Fantastic Flyers Camp Review 2014

Fun and flight made for a great week as our Fantastic Flyers campers explored the science and nature of things with wings! And the days really flew by (pun intended). Here are some daily highlights from the week! 

• Day 1: Focus for day was Flight. Made a ‘what flies’ scavenger hunt sheet, then used that for our morning exploration hike. After lunch we learned about the scientist Bernoulli and did some experiments that tested his research. We made bamboo dragonflies (which were the inspiration for modern helicopters), discussed seeds and how they move around, made paper seeds, read a book about dandelions and painted a dandelion, colored kites and had a thistle seed race. We also collected 4 monarch caterpillars and tracked them throughout the week (they were all chrysalises at the end). Day 2: Insects-A-Flutter. Sweep netting was our main activity, and we collected some great specimens of insects that fly (& non-flying ones too). We made butterfly wings and antennae headbands, played a game called Quick Frozen Critters and got to see a monarch butterfly right after it emerged from its chrysalis. 
•  Day 3: BirdDay! Some great volunteers Mr. Paul and Mrs. Nancy came to share their birding skills with the campers and although it wasn’t a great birding day, we did get to see a green heron out in the marsh (some of the campers even saw it catch and eat a frog) and learned how to use binoculars. We made our own binoculars later, put together a bird puzzle, released our monarch into the wild, played Birds and Worms and Birdy Says! We ended the day with our field trip across to Buffalo Harbor State Park to fly our fabulous kites! 
• Day 4: More Birds! So much bird stuff that I had to do another day. We read a book called The Magpie’s Nest, and then partnered up to build a bird’s nest out of natural materials. We also let a second monarch go into the wild (it emerged overnight). We also created life cycle wheels after discussing butterfly and ladybug life cycles. We also had a relay race as bees collecting nectar and the grand finale was making edible bird nests (complete with candy eggs).
• Day 5: Morning was spent on a ladybug hike. The campers had lots of energy so it was a pretty long hike and we found lots of cool ladybug larva, caterpillars and even a little young garter snake. We played a bug movement relay game, Bat and Moth (like Marco Polo), created new bugs out of our names written in script on paper and made a bee maze game to take home. 

See below for some photos from our week's activities.

This was a great group of kids and I wish I had more time to spend with them one on one because they have great imaginations and are so smart! It was a pleasure to have fun and learn along with them (they always teach me so much too). 

I am sad to have this be my last blog entry, as my life adventures are now taking me on a new path away from Buffalo and Tifft back to the Chicago area to be closer to my family. Thank you for sharing your kids with us for a time and valuing nature and all the things it has to teach us. I’ve learned a lot of all the campers I’ve worked with over the years and know a couple of them will be working in my position when they grow up. It’s been a pleasure and I wish you all the best.

Miss Caryn

Aquatic Adventurers Camp Review 2014

Water is Wonderful! And so were my Aquatic Adventurers! This week was full of the wet and wacky, and it was so much fun. We learned about properties of water, all sorts of water critters, had a great day of fishing and learned some tips to help protect our water resources. Below are some highlights:

• Day 1-water scavenger hunt; water of the world demo (a camper was dressed up to simulate where water is located on the earth); Hide and Go Squirt (a great hit because it was a very warm day); Incredible Journey (a simulation game where each camper is a water droplet and travels through the various stages of the water cycle); H20 Olympics (events to learn about the awesome properties of water) 
• Day 2- Our morning we discovered the underwater world of macroinvertebrates-all those grand insects that live most of their lives underwater. We collected dragonfly, damselfly and mayfly nymphs, a giant water bug, water boatmen, backswimmers, plus a couple of fish and many tadpoles. Our afternoon was spent making rainsticks, learning about some of the functions of a wetland and a super interesting presentation from Ms. Lauren about microbeads and other water issues. 
•  Day 3-Mr. Bob joined us to teach the campers about the health of the water from a chemistry perspective. They tested for pH, nitrate, ammonia and dissolved oxygen at a few different sites and compared their findings. Our afternoon was spent learning about frogs through a game and a fun snack!
• Day 4-FISH DAY! Fishing was amazing and I think the campers would’ve done it all day if I had let them. We spent the afternoon playing a few outdoor games, made 2 cool fish crafts and the campers were partnered up and got to develop a plot of land anyway they chose. We then put the plots together to see how the choices of their neighbors affected the water quality downstream. 
•  Day 5- Indoor catch-up day. Watched a couple of clips on the Pacific Garbage Patch, which we had discussed earlier in the week. Each camper designed their own fish, solved a real-life mystery about cholera during an activity called Poison Pump and made wanted posters for aquatic invasive species. Afternoon we spent playing some parachute games and then helped the preserve by removing an invasive called Phragmites. Each camper had a great personality and I laughed so much at their zaniness and was amazed by their creativity! Thank you for nurturing that natural wonder kids innately have and hope you will continue to foster that wonder as these kiddos continued to grow. 

Enjoy the slideshow below that shows you some of the fun stuff we did this week!

 Miss Caryn