This summer we will travel to new lands, far off galaxies, and explore the depths of each child’s imagination, without even leaving the city!
Each week will have it's own unique theme and will include multi-sensory projects, costume creations, mixed media inventions, fine art, writing, storytelling, movement, open play and much more! Sessions will run half days Monday-Friday, for 3 weeks in July and August.
Located at Brooklyn Society For Ethical Culture, 53 Prospect Park West in Park Slope. See below for details.
wEEK 1 (July 29th-August 2nd)
FAIRYTALES & IMAGINARY WORLDS
Do you believe in magic? Why are some characters bad and some characters good? What happens when you mix ogre’s sweat with dragon drool? During this week, your child will be transformed into the imagined character of their dreams as we create our own fairytale world and embark on a magical adventure! We will begin by looking at classic fairytales and exploring the common themes together. From there, each child will select what kind of character they would like to be in our very own imagined world. After deciding on a setting for our fairytale, each child will fill out a character profile, We will begin to imagine ourselves as characters both “good” and “bad”, with original powers, origin stories, means of travel, and unique goals. Throughout the week we will begin to transform into our characters- creating costumes and unique props. By examining the themes in fairytales, this class aims to channel children's innate fascination with good and bad, and to empower them to express themselves through positive play.
As a group we will create our very own original fairytale story, exploring collaborative group story building, navigating plot twists, and crafting interactions amongst all the characters! Once our story is complete we will act it out as a group, immersing ourselves in our magical world. In addition, we will also spend the week exploring other themes common to fairytales including “the rule of 3”, castles, the woods, and magic! We will ask - If you were a wizard what magical powers would you like to have? What do you think the greatest magic potion would do? From there we will let the experimentation begin! Each child will create their own unique potion, filled with mysterious ingredients from an enchanted land. Here, children will make discoveries through combining different ingredients, observing reactions and enjoying a marvelous mess in the process! Together, we will discover that the power for magic exists within us all.
Magically nutritious snacks will also be served.
Skills enhanced through this camp:
Social/Emotional Prosocial play skills (flexibility, generosity, problem solving, empathy, care for community, conflict resolution, confidence, courage, bravery, sense of adventure, resilience, compassion, active participation, self-regulation, communication, and articulation/awareness of feelings)
Language & Literacy(Storytelling, story sequencing, performing, dictation, pretend play, book writing)
Art and creative expression (Dramatic play, costume design, mixed media art projects, large-scale three-dimensional group constructions, singing, acting)
Motor skill development (fine/small motor improvement through handwriting practice and using hands to manipulate small materials, gross/large, whole body motor skill development through movement exercises and theme-related games)
Logic & Reasoning Skills (problem solving, critical thinking, making connections between ideas, identifying themes)
...and much more!
wEEK 2 (July 29th-August 2nd)
AQUATIC ADVENTURES
“Is a sea cucumber a vegetable?” “What makes a blobfish blobby?” “Why do some things in the ocean glow?” “Are mermaids real or just pretend?” Aquatic Adventures will delve into children’s curiosities about ocean life by embarking on an imaginative underwater journey!
This week, we will cool off from the summer heat by “diving in” to explore each of the five zones in the ocean. We will begin by transforming ourselves into a team of divers, complete with scuba diving uniforms and handmade equipment (diving team emblems, air tanks, flippers, and more!). Day 1 will include ‘Scuba Diving Training Camp’, learning about the equipment, safety procedures, communication, and jobs/adventures you can have as a diver. Children will be paired with diving buddies for each dive, making discoveries as a team.
We will spend the week embarking on missions to the Sunlight, Twilight, Midnight, Abyss, and Trench zones. Each day will take us deeper - from just below the surface, filled with colorful characters, to the slimy, dark depths of the bottom of the sea. Together we discover the incredible inhabitants that live in each layer of the ocean through a combination of art, science, social, and sensory experiences. Children will also choose a creature of interest to create a wearable costume. Costume creations will blend each child’s creative vision with learned information about what makes each creature unique. These creations will celebrate the beauty and diversity of ocean life, and allow each child to feel totally immersed in the ocean experience.
Highlights include (but are not limited to): Diving Training Camp and obstacle course, designing scuba self-portraits, creating a coral reef, discovering the magic of bioluminescence, making slimy blobfish, squishing our way through the gooey trench, creating sea plant sculptures, exploring echolocation, searching for Megalodon fossils, transforming ourselves into ocean creatures, and much more! In addition, we will create diving logs to record details from each of our diving missions.
Skills enhanced through this camp:
Social/Emotional (confidence, teamwork, connecting to others, problem-solving skills, flexibility, turn-taking, forming relationships to peers and adults, empathy, care for community and climate, conflict resolution, confidence, courage, bravery, sense of adventure, resilience, compassion, active participation, self-regulation, communication)
Language & Literacy (inventive storytelling, listening and responding, vocabulary development, performing, dictation, sign language, pretend play, question-asking, practicing social language, reading, writing)
Art and creative expression (dramatic play, costume design, mixed media art projects, large-scale three-dimensional group constructions, portraiture, singing, acting)
Math & science (multi-step experiments, sensory explorations, building and measuring, and problem-solving opportunities relating to "missions")
Motor skill development (fine/small motor improvement through manipulating small materials, writing, and art creation; whole-body motor skill development through movement exercises and theme-related games)
Logic & Reasoning Skills (problem solving, critical thinking, making connections between ideas)
WEEK 3
GLOBAL CITIZENS
Fasten your seatbelts and get ready to take off on a trip around the world! During this week, we will ‘travel’ together, exploring places near and far. Each chosen place will reflect a child in the group’s cultural roots/family background. Together we will embrace different cultures within our camp community, broadening our understanding of each other and the big world beyond. Over the course of the week, we will explore other cultures in a hands-on way by learning and experiencing elements of the history, art, architecture, food, music, dress, geography, and language that make our New York City community so special. Hands-on projects will spark curiosity about other cultures, allowing children to try new things and set the foundation for further exploration. Through immersive experiences, children will have opportunities to discover who they are and to recognize other perspectives.
This camp aims to impart a lifelong love for exploration, acceptance of differences, curiosity for the unknown, and a sense of wonder, discovery, and open-mindedness. Each child will be given a passport to take with them on their journey, receiving stamps and documenting adventures throughout the week.
Skills enhanced through this camp:
Social/Emotional (empathy, flexibility, problem solving, care for community, conflict resolution, confidence, sense of self, courage, bravery, sense of adventure, resilience, compassion, active participation, practicing mutual respect, cooperation, patience, self-regulation, valuing differences, communication, and articulation/awareness of feelings)
Language & Literacy (expanding global vocabulary, exposure to new languages, question asking, critical thinking, storytelling, listening and responding, pretend play, writing, singing)
Art and creative expression (dramatic play, costume design, mixed media art projects, large-scale three-dimensional group constructions, singing, acting)
Math & science (multi-step experiments, building and measuring, problem-solving opportunities, understanding of geography, study of natural wonders, sensory projects)
Motor skill development (fine/small motor improvement through handwriting practice and using hands to manipulate small materials, gross/large, whole body motor skill development through movement exercises and theme-related games)
Logic & Reasoning Skills (problem solving, critical thinking, making connections between ideas) ...and much more!
A note on cancellation: No refunds less than 30 days before first day of enrolled camp session. Please understand that we staff and supply our programs based on enrollment and are generally unable to make changes after this date.
Our policy applies to all cancellations regardless of original sign-up date. Fees from unused sessions cannot be applied to future purchases or transferred to another family.
Please contact us if there is a different week that might work better for you. We’d be happy to take a look and make a switch if available!