Summer Kids University | Young Activists

ARTos Foundation is proud to present this year’s Summer Kids University, entitled “METAPOLIS: Intervention in the City | Young Activists”, which will take place on the 21 June - 1 July 2016, at ARTos Foundation, within the framework of our actions for the Creative Europe Programme – ARTECITYA 2014 – 2018, and with the support of the Cultural Services of the Ministry of Education and Culture.

Through a series of participatory workshops for children between the ages of 6 - 12 years old, Kids University aims to promote the knowledge and experience that help to create strong personalities and creative and critical thinkers, with free will and confidence.

For the 2016 trilogy, Kids University partners up with the Creative Europe Programme ARTECITYA 2014 – 2018, for a series of actions focusing on the transformation and improvement of our own districts and neighbourhoods. The Summer Kids University, will draw inspiration from architecture, technology, innovation, science, electronics, music, art and social impact. Through the use of collaborative processes we will attempt to create effective results in public spaces and raise awareness.

21 June – 1 July 2016, 8:30 – 13:00 *
Participation fee: €225 (€180 for siblings) **

For registrations and further information please contact us at: 99 611 159 and 22 445 455.
* The children can be at ARTos from 7:30 until 14:30 and engage in creative activities with our instructors.
**Please register by 17/06/2016

Our workshops:
Innovation: ‘New uses for old toys’
An introduction to innovative and alternative uses to our old toys, which we will then modify through the use of technology, music and electronics.

Robotics & Programming: ‘Hacking’ old toys
Each kid is asked to bring with them one of their old toys. Through an introduction into the world of robotics and programming, we will ‘hack’ into our old toys and give them new alternative uses / features.

Technology, Music & Electronics: ‘Hacking’ old toys & GIF creation
Electronics, music composition and GIFs creation presented as games of collecting, performing, recording, and analysing noise, sound and moving image.

Costume Design: Little Activists Community
Our ‘little activists’ community’ will create its own headpiece-design, through the use of recyclable and re-usable materials. We will then get our pictures taken, in order to showcase our creations, but also for learning how to create our very own GIFs.

‘Hacking’ the everyday & community building
A presentation on ‘Hacks’ or a problem-solving attitude towards everyday life by empowering local communities to gather, experiment, share and create; promoting the mind-set of openness and sustainable innovation in Cyprus

Architecture & Urban Design
Buildings and urban spaces. Which are the ‘problematic-areas’ of our city (or of any city) and what solutions can we propose? Problem solving through new shapes, new functions and new urban relationships; all based on the children’s explorations during the workshop.

Video Art: ‘A new-age fairy-tale’
Nefeli Kentoni will share with us her recent experience of volunteering at the refugee camps in Nicosia and, together, we will create our version of a new-age video-fairy-tale, which will then be donated to the refugee children in Nicosia.

Science Experiments,
The “Vikexploratorium” is a highly educational and entertaining science and technology show created and developed by Viken Tavitian. It consists of hands-on approaches to complicated science phenomena unveiling them in a fun way through simple experiments. The idea of these hands-on experiments is to convey that science is all around us and there is nothing to fear of science.

‘153 birds’, by BirdLife Cyprus
BirdLife Cyprus will introduce us to fairy tales and songs about birds, giving us the opportunity to learn about the difficult migration journey and some of the bird species found in Cyprus, such as the Barn Swallow, the Nightingale, the Bee-Eater and the Hoopoe. Following the presentation, we will create our own bird-feeders with the use of recyclable plastics.

Printmaking: Stencils & T-shirt creation
Together, we will create drawings, paintings and illustrations for the ‘153 birds’ campaign, organized by BirdLife Cyprus, in an effort to raise awareness and inform the public about the different species of birds, which are affected by the persistent problem of illegal bird trapping in Cyprus. The purpose of the competition is to get to know, appreciate and celebrate these beautiful birds. We will then get an introduction to stencil design and printmaking, in order to turn our drawings into designs for our own t-shirts.

Site-specific Theatre
I exist. I exist somewhere. I am somewhere. Where? How? Why? Here? Inside the room? In the neighbourhood? In the city? In the country? In the world? A space. How do we exist in a space? How does the space exist in us? How can we find life, form, characters, existence and history in the space? What can we create in the space?

Kids’ Yoga
Yoga postures, breathing and relaxation techniques; fun games and music. The classes will help the children to begin to learn how to play, improve self-esteem, become disciplined, and strong. The children will be working together as a team while cooperation and team building skills are very important. We are kind and respectful to one another, since our differences are what make us great!