Camp Life

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Returning Campers Speak

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We took a moment to talk to returning campers Ana and Emily. Here's what they had to say about Camp Spring Creek: What makes you want to come back to Camp Spring Creek and why?

Ana: I want to come back because it helps me learn and it is so much fun.

Emily: It's so much fun at camp and I learn so much.

What is something that you worried about before you came to camp, that you no longer have to worry about?

Ana: That I would not be good at school work and that I would not make friends.

Emily: I had a lot of stress related to school and camp helped me. I don’t have that as much now.

When you're back at home and you think about all your fun memories from camp, what comes to mind most often? Describe that memory:

Ana: My favorite memory is when we went to the waterfalls, played capture the flag, and other activities.

Emily: I love making new friends and having great experiences.

Week 4 Reflections

Week Four was full of fun and a healthy balance of looking our finest (the Formal Dinner) and getting completely muddy (going spelunking). Here's a list of highlights:

  • We're coming off of 10 consecutive days of rain! But all the roads are open now and though the creeks are still high, we were able to get out and about this weekend for our much-anticipated adventures.
  • Awards were handed out this week to campers who were leaving, and included recognition for: Best Typist, Mr. Odipherous Feet, Mr. Gentleman, Mrs. Huggable, Mrs. Slow-Mo-Jo, and Mrs. Best Big Sister.
  • The camp fave dessert this week was, hands down, CHEESECAKE!
  • After our formal dinner, which included candle-lit tables and sparkling apple cider, we changed back into our everyday clothes and hosted a Skit Night filled with laughter.
  • And speaking of sweets, with a new crew arriving for the second half of summer, the illustrious candy bar treat awaits the first camper who can name everyone (including counselors) at lunch without a mistake.
  • Pics of this would have been impossible, so we'll just tell you that our spelunking adventure included getting to go across an in-cave lake on inflatable tubes!
  • Our famous "Announcements" song, which we sing everyday at lunch, just keeps getting longer and longer. We've added a verse for every week of camp, so you can imagine...um...how long it's starting to take. Keep your fingers crossed for a forthcoming recording of our amazing vocal projections. :-)
  • This weekend was also changeover and the first time we tried "The Big Switch" on the same day. This involved many 4-week campers leaving at the same time that many more new campers arrived, for a grand total of 42 Camp Spring Creek kids all at one meal!
  • We welcomed 17 new 4-week campers including our youngest, at age 7. This includes a camper from Italy (English is his third language!), another from Tanzania, and 3 campers from our new partnership with Open Doors in Asheville. Of course, we have 2 campers here for all 8 weeks, and several others here for 6 weeks. It's a lively bunch!
  • We're also very excited to have a full Senior Boys Cabin going into the rest of the summer!

Week Three: Reflections

Lots going on as Camp Spring Creek living wraps up Week 3 and heads into Week 4. Here's the latest dispatch:

  • A big welcome to two new campers this week: Emily and Miles! Woo-hoo!
  • The "Harlem Shake" has hit Camp Spring Creek and there's no telling when the next spontaneous outburst of dancing may occur...on the way to class, in the middle of kickball, along the pool deck...who knows? We're loving it.
  • Fave camp games as of late are Capture the Flag, Scavenger Hunt, and a new hybrid game created by Marguerite that is a half "Amazing Race" and half "Survivor."
  • Fave foods last week included: pralines and cream ice cream, a blueberry marshmallow dessert invention, pork tenderloin, and mashed sweet potatoes.
  • Last weekend included a hike down into Linville Falls Gorge and back up, a day trip to Lake James, and a special outing to see the new Disney movie called Monsters University!
  • Study Hall: For those who don't know, campers get Friday and Saturday "off" from Study Hall, but the class starts again Sunday evenings after Build Your Own Ice Cream Sundae (the ice cream helps, we swear). During this hour, students work independently on skills they have practiced with their tutors all week, with the idea that this will encourage them to practice OG lessons when they get home after camp. Each Study Hall has 2 tutors who sponsor the campers, but for the most part, campers are on their own to learn, practice, and re-enforce last week's skills.
  • In van der Vorst news, Nina the camp photographer has been offering 15-minute slide shows every Sunday evening to display her work and Marguerite came on board as a full-time counselor this week (allowing Grace to transition into full-time tutoring). Steve has also been dropping hints all week about a "big plan" for the boys' cabins next year, but so far he hasn't shared his carpenter's secrets with anyone yet. And Susie just learned she will be a featured presenter at the 2013 International Dyslexia Association Conference held in New Orleans, November 6-9. For parents, educators, and tutors alike this is a great opportunity to learn more and offer your kids the best...and meet up with Susie while you're at it!

Week Two: Reflections

There's so much to report on the last two weeks of fun and learning, that we're opting for a list of notes on camp life. Here's the scoop:

  • Weather update: It's been a little cooler and wetter than other years, but everyone is staying active, healthy, and warm.
  • Wildlife update: Not much going on this high up in the mountains, but Mimi the camp dog and Jazz (the neighbor's dog) are holding down the fort. The deer graze at lower elevations, but we have plenty of rabbits and squirrels. Each night, the fireflies are simply amazing...but so far, the campers have all been asleep by the time they come out. In other news, Crumpets the box turtle has been returned to the wild, after much coddling and adoration.
  • Scenery: The Super Moon this weekend was INCREDIBLE! "It was the size of a dinner plate," Susie observed.
  • Camp Songs: The most often repeated Camp Spring Creek song is the "Announcements" song. If you don't know this one, rest assured that your kids will come home with it stuck in their heads forever.
  • Weekends: The first weekend was spent at Wilson's Creek for tubing. The second weekend, everyone camped out on Friday night, then campers went to Huskin's Waterfall and then went bowling in town. They spent Sunday relaxing.
  • This coming weekend all the campers are a-flutter as they prepare for the Summer Dance. This year's theme? Beach Time!
  • The Junior Boys are rulers of the Cabin Inspection award this week, having outscored everyone else in camp. They were awarded with popcorn and a movie (Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief). The Junior Boys also benefit from a visit from Susie every night, as she reads to them from The Dragon Rider.
  • The Trial of Pages is unstoppable this year! Week One, campers read a combined total of 2,648 pages in 47 books. Week Two, they read 3,756 pages in 57 books. Amazing!
  • Last but not least, Olson van der Vorst continues to be seen dashing here and there--rumored to appear more than one place at a time--on the tractor, running the weed whacker, and generally maintaining the entire side of the mountain. He can fix things when they break, fix other things before they break, and keep everything tip-top. He's basically a Super Hero, but we don't think the campers have figured that out yet. Shhhh!

Orton-Gillingham Tutors: What It Takes

This summer we have approximately 7 Orton-Gillingham trained tutors at Camp Spring Creek during any given week. These tutors each have unique and varied backgrounds, but they have all received a minimum of Associate Level Training and prior practicum experience. Susie hires, assesses, and mentors the Camp Spring Creek tutors and she has also trained most of them through our Outreach Center in Spruce Pine. (Some tutors came to us already certified!) When asked what it takes to fill the very important role of tutor at Camp Spring Creek, Susie explained: "I like our tutors to be outdoorsy and to be the kind of person that enjoys the whole child, instead of just the tutoring...I also look for an array of different personalities when I hire tutors for Camp Spring Creek. At the start of each summer, I then match each child with the best personality fit amongst our tutors."

Here's what our returning tutors have to say about what they learned in training, and advice to future tutors:

Sara: "I took the training to help me with my own dyslexia and by the end of the training I knew how much it was helping me and wanted to help all children so they wouldn’t have to struggle the way I did. The most challenging part of the training was realizing that as much as I wanted to learn everything right then and there it was going to take time.  So I had to step back and not be such a perfectionist."

Tracy: "I was a school librarian for several years and always promoted reading but did not know how to teach reading especially to our struggling readers. I actually met Susie while applying for the Office Manager position. We both quickly realized I would be a much better tutor than office manager. I learned so much in the training and found working at camp last summer to be so rewarding that I wanted to come back again. I have moved to New Jersey and will live at camp this summer. I commuted last year from Bakersville."

Week One: Reflections

DSC02046What's it like to spend a day at Camp Spring Creek? For campers, a typical daily schedule might look like this: Week 1: Schedule

7:00am Wake up!

8:00am Breakfast

8:30am Silent reading time

9:25am Classes begin, rotating every 50 minutes throughout the morning

Period 1: Typing

Period 2: Art

Period 3: Math (M, W, F) or Woodshop (T, Th)

12:25pm Lunch!

1:15pm Afternoon classes begin, rotating every 50 minutes until suppertime

Period 4: Tutoring

Period 5: Swimming

Period 6: Outdoors

After suppertime, evenings are spent playing all-camp games, having a campfire, or participating in special cabin activities.

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Pilot Orton-Gillingham/Camp Counselor Program

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This summer, we're thrilled to announce the pilot launch of our new Orton-Gillingham/Camp Counselor program to benefit Mitchell County children who cannot otherwise afford Camp Spring Creek or one-on-one OG tutoring. Two of our international camp counselors, Lilja and Grace, have completed the 70-hour Associate Level Training in Orton-Gillingham methods and will donate 1 hour a day for 4 weeks tutoring a local child. As of this week, two children with dyslexia started coming out to Camp Spring Creek in Bakersville to spend an hour in a one-on-one tutoring session with Lilja and Grace. After tutoring, the children get to stay an additional hour and join the other campers in a fun activity such as woodshop, arts & crafts, or swimming.

Lilja and Grace with their OG materials

Summer Begins!

DSC01983 The campers arrive today, Sunday! We've put the finishing touches on all the new structures, swept the cabin floors, readied the pool, made a thousand trips up the hill to the boys' cabins, (tough job!), and given Mimi the camp dog a runaround of the place. Well, she actually ran a lot more than we did. We're thrilled that everyone is coming. Travel safely our way and get ready for an awesome summer!

We usually blog on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but all summer long we will also post a Sunday Photo Collage created weekly by Nina van der Vorst (shown below), so stay tuned for pics of your fave campers, tutors, counselors, and all the fun we're going to have. Make sure you've subscribed (on the right) to get our updates via email, and click on the "accept subscription" email message when it arrives in your inbox.

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Things to Look Forward To

2013 Camp Dates:

June 9th -July 7th or July 7th -August 3rd

If interested in a longer stay, please call 828-766-5032 to discuss availability.

Winter or Spring?

Winter seems to be more like spring here with warm temperatures and lots of rain the last couple days. Tomorrow we are starting a training for the teacher assistants who are in the classrooms with the teachers Susie trained in the fall.  They are all very excited to learn more of the techniques the teachers are using to best serve the kids.

Several more camp reunions are in the works and invitations will be sent out shortly.

We are very excited about all the inquiries on camp and all the returning campers who are already signed up.  It looks like 2013 summer will be full of excitement.

If you or anybody you know would like some more information about camp or trainings please call or email us and we would be happy to answer your questions.

828-766-5032 or info@campspringcreek.org

Happy New Year!

We are back from the holidays and 2013 is starting off with excitement.  We are putting together more camp reunions, planning more training, continuing to work with our local schools and getting excited for what this summer will have in store.  Along with this, Susie is meeting with a few people this week to talk about more grants to help give more students success. If you would like topics discussed please email us at info@campspringcreek.org and we will be happy to spend some time answering questions.  You may not be the only one asking the question.

Hope everyone had a wonderful holidays and a great start to the New Year.

A Heartfelt Holiday

Our hearts go out to all of the families of Sandy Hook Elementary School and this small Connecticut community.  For the children and faculty taken far too soon you will not be forgotten.  To all of those left behind we can’t even begin to understand the pain your community is going through.  As educators this affects us very deeply, and we want Sandy Hook Elementary to know that we are thinking of them in the weeks and months to come. Everybody here at Camp Spring Creek wants to wish all a safe and wonderful holiday season.

As 2012 wraps up we eagerly wait to see what 2013 will have in store.  We already have many campers signed up with many returning from this past summer.  Stay tuned for more, but the rumor has it that as many as four returning counselors plan join us in 2013.  We have also been planning more camp reunions, which we will keep everybody posted about dates and locations as they become set.  Susie will continue working in the local community and writing grants to help every child learn to their full potential.

 

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Our Community

Another week is off and running here are Camp Spring Creek.  Susie spent the morning in a county meeting letting the representatives here in our local community know what is happening.  It has been great to see more people locally stepping up and supporting the vision to help all kids learn.  We hope this will only continue to grow.   

The rest of this week will be spent with Susie back in the schools helping teachers.  We are also very excited to say that a few of the teacher assistants will be getting some training and they are all very excited to understand more about what the teachers are implementing into their daily lessons. 

December Is Here!!!

We welcome December here at Camp Spring Creek.  As this year draws to a close we look back at what a wonderful summer we had, all the people who have been trained and are now helping more kids, all of the support we have received, and over all what an amazing year it has been.  We are very excited to see what the next year has in store. This week Susie will be in the local school continuing to mentor the teachers that have been trained through the Janirve and Wal-Mart grant.  When not in the schools we will be in the office doing everything from creating flyers for upcoming community events to continuing updating the address book.

If you are new to Camp Spring Creek and would like to be added to our mailing list or would just like more information please email us at info@campspringcreek.org and we will be more than happy to answer questions and forward information on camp or training.