Pune Campus Watch: Summer camps for tots a big hit, cater to needs of ‘Covid-batch’

Interestingly, most preschools and nursery schools that are organising summer camps for young ones said that not only has the demand been at least thrice the usual rate, but the nature of activities at the camps has also changed. With summer camps being the first peek into what a school life can be for little ones, the organisers said that activities have been planned to overcome the new challenges which the pandemic and the subsequent isolation have brought before young ones.

“Before the pandemic hit us, we used to conduct summer camps once a year, mostly focused on fun activities to keep students engaged. This year, we have conducted three batches of summer camps and there is demand for more. It’s not the same as earlier, summer camps are a serious business this year because they have the responsibility of integrating toddlers into schools. This year not only are we facing many challenges in summer camps, but we have also had to revise the curriculum and activities to suit the children,” said Shweta Pawar, principal of Silver Bell Tree School, Kharadi.

These challenges that pre-school teachers are facing are mainly to do with reduced attention spans and sitting tolerance, socio-emotional developmental needs and interaction with peers and increased need for personal attention.

“These children will start school by June, maybe that’s why parents are so anxious that they get some kind of exposure before actual schooling begins. We had to announce extra batches this month and though it’s so hot, parents are insisting for more batches in May as well, which is unusual,” said Insiyah Rahim, director of Toddlers Nursery.

“Coming to the kids and the camps itself, the approach is different. This year, we are seeing kids who are more anxious, they are not used to seeing other people and even peers, their responses are different. They do not sit in one place, do not have much focus and have a lot of pent-up energy. We are doing a lot of outdoor play, physical play and focusing on social-emotional growth like learning to wait for turns, sharing things with peers, learning to listen and follow instructions and so on,” Rahim said.

Smaller batch sizes for young ones not used to being around too many people and ensuring that they do not get overwhelmed by things is one of the main shifts in focus at summer camps this year, she added.

In fact, a lot of pre-schools have been encouraged by parents to continue summer camps into refresher or bridge courses for longer durations. “Usually, we have a short summer camp but this year, parents are insisting that we have a longer one so we started a bridge course. For the younger students, we are doing a lot of group activities since we need to teach them peer interaction which is one of the main focus areas,” Kajal Chhatija, director of Gayatri English Medium School, Moshi.

“Earlier summer camps would have a lot of cut-paste activities, paintings and drawings, storytelling sessions which needed children to sit in one place. This year, we have messy play, outdoor play, dancing and such activities that need them to spend their energy and express themselves too. I think most camps will continue even till May end, the demand is so much this year, batches are filling out within a couple of days,” said.