Experiencing new adventures

August 21, 2012

Experiencing new adventures

When you were a kid did you go out and search for caves, play in the woods, and make slides out of huge rocks? Did you ride your bike or play in your back yard or in the neighborhood? Did you stay out until it grew dark and you were "forced" to come inside for food or a bath? Most of us did, and it is those experiences that we can credit for our creativity and imaginative ideas and our ability to "think outside the box", as adults. Unfortunately, many kids today don't experience things like that on a regular basis, especially if you live in the city. Our culture has changed and most kids are indoors watching television, playing video games, or they are locked into after school activities where everything is structured FOR them. They are used to being entertained and they start to look for that in every situation, rather than using their imaginations to think up new games or find something to do when they are bored. At Learning on the Log, we have some structured activities, but for the most part, our days are filled with trying new things, coming up with new activities, looking for "props" out in nature that we can use for games, and we give the kids the opportunity to suggest new things and help to guide the games. They use their imaginations, "no idea is a bad idea"; they are challenged to think outside the box, "how can we use those rocks and these trees to introduce a new game"; they use their imaginations, "we are building a fort in the woods for the bears and alligators to live in when we leave". These experiences are so important for these kids. They are learning that they don't need video games to entertain them when they are bored. They are learning how to use whatever is around them to start a game. They are learning to work together with a group of other kids to engage in new games, and even though that is hard because they don't know how it will turn out, that is real life. 

Music in the woods

August 20, 2012

Music in the woods

We love trying new things, to see if we can utilize ordinary items, and turn them into a fun, educational, and social game......usually in the woods. One activity we have found, that the kids love, is to bring musical instruments with us on our hikes. The kids get to pick out their favorite, from rhythm sticks to drums to whistles to triangles to spoons and egg shakers. Unfortunately we have found that all string instruments tend to get broken, so we don't use those anymore :) The way we make this social, is by encouraging the kids to explore different sounds as they use the instruments in the traditional way, and then we use them on trees, under piles of leaves, in the dirt, etc. Sometimes we will have a dance party, where each child gets the chance to stand in front of the group, where they get to dance freely while their friends are playing music for them. They get to take turns and express their individuality as they are dancing. Then we play hide and seek, blind, where they have to use their ears to find their friends, instead of their eyes. The kids that are "hiding" sound their instrument to give the seeker a hint of where to "look". There are hundreds of ways we can use everyday materials, in a not so traditional way. We always tell our staff that we are limited, only by our imaginations! 

Spray is Better

Spray is Better

The other week we ran out of spray sun tan lotion and had to use our back up cream lotion.  In theory there should not be a big difference between the two, but reality proved something very different.  Generally, many summer time campers reluctantly allow the spray to be put on them, so the cream lotion proved to push their limits.  Staff was diligent in making sure adequate protection was used and that meant sometimes using a bit too much.  Like in the picture above, many were in disbelieve over seeing so much white stuff on their bodies, and one commented: "I am never doing this again."  Even after jumping into the pool the lotion was visible for some time.  Throughout the swim time there were many conversations about how uncomfortable this lotion was and how would it ever disappear.  Thankfully plenty of spray bottle were brought back to the pool, and that kind of situation was avoided.

I did it!!!

I DID IT!!!!!!!!

There are so many challenges placed in front of our campers, each and every day. And the accomplishment our campers feel and express when they try and try and try again until they succeed, is priceless. They get the biggest smiles on their faces, many times they throw their hands up in the air with a "victory" stance, they run and hug their favorite counselor, they high five their new friends, and they revel in the cheers and clapping of the whole group. Physical challenges are even more of a challenge, for many of our campers, than they are for typical kids. Many of our campers struggle with focus, low muscle tone, lack of coordination, processing issues, lack of impulse control, etc. So, when they succeed in a task that we have set up for them, IT IS A BIG DEAL. And we make sure they feel that importance. We want them to know, without a shadow of a doubt, that we know how hard it was for them to accomplish these tasks, and just how proud of them we are. We try to share these accomplishments with parents at the end of each day, so they are then able to celebrate again with their child, and the kid's proud feelings are reinforced again. 

What are some challenging tasks your child accomplished this week? Did you celebrate and show them, tell them, and cheer for them?

Life Guard Feedback

Life Guard Feedback

The Emory University life guards commented several times, to several people,  how much they enjoyed our group at their pool this summer.  Apparently other summer camp groups have been a bit more rambunctious than our group, and have had a harder time following directions.  One big reason for this positive feedback is due our staff doing a great job of engaging with all of the campers in fun and meaningful activities.  When interactions and relationships are meaningful, more effort is made to extend and/or duplicate these experiences.  It doesn't matter if it is water gun fighting, jumping into the pool, being thrown up into the air, or simply having a conversation these activities seem to be worth being a part of.  Second reason is how great our camp groups have been.  Each camper has been enthusiastic and happy to be at camp, and have enjoyed building many different relationships.  Positive relationships motivate all of us, and these life guards have definitely enjoyed seeing many relationships grow and flourish.  

LOG Wear

LOG Wear

We have always run our programs on a limited budget and have therefore been very limited in what we could give back to families, in the sense of material items. For the first several years, we squeezed some t-shirts into our budget, but each child was only given one.....that's right, one shirt......for the whole year. Two years ago, we partnered with a printing company and they gave us hats and magnets which we were able to share with our families, as well as t-shirts, and we were able to give each camper a new t-shirt Each Week. We were very excited about that addition, but it was still a struggle to feel free to give things away, as much as we wanted to. Then this year.....we decided to reach out to all of you, and ask if anyone would like to be an apparel sponsor.....the response was TREMENDOUS, so much more than we ever expected. You surpassed our ask, and we felt so tremendously blessed by all of you and how much you were happy to support us. So, this summer, for the very first time, we were so excited to send campers home with a variety of items. T-shirts, hats, pens, water bottles, lunch boxes, beach towels, etc. We are going to be able to continue to give away items all year as well!! Again, a first for us. We will also offer these items for sale pretty soon, so be on the lookout for a LOTL online store in the future. 100% of the proceeds raised, will go to a staff continuing education fund. 

What apparel do you want to see in the future?

Throwing and Flipping

August 15, 2012

Throwing and Flipping

Many of the boys (some girls) love the thrill of being either thrown or flipped in the air.  They report loving the sensation of shooting up from the water and flying though the air.  They seek out staff for a turn and want it repeated over and over again.  This activity has proven to be so motivating that staff can stretch engagement longer than usual.  Conversations about like and dislikes are discussed, clarification of wether to thrown or flipped is articulated, and relationships are strengthened.  In the end, the most important aspect of this fun activity is the amount of practice interacting and relating that is being done, and due to the high level of motivation campers will work harder to get this thrilling experience.