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Camp Niwana
Photo Gallery
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What’s Happening at Day Camp?
- Cooking out over a campfire and making a s’more
or pie iron pizza
- Hiking through the woods or along the beach -
seeing the wonder of the natural world
- Outdoor games that promote physical development
and burn off extra energy
- Theatrical fun where kids use their imaginations
and become real characters
- Science exploration—science comes to life
and outer space is within the limits
- Arts and crafts galore that let the imagination
wander
- Relaxation with stories and storytellers
- Our community heroes in person – firefighters,
veterinarians, the mounted police, the K-9 unit
- Singing silly songs that make you smile –
or laugh right out loud
- Camp skills – how to safely build a fire,
use a jackknife, leave no trace
- Your best friends, maybe for life!
Program Overview
Camp Fire USA Day Camps bring old-fashioned S'mores
eatin', campfire song-singin' kids’ summer camp right to your
neighborhood. Eleven day camps operate for one week each at parks
throughout the area using caring, well-trained, responsible volunteer
staff.
Before camp starts, volunteer planning committees for each day camp
choose the theme, crafts, games, songs, and special events for the
week. As the registrations come in, campers are assigned to a small
group of youth their own grade or age for the entire week. These
groups of 6 – 12 kids are assigned to one adult staff or experienced
older teen counselor and at least one assistant teen counselor,
and stay together for the whole session.
Day Camp at Camp Sealth on
Vashon Island is structured a bit differently. The camp runs
seven hours per day for each of nine sessions throughout the summer,
with an option for extended day programming (perfect for working
parents). Click here for
more details about Day Camp at Sealth.
What is a Typical Day Like?
- When you drop off your campers, they go straight
to their groups, where their counselors check them in and make
sure they are ready to go.
- The
day begins with all the groups together singing silly songs like
“The Princess Pat” and “Hey Burrito!”
- the kids pick up the words right away.
-
Each small group then chooses from the activities available and
starts having fun.
-
After two or three activity periods, which could include games,
a tie dyeing crafts project, a hike, making ice cream, doing a
science experiment, hearing a story, acting out a play, learning
to use a jackknife or building a bird house, just to name a few
examples, it’s time for them to eat the sack lunch they
brought.
-
At lunch the group eats together on their counselor’s blanket
at the “campsite” they have chosen. In addition, every
camper will have the opportunity to do some outdoor cooking during
the week, starting with simple menu items for younger children,
and more advanced items for older ones. All children will be taught
fire building and fire safety.
- Then
in the afternoon, there are a few more activity periods, again
with the group making choices about what to do all together along
with their counselors.
-
After clean up and another assembly at the end of the day, you
sign your child out of camp, showing your I.D. for safety.
Camp
Fire USA builds caring, confident youth and future leaders.
Day
Camp is about doing, not watching. It’s about enjoying nature
and living outdoors, and working together with kids from a variety
of socioeconomic, racial, cultural, religious and disabled populations.
Together the youth share common experiences while at camp, and learn
to focus on similarities and abilities. Mutual respect and trust
form between campers as they rely on one another.
And as campers receive praise and encouragement from their counselors
and their peers, they grow in self-confidence and competence, with
social skills and friends that last for years to come.
Day Camp creates lifelong memories. Being outside, youth feel wonder
and excitement, plus a sense of adventure, freedom, and beauty.
As one parent told us, “What was fun and meaningful for us
when we were kids at summer camp, actually turns out to be many
of the things that are fun and meaningful about being alive.”
How Do We Sign Up?
Fill
out the Registration and Health
Form completely and sign. One registration form per camper for
each camp you plan to attend. Financial assistance is available,
so if applying for Campership, please check the box on the registration
form and enclose deposit.
After You Register
After you register, you
will receive a confirmation letter which will contain program details,
what to wear, what to bring, emergency numbers, drop off and pick
up procedures, and lots of other important information.
You
and your child will also receive an introductory phone call from
your child’s counselor a day or so before camp starts. This
is your child's opportunity to get acquainted, get excited about
the week at camp, and learn how to find his/her counselor Monday
morning. This will be YOUR chance to ask questions and share any
details that will help the counselor work best with your camper.
How Do I Help?
Our Day Camp
Site Directors look forward to working with enthusiastic adults
who love to work with children and enjoy being outdoors. Serving
as a counselor, camp nurse, purchaser, equipment manager, or activity
specialist full-time for the week earns adult volunteers a major
discount on their children’s day camp fees. Camp Fire provides
training and support to help you make camp available for more children
and have a wonderful week. Paid staff positions are available at
the day camp at Camp Sealth on Vashon Island.
Questions?
Contact your
designated camp volunteer registrar about available space, your
registration, fees, volunteering, and general program and location
issues. Or contact our Day Camp Coordinator for assistance in choosing
a camp, your child’s special needs, or specific program concerns
at
206 826 8925 or 1 800 451 CAMP ext. 8925 or info@campfire-usa.org.
Accreditation
and Standards
Compliance with hundreds of standards is required
for accreditation by the American Camp Association (ACA). Camp Fire
Day Camps meet ACA standards in all areas: health and safety, program
quality, staff qualifications, sanitation, and site/facility issues.
In addition, Camp Fire USA has its own high standards. All of our
volunteers have taken at least ten hours of training and have been
background-checked by Camp Fire. Our Site Directors and staff managers
have many years of camp experience and are youth development experts.
Volunteer
at Day Camp
Adults and Youth — Grades 8-12
Day Camp relies on volunteer staff. Get in on the fun! You may choose
to be a counselor (entering junior year in high school and up),
craft specialist, junior staff (grade 8 and up), outdoor skills
specialist, nurse, purchaser or other. Excellent training is offered
for volunteers. Volunteers' preschool-aged children will also receive
well supervised care. Call the Day Camp Registrar or check the box on the registration form. Teens who are not
Camp Fire members will need to pay a $20 membership fee. Adult volunteers
who work a full camp session may send their children for $30 per
child!
Paid
adult staff are hired for the all-summer program at Camp Sealth
on Vashon Island; check details about summer
employment. Teens may volunteer as interns to assist with the
program.
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