An initiative offering children a passport to out-of-school-hours learning experiences will have a stand at the Island’s national day celebrations next week.
 
Children’s University – launched locally in March – rewards and celebrates five to 14-year-olds’ participation in activities that take place outside the normal school day.
 
Children purchase passports for ?2 and gain stamps by visiting validated ‘public learning destinations’. Certificates charting their progress are awarded at graduation ceremonies.
 
With the school summer holidays approaching, membership of Children’s University gives passport-holders access to accredited public learning destinations in the Isle of Man and also across the UK and beyond.
 
Children also gain stamps in their passports by attending their schools’ own lunchtime and after-school activities, provided they have been validated.
 
Carys Lloyd, who leads Children’s University locally, said 10 schools are already active as learning partners, with many more expected to join in the new academic year.
 
Pupils at schools that are not Children’s University learning partners can still sign up by contacting the local CU centre or coming along to stand 24 at the Fair Field at St John’s on Tynwald Day on July 5th.
 
Those interested in registering their activity as a public learning destination should also pop along for a chat.
 
Public learning destinations validated so far are:
 
Manx National Heritage’s sites Island-wide and events run especially for children
 
Manx Sport and Recreation’s after-school and holiday clubs for children, run at the NSC and secondary school sites across the Island.
 
Manx Youth Orchestras, which take place on 30 Saturday mornings throughout the year and are run by the Department of Education and Children’s Music Service.
 
Manx Heritage Foundation’s Bree, a Manx music youth movement that features a monthly Saturday afternoon music session and regular workshop days and weekends.
 
The Manx Wildlife Trust, which offers workshops, nature walks, rock pooling and pond and river-dipping activities.
 
The Curragh’s Wildlife Park and Film School, both run by the Department of Community, Culture and Leisure.
 
Onchan Silver Band.
 
The Reading Agency’s Summer Reading Challenge at participating libraries on the Isle of Man and in the UK.
 
Carys said: ‘We are working hard to get new learning destinations validated and we have a lot of interest from those running clubs and groups for five to 14-year-olds. If you run an activity and would like to be included, please visit our stand at the Fair Field or get in touch with us by phone or email.  The validation process is simple and not too time-consuming and during the first year of the IOM CU’s operation, public learning destinations will be validated free of charge.
                      
Public learning destinations will display the black and gold Children’s University ‘Learning Destination’ logo and be advertised on both the IOM CU and the CU UK Trust’s websites.
 
For more information on Children’s University and to see which schools are taking part, visit the website www.iomcu.im, which is sponsored by business and technology company Intelligence, the Facebook page Isle of Man Children’s University or the Twitter feed @IOMCU. Alternatively, contact Carys Lloyd on 685820 or email enquire@iomcu.im. For details of learning destinations further afield, visit www.childrensuniversity.co.uk.