A major focus for the summer was encouraging campers to think about how to reuse and upcycle materials. The campers used recycled materials with several parents and families donating materials on a weekly basis for craft projects and science experiments. (Example: Used 2 liters bottles were converted into hanging planters.) The children were encouraged to be cognitive and think about why they think the way that they do, and to work together to accomplish group goals. Several children became very interested in coming up with projects using things that people throw away as trash. One project of the summer was challenging the classes to come up with art projects using the brown paper sacks that their U.S.D.A. lunches came in every day. Overall, the lessons this summer were more about the process than the product. The students also got to take a field trip to the Children’s Discovery Lab where they got to have hands on learning experiences, many of which were focused around recycled materials.
Another new component introduced this summer was programming and coding robots. This taught the students how to do simple coding and how to problem solve. The 11 and 12 year old groups also went through the process of learning about entrepreneurship by creating lemonade stands. They had to learn the components of marketing, product development, and creating their stand over the course of the summer. This project was a success for all involved, and the entire camp got to “purchase” and taste test the final product at the end of the summer.