“Celebrating Christmas in the middle of summer and a visit from The Queen: everything is possible at a Roeland camp”
WAKE UP! A bunch of sleepy kids looks around in a daze while Christmas music blasts from the speakers. Not an unusual scene, except for the fact that it happens in the middle of August. The students make their way to the breakfast area while chattering cheerfully but when they enter, they fall silent for a moment. A dazzling Christmas tree is shining, Christmas music is playing and a cosy fire is being projected on the wall.
A visit from The Queen
This is a classic at a Roeland camp. Every day revolves around a theme and we put in our best effort to make it happen. The staging of a little play is the icing on the cake and it really kicks off theme day. One of the activity leaders gets wheeled in on a cart. He is wearing a dress and a bathing cap. The children anxiously await what will happen next. None other than 'The Queen' starts giving a speech.
I think that's one of the best things about volunteering at Roeland. Every day is a new adventure, and the staff members have what seems to be boundless creativity. In just one week, we cloned a dinosaur, then brought it to life; we dressed up as dragons and superheroes, my hair got dyed in red, we painted another activity leader from head to toe, first in green and later in orange. We built a campfire and sang songs, dressed up our head of logistics as a mermaid (he was very happy with that, by the way) and we even solved the murder of Spiderman.
Friends for life
In just one week we made friends for life. Soon we will reunite, to have game evenings and dinners. We still send messages now and then, saying we miss each other and to be careful when toasting a slice of bread (there may have been a little smoke detector accident). We have had incredible evenings accompanied by a nice fifth meal, and as a group we became ever so close.
Skilful speakers
In just one week we have seen students evolve from shy to skilful speakers. According to the Roeland principles, they are only allowed to speak English. They learn in a playful way and are being diligently adjusted, and that’s when the magic happens. The children pick up a lot of words and grammar without realizing it during the lessons and activities. They must use the English language to work together to escape from mazes, try to steal an egg from a dragon or to solve an escape game. In addition to the lessons and activities, they also engage in science labs and all kinds of experiments (many eggs were sacrificed in the process).
In just one week we had the time of our lives.
Evelien Dierckx
Head of didactics
Boost your English
