FOR STUDENTS: Are you a student 1st-5th grader who dreams of traveling the world? Would you like to become a polyglot and speak languages from across the globe? Then join us this winter break for our completely free, virtual culture camp, where we'll immerse ourselves in the languages, histories, and practices of various international cultures! We'll create mini-passports, multicultural crafts, and presentations that will help you build a foundation of cultural awareness and global citizenship. 

FOR PARENTS: It can be a daunting task to keep your kids entertained from home for two long weeks of winter break. The World in Us’ virtual culture camp hopes to alleviate some of these pressures and engage kids in live, daily cultural awareness education. Not only will your children build friendships with peers from across the world, but they’ll also establish a foundation of cross-cultural communication skills that are needed to thrive in today’s ever-diversifying, ever-globalizing world.

FAST FACTS

• Dates: Thursday, December 26 - Monday, December 30

• Ages: 7-11 years

• Location: Virtual (conducted via Zoom and Google Drive)

• Times: morning in Pacific Time each day

  • Each day’s session will last between 60-90 minutes. Daily start times will be determined by participant availability as marked in the signup form. The session starts with an introductory lesson followed by a hands-on activity. There will be a break between the lesson and activity.

• Cost: Free

  • We are able to keep our programs free thanks to financial support from the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Cultural and Educational Affairs.

PROGRAM STRUCTURE

Students will learn about 5 cultures from across the world (1 culture per day). Learning for each culture will involve an introductory lesson and hands-on activity. 

Throughout the camp, we will provide optional asynchronous resources and follow-up activities, such as additional cultural recipes and resources about specific cultural issues. For students unable to attend the day’s session, the materials will be made available for students to view on their own time.

Communication with parents will be maintained primarily through email; kids are encouraged but not required to join a class Discord chat.

• Culture Lesson

  • Each culture will be introduced with an interactive presentation encompassing the culture’s geography, food, language, and more. 

• Cultural Immersion Activity

  • Each culture will include an immersive, hands-on activity such as cooking recipes from the culture, creating holiday cards in the culture’s language, and making arts and crafts related to the culture.

ELIGIBILITY & REQUIREMENTS

Location and Attendance: Students from anywhere in the world can join! We only ask that you attend at least 4 of our scheduled sessions in Pacific Time (PT). We understand how uncertain schedules can be right now, and we know our international participants may have time zone discrepancies; thus, we are flexible with attendance.

Materials: We will use common school supplies such as pencils, markers, and paper for our craft activities. Some afternoon activities will be kid-friendly cooking workshops, for which ingredients and recipes will be released beforehand. To accommodate students of all ages and skill levels, each culture will also have at least one non-cooking workshop.

Previous Experience: No previous cultural, language-learning, or travel experience required! Students need only to come in with a curious mind open to new perspectives, cultures, and possibilities.

Internet Access: We will use Zoom and Google Drive for lessons. Students will need access to and familiarity with these platforms.