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BGC Airdrie adds slate of new youth programs for August

BGC Airdrie has announced additional summer programs to keep local youth busy and learning in the last month before the new school year begins in September.

BGC Airdrie has announced some additional summer programs to keep local youth busy and learning in the last month before the new school year begins in September.

“We love to have lots of fun at BGC, but we really value intentional programming,” said the club’s manager of youth programs and services, Sammy Morros. “We want you to walk away with more than just a good time – we want you to learn something too.”

Four workshops on various topics are set to run this month, with the aim of providing something valuable to all attendees.

Robo-tech is first on the docket, running Aug. 12 and 13. For $30, youth ages 10 to 15 years old can learn foundational skills related to coding, robot-building, and video game creation and animation.

Morros added BGC Airdrie has lots of cool tech gadgets at their disposal, including virtual reality, JIMU Bots, Makey-Makey Kits and Scratch, which is a game-coding animation software.

“Robo-tech is so much fun,” she said.

For the young foodies out there, Healthy Eating Day is a four-hour workshop taking place on Aug. 19 that will teach youth proper kitchen safety, recipes and cooking techniques, in addition to healthy food habits and meal preparation.

“We find that [nutrition programming] is something that families are really looking for,” Morros explained.

A fee of $30 gets participants hands-on experience and the chance to eat all of the delicious creations as well as a ‘chef-kit’ with an apron and some kitchen tools to bring home.

For teenaged youth interested in learning how to drive, participants 13 and older can sign up for Accelerate – a program that teaches them everything they need to know about taking their Class 7 Alberta Learner’s Licence Exam.

The class is being held on Aug. 20 and 27 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and includes a pizza lunch, a set of review flashcards, and a presentation from a former driver's licence test examiner. The Accelerate program costs $50. 

“The big idea is that they’re not trying to study by themselves – we’re doing it all together,” Morros said.

With the return to class quickly approaching, BGC Airdrie’s $30 Mental Health Day on Aug. 26 is designed to educate and prepare teens for the stress that may arise when school is back in session.

Morros said the mental health-focused program will be pertinent considering the uncertainties surrounding how COVID-19 might impact the upcoming school year. Mental Health Day is therefore designed to provide students with tools to manage their stress and discuss mental health concerns and mindfulness practices.

“We anticipate a lot of stress being placed on youth as they head back into that school time,” she said. “As exciting as it’ll be to be back in person, we know that that comes with a lot of big feelings.”

She said most of the programs BGC Airdrie offers come directly from community input, and the upcoming August sessions are no exception.

“We’re just having those conversations with kids and youth and parents about ‘What do you want to see? What are you into right now? What kind of stuff do you want to do?’” she said.

The youth program manager also said that schedules for fall programs will be released soon.

For more information about BGC Airdrie and its programs, visit bgcairdrie.com

Lauryn Heintz, AirdrieToday.com

Follow me on Twitter @LaurynHeintz

 

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