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Looking for something to stimulate young minds?
The Philcon Children's Program offers a range of activities suited to the high-energy youth crowd — a demographic that may find a panel discussion boring or incomprehensible, a full-scale strategy game too involved, and a video feature too scary. We're happy to see teens and adults, too. Whenever possible, they're designed to encourage interest in science, science fiction, art, and fannish pursuits.
If you'd like to be a participant, or if you have questions, please contact Phillip Thorne at:
WHO? The Philcon Children's Program is designed primarily for attendees ages seven to twelve. However, many of the activities may be of interest to older children and adults; and with appropriate parental assistance, some may entertain six and below. If you've got pre-school kids-in-tow, though, Babysitting is probably a better bet.
WHEN? Although the Children's Program has its own room, it is not a round-the-clock track: it operates morning to early evening, and closes periodically to ensure the youngsters get out to stretch their legs, eat meals, and remember who their parents are. Please check the pocket program and at-room schedules.
WHERE? The Children's Room is located away from the hustle-bustle of Main Programming. Kids are not “fire and forget” projectiles, nor are they boomerangs: please drop them off and pick them up. In fact, Philcon prefers that attendees under fourteen years of age be accompanied at all times while in the program spaces. Family friends, older siblings and parents are all suitable chaperones, but please designate someone.
HOW CAN YOU HELP? The Children's Program is always in need of assistants to watch the door, help with scissors, and generally wrangle the younglings to avoid overloads of exuberance. Parents and older siblings are always welcome. If you'd like to earn credit for your assistance, please see the Volunteers department or the at-con table, in the Registration area.
| Friday | Saturday | Sunday | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10:00:00 | Fun with: Puppets from the Dungeon Dimensions | Junior Gaming with LEGO: QuikWars (encore) | |
| 11:00:00 | What Makes a Good SF/F Pet? | Junior Gaming with: Star Munchkin (encore) | |
| 12:00:00 | What are you Reading and Why? | ||
| 13:00:00 | Fun with Folding: Origami | ||
| 14:00:00 | What Are You Writing and How? | ||
| 15:00:00 | Junior Gaming with LEGO: QuikWars | Fun with: Hover Disc Games | Junior Gaming with: SF/F Bingo |
| 16:00:00 | Building Toys 101 | What are you Watching and Why? | |
| 17:00:00 | |||
| 18:00:00 | Junior Gaming with: Star Munchkin | Fun with Music: Theme Song Sing-Along | |
| 19:00:00 | Fun with Drawing: Exquisite Corpse | ||
| 20:00:00 | Fun with Music: Theremins | Fun with Drawing: Robots |
Note 1: If demand and staffing permit, the Children's Room may open at 9:00 am on Saturday and Sunday for additional unscheduled early-bird activities. Watch the conference newsletter and at-room schedule for updates!
Note 2: The Children's Room (Parlor A) may host additional activities after Children's Hours (i.e., on Friday and Saturday evenings) such as art workshops.
The schedule for 2006 is still under development, as we consider the likes of “SF/F Bingo,” “Puppets from the Dungeon Dimensions,” and “Record Your Own Radio Show.” Instead, consider the following games, workshops, craft activities and entertainments that we've conducted in previous years:
Stretch those fingers and get ready to be dextrous as you fold colorful paper into flowers, boxes, crabs, jumping frogs, and modular globes.
LEGO minifigs make dandy playing pieces in simulation, squad combat and role-playing games in which guiltlessly demolishing your opponent is half the fun; we've conducted scenarios like Cross the Forest, Six-Way Capture the Flag and Escape the Dark Mansion. We've also got the official LEGO board game Builder Xtreme.
What makes that creepy, otherworldly music in 1950s movies? It's the theremin or its relatives, an analog electronic musical instrument based on the manipulation of radio waves. This session proved remarkably popular in 2005, with both kids and adults.
Learn about ancient Egypt and the ornate picture-writing that inspired Dr. Daniel Jackson of Stargate SG-1. Work out your name using the phonetic symbols, then use rubber stamps or, if you're ambitious, draw each glyph yourelf.
Moreover, the Children's Program is closely affiliated with the LEGO-related events at Philcon, which welcome all ages.
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