Retrospective
FHP Children Compose Their Own Songs: Successful Autumn Holiday Workshop by the FAMteam
The FAMteam offers a holiday workshop twice a year to bridge the lecture period for students and to relieve employees of the stress of looking after their children during the holidays. This is aimed at FHP children between the ages of 6 and 12 and has been free of charge since 2022. Here, children meet again and again or get to know each other for the first time, but above all they have fun on campus.
Each holiday workshop has a specific theme, which the FAMteam plans and designs with great passion. The children have already become little programmers, filmmakers and nature experts, specialists for sewage and water treatment plants or, as in the last autumn holiday workshop, songwriters à la "Write your song".
Who doesn't know the famous television programme? Every child has the desire to sing and write lyrics. We wanted to give our FHP children the opportunity to be accompanied by real experts and write their own, completely individualised song. We were able to recruit two musicians from Potsdam who were able to help the children with their own skills. This workshop could develop in all directions: writing lyrics, composing melodies and playing an instrument. But nothing had to, and everything could! The children's independence was very important. Whatever came out of them was poured into the songs, both musically and lyrically.
The two workshop leaders were Ruben Wittchow – who gives many live concerts, produces music for home and has already given similar workshops at Treffpunkt Freizeit – and Michael Gerlinger - an actor, singer, musician and percussionist. He plays with Poetenpack Potsdam and gives readings in the surrounding palaces and gardens. The two were supported by students from the Bachelor's degree programme in Childhood Education and, of course, by the FAMteam.
On Monday we started our obligatory get-to-know-you rally with surprise moments for the children and from Tuesday it was time for the songs ... ready, set, go! After an extended warm-up with grimacing, gargling noises and jumping jacks (even the big stars do this!), we immersed ourselves in the world of rhyming, went in search of inspiration and put our first thoughts on paper. The children composed alone or in small groups, recognised preferences for their song themes and ultimately surpassed themselves. Embedded in melodies, simple words were turned into great songs – moving, fantastic and touching. On Friday, the doors of the cafeteria were opened to a large number of guests and after a welcome canon, which we were even able to sing in four-part harmony, the children presented their own songs. They talked about their thoughts on how the songs came about and received lots of appreciative applause.
The FAMteam's holiday workshops are part of the gender equality measures of the Professorinnenprogramm III at the University of Applied Sciences Potsdam.
Here is a small selection to listen to:
