Opportunity Guide I Summer, Enrichment & Activities Guide

If your child is fascinated by subjects like philosophy, literature, religion, art, music, history and language, there are a multitude of online, school-based, and extramural programs and classes available. These activities provide fantastic opportunities for in-depth study and contest opportunities. If your community lacks resources in the Humanities, consider having her create a club or team to share ideas, work on projects and participate in competitions with like-minded individuals. Sometimes a club can affiliate with a national organization that encourages the study of a specific humanities subject (e.g., the National History Club). A club can also bring together children with a common interest to study for competitions (e.g., U.S. Geography Olympiad team; North American Computational Linguistics Olympiad) or for group discussions (e.g., a book club or a language club). Founding a club also provides an opportunity for a child to gain and demonstrate important leadership skills.

Outside of school, selective academic summer camps offer many interesting and high level humanity-related courses. Other options for your child to look into include: summer immersion programs (language); expedition programs (anthropology; archeology), lab opportunities (archeology), museum and gallery internships (art history). For a child who likes contests, there are national exams and contests, some of which may be offered by your child’s school (e.g., The National French Contest; the National Latin Exam; the National Mythology Exam). If getting published sounds like a worthwhile goal to your child, encourage her to explore journalism and media programs.

Developing as a writer requires writing a lot. There are opportunities available to encourage and motivate young writers and help them develop their craft.  If writing poems, plays and stories excites your child, encourage her submit her writing for publication in a school or special interest magazine. There are more than a few online literary and writing magazines that publish writing by and for children and teens.

For a child that likes competitions, many historical organizations and various nonprofits (e.g., environmental groups) sponsor annual themed writing contests for children in various age/grade categories. For an older child who wants to improve and enhance her skills, there are specialized summer writing workshops and intensives that offer focused concentrations (e.g., science fiction, screenwriting, novel writing) and provide an opportunity for peer review.