Nature, Technology, and Community Immersion: Mühlheim Pupils Embark on Enriching Summer Excursion
In the city of Mühlheim, school social workers are making a significant impact during the summer holidays by organizing a variety of activities aimed at supporting children and young people outside regular school hours. These programs, known as KiJaS (Kinder- und Jugendsozialarbeit an Schulen), provide both recreational and developmental opportunities.
Holiday Workshops and Camps
School social workers coordinate holiday workshops and day camps focused on creative, sports, and educational activities. These may include art projects, sports tournaments, cooking classes, and outdoor excursions to foster social skills and personal development.
Social Skills and Conflict Management
Some programs specifically address social-emotional learning, helping children and youth improve communication, cooperation, and conflict resolution skills during the holidays.
Cultural and Community Engagement
Activities often include visits to cultural sites, libraries, or community centers, encouraging cultural awareness and community integration.
Support for Vulnerable Groups
School social workers tailor programs to support children from disadvantaged backgrounds or with special needs, providing a safe and engaging environment during the summer break.
Collaboration with Local Organizations
The implementation often involves cooperation with local sports clubs, cultural institutions, and youth organizations to enrich program offerings.
Funding Sources
The city of Mühlheim allocates municipal funds specifically for KiJaS activities, particularly for holiday programs aimed at child and youth social work. Additional funding may come from state-level youth welfare programs and federal initiatives supporting child and youth services. School social workers sometimes apply for project grants from foundations or charities that focus on youth development and social work. Collaborations with local businesses or community sponsors can provide material support or funding for specific holiday events or workshops.
Recently, a group of thirteen children and young people from FEG and FES participated in a second program that was intended to promote exchange between the two schools. The kick-off for the holiday activity days was at the Offenbach weather park, where a meteorologist from the German weather service gave a child-friendly presentation about weather phenomena. The children then explored the park, climbed trees, and collected flowers.
Unfortunately, a planned trip to the climbing park had to be postponed due to the weather. However, the group visited Schloss Freudenberg in Wiesbaden the following day, where the focus of the day was a workshop around the topic of fire. The tour at Schloss Freudenberg focused on hearing and listening, with the discovery of various sound sources.
Later in the week, the Frankfurt Dialogue Museum was the highlight of the program for both groups. The museum demonstrated how barrier-free living works in everyday life, and the young people were guided through a completely dark parcours by blind or visually impaired people. This intense experience sensitized the participants for life with visual impairment.
New friendships developed during lunch and the subsequent ice cream at the Mühlheim youth center on Tuesday. The third day of the holiday activities was rounded off with a visit to the youth center, where activities included music, dance, billiards, table tennis, and pizza.
Through these structured activities and diverse funding streams, the school social workers in Mühlheim ensure that children and youths have meaningful and supportive experiences during the summer holidays, promoting well-being and social integration beyond the regular school year.
Cross-Cultural Experiences
In addition to local activities, these programs may also facilitate travel experiences, offering children and young people opportunities to learn about different cultures and broaden their horizons through trips to museums, heritage sites, or international exchanges.
Lifelong Learning and Personal Growth
Apart from home-and-garden, travel, and sports activities, education-and-self-development workshops are integrated into the programs, aiming to foster life skills, self-awareness, and adaptability in young people during the summer break.
