In July 2023, the two Green Weeks, conceived and organized by the Institute for the Blind Francesco Cavazza in cooperation with I.Ri.Fo.R. Emilia-Romagna, were held in the beautiful location of Borgo Basino. Thirty visually impaired youths, some with mild to medium additional disabilities, participated in these two weeks of fun and learning times. At Borgo Basino, an agritourism and educational farm, blind and visually impaired children were able to experience nature, farm animals, garden plants (harvested, cut and then cooked), and natural elements such as clay or essential oils, with which they made a face mask in the Beauty Lab! They carried out cooking activities, making cakes and pizza, carpentry activities (building a wooden puzzle with their own hands), played with the coding activity together with Marco Fossati.
They exercised by walking, had fun and cooled off with pool activities. They also experienced educational yoga, which enabled them to deepen their knowledge of their bodies and their movements in space, to actively be aware of their breath and its rhythm, and to see with their mind’s eye, letting themselves go in relaxation and visualization activities. In yoga, the children also experienced the encounter with each other’s bodies through collaborative and cooperative activities.
Away from home, the young people were able to get involved, intensify their work on personal autonomy, confront each other, exchange experiences, and allow new friendships to blossom. During the summer camps, youths also took part in the workshop Sentiments at Play, which consisted of group discussions on the themes of friendship and love, during which everyone shared something of themselves, in an atmosphere of strong emotional enthusiasm.
EMOTIONS were the real stars of this holiday! Youths put aside their performance anxiety and allowed themselves to freely experience their true self: they sang, danced, cried, laughed and joked, told stories around the bonfire, participated in treasure hunts, performed in improbable talent shows and, above all, enjoyed themselves in a light-hearted and carefree dimension.
Camping with the Istituto Cavazza
Here are the impressions of Adele Tenti, one of the young Green Weeks participants who came to the summer camp for the first time.
Adele Tenti
This summer in July, a group of young people from all over Italy had a unique experience in the countryside around Forlì in Borgo Basino on an educational farm. After introductions, we ate biscuits with tea and then went to change for the evening.
The next morning, Nawar (my roommate) and I woke up and combed each other’s hair while waiting for the alarm clock to ring. And our friendship was born. That afternoon we were together in the garden chatting, and she told me about her origin, while I was lying on the hammock and she on the sofa: we rested and then we were ready for the afternoon’s activity.
The next day we woke up and had breakfast, just before lunch we went swimming in the pool, and I learned to swim without floaties. The following days we groomed and rode a donkey called Alice and I was a bit anxious because I was afraid of falling! Instead, it was an exciting experience and feeling his soft mane between my fingers gave me more confidence; his calm way of walking also gave me reassurance.
I wish all blind and visually impaired children this unique and special experience!
Italiano
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