SUMMER SCHOOLS 2020 GUIDE
WONDERFUL COPENHAGEN
SCHOOLS SPROUT FOR SUMMER! you realise that summer camp is like winning the lottery for American adults who spend so much of their lives up to their eyeballs in work that they simply don’t have the resources to look after their kids.
THERE ARE A SURPRISING NUMBER OF OPTIONS FOR PARENTS LOOKING TO OFFLOAD THEIR KIDS FOR PART OF THE HOLIDAY
WONDERFUL COPENHAGEN
BY BEN HAMILTON It’s hard to work out what realisation came first: what kind of hell is American Summer Camp, and how exactly long are the summer holidays in the US?
adult narrator always sounds so dreamy, the only logical conclusion is that their parents must be permanently absent because they’re high on drugs.
No … not Summer Camp! The answers were revealed in a number of films.
And then in other teenage films, the threat of ‘Summer Camp’ hangs over their existence like a neverending Bay of Pigs episode. It’s like ‘The Breakfast Club’ detention, but multiplied by 25.
Perhaps the initial warning shots were fired in ‘Stand Like Me’ in which four pre-teen boys walk down a railtrack for three days on their own. Given that the
What? Three months? It’s only as you get older that
And your sympathy levels for American children plummet when you realise they get three full months of summer holiday – so scratch that about the parents being stoners, for most overworked Americans their childhood memories take on a dream-like state. More like dolphin schools In Denmark, the kids get just six weeks, which renders the idea of sending them to the middle of nowhere for weeks on end – and as a punishment – somewhat barbaric. But like in the US, the parents have got to work (normally for half of the holiday) – and unlike in the 1950s, a far greater proportion of families have two breadwinners. So there is a great need for some sort of organised school – more like the dolphin kind, with more fun, longer breaks and fewer
rules – where children can gather to spend the days that their parents need to work.
Services in English The public schools provide such a service, of course, which normally involves activities held at their premises, the afterschool clubs and sports centres in the neighbourhood. But most will be in Danish. That leaves international schools as the main providers of Englishlanguage summer schools, and there are close to ten offering their services this summer break – in both the capital region and further afield. Other vocational enterprises also organise them. The longestablished musical theatre school SceneKunst runs several summer camps for its students, for example. We hope this special section will arm you with all the information you need to ensure your children are in safe hands while you clock up the necessary number of hours to earn yourself a well deserved summer break.
ADVERTORIAL
LIKE LIVING IN A FAIRY-TALE INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF HELLERUP IS THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX THIS SUMMER, OFFERING CHILDREN A WHOLE RANGE OF DIFFERENT CAMPS, FROM ONE EMBRACING THE WORKS OF HC ANDERSEN TO ANOTHER CALLING ON ALL TIME-TRAVELLERS! enrolment from week to week in Physics studies, experiments either CARE or CAMP to suit their with chemical reactions, and interests and busy schedules time-travelling might sound like – both of which run for seven a description of the latest sci-fi weeks from June 22 to August 7. thriller premiering on Netflix, but it is actually what children will be Both programs are delivered taking part in at the International in English and offer an active, School of Hellerup (ISH) summer engaging and fun sense of school program this year. adventure in a positive, safe learning environment. The These are just a few of the summer program is open activities covered in ISH’s 12 to all children, including ISH week-long, thematic workshops students, students from other for students (ages 7-12), which include a Hands-On Music Camp, schools and children visiting the Copenhagen area. Sport Explorers Camp, Disney Club, Playlab Camp and Time Traveller’s Camp – among others. “What makes our program unique is that it runs for the whole summer and that we offer Care for all! a wide array of exciting thematic Along with the Summer CAMP CAMPS,” enthuses ISH summer program, ISH is also offering school co-ordinator Chiara Giani. a Summer CARE program for children (ages 4-10) with Travel in time! daily activities based on their Though the Science, Disney, interests, such as arts and English and Music camps have crafts and educational games. been very popular in the past, Chiara and ISH are proud to be Parents and students may launching three new camps this mix and match the student’s
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SUMMER SCHOOLS 2020 GUIDE
year: the Andersen’s Fairy Tale, STEAM and Time Traveler’s camps. “In our Time Traveler’s Camp, students get to solve the mysteries of the past and meet great historical figures who have left their mark in history,” explained Chiara. “While our brand new STEAM camp will help children explore their love of learning in the practical pursuit of science, technology, engineering, art and mathematics, and use these educational tools as access points for guiding students inquiry, dialogue and critical thinking.” The activities vary according to the group’s age, needs and preferences. Weather permitting, the children spend
as much time outdoors as possible, visiting different playgrounds, parks and forests. Precautionary measures Though the program encourages activity outdoors, ISH has established precautionary measures due to the covid-19 outbreak. “We have re-designed some of the CAMPS in order to limit the field trips to the school’s surroundings, thus avoiding the use of public transportation. We have also limited our groups to a maximum of eight students per teacher,” added Chiara. “Although these are tough times, we still offer a summer full of fun and social interactions for the youngest!” (NW)
SUMMERHOUSING DREAMIN’
to live in their rurally-based summerhouses. Within just days of the coronavirus lockdown being announced, there was a stampede to the countryside amid unparalleled demand for high-speed internet connections in remote areas. And many of them have still not returned!
PIXABAY
That’s the real reason why the coronavirus lockdown was so quiet: nobody was here. Meanwhile, the populations of certain coastal towns in northern Zealand and Jutland ran into six figures.
BARELY A WINTER’S DAY GOES BY WITHOUT THE DANES LICKING THEIR LIPS AT THE PROSPECT OF LIVING ‘THE GOOD LIFE’ AGAIN IN PEACEFUL JULY
BY BEN HAMILTON
Ah! The summer holidays in Denmark! What did Grundtvig once say? Or was it Holberg? Hang on, surely it was Sidney Lee: “July in Copenhagen is like ‘The Day of the Triffids’ every single day.”
To the summerhouse! So, why is this the case? Surely it can’t be because the entire population have uploaded their homes onto Airbnb and beanoed off to Benidorm for six weeks?
Or for a more modern reference, it’s just like coronavirus lockdown, but without the endless press briefings. Nothing happens and the whole city is deserted. For visiting tourists it’s like showing up at the Marie Celeste.
Well, there’s a logical answer and it can be found in their not-too-distant agrarian past. Danes are essentially farmers at heart, and they like nothing better than leaving the city behind them for long periods
Lifestyle divider For reasons like this, having a summerhouse is a big deal. Albeit trivial and overlooked by most internationals, you could say it’s something of a lifestyle divider. In some countries, the lifestyle divider is a matter of life or death, like having water or not having water, or possessing or not possessing guns. In the US, for example, it’s having health insurance, and in the UK, it’s whether you can afford to send your toddlers to childcare.
But in good old Denmark, it’s the ownership of a summerhouse and the means to travel there. In fact, it’s so slight, most internationals don’t even notice. All aboard! So come July, an awful lot of Danish people relocate to their summerhouse for six weeks. For some, this can be a perilously long car journey across the entire country, for others, just hopping aboard a Christiania bike in Vesterbro and cycling to a garden shed in Gladsaxe. But regardless of the cottage or carriage, it means living the dream, and this is what July has become for most Danes: a chance to disconnect most of their devices, recharge their batteries, and reconnect with their agrarian past. The result is that July is mostly bereft of major events – the Copenhagen Jazz Festival, cancelled this year, being one of the rare exceptions – leaving June and August to overflow with all manner of festival. Bar the odd tourist getting lost on your street, it’s an extraordinarily peaceful time in the major cities.
International summer school Do you want to practice speaking English? Or have fun? Or both? Join us for an active and engaging time of learning, exploration and summer fun. - Activity Camp (age 4-7)
The classes are not continued from
- Art Camp (Age 8-12)
one week to the other, so you can
- Digital Camp (Age 8-12)
sign up for one or two weeks.
- English Camp (Age 8-12)
- Week 1: June 22nd – 26th 2020
- English Camp (Age 12-17)
- Week 2: June 29th – July 3rd
Join us
cis.dk/summer-school
Copenhagen International School, Levantkaj 4-14, 2150 Nordhavn
SUMMER SCHOOLS 2020 GUIDE
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WONDERFUL COPENHAGEN
CHOOSING THE RIGHT SCHOOL NOBODY KNOWS YOUR CHILD BETTER THAN YOURSELF, SO MAKE SURE YOU SEND THEM TO AN ENVIRONMENT WHERE THEY WILL FLOURISH NOT FALTER! BY ANNA MARYAM SMITH Summer school is a staple in the Danish child’s summer holidays. Unlike summer school in the United States, they are not a chance for students to improve their grades or academically catch up. In Denmark, summer school is a chance for children of all ages to develop other interests. Whether it is to learn how to paint, write poetry, play hockey, knit or swim, the list is endless. These ‘camps’ are generally a week or two long, and schools offer several weeks to choose from – but most take place during the first half of the summer (i.e until early/ mid July). Some are more like the traditional ‘sleep
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SUMMER SCHOOLS 2020 GUIDE
away camps’ memorably portrayed in American youth movies, while at others the students are only there during the day. Combating learning loss The biggest selling point is that the schools can help keep your children stimulated. Summer is, more often than not, a period of time in which children are not intellectually or creatively challenged, and this is often problematic when they return to school in the autumn. According to the US think-tank Brookings, an analysis of the phenomenon of ‘summer learning loss’ concluded that children on average lose a month’s worth of school learning during the summer. This means they will struggle when they return to school in the autumn. It can
therefore be reasonably concluded that summer school can aid in reducing this drastic impact. However, this doesn’t mean that the only solution is to have children in an academic setting all summer. Being physically, creatively, or intellectually stimulated aids in your mental acuity because it increases the production of neural pathways that are used in learning, thus actively combating the summer learning loss. Therefore, by sending your child to summer camp you are able to help them get back to school on a more stable footing. Huge help to parents Summer school also steers your kids away from the temptation of sitting in front of a screen all day, allowing them to meet
and interact with children from all over Denmark, and develop life skills as well as interests in entirely new areas. It sure beats the alternative of bored children sitting around at home waiting for the rest of the family to clock off so they can travel. Especially due to Covid-19 this year, the options for children during those first few weeks of the holiday will probably be very limited because they can’t go to the movies, museums or amusement parks. Summer schools are therefore a big help to parents – especially ones with young children. The alternative can often be far more expensive, for example a nanny or babysitter, or troublesome: working at home whilst parenting. The lockdown has shown this is far from ideal!
Summer schools were created to combat this. They ensure children are kept occupied during the working hours of the day, thus allowing their parents to get their work done in the most productive manner possible. Potential obstacles However, summer schools are not entirely free of risk. The first, and most apparent one depending on the summer school as well as the child, is homesickness. Being away from family for even a day can appear daunting to children. Thus, attending summer school could create a lot of tension and make the child unhappy. But while every child is different, so is every summer school. It’s important to choose the right summer school for your child’s needs and to thoroughly take into account
the activities, distance from home etc. Of course, sometimes it’s impossible to find the right school for teenagers. They generally don’t like being told what to do at the best of times – especially when that means they can’t hang out with their friends or do what they want on their one long break from school. After all, for some it can be overwhelming – particularly if they are going directly from exams and tests into another, sometimes high intensity, learning environment. But if the approach to sending one’s child to summer school is facilitated in such a way that allows them to have control over the situation, and an awareness that this isn’t an academic setting but is in fact a chance to have fun, the rest will be smooth sailing.
WONDERFUL COPENHAGEN
SUMMER SCHOOLS 2020 GUIDE
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Marie Rønde is 19 years old and has just finished her first year studying anthropology at the University of Copenhagen. She is Danish-American and grew up in both Houston, Texas and Copenhagen. She graduated from International School in Hellerup in 2019 after receiving an IB Diploma.
THE INSIDE SCOOP
In the summer of 2015 she attended Copenhagen International School’s summer program for creative writing. Did you enjoy the experience of being at summer school? I did enjoy it because it was fun, free learning without the agenda of getting a specific grade – rather learning something purely because you find it interesting. It taught me that learning through passion, rather than simply ‘going to school’, makes it much more fun. Did it feel more like a relaxed summer activity or an intense academic experience? Relaxed and fun – a great time with friends. Do you think summer school is for everyone? I think it is not for a specific type nor would a specific type dislike it. If there is a class with a subject they enjoy, then there should be something for everyone. Would you recommend summer school to someone else? Yes!
IN ORDER TO UNDERSTAND WHETHER SUMMER SCHOOL IS WORTH IT, AS WELL AS WHAT IT HAS TO OFFER CHILDREN AND THEIR FAMILIES, A FEW FIRST-HAND TESTIMONIES ARE CRUCIAL. BY ANNA MARYAM SMITH ADVERTORIAL
ENGLISH LANGUAGE SKILLS A FOCUS FOR CIS SUMMER STUDENTS A CHOICE OF FOUR PROGRAMS FOR CHILDREN AGED 4-17 over the first two weeks of Copenhagen International the summer break. Parents/ School (CIS) has a wide variety students can choose between of camps on its summer school Week 1 (June 22-26), Week 2 program this year, offering a (June 29-July 3), or both. great opportunity for children to learn and improve their English. Art attack “All age levels within primary Additionally, they will learn school love building things,” new skills, make new friends, says Fiona, who is a teacher at and are sure to stay active in the art camp. a safe, positive, and creative environment. “I have never come across a child who hasn’t been really Their summer school program engaged when we built is taught in English and is open something Picasso-inspired, to all children. This includes like cubism – they are just children visiting Denmark and cutting and gluing away! Clay is the Copenhagen area, as well another great medium.” as students from other schools who may not be exposed to Aside from clay, young artists lessons taught in English as in the art camp also work often. with water colours, sketching, charcoal, pastels and more. Camp combo options Students can engage in Digital diligence learning, exploration, and In the digital camp, children adventure at any one of CIS’s summer camps: art camp (ages explore the fundamentals of computer programming and 8-12), activity camp (4-7), digital can channel their creativity camp (8-12), and English camp by making and designing (8-12 or 12-17). computer games. All four camps are available
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SUMMER SCHOOLS 2020 GUIDE
Students enrolled in the English camp sing songs, watch and discuss movies, cook, and even create their own stories to illustrate and share with the class. Activities with Andrea And for the younger crowd, there is the activity camp with Andrea, where children can enjoy music, play educational games and work on hands-on projects like arts and crafts and gardening. “Last year we had different teacher-led activities that we rotated: like face-painting
or making play dough,” says Andrea. At least once a week the activity camp get to go on a field trip. “The kids were really happy, and the parents too. Danish parents are particularly excited that their kids get exposure to English.” Few would disagree that the CIS summer program is a unique opportunity for children to learn new skills while also developing their English-speaking ability in the company of experienced EAL (English as an Additional Language) teachers. (NW)
roots and rediscover my home country from a new perspective. Did it feel more like a stressful academic experience, or more like a relaxed and fun summer activity? It felt a lot more like a fun summer activity than a stressful academic experience. As I recall, we only had three hours of lessons during the day. The rest of the day was filled with all sorts of summery activities and creative projects.
What did you attend summer school for? I attended summer school to practise my Danish. After many years abroad, I had become slightly out of touch with my mother tongue. Other than that, I also chose to go to the summer school because of its sports and creative activities, and because I could spend time with some of the friends I already had, while making new friends within the group. Did you enjoy your summer school experience? I only have fond memories from my time at summer school. It was a great couple of weeks, packed with fun. Memories include playing sports outside in the sun, going for long walks, canoeing, trips to the beach, art lessons, a trip to Copenhagen and, of course, spending lots of time with friends. After many years abroad, I think that it is only natural that one becomes slightly disconnected from their home country. I was [in Denmark] every summer, and when I was there we were only in our summerhouse – far away from everything else. The summer school gave me a chance to make friends and go to school in my home country. I got to go and explore my own country with a group of friends. I therefore think that it helped me to reconnect with my
Would you recommend summer school to someone else? I would definitely recommend the summer school to anyone considering it. After the first year, I decided to go again. A couple years later I decided to finish my high school at the very school I had gone to summer school at. This year I will be returning to the very same summer school as a member of the hard working staff, and I am looking forward to trying to give the students as positive an experience as I got when I was there.
Global Mindset - Global Education - Global Life
Oskar Groot, 20, is a waiter and film student in Copenhagen. He is Danish, but has been an expat for most of his life – living in Japan for two years, the UK for ten, and finally finishing his IB diploma at Herlufsholm School in Denmark. He attended Herlufsholm summer school twice – at the ages of 13 of 14.
Do you think summer school is for everyone? What types of people do you think would enjoy it? Conversely, what types of people do you think wouldn’t enjoy it? I definitely think that the summer school appeals to a broad group of teenagers. I think that it is especially designed for people looking to make new friends, and fill a long summer with a meaningful couple of weeks. I always used to get the summer blues when I was younger, when I would miss my friends dearly halfway through the summer holiday. But because I went to an international school, people were all over the planet, so I couldn’t see anyone. I think that was part of the thrill for me: it was the first time I could be away from my family during the summer holidays. I don’t think I would have enjoyed it as much if I was not open-minded and willing to try new things. I think it is essential to arrive with a ‘this will be fun’ attitude for the experience is to be fun. If you come with a good attitude, the school provides great care and attentiveness from the teachers, extraordinary facilities, and a myriad of possible experiences, within a safe and comfortable space.
An International Baccalaureate World School
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We welcome students from ages 3 to 18
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We offer the full continuum of International Baccalaureate (IB) programmes: PYP, MYP and DP, as well as Pre-K
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We deliver an excellent, well-rounded education in a caring and supportive learning environment
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We offer exciting trips, electives, and many more activities beyond the classroom
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We have Morning Club and After School Care
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We are affordable and offer scholarships
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Our teachers are passionate and highly qualified
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We pride ourselves on fostering reflective and purposeful learners, as well as responsible global citizens
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We are considerate, form warm relationships, and build and nurture our ISH Community Find out more about ISH, book a visit or contact us The International School of Hellerup is a Not-For-Profit IB World School with over 500 students representing more than 50 nationalities from around the world. Find out more about ISH, book a visit or contact us at + 45 70 20 63 68 I info@ish.dk I www.ish.dk
22 June to 7 August Fun-filled programme during the Summer holidays for children aged 4 to 12 For more information visit www.ish.dk/summer or contact summer@ish.dk International School of Hellerup ISH 2020 (05.29) Rygårds Allé 131, 2900 Hellerup, Denmark SUMMER SCHOOLSCopyright 2020 GUIDE
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