Day camps let kids explore new interests, deepen learning, and make connections with mentors and friends outside of school.
Julianne Clark is St. George’s School’s Summer Program Coordinator. She emphasizes camps not only give kids a chance to explore activities and subjects they really love, but also dip their toes in the water and try something unusual or new. The bonus, Clark adds, is that they get to meet new people beyond their regular circle.
Lani Nachtsheim, who coordinates and runs Girl Scout Day Camps, says that their goal is creating connections. For their camps, the group has created partnerships with community experts who give the girls a new perspective outside of school. “It’s really nice when the partnerships are with women in the community because it lets them see their options and what they can be. We hear a lot about how girls have gained their confidence. Day camps give them strength to use their inner voice and speak up about what they want to get out of their experience,” says Nachtsheim.
More than anything day caps stimulate lifelong learning. Clark adds, “As a teacher I love to encourage curiosity and continued learning. Camps definitely reinforce this over the summer months.”
St. George’s offers a wide variety, from academic skill and tech-driven camps to sports camps like volleyball. Also offered this year is a robot battle camp called Sumo Brawler, and a dramatic improv camp (“Making It Up Just Like We Planned”).
Girl Scouts has a STREAM (science, tech, recreation, art, and math) weekend event, April 13-14, at St. George’s, for girls in grades 6-10, to learn about stream ecosystems and fly fishing. //
