The week of July 2020 school holidays was a fun trip around the world – for our virtual campers. Our enthusiastic junior and senior campers embarked on an adventure, together with eleven partners to various continents and countries while engaging in hands-on activities and life skills.
From music-making, safe cycling, calzone-baking, brush calligraphy to making traditional crafts, learning about marine conservation and basic first aid practices, the campers are now equipped travellers to take on the world!
Cross-Cultural Learning and Exchange
“The best part was going to different countries.” – Junior Camper
It was wonderful to see the children from different countries attending the camp. We had Japanese campers, half-French, Indonesian, Indian children aside from the local campers. The beauty of the virtual camp transcends borders and boundaries, bringing together people from various backgrounds.
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We started off with an overview of our beautiful earth and then zeroed in to some of the cities, countries and continents that were relevant to each activity.
Marco Polo’s journeys and “Around the World in Eighty Days” also inspired our young campers to embark on their virtual adventure.
While journeying to the different countries and continents, part of the camp was dedicated to learning about the cultural, historical landmarks, famous people, natural habitats and wildlife. This was conducted through fun games, ice-breakers, quizzes and Pictionary-style exercises. The facilitators and the children had so much fun – they asked for even more games!
Learning of Life Skills during Little Day Out’s Virtual Camp
To be a confident traveller that navigates the world safely, there are important life skills to be equipped with. Biking Singapore taught the campers how to cycle safely through learning of important hand signals as well as maintaining the bicycle well. As biking is becoming a popular mode of transport and a leisurely ride around the neighbourhood, campers will understand the importance of safety and abide by rules.
Before heading for a trip, parents would typically help the children to pack their bags. The Little Executive taught the children skills such as determining items to pack for a trip, thought processes on what kind of clothes to bring as well as some country research to do before embarking on the flight.
What useful skills in planning and decision making – that will be useful for various scenarios and even more so getting prepared for the next big trip!
Accidents can happen anytime, anywhere. Those of us who have visited the Accident and Emergency department will know what I mean. First aid training by First Responders LLP was helpful in ensuring the campers knew what to do when there was a cut, bruise or injury. They learnt how to dress wounds, as well as how to stop nosebleeds. Instead of calling for help, campers know exactly what to do if their parents are not around.
The best way to celebrate memories post-travel is to write a journal, with accompanying pictures. The Little Day Out team taught the basics of writing a good journal entry and emphasised good observation skills. Describing a place with sounds, smells, feelings, colours is important to include in the travel experience.
The campers were put into smaller groups to put into practice the skills they learnt and some prolific ones even submitted their stories that will soon be published on Little Day Out. We encourage other young writers to get their works published via this site.
Nurturing a Love for the Environment During Camp
Appreciating nature in Singapore might sound like a paradox. But did you know we have 40,000 kinds of organisms – either terrestrial or marine? We embarked on a journey to explore nature in Southeast Asia with Lee Kong Chian History Museum to learn more about endangered mammals and marine conservation. From the sandy shores to the seas, the campers learnt about the Singapore whale that was found off Jurong Island, sea sponges, crabs and more. The importance of preserving this diversity drove home the message that we all play a part in pollution and threatening the habitats and food sources of the animals.
Gardens by the Bay also took campers to Africa on a Safari adventure to learn about the wildlife in the savannah. We took a look at how the animals moved and what they fed on, as well as the different plants we can find in Africa as well as at Gardens by the Bay! The task of making their own Baobab tree out of recyclables concluded the session.
Making Art and Music Virtually
Making art and music is therapeutic and proven to relieve stress, while stimulating creativity. Various activities like brush pen calligraphy, baking calzone, painting a Beijing Opera mask, attending a virtual concert, crafting a moonkite and dancing Samba got the campers moving, grooving and focusing on making art.
The camp whisked children away to Vienna, the birthplace of Mozart, Beethoven, the Strauss family and many other famed composers. The children learnt about classical music, the composers and their styles. The highlight was a virtual concert in a theme they chose – Star Wars, Jurassic Park and Lion King. What a treat!
One very popular activity during camp was the baking experience with Bella Pizza. Who knew we could recreate a restaurant-grade pizza in our home? Children learnt what a calzone was, and so dedicated on making it. A few even wolfed it down right after baking. The Italian delicacy was a sure winner!
Senior campers were also introduced to the basics of brush pen calligraphy with STABILO. They practised basic strokes, alphabets and also tried to write their chosen words on a card. Practise makes perfect, soon the new found calligraphy skills can be applied to journals, birthday cards and more. I personally was amazed at how focused the children were at calligraphy.
Chinese art and craft may be familiar to most, but not the significance of the colours of Beijing Opera masks. Preschoolmarket brought us on a cultural trip to China. The juniors made their own dragon and lion dance crafts while the seniors painted their own ceramic Beijing Opera masks. I never knew yellow was the colour of the villain’s mask in opera!
Crafting times are always a pleasure. The LPN Art School also guided the children on making their own Moon Kite paper mobile from scratch. This Malaysian craft or Wau Bulan is one of the symbols of Malaysia!
Apart from making art and music, campers also learnt an exciting Latin-American dance – Samba with The DanceSport Academy. Shaking their hips, waving their hands and coordinating their feet, the children danced along to Waka-Waka. Shakira would have been proud of their effort and motor skills coordination!
Fun, Learning and Making Friends during Little Day Out’s Virtual Camp
“I like all the activities they planned for us!
Attending a virtual camp might be vastly different from the usual summer camps. It is the safest way, for now, to continue the learning at home, be meaningfully engaged while making new friends. Perhaps interacting across screens seem strange, but it doesn’t lessen the fun nor take away the live interactions. By the end of the camp, our campers were really familiar with one another and eager to nominate others as best campers!
Everyone was a winner with their positive attitude, and they were all rewarded with hours of joy plus door gifts and camp memorabilia, including our very own Little Day Out bandana.
Watch Highlights From Our Virtual Trip Around The World!
Post-Camp Promo Codes from Our Awesome Partners
If you missed out on our camp, fret not! Our partners have generously provided promo codes for you to enjoy some activities that may have been carried out during our virtual camp. For the campers who want to continue to have some fun, you can purchase materials and other classes using the codes too! Offers are valid till 31 August 2020.
Art and Writing Supplies from STABILO
Our brush calligraphy class by STABILO was a blast! Enjoy 20% off with minimum purchase of $20 on the STABILO official store on LAZADA! One coupon per transaction, use code <STABILO-LDO20> valid till 31 August 2020.
The LPN Art School
Our campers learnt to make a moonkite with The LPN Art School. Enjoy $5 off on-the-spot art session at The LPN Art School (Grandstand) or 10% off Online Art Classes with code <LDOLPN> via The LPN Art School’s Facebook page.
The Little Executive
The Little Executive’s session during the camp was thoroughly enjoyed by the junior campers who went on a trip to Tokyo, Japan and even learnt how to pack their own bags. Sign up for a trial class at $15 only (U.P. $80) with code <LDOTRIAL> valid till 30 November 2020. Both virtual and face-to-face trials are available.
Biking Singapore
Now that we have learnt the rules to safe cycling, we can learn how to cycle confidently with lessons! Get $20 off when you sign up with code <BIKESG2020LDO> valid till 31 August 2020 at Biking Singapore.
Future Little Day Out Camps
“Thank you for the engaging 5 days. Looking forward to the next one!”
If you would like to participate in future Little Day Out camps, we welcome you! Stay tuned as we have exciting plans ahead. Indicate it in the form below so we can get in touch with you.
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