The Foundation looks for programmes that bring a fresh approach to the arts to young people and children, either in school or in extra-curricular projects. We believe that each person is capable of practicing an art, and is enriched by it.
Since 2005, we have been providing free arts education programmes for children and youth in Hong Kong. Through photography, writing and the joy of movement, participants discover and express their authentic selves. To create synergy with multi-level impact, we engage strategic partners in running these programmes. Three Creative Arts Education Programmes organised by the Foundation
Since its inception in 2005, the Foundation’s Through Our Eyes photography education programme has focused on helping young people find and express their authentic voices. Designed and initiated by the Foundation, the programme encourages participants to release their potentiality through photography and creative writing. Students explore issues of identity, family, community, cultural heritage and the environment. They also discover how they connect with the outside world. To date, more than 1,000 students from about 200 schools throughout Mainland China and Hong Kong have participated in Through Our Eyes. We create platforms to showcase the creative works by students, sharing them with the public to promote a greater understanding of the inner world of youngsters. We have published Through Our Eyes – A Photographic View of Hong Kong by Its Youth and Through Our Eyes My Light; organized outdoor exhibitions Wanchai In A Different Light in 2006 and City Kiss in 2008; and collaborated with newspapers on serialized publishing projects. Besides summer workshops, Through Our Eyes has been integrating into the extra-curricular activities of secondary schools in Hong Kong since 2007. It has also co-organized theme-specific workshops for local youth with art organizations. Please click here to learn more about Through Our Eyes
Get It Write!, the second art education programme initiated and organized by the Foundation, aims to enhance the enthusiasm of youth for literary writing in Chinese. Such endeavors would allow them to explore and express their inner selves and to discover their connection with the world. Get It Write! emphasizes the participation of students in class, through a series of writing activities incorporating photography, drama and community-based research. By introducing inspiring literary works close to youth culture, we hope to strengthen participants’ skills and interest in reading and writing, and gradually infuse the two disciplines into the their daily lives. To deepen the impact, the Foundation invited the Hong Kong-based literary magazine, Fleurs des Lettres, to co-design and co-organize the pilot programme in 2008. It was well received and attracted 46 students from 14 local secondary schools. The written work of the students will be compiled as a publication. The programme will be expanded in 2009, offering two levels of workshops for both junior and senior secondary students.
Writing Education Workshop by Fleurs des LettresTo meet the growing demand for qualified instructors to run writing workshops for secondary school students in Hong Kong, this two-month Workshop provides comprehensive training for young writers who are dedicated to inspiring students to practise writing as a creative channel. Outstanding participants will have the opportunity to teach as mentors in Get It Write!
The effort to introduce Leap! in Hong Kong began in 2006, when the Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation visited the Cloud Gate Dance School in Taiwan. The Foundation observed the classes of LifePulse, a curriculum co-developed by the School’s founder, Mr. Lin Hwai-min, and an experienced team of artists and professionals in education and childhood development. Upon learning about Cloud Gate’s use of movement as an educational medium and its solid curriculum, and experiencing the energetic, fun-filled ambience in the classrooms, the Foundation decided to bring this special gift to the children of Hong Kong. Both the Foundation and the Dance School firmly believe that youngsters are natural-born dancers. However, the standard educational system heavily emphasizes the development of intelligence, which has prevailed over body education. Agreeing on the need to provide children with opportunities for body education, the two organizations joined hands to develop Leap!, a programme through which youngsters are encouraged to explore their own bodies and learn to appreciate themselves as well as people around them. In a friendly environment, the children will also learn to respect the differences among people and accept disparate values. Leap! takes dance as a teaching medium, however, and the curriculum does not aim to train dance talent. The Teaching Artists do not even teach the children to dance. Instead, Leap! inspires youngsters through imaginary scenarios and metaphors, leading them to create their own body movements and find their unique body rhythms. To do so, Leap! Teaching Artists imagine and use stories and scenarios based on experience that children would actually encounter in their lives. The Artists may invite the youngsters to act as trains running in different directions, prompting them to discover their own movements. The Artists also encourage children to work with classmates to create team shapes, in the process letting them enjoy the experience of interacting with peers. Using daily objects as teaching tools, Teaching Artists may lead children to observe curly objects and to imitate their shapes. The kids do so as they create their own curves by bending different parts of their bodies. In some classes, a couple of bananas are enough to serve as effective teaching tools, inspiring youngsters to perform interesting movements together. Each Leap! class focuses on a different combination of elements – speed, level, rhythm, shapes. The elements are designed to work together to achieve specific teaching goals. Linkages are made between classes to enhance the overall learning process. Leap! puts high priority on the participation and involvement of children. To provide an open, welcoming ambience, no model answers or instruction will be imposed. Children are encouraged to unleash their creativity and discover the infinite possibilities inherent in their bodies. A fun environment helps them enjoy the experience of learning, even as they develop confidence and positive values. The Leap! Teaching Artists are the key to seamless implementation of the curriculum. Six professionals strongly committed to dance and education were selected in early 2009 and sent to Taiwan to undergo three months of intensive pre-job training at Cloud Gate Dance School. To ensure that the programme is smoothly run, Teaching Supervisors assigned by the Dance School regularly visit the classes in Hong Kong. The training in Taiwan helped ensure that the Teaching Artists fully understand the mission of Leap! It also instilled deeper knowledge of needed skills, including early-childhood education, pedagogy, body awareness, dance, music and theatre. The pre-job training totaled 300 hours, during which the Teaching Artists faced a major challenge: no matter how experienced they were, they must free themselves from their backgrounds and expertise and learn essentials from scratch. Body education takes a long time and the processes that the children will go through are very subtle. Its impact is deep inside and can last a lifetime. To the children, such a gift is priceless: nothing can take away what their bodies have learned.
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Through Our Eyes |
