There’s plenty on these summer school holidays and no matter what it is, participants are bound to have fun. This is a sponsored post. 

THERE’S plenty on these summer school holidays and no matter what it is, participants are bound to have fun. 

Whether it’s inside or outside, the whole family will find some great experiences in the region to keep them entertained.

Here are some of them…

Mark’s got the building blocks for fun

LEGO bricks are more than just building blocks at Bricks 4 Kidz, where the team at its ACT locations is helping children have fun and engage with science, says director of Bricks 4 Kidz in Canberra, Mark Jeffries. 

Regular programs at Bricks 4 Kidz teach children to learn through play, according to Mark, who says the talented instructors use Lego to introduce children to STEM studies such as robotics and coding at their Belconnen centre and out of the Hughes Baptist Church. 

As for the full-day school holiday programs, which run throughout January at both locations, Mark says they’re user friendly, they compliment what children learn at school, and are available to children of all ages and backgrounds.

They also offer parents something more for their children than just mindless play, says Mark who watches children develop as they learn through play every holiday period. 

“We provide a high value service for parents who want their kids to do something more fulfilling,” Mark says.

“The kids get to play with Lego, which is fun, but the STEM element is engaging.

“[If children do one of our programs] they’re going to have a great experience with instructors who will engage the kids all day and make sure they feel valued and appreciated.” 

At the end of the day it’s also a heck of a lot of fun, Mark says. 

“The kids say ‘we wanna stay, we wanna stay’, which is a great affirmation of what we do,” he says. 

Bricks 4 Kidz, 125/99 Eastern Valley Way, Belconnen. Call 0438 257236, email act-northside@bricks4kidz.com or visit bricks4kidz.com.au

Stephen’s model car raceway’s driven by passion

CANBERRA’S only slot car raceway is the perfect school holiday activity to get children away from the computer and enjoying the fast thrills at Way2Fast Model Car Raceway, says owner Stephen Bywater.

It’s fun for the whole family, too, says Stephen, who, passionate about racing himself, sees parents and adults come in and become nostalgic of their childhood slot car racing days. 

“[It’s great to see] the enjoyment on people’s faces if they haven’t seen [slot cars] in a while and remembering back to when they were kids and being able to introduce it to their kids,” he says.

“Parents can relive their childhood. I got my first set when I was about seven years old and have had a passion for it ever since.” 

Families will be able to take to the Mitchell-based track for longer this summer, with Stephen saying they’ll increase the opening hours during the holidays from 10am until 5pm, every day of the week.

The custom-built, handmade tracks have excited Canberrans for more than a decade and the raceway features tracks such as six lane NASCAR-style courses, or more complicated courses like overlapping eight lane ones, Stephen says. 

“It’s the enjoyment and the challenge of getting around without crashing and getting around faster than anyone else [that everyone loves],” says Stephen.

Way2Fast Model Car Raceway also stocks leading brands of remote controlled cars, as well as accessories, he says. 

Way2Fast Model Car Raceway, unit 2, 20 Essington Street, Mitchell. Call 0424 453544, email way2fast2@yahoo.com.au or visit way2fast.com.au

Dive into art through ‘underwater’ workshops

LAVENDER Art Studios is set to be transformed into a magical, underwater garden this summer school holidays, says director Elita Mackay.

The art studio is offering school holiday art workshops in the theme of “Octopus’s Sea Garden”, for children aged from five to 13. 

Elita says the young artists will enjoy exploring a variety of underwater creatures, sunken ships, treasures and sea life galore. 

“It will be a fun, refreshing and blissful experience,” she says. 

“We’ll swim through the artistic waves of creation in the colourful octopus’s sea garden.” 

Under the expert tuition of Greg Devenny-Mackay and his art assistants, the thematic art workshops give young budding art students an enjoyable and relaxed environment to develop their artistic skills, Elita says. 

She says the studio will provide a high standard of demonstrations at the start of each workshop, then offer one-to-one support.

“We’ll work in various artistic genres, like drawing, sculpture and acrylic paints, and various mediums in terms of drawing, such as coloured pencils, aqua wash,” she says.

“We’ll also supply and teach about a variety of fine art supplies.”

The workshops run from January 18-22, and January 27-29, and include morning and afternoon tea, live harp music and all art materials, Elita says.  

Lavender Art Studios, first floor, 42 Townshend Street, Phillip. To book, call 6292 6339, email elita.mackay@lavenderartstudios.com.au or visit lavenderartstudios.com.au

Discover theatre in a welcoming environment

YOUNG people can express their creativity at Canberra Youth Theatre through exploring, extending and developing drama skills with professional artists, says its artistic director and CEO, Luke Rogers.

“We create professional-quality, intelligent theatre, which challenges audiences’ expectations about what youth theatre can be,” he says. 

“We want to develop creative thinkers, makers and lovers of art and performance, and strive to create opportunities for young people to share their voice and discover their own artistic practice.”

Luke says Canberra Youth Theatre’s school holiday programs allow young people to experience its offerings through workshops. 

From January 18-21, for students in years 1-6 there will be a four-day workshop by Melbourne-based theatre-maker Milly Cooper called “Time + Space = Life”, which encourages students to explore the world around them, looking at the everyday and the extraordinary, Luke says. 

“We are also running a three-day workshop at Belco Arts on January 13-15, which will be a discovery into theatre practice,” he says.

And with a refreshed program for next year, and enrolments opening for semester one on January 11, Luke says Canberra Youth Theatre’s programs offer young people aged seven to 25 a collaborative and challenging way to engage in the arts, in a supportive environment and nurturing community that’s welcoming, inclusive and diverse.

Canberra Youth Theatre, Gorman Arts Centre, H Block, Batman Street, Braddon. Call 6248 5057 or visit canberrayouththeatre.com.au

Action-packed workshops get kids acting

THREE face-to-face drama workshops will be running at the award-winning drama school, Perform Australia, in the summer school holidays, says its CEO Elizabeth Scott.

“There’s the action-packed, three-day ‘Choose Your Own Adventure Character’ on January 11-13, where kids aged seven to 12 will create their own character and perform as part of a play on stage,” she says.

“Kids will explore drama through games, acting exercises and storytelling.”

Elizabeth says the “Your Favourite Movie In Six Seconds Flat” workshop on January 14-15, also for kids aged seven to 12, combines Tik Tok with acting, helping kids learn about what makes a good story and how to boil it down to its essence through a range of improvisation activities, theory and exercises.

For the older kids, she says the “Shakespeare Spectacular” is a fun acting workshop where kids aged 10-14 can find out more about “The Bard” and perform extracts from his work.

“Kids can find out about his plays, learn about the language of the time, and try playing some of his most famous characters,” she says.

Outside of these workshops, Elizabeth says Perform Australia offers high-quality training for children, right through to nationally accredited qualifications for aspiring professional performers.

“We also offer weekly acting classes for kids in different age groups, starting in term one, with enrolments opening soon,” says Elizabeth.

Perform Australia, 11 Whyalla Street, Fyshwick. Call 1300 908905 or visit perform.edu.au

Four days of footy fun

THE Football Star Academy holiday camp is perfect for children to keep active, learn skills and have fun during the school holidays, say head coaches and operations managers Eric Bonnett and Danny Hately.

Running from January 18-21, the camp is a chance for boys and girls, aged five to 15, to keep active and develop their passion for football in a fun and relaxed environment at their FIFA-approved facility at the Melrose Football Precinct, Eric says. 

Over the four days, Eric says the children will be broken into age groups, where experienced, qualified coaches will teach them skills in coordination, technique and the basic principles of play while they discover their passion in roles such as striker, goalie and defender. 

“The Football Star Academy holiday camp program’s the perfect way to keep active while playing football during the holidays,” Eric says.

“The program involves fun football related games, small sided games and skill development of one on one [skills], striking, first touch and dribbling.

“No background in football is required. Our holiday program is designed for players of all abilities.”

Football Star Academy. Call 0433 997750, email act79admin.football@sportstaracademy.com or visit sportstaracademy.com