KHL provided places for up to 15 families to come together in the school holidays to enjoy activities like crafting, cooking, baking and a picnic in the park. We also provided the families with healthy snacks and drinks during the session and each family went home with a food kit that they could enjoy for tea that the children could help make.
Session 1
The first session of the Healthy Holidays campaign was a great success. The children spent time doing some arts and crafts and playing with the toys we have available. Alongside the play and crafts, we offered a selection of snacks and drinks. During the session, the children used the KHL kitchen to create their own pizzas for everyone to enjoy.
Session 2
The second session was forecast to be a lovely sunny day, therefore we met at the park for a family picnic and outdoor play!
KHL provided some snacks and drinks and outdoor play equipment including a parachute, which the children loved.
Session 3
This session offered a variety of indoor and outdoor activities. During the arts and crafts, the children created pictures of bugs. We then used the KHL kitchen
to make and bake tasty scones!
Whilst the scones were baking, we made our way outside to play in the KHL garden and picked pears from the tree.
Session 4
For the last session, it was forecast rain. We therefore used the KHL arts and crafts supplies to create collages using a variety of different materials. We also made fresh popcorn in the pan, which the children loved to eat – with added chocolate, of course!
A number of staff and volunteers made the Healthy Holidays campaign a roaring success! Rebecca (nutritionist at KHL) supported the sessions in the KHL kitchen and Helen James (volunteer and freelance craft worker) was available for 3 of the sessions that were at KHL. Natalie Edge also volunteered in one of the sessions at KHL.
48 food parcels were given out over the 4 weeks to the families that attended the sessions. The KHL family sessions supported 15 families over the summer holidays by providing these activities and access to a meal kit.
Number of adults attended – 15
Number of children – 34
In addition to the Healthy Holidays campaign, we also ran the Young Chefs and Young Artists course. This was aimed at older children (aged 7 – 11).
Young Chefs
As part of the Healthy Holidays 2022 programme at KHL a series of
workshops were delivered during the summer. Young Chefs was part of this programme with 8 workshops being delivered over three weeks in August.
The sessions were aimed at children aged 7-11 years old (KS2) with exceptions made for slightly older children to also join in (aged 12-14 years old) when numbers were either low or when attending in a supportive capacity.
The sessions were delivered by KHL staff and volunteers on site.
The children made two recipes each session, often one being savoury and another sweet. They made a whole range of recipes including: lemon cupcakes, fishcakes, pizza, flapjack, quiche, brownies, carrot cake, and enchiladas!
The children learnt a whole range of skills, both practically in the kitchen but also socially within the group environment: Food hygiene such as hand washing, apron use, preventing cross contamination and the importance of food temperatures.
They also learnt basic nutritional information such as what the Eat Well
Guide is and what makes up a balanced diet, what 5-a-day is and why it is important. We also learnt about the processes of food making, looking at what is happening biologically and chemically! The children were very eager and enthusiastic as to why we were doing certain things certain ways and
what happens if you change certain aspects. For example they enjoyed
learning how dried yeast works and how we ‘wake it up’ to help make our bread airy and light.
The children developed a positive relationship with cooking and being in
the kitchen. They enjoyed being more included and responsible than they
would be at home, and relished learning in a relaxed and safe environment where mistakes were treated as learning curves and challenges for the children to overcome as a group.
Young Artists
As part of the Healthy Holidays 2022 programme at KHL a series of
workshops were delivered during the summer. Young Artists was
part of this summer programme with 5 workshops delivered in
August. Workshops were aimed at children aged 7yrs – 11yrs (KS2)
and delivered by KHL staff on site. Young Artists was a series of workshops which encourage children to explore their creative ideas in a safe and supportive environment.
Children were encouraged to speak about themselves and share thoughts in a safe and nurturing environment. The children talked their homes and places they had visited and would like to visit as part of the summer gardens workshop. We discussed colours and how they made you feel and how we can use them to express ourselves in the colour association workshop, and we spoke about how we can represent ourselves and who we are in our pop art portraits workshop. Some children spoke openly in the group to share their ideas and some chose to speak on a one-to-one basis with the teacher. Each child was given the chance to speak about their ideas with encouragement and support to create an artwork to take home.
The children learnt new skills as part of taking part in the workshops and explored new words and language whilst creating their artwork. The children were able to increase their cognitive skills by listening and remembering information to create their artwork as well using/increasing their fine motor skills using scissors and drawing.
The children who took part in the workshop enjoyed creating their artwork
and had a positive experience when they visited KHL. The children and their parents were interested in future programmes of activity for themselves and their children to take part in. The workshops they took part in will increase confidence to take part in further activities in their local area and KHL.
