When the global Remake Learning Days festival happens in Uruguay on April 24-26, families will have even more creative, hands-on learning events to choose from than ever before.
Many educators and artisans who hosted events during the festival in 2023 and 2024 have returned again this year and many new hosts have joined them, as well. Organizers had aimed to find 65 event hosts this year, “and we have already surpassed what we planned,” says Cecilia de la Paz, lead organizer of the festival and founder of Edúcate Uruguay.
Past event hosts and visitors have spread the word about the festival, inspiring many more people to get involved, says María Inés Lopez Lamela, festival co-organizer and operations director at Edúcate Uruguay.
“We are starting to make a community around this, connecting people and connecting organizations,” Lopez Lamela says.
Nearly 65 free events are now scheduled in the capital city of Montevideo and throughout 11 provinces in Uruguay, with additional events still being added. Each one is designed to help families approach learning in fun — and in many cases, surprising — ways.
These events “bring another dimension to learning,” de la Paz says, because they introduce families to “things that you are not necessarily expecting and that are not from the usual realms of math, science or literacy.”
Just two examples:
- On April 24, kids and caregivers can learn how to craft handmade soaps, exploring both art and science from a creative perspective.
- That same day, families can also learn to ferment kombucha at home, discovering the science behind crafting these delicious drinks and learning about their nutritional benefits.
Also, de la Paz says, many events bring together experts from different disciplines. On April 25, event hosts will combine crafts and technology to help families create their own theatrical performance during a session called Playing with Scenery.
As in past years, teaching and learning will be happening everywhere during Eureka Learning Days, from public spaces like art museums and libraries to simple spots like shady groves of trees at community parks.
But newly added this year is a central venue for the festival. The former marketplace at Espacio Modelo in Montevideo, now converted into an indoor park, will serve as headquarters for the festival and be the host of 22 events. Learning activities will be hosted there throughout the three-day festival.
“We are very excited that we are going to have a Remake Learning Days venue in the capital city of Uruguay, besides having all the other spots spread all over the country,” Lopez Lamela says. “People who live in the capital city will be able to spend the whole day there, having different activities all at the same place.”
The wide range of event locations is actually part of the message of Remake Learning Days in Uruguay.
Learning, de la Paz says, “is not something that happens only in schools or that is meant only for formal places. It’s actually something that is happening, or that can happen, whenever there is an adult that is available to teach a child.”
Any location where an adult can share one hour of their time and expertise to share their knowledge with children and their families will be transformed into a place of learning, she says.
From April 24 through April 26, “we fill that place with a learning opportunity where we can all belong and connect the intention of teaching with the purpose of learning and keep on stressing the message of the learning ecosystem,” de la Paz says. From rural farms to city streets, “learning happens everywhere.”