Qatar National Library (QNL) and KidZania Doha, the multi-award-winning edutainment concept, have announced that a QNL area will be established inside KidZania Doha in which children can practice working as librarians, borrow books and read as patrons, and even make short stop-motion animations.
QNL’s decision to establish an area inside KidZania Doha aligns with the Library’s mission to create and sustain trusted educational environments and to develop innovative programs for children using technology and culture as key learning tools.
The establishment of a QNL area complements KidZania's goal to benefit from the expertise and skills of international and local institutions to realize its vision of providing a realistic and unique edutainment environment where children are inspired to learn through role-playing activities.
Dr Sohair Wastawy, Executive Director, QNL, said: “QNL’s efforts to strengthen the culture of reading and learning in Qatar go beyond the walls of the Library, and this project is an example of how we work with other organizations to achieve this goal. We also want to inspire the next generation of librarians, and learning through play is an effective way of showing children what it means to be a librarian in today’s digital age.”
Ric Fearnett, Governor of KidZania Doha, said: “The creation of the new QNL area demonstrates our ability to provide and share state-of-the-art digital resources of the rich history, heritage, and culture of Qatar, as well as reaching out to the younger generation to promote reading in a fun environment.”
KidZania Doha, expected to open its doors in the last quarter of 2018, is located at Aspire Zone in Doha, with a footprint size of over 5,500 square meters. It will provide a unique educational and entertainment experience, offering 42 establishments where children aged between 4-14 years will be able to role play ‘adult jobs’ in up to 60 pretend roles, learning a variety of values including self-reliance, teamwork, honesty, integrity, and giving back to society. The establishment will be able to accommodate up to 1,000 children and approximately 250 employees at any one time.
