Georgetown University: School of Foreign Service in Qatar

This July, 30 sixth and seventh grade students from 16 local schools spent two weeks at Georgetown's Qatar campus participating in the second session of “Planet Georgetown”, an internationally-themed summer camp. Sponsored through the Office of Educational Enrichment at SFS-Qatar, the program is an important element in Georgetown's efforts to engage local teenagers.

The two-week academic enrichment program, entitled “I Love My Planet,” aimed at engaging independent school students with lessons about the world around them. “Through a series of interactive classes, recreational events, art projects, and many other hands-on learning opportunities, each student was challenged while having fun,” said Program Coordinator Emily Wilson.

Throughout the first week, students took a virtual trour around the globe, exploring countries like Italy and Nepal, through games, geography lessons, art projects and recreation time. Campers created traditional African masks, composed Australian aboriginal peace songs, made Nepali prayer flags, traced the borders of Italy and played with Mexican piñatas.

“I learned a lot about countries I never knew anything about before,” said seventh-grade student, Ilham Tag. “I can’t wait to impress my new teachers when I tell them about the places I learned about in camp!”

During the second half of the program, students worked in teams to create their own countries – complete with currencies, languages, maps, national dances and songs. Eight pretend nations were formed in this process, with creative titles ranging from Cocoloo to Jazi Land.

A “world market” was held on the last day of camp, which gave students the opportunity to showcase the unique handicrafts of their newly-created countries. Parents, teachers, and Georgetown staff visited with the students as they purchased the craft items using the student's created currency.

“This was my first experience with Planet Georgetown,” said camp counselor and Georgetown sophomore, Jibin Koshy. “I got to learn a lot from the kids, and I really look forward to the next camp.”

Throughout the coming school year, SFS-Qatar plans to continue partnering with local schools through International Days, day-long events for preparatory and secondary students to sample SFS-Qatar’s tradition of international relations education and campus life. In addition, the Office of Educational Enrichment will continue its Resources for Teachers program, which provides local teachers support and training in social studies education.