Earth Camp
This Earth Camp will involve 50 campers for each of two three-week summer camp sessions. The camp week runs Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9am – noon with extended afternoon activities on certain days. The camp will be offered to all students entering the Abington Heights Middle School.
The Earth Camp program will target three critical themes of Environment, Art, and Health integrating science and art in meaningful ways. The programming content will be hands-on, stimulating, and supported with valuable partnerships with Keystone College Art Students, Abington Heights’ drama students, Abington Community Library, Lackawanna State Park, and Abington Heights School District. The Abington Heights School District coordinator of math and science, Dr. Jason Petula, recommended focusing on the areas of Astronomy, Orienteering, and Designing and Building Models which would enhance the school district curriculum. These three areas are high priorities for our school district, but the limitations of the classroom and time make it difficult to incorporate them into the curriculum.
For the summer of 2009, the camp components include Astronomy, where students will experience Astronomy through exploration and observation of their environment and creative arts. The second component is Designing and Building Models to teach the fundamental laws of mechanical physics. Campers will design and build their own rockets. The last component is Orienteering. Students will learn how to use a compass, to follow a map to a specific location, to follow written directions to a specific location, and to read a topographical map and explain its function.
Plans have already begun for next summer. The focus of the 2010 camp will still be Environment, Art and Health, but the subject areas will change. Ideas for next year could include weather, birds and fish, watercolor art and puppetry and boats and building.
The 100 campers to benefit from this Earth Camp are middle school aged students from the Abington Heights School District which is located in Lackawanna County.