We’ve already introduced the Online Workshop Collection and the transition of the Workshop Collection to an online format, but CANVAS has also moved its “Kids Creative Lab” workshop series online.

The “Kids Creative Lab” is a series of collaborative creative workshops based on the spiral of “Feel → Think → Create → Communicate (→ Feel),” which we have been conducting on university campuses and other locations.We offer workshops in a wide range of fields, including visual arts, design, film, music, movement, digital media, programming, the environment, science, math, language, international exchange, and food. We, too, had to cancel our in-person sessions.However, we wondered: precisely because of these circumstances, couldn’t we provide children spending time at home with opportunities to “create”? Couldn’t we offer them time to collaborate with people outside their immediate families? That’s how preparations for our online initiative, “Workshops at Home,” began. We set out to create workshop kits to be delivered to participants’ homes, produce videos, and develop interactive online workshop curricula.For our staff as well, these were days of trial and error as we tackled this first-of-its-kind endeavor.

On the other hand, we’ve heard some parents express confusion: “Workshops online?!” From a parent’s perspective, the reasons for enrolling their children at the Kids Creative Institute go beyond the core goal of providing a “creative” experience. Some want their children to step foot into the unique environment of a university; others want them to have dynamic experiences they can’t have at home for fear of getting things dirty; and still others simply want someone to watch their children.

To be honest, we received a number of messages from people saying they’d rather not participate if it were held online. “What is Zoom?” “We’ve banned watching YouTube, so I don’t want to show my child videos for long periods of time.” “Isn’t there value in holding it in person?”

As a result, only one-third of our usual participants attended the online workshop in April. However, after offering Zoom trial sessions and other activities, 60 percent of the children returned in May. Furthermore, we received applications from children in areas where it is difficult to attend in-person workshops, who were able to secure spots through cancellations.

Since CANVAS would find it difficult to continue if we established a precedent of offering free online workshops, we charge the same 5,000 yen participation fee as we do for in-person workshops. However, by incorporating features unique to online workshops, we’ve been attracting more new participants, so we’ve relaunched the online Kids’ Creative Lab, “Our Secret Hideout.” We hope you’ll all join us.

https://www.canvas.ws/kenkyujo/

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