THE THRILL OF THE RACE: A little boy runs through tires, his competitors lagging behind, in the estafet relay race. The race was one of several games at the Play and Fun for kindergartners at the Global Mandiri School in Cileungsi on Friday.(JP/Kurniawan Hari)
"Come on Sekar! Come on, you can do it!" a teacher cried out to Sekar, a girl from Aisyiyah kindergarten in Cileungsi, West Java.
Sekar quickly grabbed a wet sponge, crawled atop a board and ran to squeeze the sponge out into a plastic container about 20 meters from the starting line. She then ran back to the starting line to give her teammates their turn in the relay race.
The challenge was to be the team that filled the bucket the most. The racers' parents and teachers cheered on the "Water Squeeze" game, shouting and clapping.
Not far from the Water Squeeze, young children competed against each other in the estafet race, another relay racebut one that used a Teletubbies balloon instead of a baton.
The two races were among several games at Friday's Play and Fun event hosted by the Global Mandiri School, which is located in the luxurious Legenda Wisata housing complex in Cileungsi, West Java.
Other games and competitions at the event included Building Blocks, Drawing and Choir.
The kindergarteners looked enthusiastic, happy and healthy.
"Children need to play and to have fun together. We invited schools in Jakarta and Bogor to send their students to this annual competition," Farida, Global Mandiri's preschool principal, told The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of the Play and Fun.
Through the event, Farida added, Global Mandiri wanted to share its facilities with students from other city schools. She said the event was expected to become a sowing ground to develop a sense of solidarity and brotherhood among the young children.
This was the third time Global Mandiri has hosted the Play and Fun, which is also held to celebrate National Education Day that falls on May 2.
Almost 400 children from 19 kindergartens in Jakarta and Bogor participated in the event, which opened following brief speeches by representatives of the local education office and Global Mandiri.
Nuraini, a teacher at TK Aisyiyah, said she was very happy to accompany her students to this event.
"This is a great event. Through this event, we can improve our students' skills and sense of competitiveness," she said, adding that she hoped her students could participate in the same event next year.
Aside from games, the Play and Fun also included a bazaar full of booths that offered a variety of items from books to dresses and, of course, to toys.
Towards the end of the event, all the kids, teachers and their parents gathered together at the school hall for a talent show. With the help of their teachers, the youngsters entertained the audience with their comic acts and games.
Truly, the Play and Fun event lived up to its name, as seen on the children's faces as they played and laughed together.
Students at Global Mandiri might be able to enjoy the school's modern facilities almost anytime, but for students from other schools, the event was a chance for explorationand a chance to stretch their arms and legs outside on a great, green lawn, if only for a day.
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