Why kids should go to Kidsfest & the many ways you can support it

The Vancouver International Children's Festival is coming up soon! Here are six reasons why you should support it:

1. It's a lot of fun! Face painting, stilt walkers, balloons, music, theatre, dance, circus performers, making things are just a few of the fun things you (& your kids too) can do at the Vancouver International Children's Festival.
2. Kidsfest lets children truly experience the arts by seeing & hearing great performances designed for their age level, participating in activities like crafts or learning circus skills like juggling or stilt walking.
3. Participation in the arts develops children's emotional intelligence. In a 2006 study at Brigham University, Susan Clark investigated the relationship between fine arts education participation & the emotional intelligence of over 500 fifth-grade students in four school districts in Utah. She found that participants of the arts program scored significantly higher on tests of emotional intelligence than nonparticipants & that students in the dance and music emphasis groups outperformed those in the drama, visual art, theatre/drama, and control groups.
   
4. Get introduced to the work of local & international artists & help kids learn about other cultures.
5. See some really cool stuff at the new(ish) location. Since their move to Granville Island in recent years, Vancouver International Children's Festival now has most of the shows in proper brick & mortar theatre venues, which allows for higher quality production values & the opportunity to book shows with more innovative electronic technology. That said, there's something awesome about summer music shows in a tent, so the big white tents aren't all gone. :)
6. Show your support for the arts. Since the Liberal government slashed arts funding several years ago, it's become much more difficult for organizations like Kidsfest to thrive & they need your attendance & support now more than ever.

& here are the ways you can support Kidsfest:

1. Buy tickets & attend
2. Volunteer at the festival
3. Be a Good Neighbour & fund tickets for low-income families
4. Donate money
5. Donate Aeroplan miles
6. Help promote it by posting about it on Twitter (#VanKidsFest), Facebook or your blog.

Disclosure: I was asked by Limelite PR to promote the festival as part of a team of bloggers  writing about our experiences with it. My posts & opinions are my own. :)