ActiveSG School Holiday Programmes are a lifesaver for any parents looking to occupy their children in screen-free ways during the March, June, September and December holidays. Without burning a hole in the pocket, children and youths can try out the ActiveSG classes which have grown in variety and scale over the years. We are glad to see that there have been more programmes of late catering to the teens too!
We have reviewed eight sports programmes and there are some of our views of which ones might be more worthwhile!
ActiveSG Preschooler Programmes
Our 5 year old has tried four of ActiveSG’s holiday programmes in mini tennis, gymnastics, archery and rock-climbing!
Fun, affordable, enriching – ActiveSG’s sports programmes are indeed a lifesaver for parents who scratch their heads on how to occupy the children during the holidays. Plus, you can use your ActiveSG credits to pay for the classes partially leading to even more savings!
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Convenient locations of ActiveSG Sports Centres
Parents with preschoolers might find it challenging searching for sports programmes for their little ones. Some are either too varied with exposure to too many sports, some are too expensive and others conducted in faraway spots.
Another great thing about ActiveSG programmes is the option to find something close to home as they are usually conducted in ActiveSG sports centres and pools in the heartlands. This greatly saves time as well as transport costs.
Archery, Gymnastics and Mini Tennis ActiveSG Programmes
We review three sports under the ActiveSG programme: archery, gymnastics and mini tennis.
While the archery and gymnastics sessions were one-off sessions, mini tennis was held over four days with three hours per session. Instead of bouncing off walls at home, the kids can now run, jump, bounce all they want during the sessions.
For archery, it was a one-hour session for 3 to 6-year-olds. The duration was short enough to get the little ones to be engaged. The instructors taught the kids how to use the bow and arrow, as well as the right posture. This was followed by a practical session of aiming at the target by releasing the bowstrings.
The children each took turns aiming, with the instructor holding the bow. While appropriate for the little ones, this was not much of a challenge to the older children who could probably hold their own bows.
We recognised that this was merely a taster session to the sport, hence there wasn’t a chance to practise holding the bow and aim independently. The session was also held at a carpark at a sports hall.
Personally, I felt that the session could be held in a better lit area such as the sports hall.
Gymnastics was held at BearyFun gym which was a usual gymnastics studio for Bearyfun classes. The gym was well equipped and children were grouped according to age for the various activities and obstacle courses.
After the stretching and warm-ups, the children began by going through a course of rolling, balancing and jumping. Of course, these delighted the children a great deal as they were laughing and cheerily going through each of the exercises.
The other activities included climbing, balancing on beams, jumping on the trampolines, crawling through the tunnel, jumping and landing on both feet together.
Finally, the session ended with a combined race for children ages 4 to 10, testing their sense of balance, hand-eye coordination and speed.
The third sport our preschooler tried was mini tennis which was a junior version of tennis, played with a slower ball and junior-sized rackets on a smaller court.
Because of the length of the “camp”, much more was covered from game rules to games encouraging hand-eye coordination, learning to react to the motion of the ball, holding the racket and hitting the ball with the racket. There was quite a lot of time practising the motor skills needed to play tennis since they were fundamental to the sport.
As with usual ActiveSG programmes, the sessions gave participants the chance to experience the sport and pursue it with a longer-term commitment if truly interested. The instructor-to-participant ratio was quite high.
Given the wide age range of the group, it was challenging ensuring that every participant took home skills confidently after the four days. Much more practice and regular sessions would be needed to be a step closer to Federer-level tennis.
Our Verdict After Trying Three ActiveSG Programmes for Preschoolers
ActiveSG programmes are a great way to get preschoolers to try various sports. We liked the opportunities to try out the equipment and various motor skills that are fundamental to each sport.
Our little one enjoyed the gym session the most, as the activities were fun and easy to pick up as compared to a ball sport like tennis which requires a lot more practice.
Don’t expect the little ones to master the skills overnight, it is still important for them to be outdoors and have lots of play time for the development of motor skills required to master sports in general.
Budget-Friendly ActiveSG Holiday Programmes for Primary-Schoolers
From Akido, rock climbing, fencing, volleyball to combat saber experience (!!!), there is something for every family. The fees and duration differ for every sport.
While some camps are held for four days, with three to four hours of activity per day, some are a one-off workshop that lasts a couple of hours. Based on your schedules and budget, you can select the different types of sports offered at different ActiveSG facilities islandwide.
My teen and tween have tried ActiveSG’s pickleball, archery, rock-climbing, mini tennis, badminton, flippaball, inline-skating and athletics. We love the subsidised programmes!
If you have not used up the ActiveSG credits, you can also use that for payment of classes. Each Singaporean and PR has ActiveSG credit of $100 to use, so you have $100 free to spend on any classes! Do note that the credit expires if any portion is unused for the year, hence do remember to perform a transaction using your account.
ActiveSG Holiday Programmes – Athletics, Badminton & Flippa Ball, Pickleball, Archery
We got our kids to choose a few sports they’d like to learn, checked schedules and fees before deciding on the programme to register for. Some programmes are pretty popular so do register early as there are limited slots!
Do note that you just need to be dressed for the sport and all other equipment is provided during the programme! This is a big win for parents who do not want to spend too much on equipment not knowing how keen the child will be in a particular sport.
Hawkeye Archery for 8 to 12 year Olds
We decided to give archery another go. The experience for older children is thankfully very different from the preschooler edition we experienced.
The two-day sessions are 1.5 hour each. The first session started with learning to hold the bow and arrow, with the correct posture. Then the children practised shooting at different targets – some on the ground, some on the boards a distance away.
The next day was a mini competition to apply the new skills. The kids were divided into two teams, each team shot at the different targets and the combined scoring was taken after each round.
It was definitely a test of hand-eye coordination, and also a way to make friends especially during the friendly competition.
ActiveSG Pickleball for Tweens & Teens – 10 to 14 years
Pickleball is a fast-rising sport and more have flocked to the courts recently. How about getting the tweens and teens to try the sport? As a pickleball-loving family, We seized the opportunity to sign up for the 3-day classes.
The classes focus on certain techniques such as serving and the rules of the game – how to score, when it is time to serve, where to serve and so on. The courts are separated into various levels – with beginners in a different court and those with slightly better skills in another.
After practising their strokes, the participants then tried out gameplay. It’s a great way to get sweaty and have fun!
ABCs of ActiveSG Athletics
The athletics programme gave a good introduction of athletics which requires ABC: A for agility, B for balance and C for coordination.
During the three days, children ages between 5 to 10 learnt the key components of athletics and got a chance to practise the fundamental movement skills. They learnt to sprint, jump over obstacles, throw, jump far and do relays.
As the athletics programmes are conducted at different stadiums, the children, though a large group, were constantly on the move. They were divided into groups to race, jump and throw.
There were usually two coaches on site and younger ones would be placed in a different group based on their abilities. Because of the experienced coaches, the children were very well engaged and could follow the different instructions given at the various setups.
The children were given a taster of short-distance running, hurdling, long jump, shot-putting. These were enabled from the clever use of batons, beanbags, small hurdles, cones and hula hoops. The kids had so much fun, they wanted to do the obstacle courses again and again.
Little did they know, they were using all the skills required for athletics. The holiday programme gave a good taster of what the training sessions at ActiveSG Athletics Club are like.
The ActiveSG Athletics Club runs twice-a-week training sessions for aspiring athletes, focusing on developing character and improving health, fitness, co-ordination and motor skills. More details here.
ActiveSG Badminton
The three-day badminton camp is held at various sports halls such as Bishan, Choa Chu Kang, Clementi, Hougang, Sengkang, Tampines.
The camp introduces participants to rules in a game, parts of a badminton court and what the lines mean, also training the participants in the skills required to play a good game of badminton.
Badminton is known to be a pretty intensive sport, fret not, the badminton exposure camp for children ages 6 and above focuses mainly on the basics of the sport.
Learning to hit the shuttlecock, serving over the net and using the right strokes can be a mean feat to learn. Hence the coaches were quite encouraging, telling the children to keep trying. Hand-eye, eye-feet and hand-feet coordination is key to the sport.
Thus, a mere three-day taster may not mean your child is able to pick up the sport well but practise makes perfect!
Like athletics, this badminton camp also offers a preview of the ActiveSG Badminton Academy. The academy does basic skills development and training sessions which uses the Shuttle Time syllabus by Badminton World Federation. More information here.
ActiveSG Flippa Ball
Flippa Ball? What’s that? Flippa Ball is a modified version of Water Polo. It is played in a slightly shallower pool. Ideal for children ages 7 and above who should be comfortable in water. Two teams will try to throw balls into their respective goals.
It is one fun way to learn a team sport and also brings out the competitiveness in the child. The children were taught techniques of throwing and game rules such as using only one hand to pass, movement allowed without holding a ball and no physical contact.
With some of Singapore’s athletes being the best in Water Polo in the region, the children would learn how difficult it is to play the junior version!
Swimming across the length of the pool several times is a good test of stamina in the water. This was a taster session organised by an external water polo club, hence participants could find out more at the Flippa Ball taster sessions if they were keen to play the sport on a longer term.
Try Different Sports at ActiveSG School Holiday Programmes
Aside from keeping the kids occupied during the holidays, the ActiveSG programmes provide opportunities to learn about different sports.
This is also a chance to find out the preferences of the child, his or her physical talents and possible long-term training programmes. For some affordable fun, sign up for the programmes!
For more information on ActiveSG programmes.
