The Public Libraries Department of Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (Dubai Culture) is all set to launch this year’s edition of its annual summer camp themed ‘Our summer is art & culture’, which is scheduled from 14^th July to 8^th August 2019. The camp is a unique package of advanced and innovative programs designed to ignite creativity and familiarise children with the important elements of culture and tradition.

Allowing children, 6 -12 years of age, to explore the world of art and culture, the camp will equip participants with apt knowledge in a fun way and prepare them to face everyday challenges. It helps position Dubai as an incubator of the innovative future by providing the younger generation with necessary tools to lead and excel in complex contemporary times.

The camp will take place in all Dubai Public Libraries, including Al Twar Public Library, Al Rashidiya Public Library, Al Safa Art & Design Library, Hor Al Anz Public Library, Al Mankhool Public Library, Umm Suqeim Public Library, Hatta Public Library, and also at Etihad Museum. It will cater to four main sections including happiness, reading, family, and future, while also featuring a set of innovative activities exploring culture, arts, and entertainment.

Apart from a number of interactive workshops, with a focus on technology and artificial intelligence, the camp will shine a spotlight on unconventional topics to bring out the artistic creativity of children. It is carefully designed to blend the culture and science with arts and entertainment and it seeks to stimulate the creative thinking of the children through specialised sessions and creative art and scientific activities. It intends to develop the skills of the children in scientific research, rhetoric, and reading and writing, in an engaging atmosphere.

The workshops will also touch upon topics like creating antiques, helping participants explore the skills of research, arts, robotics, and programming along with developing their sense of curiosity. Children in this camp will learn to make their own instruments using electronics, understanding the basic intricacies of artificial intelligence, cognition, and automated learning. They can also design three-dimensional bridges by learning to draw with 3D pens.

The workshops are creatively named in order to make them interesting and inviting for the children. These include, robots in space trip, robots in the domestic zoo, arts in biology, cartoon characters in the amusement park, programing sound tracks and musical notes, designing the house you dream of, the microscopic world, and others.

One of the main focuses of the camp is to restore the importance of reading and its contribution in developing critical and creative thinking along with improving the commination skills. Promoting reading as a habit, the camp seeks to uphold the role of reading as the driving force for happiness and a promising, innovation-based future.

The camp this year includes four parts – first and the second part of the camp will be held from 14^th – 25^th July while the third and the fourth ones are scheduled from 28^th July – 8^th August 2019.

Dr. Hissa bin Masood, Director of Public Libraries Department at Dubai Culture, said, “The summer camps this year are highly specialised and carefully designed to add to the practical knowledge of children who are going to be the architects of our future. Main aim of these camps is not just to identify talents but also to provide them with a platform to nurture and discover their true potential.”

She added, “The research, learning, and exploration based on our innovative programs, will help provide a rich and inspirational experience to the participants. The Department of Public Libraries seeks to highlight and promote the role of libraries as a meeting point for the learners and as a hub for community interaction. With a special focus on reading, the camp is part of our efforts to align with the National Strategy for Reading 2026, which aims to make reading an integral part of the social life of the country.”

Combining artistic skills with technical knowledge, the camp seeks to inspire and encourage children to appreciate literature, learn creative aspects of writing, identify types of writing, and practice its use. The camp is in line with the broader vision of the Authority to help develop skills and make children future-ready by strengthening the foundation of self-confidence in them.

Dubai Culture aims to enhance Dubai’s cultural scene and draw attention to the UAE’s rich heritage. The Authority’s mandate is to build bridges of constructive dialogue between different civilisations and cultures to enhance Dubai’s position as a creative and sustainable global city for culture, heritage, arts, and literature, with the aim to empower these sectors by developing creative and innovative projects and initiatives locally, regionally, and globally.