EXCURSIONS
Ikamvanites visited the Sci Bono Discovery Centre based in New Town, Johannesburg. Ikamvanites were thrilled with scientific phenomena brought into life on their guided tour. They attended an intriguing public lecturer on the history of mathematics in Egypt and thoroughly enjoyed the Science of Soccer Exhibition.
Ikamvanites also enjoyed the opportunity to tour the Amalgamated Beverage Industries (ABI) depot in Midrand and were treated to a cinema style setup where refreshments were served and the story of Coca Cola was told to a riveted audience from the very beginnings (it’s hard to imagine life before Coca Cola). A chemical engineer and tour guide entertained with mesmerising facts and trivia and the day ended with a gift pack in hand and memories of an outstanding tour of the biggest Coca Cola plant in the Southern Hemisphere.
CREATIVE EXPRESSIONS
As an introduction to the winter school we ran a ‘body maps’ workshop on the first day. This
is a process by which students trace the outline of their body and then using paint, pastels and found objects such as beads, feathers and pompoms, fill in the ‘map’ of their body. We were overwhelmed by the moving, fascinating and fun final products.
In addition, there were also the following activities that ran throughout the winter school where learners broke into smaller groups: IkamvaCares, Digital Photography Project, Poetry and Drama, Hip-Hop and Dance.
COMPUTER LITERACY TRAINING
IkamvaYouth’s Grade 10 learners with no previous experience of computers were introduced to the world of IT through Operation Fikelela, our context-specific introductory computer literacy training curriculum. The group will continue the lessons through the rest of the year.
SKYPE SESSION WITH BRAZILIAN YOUTH
World Cup Fever is of course global and there’s no country better acquainted with world cup soccer glory than Brazil which was just one of a number of topical conversations Ikamvanites had over Skype with CAJU, a Brazilian youth group keen to exchange life experiences and share in some world cup fever from across the Atlantic. Ikamvanites learnt that many of the social issues, dreams and ambitions of Brazilian youth are very similar to their own. As a special surprise, Ikamvaites also received Brazilian t-shirts from the Brazilian Embassy which went down a treat.
XENOPHOBIA—’WHERE DO I STAND?’
IkamvaYouth screened Molly Blank’s thought provoking documentary “Where do I stand?” on xenophobia which prompted much reflective and introspective thoughts from Ikamvanites. Be sure to log on to our website IkamvaYouth for some of the responses from our Cape Town learners.
HIV/AIDS AWARENESS—VOLUNTARY TESTING & COUNSELLING
Ikamvanites learnt that taking charge of their futures also means taking charge of their health and specifically, take charge of their status. The first step is to test and KNOW YOUR STATUS. During the winter school personnel from New Start presented on the confidentiality and voluntary testing procedure followed by presentations and disclosure from the members of the Philani Support Group based at Ivory Park. More than a third of our learners and volunteers went and tested. The turnout exceeded our expectations and as a result New Start will be invited again later this year.
YOUTH DAY 2010
Ikamvanites marked Youth Day with a time of reflection by lighting candles for the victims of the past and the present. Ikamvanite Joe Manciya led the group through a multimedia commemoration of the events of Soweto in 1976 and brought these to our present consciousness as Ikamvanites asked themselves what we can do to shape our world.
Lloyd Lungu