March 27, 2020

By: Darlene Conway

Hi everyone!

Today will be my 1st  SMILE blog post. I am not a tech-savvy person, however, as with everything in life you learn to adapt to your current situation! 

First, I would like to take this opportunity to tell you how much I thoroughly enjoy spending my summer with your children.  I have worked with children all of my life and to me, there is nothing better than seeing children SMILE or hearing them giggle.  There is definitely something to be said for a child’s laughter. 

 As a mom, I take this responsibility very seriously.  I understand that when a parent chooses for their child to spend their summer with us it’s a HUGE responsibility.  There are so many benefits to a child having a summer camp experience. At SMILE, we encourage children to think of others and to respect how another camper may feel in a certain situation.  We work together to help children develop social skills and the skills needed to problem solve and to work together towards a solution all while building friendships, learning, and creating memories that will last a lifetime. 

According to the ACA,  “Camp counselors, unlike teachers, view their primary role as one of facilitating friendships and positive experiences. Counselors are trained in skills that help campers build social skills.”  

We run a 2 day orientation for our counselors where we role play certain situations and we encourage them to work together towards a solution as they would with their campers.  We also encourage them to take their role as a summer camp counselor very seriously and to have fun and provide an environment where our summer campers will SMILE (Shine, Motivate, Inspire, Learn, Encourage) others  as well as themselves.

Summer camp counselors and staff are focused on creating fun experiences for campers and promoting positive relationships among them. Many camp practices and traditions — singing, dancing, telling stories and jokes, and playing outdoors — increase positive emotions, which lead campers to feel what they describe as "happiness." As positive relationships predict happiness, the camp environment is an ideal setting to improve happiness because of the focus on building positive relationships. Children at summer camp have ample, daily opportunities to connect with other people and therefore, are — in fact — "happy campers." (https://www.acacamps.org/resource-library/camping-magazine/impact-camp-experiences-social-skills-happiness

I am looking forward to making new memories with your children and to seeing them SMILE this summer!  Until then, I have included some links to activities for various ages.  

https://youtu.be/sHd2s_saYsQ- Kidz Bop Dance Along Videos

https://youtu.be/KAT5NiWHFIU- Cosmic Kids Yoga

https://diy.org/-Hands on projects and how-to videos

https://mysteryscience.com/lessons/seasonal/current-events- At-home science based on grade level (K-5)