First news from the hobby group
The new members of the Tuusula Leisure Group, who launched their activities earlier this year, have thrown themselves enthusiastically into their work. Their first task this spring was to gather information on the leisure and club activities requested by schools, and in the autumn they will be promoting the new season of activities.
The first-of-its-kind hobby tutor training course, held in Tuusula in February, was attended by pupils from across Tuusula. The initiative is organised in collaboration with the Tuusula parish.
– Since then, the group made up of those who took part in the training has been named the ‘Hobby Gang’. The young people feel it’s important that the name doesn’t sound too serious, so that even children feel confident enough to ask for advice. Now they can also be recognised by their hoodies, which everyone was able to help design, says Tiina Laine, the project coordinator who oversees the schools’ leisure and club activities.
Taking the first steps towards autumn
One of the first tasks of the spring has been to find out what extracurricular activities and clubs pupils at each school would like to see. Each school was given a ballot box in which to record their requests. Once the voting had finished, the extracurricular activity group members counted the votes. A few schools also collected requests from pre-schoolers who will be starting school in the autumn.
– Many members of the club have also been keen to create adverts and get the chance to present on the school radio, says youth worker Hanna Kjelin, describing the activities that appeal to young people.
There are already new tasks lined up for the autumn, such as promoting the new season of activities and acting as a mentor to other children and young people.
The role becomes clearer through joint development workshops
In May, we gathered at the Rusutjärvi camp for the second part of the training organised earlier in the year – a development workshop – where we discussed what the Harrastusjengi’s tasks might include in the autumn. The tasks identified were raising the profile of leisure activities, acting as role models and peer support, and organising leisure activities.
“Encourages others to take up hobbies and try new things.”
“It could serve as a role model for younger children.”
“As a hobby mentor, I help others with their hobbies”
Many also suggested that promoting hobbies should be one of the hobby tutor’s responsibilities. Various ways of promoting hobbies, such as via social media, school announcements and creating posters, were suggested at both the meeting earlier this year and the one in May.
Furthermore, many felt that planning and organising leisure activities could be an excellent task. Many also expressed enthusiasm for organising various events or clubs.
Tuusula is home to an active and enthusiastic group dedicated to spreading the joy of hobbies and leisure activities among children and young people.
Further information from the leaders of the Harrastusjengi initiative:
Project Coordinator Tiina Laine, Tuusula Municipality, tiina.laine@tuusula.fi, 040 314 3494
Youth Worker Hanna Kjelin, Tuusula Municipality, hanna.kjelin@tuusula.fi, 040 314 4250 Youth Work Instructor Tommi Aulasmaa, Tuusula Parish, tommi.aulasmaa@evl.fi, 040 527 1487
This content has been translated using AI