Summer programmes for children at Kalaignar Centenary Library an instant hit

Summer programmes and workshops for children at Kalaignar Centenary Library include traditional games, art forms, and more.

The summer programmes and workshops for children being held at Kalaignar Centenary Library have turned out to be an instant hit among the children and their parents. The month-long event organised by the Directorate of Public Libraries which began on May 1 saw a jam-packed crowd on Friday.

The theme for Friday’s event was traditional games. The organisers explained the importance of the traditional games such as pallanguzhi, pachaikuthirai and tongue twisters in Tamil.

As the children were engaged in the fun activities, the parents and grandparents of the children cheered them on. The event which began at 11 a.m. concluded at 1 p.m.

The library officials said that such events were being held at the library during the weekends and even then a large number of children took part in the activities. Encouraged by this, they started the month-long event during the summer vacation for the children. People have been bringing their children for the events, they said.

The programmes and workshops for children include traditional games and art forms, short film making, story writing, drama, drawing and chess among others. The candidates have to fill up the form that was available on the library website in order to register and participate in the events.

The registration for the events was a must and the admission was free. People sometimes bring their children to the events without registering. However, they were also being permitted to participate and the procedure was explained to the parents, the library officials said.

Traditional games involve physical and mental strength and when children play these games it helps in their overall growth and development. Children should be encouraged to play the traditional games instead of the games on mobile phones and computers, said M. S. Hamsi Suganya of the Turning Point Trust that conducted the event on traditional games.