As the new school year gets underway, are you looking for workshops, sports clubs or music lessons to keep your children entertained after school? Here are a few ideas for extracurricular activities with a difference in the Charleroi Metropolitan Area.

Triathlon: three disciplines in one

Quali’3 team, a sports club based in Farciennes, offers children aged from 6 to 19 the chance to learn triathlon; a multidisciplinary sport combining open water swimming (in the safety of a swimming pool for the younger ones), cycling and running.

The club also offers an introduction to other disciplines such as aquathlon (running and swimming), run and bike (running and MTB in teams of two) or even duathlon (running and cycling).

At Quali’3 team, skills are taught over different phases. This offers young athletes the chance to learn at their own pace. There are also courses for adults: sporty parents can train while the youngsters are having their lessons.

Learning the trapeze, unicycle, circus-based motor skills…

Charleroi Circus School, based in Fleurus, encourages children to express themselves physically over a range of different circus skills: trapeze, diabolo, acrobatic motor skills… Budding circus artists learn the techniques directly from the people who keep us regularly entertained under the big top or at festivals.

Supervised courses on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday allow children to flex their creativity and artistic fibres in a safe and supportive atmosphere.

I Got Rhythm

For aspiring musicians, les jeunesses musicales de Charleroi Métropole organise “Wednesday workshops”. The lessons allow children to explore the culture of music in a supportive learning environment. Activities centre around, in particular, reading sheet music, rhythm games, active listening and learning songs.

The workshops are split into two groups. The first, aimed at children from 3 to 7, explores musical instruments and nursery rhymes. The second, aimed at youngsters from 7 to 14, focuses on percussion and encourages young musicians to try out shakers and bongos and let their imaginations run free.

Learning English from the age of 1

You’re never too young to start learning English at Kids&Us School in Gerpinnes. This language school aims to get children enjoying language learning through games and interaction.

The teaching staff has come up with a range of interactive activities that introduce younger generations to the language of Shakespeare. The method allows children to acquire language naturally through listening, comprehension, pronunciation and writing exercises.

Scientific discovery

The Charleroi Children’s University organises workshops aimed at children aged from 6 to 12. Starting with questions such as “why does it rain?”, “why does a ball bounce?”, “why do we cry with laughter?”, activities are organised by university professors and researchers.

The idea is to understand “complicated” things through experiments, observation and play.

Various subjects are tackled according to the weekly schedule. Workshops are free and are run by three institutions (ULB, UMons and the Open University).

Still have some energy to burn off after school? Want to hone your artistic talents? An insatiable thirst for knowledge? Whatever the budding interests of your little darlings, you are sure to find the perfect activity for them in the Charleroi Metropolitan Area.