Keep the kids entertained this summer holidays with free, fun activities at UCLan
The long summer holidays have finally arrived and with it comes the struggle for families to keep children entertained without breaking the bank.
To help, the University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) has created a range of free, fun activities for youngsters.
The interactive sessions on fashion, forensics, cosmetics, art and design, and creative technology are split between two age categories, nine-to-11, and 12-to-13.
The workshops will take place between 2 August and 4 August, from 10.00am to 3.00pm, at the Preston Campus and all activities include a free lunch.
Dr Liz Granger, UCLan’s Head of Widening Participation and Public Engagement, said: “We know children love doing hands-on activities and we appreciate that times are hard for families so these fun free sessions are ideal to keep nine-to-13-year-olds entertained for a few days in the summer holidays.”
For the nine-to 11-year-olds, on 2 August, the Art and Design class will see them create life-size drawings of people in groups, with each person being responsible for a particular body part, hoping they all come together at the end.
"We know children love doing hands-on activities and we appreciate that times are hard for families so these fun free sessions are ideal to keep nine-to-13-year-olds entertained for a few days in the summer holidays"
— Dr Liz Granger, UCLan’s Head of Widening Participation and Public Engagement
On the same day, the Fashion event will allow the children to explore various fashion illustration styles and embroidery techniques and they will create artwork to be printed on to keepsake canvas tote bags.
The activity-packed days Cosmetic Chemistry will take place on 3 and 4 August, allowing youngsters to make their own bath bombs and lip balms. They’ll get to experiment with acids and alkalis and make their own personalised bath bombs. They will also investigate the properties of materials and states of matter whilst making their own bespoke lip balms.
For the 12 to13-year-olds, on 2 August there will be a hands-on Forensics’ session. This will give the children the experience of what it would be like to work in a forensics lab by investigating a fictional murder and carrying out experiments to process evidence from the crime scene.
On 3 August, a Fashion event will allow young people to explore various fashion illustration styles and embroidery techniques and they will create artwork to be printed on to keepsake canvas tote bags.
Creative Technology is the topic for the final event on 4 August. The day is perfect for creative and tech-enthusiasts as the workshop will explore the current trend of connected toys, the privacy and security issues related to them and the role of digital toys within play. The children will generate ideas to prototype new toys, using a mix of physical and digital materials. They will also learn how to use music, coding, maths and physics to create a magical aura effect.
To book you child’s place on any of the sessions, please click on the subject headings or the corresponding date and complete the online application form.
For more information, please contact Dr Liz Granger by email or 01772 894286.
Written by Humayra Patel