Children across Leitrim invited to share what they missed during lockdown

This June, Brightening Air and The Ark Children’s Cultural Centre, are exploring and sharing children’s experience of lockdown in a number of ways.

At its centre are free live streamed performances of an uplifting new show ‘What Did I Miss?’ by Shaun Dunne, which offers a window into children’s experience of the pandemic and the milestones they’ve missed along the way. Meanwhile, a schools engagement programme encourages children to share how it was for them. 

The Ark, in partnership with Brightening Air | Coiscéim Coiligh, will also be giving voice to some of the experiences of children in Ireland to the Government. 

On 22 June, children from The Ark Children’s Council will present to the Joint Committee on Children, Disability, Equality, Integration and Youth, sharing what the children of Ireland have told them about their experiences of lockdown.

To help inform this presentation and to represent as many children as possible, today a call was put out for children in Leitrim and right across the island of Ireland to send The Ark stories of something they missed due to lockdown.

It could be meeting friends, family, a special event, a milestone in their lives, a landmark date – anything at all that they missed, The Ark and Brightening Air | Coiscéim Coiligh want to hear about it.  Parents / guardians can submit children’s stories and experiences at www.ark.ie by Monday 7 June.

Submissions will be collated and considered by the Children’s Council. They will then write a short speech highlighting some of the things children missed. That speech will be delivered by children on 22 June to the Oireachtas Committee.