An opportunity for children in La Pintana

On Monday, January 3, 2011 ?The Macramé Circus School? began. This activity is a place marked with a social-recreational character or tone. The initiators of this project, in addition to promoting the understanding of the Convention on the Rights of Children, desire to offer access to recreational areas which provide ample participation of children and teenagers of the Castillo sector, in the community of La Pintana (Santiago, Chile).The high incidence of violence and the increase of drug trafficking which affects this sector (aside from the geographic, economic and social marginalization which since its formation has affected all of its inhabitants) strongly terrorize the children as much as their families. Many have opted to lock themselves in their houses due to the lack of neighborhood and/or governmental means to help the situation. Because of this, the basic response was to offer timely attractive and extended proposals which would encourage children to recreate and play outside of their homes together with other children, at the same time guaranteeing them safe and sound places for their well-being and the tranquility of their parents.The Circus School is a project which came about through a community of Marist volunteers with the support of the Marist Foundation of International Solidarity (FMSI), based on Rome. This initiative seeks to guarantee the existence of spaces for participation and recreation as a part of the fundamental rights that children and teenagers out to have access to. And so, during the present year 2011, children and teenagers will be able to take advantage of diverse workshops in order to develop circus skills. In this activity companionship, effort and constancy are fundamental values needed for the attainment of objectives.During the first week of January the launching of the activity took place during the first week of January. For six days one hundred and fifty children and teenagers participated, from 9 o?clock in the morning until 6 o?clock in the evening. Practical workshops and diverse presentations were offered by a circus company with the purpose of encouraging the youngsters to learn the most rudimentary techniques and by offering them the basic steps in the learning of the different disciplines of the world of the circus.The six animators of the workshops, together with seventeen volunteers, highlighted ample samples of t disciplines, among them: height and floor acrobatics (trapeze and netting), juggling with clubs, diabolo, Chinese plates and flags, there were also workshops on Arab dance, jump rope and stilts. Besides the workshops, the participants also had the opportunity to take part in recreational activities and competitions like water games, walks to the pool and group activities where they were able to share the opinions and, in the process learn to exercise the Rights of Boys and Girls.