Summer is here!
If you are planning to host a summer camp or are interested in putting together a neighborhood summer camp, then we have the perfect resource for you.
I’m so excited to share with you a new eBook, Backyard Summer Camp, which is an excellent guide to designing your summer camp for children ages 3 to 7.
What I love most about this book is that it was put together by six moms who have teaching experience. The authors are Jen Kossowan, Laura Marschel, Melissa Klinker, Malia Hollowell, Amanda Boyashinov, and Kristen Mason.
You are getting not just the educational tools in putting together your summer camp, but also the understanding of “keeping it simple” in mom-style.
I also love that Backyard Summer Camp includes seven hands-on activities for each of the six themes: a craft, a science experiment, a math activity, a book list, an art project, an outdoor game, and cooking recipes.
It’s a comprehensive, well-rounded guide that includes activities from each of the subjects and caters to different learning styles and interests.
The themes in Backyard Summer Camp are:
- Camping
- Flowers
- Monsters
- The Ocean
- Oviparous Animals: Animals that Hatch from Eggs
- Outer Space
The eBook starts with an overview of how to get started with organizing a summer camp, by deciding whom to invite, a camp schedule, a menu planner, a list of supplies, and emergency forms. Each activity comes along with a brief description of the activity, a list of supplies, step-by-step directions, extension ideas, recommended books, and additional resources. The pictures of children doing the activity are especially helpful for visual learners like me. At the back of the book, you also find decorative pennants, camp award certificates, supply lists, and logo transfers.
Summer Camp Sample Activity
Along with your seven recommended activities under each theme, you could also integrate KIDS YOGA! Learning through movement makes sense for the body and the brain, and most importantly, children love it.
For example, let’s take one activity under the Oviparous Animal (animals that hatch from eggs) theme, called “Act Like an Animal!” (p.115), by Kristen Mason. The instructions state to write phrases like “jump like a frog” and “fly like a bird” on slips of paper to put into plastic eggs. You then hide the eggs around the backyard. The children search for the eggs, read the phrase that’s inside the egg, and act out that animal. It is a super simple activity, but it’s loads of fun and a great way to learn about oviparous animals.
To start, dress comfortably, go outside, and ensure that you have ample space to move around. Then follow the activity instructions, using yoga poses for kids to act out each of the oviparous animals. Feel free to encourage your children’s creativity.
Here’s a list of the oviparous animals and their matching yoga postures:
Act Like an Oviparous Animal!
Bird – Warrior 3 Pose
(Stand on one leg. Extend the other leg behind you. Bend your torso forward, take your arms out to the sides, and flap your arms like the wings of a bird.)
Frog – Squat Pose
(Come down to a squat, and then jump like a frog.)
Penguin – Kneeling
(Stand on your knees, open your chest, and waddle like a penguin.)
Alligator – Plank Pose
(Balance on your palms and on your bent toes, keeping your arms straight and your back long. Pretend to be an alligator.)
Snake – Cobra Pose
(Lie on your tummy, place your palms flat next to your shoulders. Press into your hands, lift your head and shoulders off ground, and hiss like a snake.)
Fish – Locust Pose
(Lie on your tummy and take your arms down alongside your body with palms facing down. Then lift your chest, shoulders, and arms. Look up and pretend to glide through the water like a fish.)
For images and description of the yoga poses, see the list of Kids Yoga Poses.
When you are finished acting out the animals, it’s a good idea to take a few minutes to lie on your back and rest with your arms and legs spread out. Take a moment to listen to the sounds of the outdoors and take a few deep breaths.
Can you invent more yoga poses to mimic the behavior of other oviparous animals (ex. fish, amphibians, insects, reptiles, birds, arachnids, and monotremes)?
Other ways to integrate kids yoga into your summer camp:
Luke’s Beach Day yoga story to go with your ocean theme
Garden Yoga Poses for Kids for the flowers theme
Cabin Yoga sequence for the camping theme
I received a free copy of the Backyard Summer Camp eBook and the opinions above are completely my own.
Purchase your own copy of Backyard Summer Camp for just $9.99 (click Buy Now below).
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