Dubai Culture and Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) returns with a new version of its week-long winter camp from 19 – 23 December, coinciding with the schools’ winter holidays and inviting children and adolescents aged 5 – 16 to participate in a programme full of interactive, purposeful and diverse activities. Taking place across all Dubai Public Library branches (Al Twar, Al Rashidiya, Al Mankhool, Al Safa Art and Design, Umm Suqeim, Hor Al Anz and Hatta)the camp will take place within an entertaining and cultural atmosphere that aims to enhance children’s’ knowledge, improve their creative skills and enhance their values ​​of inspiration through a variety of specialised and innovative workshops.

This will contribute to achieving the camp’s theme ‘Inspiration Towards Creativity,’ in conjunction with the third phase of the UAE’s 50^thNational Day celebrations that will take place across various parts of the country and continue until 30 December under the theme ‘Inspiration,’ with the aim of inspiring the various segments of society to plan for a prosperous future.

The activities hosted by public libraries will be filled with art and reading workshops in both Arabic and English relating to the 50^thNational Day, including the ‘Authors from the UAE’ workshop that aims to introduce participants to books and writers from the UAE and reading their stories, in conjunction with interactive sessions; and an Emirati art workshop using thermal clay, which aims to develop children’s artistic talents. The ‘UAE’s Achievements: Puppet Theatre’ workshop will take children on a journey to introduce them to the country’s most prominent achievements in combating COVID-19 and encourage them to adhere to precautionary measures against viruses; they will then write messages on the UAE’s 50^thNational Day.

‘The UAE Between the Past and the Present’ workshop will transport children through time on an exciting journey to learn about the lifestyle of our forefathers before the union and the most important events that constituted a qualitative leap for the UAE. The ‘Emirati Attire workshop will encourage children to wear Emirati national attire and introduce it, while the ‘Colours of the UAE Flag’ workshop will provide a variety of activities relating to the National Day celebrations, such as drawing on canvases and colouring them with the colours of the UAE flag. Finally, ‘The UAE Flag: Book Breaks’ workshop will inspire them to love reading, seek information, and make special book dividers using their creativity.

Also celebrating the UAE’s 50^thanniversary and enhancing handicrafts skills among children are a sewing workshop — during which children will learn to embroider on fabric using threads in the colours of the UAE flag — and a special origami workshop during which they will make models of the UAE’s heritage environment. An inspiring panel discussion titled ‘Landmarks of the UAE’ will also be held for children to discuss the achievements of the UAE over the past 50years.

Through the camp’s programme that is full of science, arts, literature, handicrafts and competitions, and in line with the camp’s theme ‘Inspiration Towards Creativity,’ the libraries will provide a fertile artistic, educational and recreational environment to inspire children, especially during the ‘Inventions and Sciences’ workshop, which will highlight the most important scientific inventions; the ‘Mysteries and Intelligence’ workshop, which will take them on a journey to explore the most difficult questions in the world; a virtual workshop titled ‘Building Our Own Fortress – Let’s Write About What We Know Best,’introducing them to the impact of writing and its ability to change the world or create a completely different world; and the ‘I Am Proud of My Arabic Language’ workshop that will instil a love for the Arabic language in them.

The children will also enjoy other creative workshops, where they will learn how to wrap gifts, make dolls from spoons, and the art of caricature drawing. In addition, they will navigate the world of painting in its various forms through light-drawing workshops using projectors, a fun ‘Free HandDrawing’ to draw the mascots of Expo 2020, and ‘The Little Artist’ workshop that is accompanied by a reading session. The libraries will also host other inspiring workshops, such as the ‘Kahoot’ workshop during which children will develop their knowledge through cultural competitions, and a special workshop whereby a film about the libraries will be screened followed by an interactive discussion.

The programme is also keen on developing many values and ethics in children through a series of interactive workshops, such as the ‘Healthy Day’ workshop, which aims to enhance children’s awareness of healthy food and the importance of practising a variety of sports; the virtual workshop ‘How to Make Friends’ that will provide children with the most important skills to make friends; and a specialised workshop aimed at parents titled ‘Education With Love,’ addressing contemporary education and the importance of enhancing parents’ awareness in raising children; and many other creative and inspirational workshops.

Eiman Al Hammadi, Acting Manager of the Libraries Affairs Section at Dubai Culture, affirmed the Authority’s keenness to play its social and cultural role towards future generations through the continuity of cultural and artistic activities and events that enrich their school holidays in order to invest their time in fun and beneficial activities based on enhancing their mental and creative abilities, adding: “We look forward to attracting distinguished scientific, literary and artistic talents to help them in their continuous development and contribute to their skill-refinement through a variety of activities that would contribute to the advancement of children’s literary, scientific, technical, environmental, heritage and artistic culture, and life skills, with a focus on technological development, shaping the future, creativity, and innovation, all in an ideal environment that suits their age groups and contributes to enhancing the spirit of creativity and inspiration within them, in line with the camp’s theme, ‘Inspiration Towards Creativity.’”

The organisation of the winter camp comes as part of Dubai Culture’s efforts to enhance the emirate’s cultural scene by qualifying generations of researchers, scholars, authors, and talents, and creating new ways of realistic education that provide an interactive learning environment that will contribute to the development of generations through knowledge and empowering them with the necessary life skills.

For more details and to register, please visit the libraries’ Instagram account @dubaipubliclibraries.