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A Story of Partnerships

The story of Edventure More is truly a story of partnerships. We teach kids about friendship, teamwork and collaboration because Edventure More itself is a product of these same qualities. At the heart of the organization is the friendship between Sharon and Ed, Edventure More Co-founders, which formed while they both worked at SCORE! Educational Centers in 1999. Becoming friends in a work environment meant that inherent in their relationship is an ability to work towards a common goal, never to take things personally and always try to make the workplace a fun place to be.

From Edventure More’s start, Ed and Sharon’s goal was not to reinvent the wheel, but utilize already established expertise as the foundation for their programs. They did this by bringing together the Bay Area’s leaders in science, art, animation, and recreation to help design the curriculum for their new camp. These partnerships proved vital to establishing the quality of the curriculum from the onset as well as being the key to successful growth into new communities over the next 10 years.

In 2004, the YMCA of Marin officially came on board to help with the design and staffing of our outdoor recreation program. Soon afterwards, a seven-year partnership was forged with the Exploratorium, as well as a partnership with the California Academy of Sciences that goes on until this day. Most of the Exploratorium-designed themes, activities and methodology are still used today in our physical science themes. The Academy continues to design our life science curriculum both for camp and our School Year Programs and also helps lead our annual Science Instructor trainings.

The following year, two more museums joined in on the collaboration with the Museum of Children’s Art and The Children’s Creativity Museum (formerly known as “Zeum”) signing on to help in the design and training of our hands-on art curriculum and stopmotion animation sessions respectively. These wonderful institutions still continue today to ensure that our campers have access to the highest quality enrichment activities.

Even after 10 years, Edventure More hasn’t stopped making friends! This year we will partner with the national non-profit, Playworks, to enhance our staff’s game facilitation skills and incorporate more life skills into our physical activities. We’re also expanding the staff’s use of Kimochis, another life skills partner, to all our sites. Kimochis provides their “toys with feelings” and guided activities to help campers build emotional intelligence and healthy social skills. As our Edmo in the Park program expands, so does our partnership with Let’s Go Chipper, a cast of cartoon characters that help kids develop a love for the environment and developing healthy lifestyles.

So this summer, when your child comes home telling you about the new friend he/she made, the team cheer their group invented or all the teamwork it took to make their animated movie, know that these skills may one day help them form grand partnerships the likes of which you would never imagine.

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Emotional Communication | More than words

Dr. Donna Housman writes, “Learning to communicate effectively and constructively and to manage our own emotions and those of others is what helps us connect. This “emotional intelligence” allows for empathy and compassion to develop and is what encourages others to stick with us through life’s ups and downs.”

The ability to express and manage emotions and to recognize the same in others is critical to social competence. The foundation of these skills must be supported and taught in early childhood. When children are taught how to express and manage their feelings, they learn to understand and be sensitive to all those who are significant in their lives. Children develop the ability to empathize, negotiate, compromise, solve problems and resolve conflicts. The results are friendships and skills that can last a lifetime.

Kimochi Communication Dolls are interactive and tactile toys that teach children about their emotions, how to manage them, and how to help others understand them. “Toys with feelings inside,” these quirky dolls have a special place, for storing emotions. Teachers, camp counselors and therapists have made great use of these and other tools in their work with children.

Parents also hold a responsibility to nurture the emotional development of their children and it begins with helping them to define and acknowledge their feelings. Whether by employing Kimochi dolls or simply making a concerted effort to focus on emotional intelligence, parents can make a huge difference in how their children are perceived and accepted in the greater world. Here are some areas of focus to get you started.

Eye Contact – with adults and other children
Tone of Voice – listen to “how” you say it as much as “what” you are saying
Facial Expression and Body Language – take note of what works
Be brave and try again when you’ve made communication mistakes
Be kind and let people try again
Assume the best of others – remember everyone is trying to figure it out together.

Effective communication and emotional intelligence cannot be achieved while on the computer, phone, email or the like. It must be taught and modeled through connection, attention and deliberate effort. Home, school and camp are some of the best places to practice and observe these skills in action in children (and adults) and provide the safe and guided opportunity for emotionally intelligent growth and communication skill building.

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The Love in Letting Go | Fostering Resilience and Independence

It’s the age-old question: What happens when a tree falls in the forest? Does it make a sound?

Parenting can be a bit like that from time to time. Consider these questions:

“If I don’t see them fall, will they just get back up? Does it hurt the same amount?”
“If I don’t remind them to put on their shoes, will they stub their toe?”
“If they don’t eat their broccoli at 6:30pm sharp, will they never eat broccoli again.”
“When I’m not there, are they okay?”
“Will they recover if I let them fail?”
“If I’m not there to introduce them, will they make a friend?’

Of course, no one wants to see our child struggle, get hurt or fail. As parents, it is in our inherent nature to protect them from all manner of harm – physical, social and emotional. But sometimes, the best protection may be to support their growth by stepping back, giving space, letting the failures and struggles happen so they can promote resilience, courage and flexibility.

Clinical psychologist Maureen Monaghan of Children’s National Medical Center is quoted as saying, “It is a great idea to give kids an experience of being on their own in a structured, supportive, supervised environment…even just one night away from parents can be valuable. … It definitely challenges kids — it takes them out of their comfort environment — but it’s usually really positive, and we see a lot of growth and maturing.”

Perhaps the biggest psychological impact of camp is on resilience, on character and on learning to be a member of a community that’s separate from your family; who always cut you some slack and who have preconceived notions about you. We often want to challenge our children in academic pursuits, but we hesitate to challenge them on an emotional level. How can you know if a child will be able to handle the ups and downs in life if they are not allowed to try to cross the street alone, climb a tree (and possibly fall), order and pay for their own popcorn at a movie or go off to camp without you, to make friends and memories without you and to navigate the inherent social and emotional challenges that are part of those experiences without you? Resilience is a learned behavior, easier for some than others, but it must be cultivated and honed through life experience – it’s what gets you through the hard times in life.

Sometimes the problem is that we find it hard to recognize we have a regressive effect on the lives of our children, and sometimes in order for kids to reach their full potential, they have to get away from that regressive pull – and that means we need to “get away” from them.

So as you consider camps, either day camp or sleep-away camps this summer, realize that in sending them off on their own, you are quite possibly sending them into a stronger, more secure future.

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21st Century Learning and Principles | Redefining Learning Beyond the 3 R’s

Educating kids

In today’s world, being literate requires more than it did in our own upbringing. The National Council of Teachers of English believe twenty-first century readers and writers need to:

Gain proficiency with tools of technology
Develop relationships with others and confront and solve problems collaboratively and cross-culturally
Design and share information for global communities to meet a variety of purposes
Manage, analyze, and synthesize multiple streams of simultaneous information
Create, critique, analyze, and evaluate multimedia texts
Attend to the ethical responsibilities required by these complex environments

So what do you get when you add the 3 R’s – Reading, wRiting and aRithmetic and the new tenets of 21st Century Learning, the 4 C’s. Try to name the 4C’s, and you might have more trouble. Yet blending Communication, Collaboration, Critical thinking and Creativity, into elementary education may just be the educational cocktail for which we have been waiting. As American students lag behind their counterparts, we are forced to recognize that old methods and standards may not be enough to prepare them for their futures.

As our world becomes smaller and technology outpaces itself, children are faced with challenges far beyond what would have been “normal” less than ten years ago. It is a difficult task for schools and teachers to find ways to meld the R’s and C’s in the classroom AND continue to teach the basic building blocks.

Edutopia has an excellent easy to understand guide, A Parent’s Guide to 21st-Century Learning, that gives an overview, by grade level, of the principles of 21st Century learning and strategies to implement it in the classroom.

Regardless of the school situation, public or private, there is one important thing parents can do to help their children. Get involved and stay involved! Help your school and teachers secure the funding and tools they need to stay ahead of the curve and propel our children into the future with all the knowledge and preparation possible.

Edventure More Camp

Edventure More programs exercise the balance between STEM/21st Century Education and empowering the social and emotional skills children need to communicate effectively. Summer camp is so close and our directors, counselors, and CIT’s continue to impress us with the skills they bring to our programs each year. The enthusiasm for teaching and the intuitiveness to help children navigate each day is what we strive for when building our summer team. We delight in a society embracing new tools to educate our children and celebrate the realization that we have been doing this for ten years.

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A Long Way from the Driveway By Ed Caballero, Co-Founder and Executive Director

During Camp Edmo’s first summer in 2004, Sharon, the other Co-Founder, and I wore almost every hat possible…figuratively and literally. The camp was very small and we were the Camp Directors, Science Instructors, Recreation Instructors, and Counselors….and Shrek-ear hats were all the rage. The only Instructor hired was an Art Instructor as neither of us was that confident in our paper mache skills.

Sharon & Ed

Staff training consisted of Sharon and I testing ways to make the most efficient and explosive volcano possible in the driveway of my parents’ house. My parent’s garage also served as our first storage space. Today, we employ over 100 full time staff during the summer months. Each of them brings their own array of experience, talents and charisma to camp. Now the purpose of training is to build on to the skills of every individual staff member to ensure they leave with more than they brought.

Counselors now receive approximately 30 hours of training each on safety, behavior management, building life skills and on leading recreation time. This summer we’ve also added enhanced recreation training from Playworks, a national non-profit, educating us on more inclusive and meaningful games. Counselors will also learn to use Kimochi’s “toys with feelings” to build campers’ emotional intelligence during Team Time.
Instructors get approximately 50 hours of live onsite training at our museum partners including the California Academy of Sciences, Museum of Children’s Art and the Children’s Creativity Museum. In addition to their museum training, they also receive specialized Edventure More classroom management training to weave techniques that build curiosity, confidence and kindness into their daily lesson plans.
Camp Directors will have completed over 100 hours of training between January and the time summer rolls around. Nowhere is this focus on personal and professional growth at camp more evident than their “Question of the Season,” a technique Sharon instituted into training as a certified Life Coach. Each Director fills out a question that reads like a mad lib: “As someone who______(something you’d like to change)___________, how do I ______(your vision of change)_______________in order to _________(your desired outcome of change)___________.”

For example: “As someone who tends to be hard on myself, how do I recognize the good things I do, in order to better praise and recognize those around me.” These powerful questions give Directors focus and help them facilitate similar goal setting with their own staff. Ready to make a “Question of the Season” for yourself?

Here are a few other topics that will make it into staff training this year:

How to make kids feel welcome the instant they step out of the car
How to give, receive and facilitate SNAPS (our way of expressing gratitude towards others at camp)
How to sing A-Boom-Chick-a-Boom underwater style
How to convince kids to eat their lunch before going to play
How to fish for gummy worms with your face in a pile of whip cream
How to cultivate a safe environment for creativity and play
How to help kids who come to camp on their own, make new friends
How to award an Edmo Vibe Card so that a child can explain WHY s/he earned it
How to identify a granola bar that might trigger a peanut allergy
How to treat a scraped knee…or bruised ego

We hope you enjoy these and many other fruits of our staff training this summer!

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iBook Interactive | A new tool for engaged learning

Edventure More exists to inspire the playful pursuit of enrichment in the next generation. Our commitment to nurturing creativity and curiosity is a principle we hold fast. If we expect to keep our children engaged both in and out of the classroom, we must be willing to nurture our own curiosity and embrace the new creativity afforded all of us with new and emerging technologies. Engagement is key.

Student Engagement

Among industrialized nations, the US has fallen well behind, coming in at 17th in reading, 21st in math and 23rd in the sciences, globally. ”No one company can fix it all,” said Apple’s Head of Marketing Phil Schiller. “One place we think we can help is in student engagement.”

One new tech tool is the interactive iBook. iBooks have begun to replace physical textbooks in the classroom and now, as publishers and institutions the world over embrace the idea, iBooks are becoming not only “books”, but places of wonder. NASA recently released a free interactive iBook entitled Hubble Space Telescope: Discoveries. It’s filled with high-resolution images, video, and animations of all manner of stellar wonders relating to the Hubble. Touchcore, LLC, a company that aims to “meld technology and dynamic instruction,” has recently released two iBooks. Touch the Earth (with over 35 interactive activities to teach and engage children about the Earth) and Touch the Sky (“join an Air Force Pilot as he leads you through exciting missions to learn about astronomy from the ground to outer space” – with over 70 interactive activities).

Many other iBooks, for all ages, are available. A great place to start would be bestinteractiveebooks.com. This website includes picture books, books on science, art, cooking, geography, etc. and is updated with new titles all the time.

True, we all know there is nothing like sitting under a tree with a favorite book and a child next to us, arms entwined, enjoying the feel of the pages as you turn them and the wonder created only within their young minds. Never stop doing that. But know that there are also new wonders to behold and new ways to experience them…together.

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Natural Technology | Tips and ideas for merging gadgets and the great outdoor

Edventure More exists to inspire the playful pursuit of enrichment in the next generation. Our programs provide a place for all kids to nurture their innate curiosity, confidence and kindness through hands-on science, art, technology and outdoor activities. In a recent blog post, we challenged you to bring more “play” into the “work.” This week, let’s look at some ideas for merging those gadgets and getting kids outside in new and interesting ways – ways that will expand their minds, their skill sets AND their horizons (literally).

While there may always be moments of struggle in the process of learning, the more we can enrich the learning through play, the more messages of pleasure, ease and organization of body and mind we will bring into the experience.
How often have you been asked, “Can I play something on your iPhone, iPad?” Maybe with the following ideas, that answer just might be, “YES!” Here are some interesting tips, ideas and apps that allow everyone to feel like they won:

Low-tech: take that iPhone or iPad outside and start snapping! Put together a photo book with nature photos from your neighborhood, favorite walk, even the one to school. You may be surprised to see what your kids discover. Offer then to spend some time editing, cropping, making black and white prints, etc.
Movie: make your own! Have your kids/students create a documentary, an adventure film with friends. Set up a screening and make it a movie night. Here’s a free and easy online video editing website!
Apps, apps, apps: Geocache, Project NOAH and many others offer easily available ways to explore, learn and enjoy the great outdoors. Mark Patrick Meyers offers interesting ideas in this post, “Using Fun Technology in Nature With Kids,” and you can find a number of them here as well: Science Kids
Photo Bomb: See how many different places your children can photograph themselves, a favorite toy, a pet – even Mo, the Camp Edmo mascot. Click here to print out MO! Challenge family and friends to identify the location. Where’s Waldo…with a twist.

It doesn’t matter what you do or what you choose, just get out there and experiment. There are unending opportunities for learning and creativity just outside your door. And if getting out that door is the problem, guide them through their handheld devices. You may be surprised how quickly they abandon them for dirt and a stick. Edventure More outdoors with technology!

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Social Courage: Doing the Right Thing by Annie Fox, M.Ed.

By kindergarten, most kids know the difference between “nice” and “mean.” They still know it by the time they get to middle school. And all high school students can tell you how awful it feels to be treated unkindly. And yet, kids are often disrespectful to their peers and their parents.

Why this disconnect between knowing what’s right and doing what’s right? Part of the explanation is the fact that our children are growing up in a Culture of Cruelty. That sounds harsh, but we can’t change what we don’t see. Consider what passes for entertainment in the media. It’s often mean-spirited. So are many of the conversations we have at the office, on the sidelines at the game, and in the teachers lounge. Character assassination in public discourse is pretty much the air we breathe. So are put downs, gossip, and snarkiness. The resulting pollution is a hazard to our well-being. It’s also a huge problem for parents who want to raise nice kids who do good in the world.

Our kids are good kids. They really are! But they are also constantly challenged by the less-than-compassionate standards of their peers with whom they are mind-linked 24/7. Today’s t(w)eens suffer from status anxiety at levels no other generation has endured. This compels them to do whatever it takes to fit in, including things they are not particularly proud of. Despite these challenges, we can teach our kids to be people with good intentions and social courage, i.e., the ability and the will to do the right thing.

Adults who live and work with kids often give lip service to the importance of teaching young people to do the right thing. But how much actual teaching is being done at home and at school? If we don’t prioritize character development, we’re failing our kids. We can do better.

Here is a simple way to get the ball rolling in the right direction:

Talk with your child. Have a friendly conversation about the concept of a “pecking order” in the animal kingdom. Maybe you’ve observed two dogs or two cats at close range. Often it’s clear which animal is “dominant” or “bossy” and which is more submissive. Talk about how there can also be a pecking order amongst people. We usually feel uncomfortable when we are on the bottom, getting bossed around. But when we’re not on the bottom, we don’t often give much thought to those who are.
Listen to your child. Ask your son/daughter about who is on the bottom at school. (Even kids as young as second or third grade have a keen awareness of social strata.) Ask, “Why do you think s/he’s on the bottom? How do other people treat that child? How do you treat him/her? What might happen if you stood up for that child?
Challenge your child to be a hero. Encourage him/her to shake up the pecking order by standing up for someone who needs a friend. Take the challenge yourself!
Follow up. In a week, have another friendly conversation with your child and share what happened on the challenge. Discuss whether you want to keep the challenge going.

We parents are gardeners. We plant seeds and nurture those seeds through conversations, modeling, and real world experiences. Of course, we are not our children’s only influencers but we can provide the tools they need to do the right thing, online and off. Whether they actually step up, is their choice. But at least we’ll know we’ve done our part well.

ANNIE FOX, M.Ed. is an internationally respected character educator and the author of five books for teens about growing up and getting along, plus three picture books. Her latest book for adults: Teaching Kids to Be Good People is now available on Kindle and in print. Annie may be reached through her website, AnnieFox.com

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Mo Activity: Get Outdoors Daily!

“Must we always teach our children with books? Let them look at the mountains and the stars up above. Let them look at the beauty of the waters and the trees and flowers on earth. They will then begin to think, and to think is the beginning of a real education.” – David Polis

Everyone, not just kids, should have a daily “green hour” scheduled into their day. We all have busy lives filled with obligations but it’s worth it to yourself and your kids to appreciate nature in some way at least once a day. At least start out with a bi-weekly “green hour” or try 15 minutes of outdoor playtime per day, everyday! The key here is to put nature on the calendar so that spending time together, outdoors, becomes a habit instead of a rare occasion.

The National Wildlife Federation recommends parents set aside an hour every day to play outside and interact with the natural world. This time should be unstructured (self-guided) and fun! If kids are reluctant or want to play their video games instead, show them how fun it is by joining the activity. Collect natural artifacts to share, or listen and identify all the sounds you hear outside! Get to know local trees and animals so you can test each other. There is so much fun to be had outdoors if you just get out there and start playing!

Even on a rainy day, you can still get out and play together as long as you’re dressed for the weather. As E.E. Cummings wrote, the world is “mud-luscious” and “puddle-wonderful.” Being prepared to go outdoors is always a good idea! Check out GreenHour.org for more suggestions and tips. In 2007, the National Wildlife Federation launched GreenHour.org, an online resource providing parents the inspiration and tools to make the outdoors a part of daily life. There are many ideas to inspire all ages! Explore with Mo today: click here to print out MO! Then color in, cut out, and take photos of Mo outdoors to share on our Facebook Page!

Meet Mo and Check out his Treehouse of Activities online!

Scheduling your green hour with another family can also help you time manage. Arrange a regular “Outdoor Date” with one or two other families with kids around the same age. Depending on weather, and the ages and interests of your participants, this could be as simple as meeting at the playground every week or month, or something heartier, like a series of hikes or an ongoing flag football game. Do the same thing every meeting or let a different participant choose each meetings activity. Or just let the kids play with no plan! The important thing is that once it’s on the calendar, and others are depending on you, you’re less likely to make excuses and skip it. Make it a family affair by inviting grandparents, cousins, and other family members to join in. Nature is a great place to connect with family and enjoy each others time.

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Neuroscience of Play | How play eases the “work” in homework

Edventure More | Helping Kids Learn and Play

Research supports not only the notion that play enhances and supports the social/emotional health of children, but it also is a factor in helping them organize their thoughts and calm their minds. In Jill Howlett Mays, MS, OTR/L research article Importance of Play for Kids, Tweens, and Teens , she says, “When we move, nerves send messages to the areas of the brain that are key to organization. The more input, the better these areas work.” Mays further asserts, “We’re wondering why there’s an increase in ADHD and other behavioral issues. As kids play less, statistics show huge decreases in physical activity, these conditions increase. Also let’s not forget about health issues like child obesity?”

It follows that when children, including tweens and teens, spend time playing games, running with friends, enjoying the outdoors, they are more able to work efficiently when the time comes – thus reducing stress and the time it takes to focus and complete assignments both in and out of the classroom. Maybe the next time your child is complaining about that “homework first” rule or you are being told they are unable to concentrate in class, you should toy with the idea that some time spent playing, while it may seem to “rile them up,” is actually calming their minds and will allow them better focus and thus less stressful and more efficient (shorter) periods of work. Or better yet, follow the example of Edventure More: bring more “play” into the “work” with educational games and activities. Check out Mo’s Treehouse for some FREE ideas!

While there may always be moments of struggle in the process of learning, the more we can enrich the learning through play, the more messages of pleasure, ease and organization of body and mind we will bring into the experience.

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What’s In a Name

As we kick-off our tenth anniversary we can’t help but admit that Edventure More was founded on a passion to truly provide more for children – in school, and socially. Today, we share how it all began:

The story behind the name “Edventure More” begins in November of 2003 as Ed Caballero, one of the co-founders, was on a 9-month backpacking trip through South America. Not only had he learned a great deal about the 6 countries he had trekked, but along the way an approach to life had developed. In fact, it was these life lessons that Ed cherished most about the journey.

Ed learned that some of life’s greatest blessings come disguised as seeming misfortune. He learned that kindness could be shown and received in the most unexpected forms. He learned that the hardest challenges to overcome are often the experiences we most appreciate. He learned that the mind could be trained to interpret fear as excitement and transform doubt into confidence. He learned that when you align your passions with your path, the universe has a funny way of helping you along the way.

On the tail end of this 9 month journey, Ed received an e-mail from his dear friend and former manager at an after school tutoring center, Sharon Mor. “What are you going to do when you come back to the States?” she wrote. “If you want to start that camp you’ve always talked about, you’ve got a partner. You can lead the curriculum design and I will lead the staff development.” Ed had spent every summer for 16 years either attending or working at camp. There was nothing he’d rather do than start a summer camp. To top it off, there was no one he’d rather start a camp with than Sharon. Ed and Sharon traded excited e-mails, envisioning a day camp where kids would associate learning with the same wonder, enthusiasm, curiosity and joy of an adventure. They would learn, not just in a classroom, but on the play yard, in nature, and from each other. Life lessons would be as important as scholastic ones.

In his final month of travel, Ed continued to hike amidst glaciers, through canyons and along mountain ranges. It was on one of these final treks that he pondered a name for the exciting new venture Sharon and he would soon embark upon. Then it came to him…Edventure. They both wanted education to feel like an adventure. He liked the name, and coincidentally his own name was in it too. He sketched the name and some sample logos out in a notebook. He liked it, but something was missing. Then it struck him. Sharon’s last name is Mor. Add an “e” to the end of it and you’ve got “Edventure More”. Now it wasn’t just a name…it was a call to action! Edventure More!

This call to action has guided the design and staffing of every program Edventure More has created since 2004. Around 2007, campers started calling Camp Edventure More, “Edmo” for short, and by 2009 the nickname was so popular that the name was officially changed to Camp Edmo. Edventure Tech, which Edventure More had started in 2007, was shortened to Camp EdTech. Although the names evolved, the mission of the parent organization, Edventure More, remained constant. Every project featured and every word of encouragement uttered is meant to teach kids to approach life’s grand adventure with curiosity, confidence and kindness.

Celebrate ten years – check out Mo’s Treehouse for a variety of free online activities and ideas conveniently organized by grade (K-5^th). From science project ideas to educational videos and don’t forget to color in Mo and capture him on your adventures! Let your kids capture adve

ntures with Mo and share on Facebook – especially on photo-bomb Friday.

HOW TO MAKE MO:

First, click here to print out MO!

Then, have your little one(s) color him!

Color Mo!

Glue your colored Mo onto a recycled cardboard box or any thick paper you have around the house.

Glue Mo onto cardboard!

Now, cut Mo out carefully!

Now, tape a Popsicle stick to Mo’s back so he can easily photo bomb any picture!

Now Mo is ready to go! Take him with you outdoors or to school, snap a photo, and share on Facebook!

Give Mo’ love and visit his Treehouse online today!

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Importance of Play + Love Bug Valentine’s Day Craft

“It is paradoxical that many educators and parents still differentiate between a time for learning and a time for play without seeing the vital connection between them.”

Leo F. Buscaglia

Through play, children try out new skills, explore their imagination and creativity, and develop relationships with other people in their lives. Play can be an especially powerful bonding time for you, as a parent or caregiver. Playtime with your child also brings out the best in you. The beauty of this learning and growing time is that the motivation for a young child to play is already there – it is enjoyable!

One form of play that also encourages creativity and motor skills is crafting. Show your appreciation to your friends, family and loved ones in this month of love by making them a Valentine’s Day card or decoration. Nothing shows your love like a home-made craft!

Appreciate and care for the planet by making recycled crafts! It’s amazing what you can make from “trash.” Save some trees by reusing old Valentine’s Day cards: just cut off the cover from an old card then attach it to a piece of recycled scrap paper. Color it, add decorations, or cut it out in the shape of a heart. The sky’s the limit when crafting with recycled materials; just use what you have around the house: buttons, recycled food boxes and cans, string, cardboard, paper, etc!

Make a “Love Bug!”

What you’ll need!

First, cut out a heart (it’s easiest to fold a paper in half, draw a half heart from the fold, then cut a long the line) from a recycled cereal or food box or any paper product that’s a bit thick.

Heart!

For her Love Bug antennae, she folded strips of black paper and glued on fuzzy pom pom’s. Fold to make antennae She used glue but tape can be used here as well. Add some googly eyes or some legs to your bug. Put it on a Popsicle stick and play or hang it on the fridge.

Use your scraps to make more crafts!

Spread the love this February!

5 Tips to Develop Healthy Learning Habits

We are a local force in the national movement to prevent Summer Learning Loss, build 21st Century Life Skills and save hands-on learning in schools. Now, more than ever, kids need resources to develop healthy habits in a playful way. According to a recent article from Scientific American Magazine, “Free, imaginative play is crucial for normal social, emotional and cognitive development. It makes us better adjusted, smarter and less stressed.”

Here are 5 tips for parents and teachers to help their children develop healthy learning habits:

Encourage play. Playing alone and with others not only builds brain development, it also helps children develop social skills and a sense of ethics. The most effective play is free of evaluation and correction (after all, throwing a ball shouldn’t be “right” or “wrong”), while promoting autonomy.
Play together. In addition to their ABCs and 123s, preschool children are learning and developing life skills that will shape who they grow into as adults. One of these building blocks is learning to play well with others and accepting one another’s differences. Camp is a great place for kids to interact with each other.
Get adequate sleep and proper nutrition. Your child will do their best if they get to sleep early and eat a healthy breakfast each day before school. A daily diet of junk food is not compatible with learning. It can cause listlessness and hyperactivity, which can impair a child’s ability to learn. Skipping breakfast, especially, is a detriment to a child’s education.
Continue year-long education. Routine provides structure, which is often lacking during the summer months when children all too quickly become detached from the lessons they learned throughout the school year. Maintaining a schedule throughout the summer supports an environment that is less of a contrast to the classroom and provides a healthy balance between building skills, play and rest. An easy way for parents to keep their kids learning throughout the summer is by signing them up for camp.
Monitor screen-time. While there are quite a few educational and engaging mobile apps and games to play on TV today, balance the tech time with “climb a tree” time. Curious exploration, social interaction and play should be on the daily to-do list.

Play helps a child learn to solve problems, promotes flexibility and motivation, teaches regulation of emotions and builds resilience and confidence. It is also essential to the development of the child’s brain, forming the basis of healthy cognitive function and mastery of the child’s physical world.

If you take just a moment to reflect on your own childhood you will most likely recall days playing hide-and-seek, kick-the-can, or just riding bikes to the local park. Now think about what your child will remember back to when they are an adult. From the camp or school program you choose to the activities you provide at home, see each decision as an opportunity to enrich your child’s life and excite their motivation to play and explore their own interests.

April 12, 2013 by tipsforplayfullearning

History of the Vibe Game

If your kids have been to Camp Edmo or Camp EdTech, then you’ve probably heard about The Vibe Game. It’s our way at camp of recognizing kids when they demonstrate the core life skills our programs and staff emphasize. At Camp Edmo it’s Curiosity, Confidence and Kindness. At Camp EdTech it’s Creativity, Collaboration, Awareness and Leadership. Over the years the game has undergone several incarnations and continues to evolve to this day. Here’s a brief timeline of how the game came to be and where it’s headed:

Summer 2004: Edventure More hosted its first summer camp in Mill Valley as Camp Edventure More. Our focus was not just on teaching science, art and recreation, but helping kids learn about themselves in the process.

Summer 2004-2006: Parents kept reporting that whatever “vibe” we were creating at camp was being carried over to at home and school as well. Kids were kinder to their siblings, researching science facts at night and more confident in school the next year.

Summer 2007-2009: We launched our first version of the game for Camp Edmo called The Superstar Program in order to track and quantify the life skills being built through camp. There were a lot of paper take home sheets, parent signatures required and kids tracked their progress with climbers on a Velcro mountain.

Summer 2010-2011: In 2010, the value of the program was apparent, but there was a need to make it simpler for parents and more fun for kids. We gathered parent and field staff feedback, assembled our greatest, most creative Camp Director, Home Office and Curriculum Development minds and hosted a 3-day brainstorm. From this talented collaboration was born…The Vibe Game! The new game featured magnetic Edmo Vibe Cards, game boards and levels that revolved around our camp mascot, Mo the monkey. The five cards kids earned to reinforce important qualities of character development were as follows:

Buddy Card: Earned by showing social skills through making a new friend
Smile Card: Earned by doing acts of kindness that make another person smile
Stump Card: Earned by showing curiosity by stumping the staff with trivia
Banana Card: Earned by taking risks with a courageous act of spirit, creativity or silliness
Plus Card: Earned by showing the Edmo Vibe at home or in the community

Learn more about each card on our Edmo Vibe Game page!

Summer 2012: The Vibe Game was expanded to Camp EdTech to help our entering 5^th-8^th grade campers develop skills that would not only give them an edge in the world of digital media art but in any life path they choose. The EdTech Vibe game included both individual and group challenges that required core life skills to complete. Campers earned a large black & gold Vibe Card for successfully completing 4 out of 6 challenges.

Summer 2013: In addition to the original 5 cards in The Edmo Vibe Game, a new card is being introduced at our Edmo in the Park locations…the Wild Card! Campers who display both curiosity about nature and stewardship of the environment will earn this attractive new red fox card. A new set of 6 cards representing each of the 6 challenges will be introduced at Camp EdTech this summer as well. Look out for these brand new black and gold cards at camp:

Individual Challenge Cards:

The Drive Card: Earned by showing creative solutions to problems and effort towards mastery of media skills
The Ninja Card: Earned by showing respect and patience towards team members, staff and equipment
The Plus Card: Earned by participating in weekly T-Shirt Challenge, bringing examples of media in the real world and rocking The Vibe at home

Team Challenge Cards:

The Jam Card: Earned by the group creatively giving back to the camp community and performing for younger campers
The Vibe Card: Earned by working well as a group by displaying openness to new ideas, compromise and improvisation.
The Genius Card: Earned when everyone in the group completes at least 4 out of the 6 challenges in the week.

Learn more about each challenge on our EdTech Vibe Game page.

To date we have handed out almost 70,000 Vibe Cards with 12 Camp Edmo and Camp EdTech campers getting to our highest level and earning their very own Space Mo! Snaps to you for reading all about the history of our Vibe Game. We look forward to building life-long skills in your kids this summer!

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