Opportunity Guide I Summer, Enrichment & Activities Guide

If your child loves singing, dancing, acting, playing an instrument, composing music or painting and designing, she will find a plethora of outstanding fun and instructional programs where she can develop her talents and meet people who love what she does. Check out extracurricular arts activities, including performance opportunities, at your child’s school or at local community centers. Specialized private weekend classes and summer programs for students of all levels are sponsored by various art institutes, music festivals, universities and professional music and dance companies.

To perform at the highest levels, many arts, especially music and dance, require private lessons and enrichment. If your child likes to perform, look for audition opportunities at local fairs, festivals, community orchestras and theaters. Many professional theaters and ballet companies sponsor summer intensive programs from talented youth. A child who enjoys competing may be interested in participating in arts contests where her work can earn recognition and win awards. The best students compete, at national arts contests that offer scholarship prizes.

If your child is a budding news reporter or journalist, there are a wide array of school-based and extramural programs to help him develop the important skills for journalism, including reporting, writing, photography, audio and television production, and social media. Writing for a school newspaper is a great way to gain experience in a community of like-minded peers. If there is no school-based paper or similar activity, encourage your child to start a newspaper or to create his own blog. Specialty camps, including selective ones sponsored by undergraduate journalism programs, offer classes in all aspects of journalism including print, digital, social media and broadcasting. For a child who likes contests, there are journalism and writing competitions that will give participants a reason to sharpen their skills for a chance to win prizes and awards.

If your child is interested in news production or broadcasting, have him check out school or community public access radio or tv broadcasting opportunities. Some community access TV stations and professional stations will take student interns or volunteers. Many community colleges offer TV production and broadcasting classes. There’s also an array of specialty broadcasting summer camps, including some that focus on sports broadcasting, while others teach the real-world skill set necessary to thrive in broadcast TV, cable, and internet news.