satellites.
The Internet Privacy workshop, which targets students aged 15 and over, looks at the dangers of social media and teaches its users how to avoid online threats. Meanwhile, participants in the Physical Coders workshop will learn the basics of Python language programming, in addition to learning about the parts used in electric circuits, such as wires, resistors and lights.
The Chocolate Planet workshop, will include tasting sessions, chocolate making and cake decorating classes. There will also be a Pottery workshop, a Photography workshop for students aged 14 and over, and the Light Drawing workshop where participants use artificial lamps to create photography. The Yoga workshop for students aged 10 to 16 will teach harmony between the mind and the body.
