Ghent (The Brussels Morning Newspaper): Ghent has launched its first summer academy for toddlers focusing on improving Dutch language skills through fun activities. The program themed around “friendship,” aims to support young children from diverse backgrounds during the summer break filling all available spots.
In Ghent there is a special summer academy just for toddlers. This is the first time a program like this has been created for such young kids, even though the city has had summer academies for older children and teens for a while now. The academy is set up to help 30 toddlers get better at speaking Dutch over 10 days. They use fun ways to make learning enjoyable for the kids. Activities include reading a special picture book, playing language games and doing other fun activities. The main theme is “friendship,” which is included in all the lessons to create a friendly and supportive place for the toddlers. This program not only helps the kids improve their language skills but also helps them make friends, making it a great experience for both learning and socializing.
How is Ghent supporting young children from diverse language backgrounds during summer?
Alderman Evita Willaert (Groen) talked about how important it is to help young kids who come from different language backgrounds during the summer. She knows that summer holidays can make it harder for them to learn languages. That’s why the city started a special summer academy in Ghent just for toddlers. This is the first time they have created a program for such young children. The summer academy offers special Dutch language lessons to help young kids keep improving their language skills during the long break. The fact that all the spots are filled shows that many parents and the community really want this program. The academy doesn’t just focus on language it also looks at other important ways to help toddlers grow during the summer.
Alderman Evita Willaert (Groen) mentioned that “We chose to start this program at the end of summer so kids can have a good start for the new school year. It’s a temporary solution and I still believe we should change school holidays to have fewer weeks in summer and more breaks at other times. In Ghent this summer academy for toddlers is a first, while other places in Flanders, like Antwerp, have similar programs. We’re waiting to see how well it works, and then we’ll decide if we can continue it in Ghent, depending on what the new management team wants after the elections in October.”
