A Whole Lot of History
Technology has been stealing the spotlight with kids for quite some time now, but history is about to make a smashing comeback. Since 2004, the Singapore Heritage Festival has been promoting community bonding and celebrating our rich heritage through a series of exhibitions, cultural programmes and interactive workshops. Here’s how you can get your kids in the thick of things at the Singapore Heritage Festival starting this weekend:
Through Toys – Our Nostalgic Singapore
We all know how Singapore was like in the early years. Explore this period through the lens of an early traveler, and gain new insights into how Singapore might look like to an outsider. Journey with MINT Museum of Toys as they take you on a nostalgic journey of Singapore through toys from the region, and fully understand our unique position as the port of the world.
Guided Tour: Only on Weekends and Public Holidays
Dates: 30 Apr – 01 May, 6-7 May, 10 May, 13 – 14 May
Time: 11am, 2pm, 4pm
Cost: $6
What better way to begin your kids’ history lesson than by introducing them to the different eras of dance and music? Watch them show their best moves to the well-loved tunes from the 60s and beyond. The young ones will really get to amp up the fun at the disco party created especially for them. Wait for the best part. It’s Free!
Dates:
29-30 April: 4-5pm
6 May: 4-4:30pm
1, 7 May: 10-11am
Storytelling has been one of the best ways to relay history from one generation to the next. Let your kids be enthralled by a world of myths and legends and the tales of forefathers. With titles like Attack of the Swordfish and Badang the Magnificent, kids are sure to absorb all the details whether big or small.
Dates: 28 April – 04 May: 10am to 10pm
Cost: Free
Sure you can teach your kid about Dr. Sun Yat Sen’s revolutionary activities from any old textbook but how about letting them learn something unique about him, like what his favorite tropical fruits were? Become a fruit explorer for a day and join Miss Pineapple at the Sun Yat Sen Nanyang Memorial Hall to find out these intricacies through interactive storytelling and hands-on activities.
Dates: 30 April 2-5pm
Cost: Free
History doesn’t have to be taught in a classroom or museum, using only textbooks and slides. Facts and figures can also be conveyed via more interactive and healthy methods such as a nature trail through Fort Canning Park. Kids will be wowed to learn that things such as a Kapok tree can grow up to 40 meters high or that Singapore is home to beautiful heritage trees with names like Flame of the Forest, Gelam and Madras Thorn.
Date: 29 April 4-6pm
Artists have used the street as their canvas for eons and will continue to do so. From 1 May – 14 May, Campbell Lane will be transformed into a work of art inspired by floral designs and Indian textile motifs. Kids are sure to enjoy the bright colours and the vivid imagery and adults can use it as a backdrop for their next selfie.
Dates: 1 – 14 May
Cost: Free