November is Almost Over

We hope everybody had a wonderful Thanksgiving with lots of yummy food and time spent with family and friends.  Everybody here had a great time and enjoyed the great weather.  This week has started off well with Susie spending Monday morning at Bald Creek Elementary.  Everybody is starting to see progress in their students which only reminds everyone why they do what they do.

Thanks to the Janirve found we will be able to train a few teacher assistants, two from Avery County, two from Yancey County and one from Mitchell County.  All are looking forward to the training and understanding more of what the teachers are doing in their classrooms.

You can take a look at our Fall newsletter by clicking the link provided. http://www.campspringcreek.org/pages/news-events/newsletter.php

If you are still thinking about making a donation don’t forget you can now do so by credit card just give us a call at 828-766-5032. Thank you to everyone who has already supported Camp.

Thanksgiving!!!

Another week has flown by.  We are continuing to update our address book and send out our 2012 fall newsletter.  If you would like to be added to our database please email us your contact information at info@campspringcreek.org and we will keep you up to date. 

We are in the process of starting to hire staff for our 2013 summer with many returning from past summers.  It will be wonderful to have familiar faces and people who know the ropes to help keep camp running in tip-top shape. 

With the holiday season here we want to wish everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving and safe travels to be with friends and family.  We would love to hear your favorite recipe from this Thanksgiving and who knows maybe it might make it to camp next summer.  So please feel free to comment here or on Facebook. 

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!!

Camp Reunion!!!

Boy how time flies.  Last week was a little calmer with Susie continueing some training for local teachers. She has also been going into the schools continuing to mentor 9 wonderful and patient teachers. This weekend Susie and Steve headed to Charleston SC for our first camp reunion.  They had a wonderful time seeing familiar faces and meeting some new ones.  Check out the pictures we have posted on facebook!!! 

If you would like to host a camp reunion please give us a call at 828-766-5032 or email at info@campspringcreek.org we would love to come.

Middle of Ocober Already!!!

Where does the time go it’s already the middle of October.  Between trainings, assessments, and keeping up with the office we are staying very busy.  Susie started going into classrooms last week to observe how the teachers structure their classrooms.  By seeing the layouts of the class she can best direct them with a tailored approach.  We have also been gathering tools that will help facilitate the multisensory approach that is so beneficial.

Something we saw at The Key Learning Center, in Asheville that won’t break the bank and will help with writing. Go to your local craft store, we found ours at Michaels, and ask for plastic canvas.  It comes in sheets a little bigger than printer paper.  You can then draw lines with a permanent marker appropriate size for the child.  This becomes a tracing pad.  They can then practice the alphabet, cursive, there spelling words, numbers, etc.  This is a great way to have sensory input.

On Saturday Susie will be heading to Sandhills Academy to spread the word of Camp Spring Creek and hear Ron Yoshimoto speak.

Stay tuned for the rest of October as we have many more exciting things to come.

Visitors!

Last week we finished assessing students in Mitchell County for the advanced training provided by the Janirve and Wal-Mart grants. This week Susie will start heading into the classrooms to watch and help implement strategies.  We are very glad that children in our community are getting the tools needed to help them learn. 

Susie spent Thursday with Heather Beddenbach, from Fraser Academy in Vancouver; they went on tours at Sandhills School, Camperdown Academy, and Camp Spring Creek before heading to The Key School for the Fellows seminar on Friday and Saturday.  We have been enjoying Diana Hanbury King who has spent Sunday and Monday with us at Camp Spring Creek.

We are very excited that we already have ten campers who have committed for next summer. Our first Camp Spring Creek reunion is set for November 9^th in Charleston, SC.

The Coming of Fall

October is bringing fall colors on the trees here in the mountains of North Carolina.  The temperatures have started to cool off but our schedule has not. 

Yesterday we had our fall board meeting, which has left us with an exciting outlook for the next year and much to do.  We have some new additions to our board that are bringing new ideas and are very excited to be a part of Camp Spring Creek’s vision. 

Last week we started our assessments in Mitchell County for our teachers who are in the advanced training.  We will continue to assess students this week.  Once the students have been assessed, Susie will begin going into these classrooms to help guide the teachers as they begin implementing Orton-Gillingham to their reading instruction.

Susie will be picking up Heather Reddenbach, who is visiting from Vancouver, in Greenville SC and taking her to see Sandhills Academy before the Fellows seminar on Friday being held at The Key Learning Center of Carolina Day School. 

We now have nine committed campers for the 2013 season, a record for Camp Spring Creek on its first day of our fiscal year.

We welcome autumn with excitement just as the leaves are changing colors we are learning, growing and changing all the time.

September Draws to an End

Wow another whole week has come and gone.  Susie finished up a full Associate training yesterday with three wonderful ladies.  Hopefully we will see some of them at camp next summer. Tonight will bring continued advanced training supported by Janirve and Wal-Mart grants.  They will be spending some of their time creating fun learning activities to take into their classrooms.  This week we will start going into their classrooms to begin assessing their students just like we did with the other teachers during the last couple of weeks.

We are editing our Fall newsletter and sifting through pictures to complement the text. 

We have our board meeting on Sunday and will be announcing in our newsletter any new members.  We are very excited to the prospect of these new additions and look forward to what they have to offer camp.

Training, Testing, Paint and More!!!

Last week was a very busy week but filled with lots of exciting happenings.  We have been in two local schools testing children from Kindergarten through Third grade on their reading skills supported by the Janirve and Wal-Mart grants we received.  We will be graphing their pre and post assessments to show each student’s and classrooms growth.  Susie will be working closely with these teachers to help guide them with their new knowledge of Orton-Gillingham.  Monday brought the beginning of an advanced training also supported by Janirve and Wal-Mart.  The teachers receiving this training have taken the Classroom Educator class or the Associate level training and have been implementing Orton-Gillingham in their classrooms.  They also will receive a yearlong mentorship.

Tuesday was the last scheduled class of the Classroom Educator class provided for three teachers in both Yancey and Avery counties.  These teachers have already requested an additional day of training, as they see the benefit of background knowledge to incorporate effective strategies to their Letterland curriculum.  Next week Susie will start going into the classrooms to help the teachers implement what they have learned and model how to use their new knowledge in the classroom.  All six of these teachers are very excited to help their kids and can’t wait to see the students’ growth.

Wednesday starts the second half of a full Associate level training with three eager women.  One was in the office on Monday copying cards, so that she has everything she needs to be ready to start tutoring after class. 

In the midst of all of this the Van der Vorsts have painted their house and office.  Steve is also working on putting on a full two-car garage, which limited the parking. So we all have been very busy, and we like that. 

An Exciting Week

Things have been crazy with two trainings taking place simultaneously. Susie finished up the first week of an Associate training this weekend and will continue with the second half next week. Thanks to a local grant Susie will continue to train six local teachers, 3 K-2 teachers from Yancey County and 3 K-3 teachers from Avery County, affecting nearly 100 students in the first year. All of our trainees are eager to learn as much as they can.

For those who do not know, Sara, a tutor from the summer has stepped in to keep things organized in the office as our office manager. She is a welcome addition. Sara will be representing Camp Spring Creek at the NC Youth Camp Association's annual meeting being held September 11th at Camp Highlander. On Wednesday and Thursday Susie and staff will be testing kids in the classrooms of Yancy and Avery Counties. Then at the end of the school year we will retest to show the progress the students make, using OG strategies to supplement their Letterland instruction in the classroom. This will be a busy and exciting week.

What Happens Right After Camp

Right after camp, Susie offered a Certified, Part I training to teachers from Georgia, Ohio, and our own Tracy Krug. At the end of August Susie started training six local teachers sponsored by Janirve and Wal-Mart grants.  These K-2 teachers, who are currently using the Letterland curriculum, are all very interested in helping their students and started the training by asking lots of intuitive questions.  Keep an eye on the website as I will be adding pictures from this summer as well as more to the resources page.  Toward the end of the week we will start putting together the news letter.  Look forward to next week’s post.    

Week 8: It's Very Quiet Now

Our last week was a very full and fun filled week.  We had a great adventure the last weekend where we went spelunking through a cave in TN.  This was a great team building activity where the kids could explore, play in the mud, laugh, and enjoy learning first had what lies below our feet.  A few people were very nervous at first but by the time we emerged back into daylight all were glad they persevered  We had one last dance as well that week, and as always the kids had a ball.  The theme of the dance was formal and we even had a candle light dinner beforehand.  We ended the week with one final night of skits, which went out with a bang as they all got into the spirit.  They also made a paper quilt of memories in art, which we will hang in just the right place.  So now camp is quiet and we are getting things put away, so we are ready for next summer.  We look forward to hearing from all of our campers in the months to come.  Please post what you are doing and how things are going.  Anybody want to comment on the counselors visits to their hometown?...

 

A Few Camp Favorites... Yum Yum Yum

Ranch Dressing

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup buttermilk

2 Tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley

2 Tablespoons chives

1 1/2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

1 1/2 teaspoons dijon mustard

3/4 teaspoon onion powder

Whisk first 3 ingredients in large bowl.  Mix in remaining ingredients. Dressing can be prepared 5 days ahead.  Keep refrigerated.

Makes 1 1/2 cups.

Granola

3 cups old fashioned oats

1 1/2 cups nuts (pecans, sliced almonds, walnuts ect.)

1/2 cup coconut

1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil (may need 1-2 T. more if too dry)

1/4 cup honey

1 Tablespoon maple syrup

1 1/2 cups dried fruit (raisins, craisins, currants, apples, etc.)

Optional additions: seeds, spices, or flavorings

Preheat oven to 350; spray a baking sheet with non-stick spray and set aside.

In large bowl, combine oats, nuts, coconut, vegetable oil, honey and maple syrup; stir to blend.  Spread on baking sheet and bake for a total of approximately 30 minutes, stirring granola every 10 minutes.

Once granola is gloden brown and fragrant, remove from the oven and let cool.  Stir in dried fruit and store in an airtight container.

Awesome Pralines and Cream

Makes one 9x13 pan

1/2 cup quick-cooking rolled oats

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

2 sticks butter

1 cup chopped pecans

2 cups flour

2 (12oz.) jars of caramel topping

1/2 gallon vanilla ice cream, softened

Mix the first 5 ingredients. Bake in a 9x13 buttered pan at 350 for 20 minutes.  Stir often; the mixture will be crumbly.  Cool and divide mixture in half

Put half of crumbs in bottom of pan.  Spread crumbs evenly in pan.  Pour 1 jar of caramel topping over crumbs.  Put softened ice cream on topping.  Pour other jar of caramel over ice cream.  Sprinkle with rest of crumbs.  Freeze at least 3 hours before serving.

Hope you enjoy these recipes as much as the kids have over the summer.  Enjoy!!! 

Week 7: A Campers Point of View

Hello, my name in Marco. I’m in the Senior Boys Cabin and I am the oldest camper at camp this year. I’m writing the Blog this week to give you a campers’ perspective. First of all I want to say straight up that in my third year I am still enjoying camp a lot. As you might know from the last few blogs a lot of things happen here at camp - we are non-stop! This means there isn’t much time to rest.
 
In a previous blog a few weeks back we told you that visited Wilson's Falls, last weekend we went again, and it was pretty amazing! It was a completely different experience this time because there was a totally different group of campers. The hike there was always a bit of a pain and it still is... but it’s a “fun” pain! We get to talk on the hike and it’s always a good time. It’s truly amazing how many different subjects you can talk about in a 30-minute hike! Junior girls have won cabin inspection again this week and they got to spend the evening doing free swimming which they invited the senior girls to also, while us boys hit up the cabin and done some serious cleaning.

This week we also had group Olympics. We were in 4 groups and our group names were “Ice Ice Baby”, “Ireland”, “United States of Awesome”, and “God Save the Queen”. As you can probably tell, the names where based on some of the counselors leading their teams. It was an awful lot of fun, as long as you’re a good sport and care about having fun, not just about winning. We did land Olympics, which involved archery, long jump, running, hoola-hooping, ball catching, and the egg and spoon race. We also did water Olympics, which involved relays and a mixed stroke relays. The teams were quite even and we all got decent scores.

On Thursday we had skit night again, which is as always pretty funny!! There was dance and singing performances and lots of skits about the leaving campers. For comic relief, Olson, Armand, Donagh and I did the “Cinnamon Challenge”. It wasn't very pleasant but nevertheless it was fun and I was told it was hilarious to watch.

Later today (Friday) we will finish after 4th period and head to Lake James to go wake-boarding, tubing, kayaking, and swimming. Then, tonight we will have our weekly campfire (hmmm...smoorrrres) and camp out in tents around the fire.... a late night for sure....

Well, that’s it for this week’s blog. I hope you enjoyed hearing about the activities for the week. Only 7 days left and you will all have your children back!

Thanks for reading,

Marco.

Week 6: Time Keeps on Ticking

Hi there Dedicated Blog Readers! Alysha here, your one and only resident American counselor. I hope you all have enjoyed our updates and photos so far, but get ready because there is always more!

Throughout daily classes the campers made tiles out of plaster of Paris in Art, worked on their butterfly stroke in Swimming, and wrote more letters and stories in Typing. In Outdoors they ran obstacle courses, played intense games of Paintball, and worked to perfect their Archery skills. In Woodshop, many of the campers have been building small houses, boats that they’ve been testing in the pool, and even yoyos! Building yoyos seems to have become the new camp trend. They are all working hard in Tutoring and are improving every day. Finally, one of our most exciting additions to camp are 4 new Kindles that the campers get to use during Reading Hour. The Kindles have allowed them to read books at higher reading levels and are helping them read more pages each day.

During evening activities, the Junior Girls got to have a movie night as their prize for working very hard to win Room Inspection. On Tuesday the whole camp decorated masks which they wore at the Masquerade Dance the next night. The campers dressed to impress in their formal wear and showed off their moves! On Thursday we held the infamous Skit and Talent night. Hilarious skits were performed about three of our campers that were leaving the next day, and counselors and campers alike showed off their performing talents. After saying farewell to our departing campers on Friday, the crew still remaining played a mean game of Capture the Flag at the Bakersville field, had a blast in the pool during a night swim, and ate s’mores by the campfire.

Needless to say these guys have been busy! They were worn out and fast asleep after all the excitement this week, but stay tuned…because they are always recharged by Monday for another week of fun!

Over and out,

Alysha

Week 6: Time Keeps on Ticking

Hi there Dedicated Blog Readers! Alysha here, your one and only resident American counselor. I hope you all have enjoyed our updates and photos so far, but get ready because there is always more!

Throughout daily classes the campers made tiles out of plaster of Paris in Art, worked on their butterfly stroke in Swimming, and wrote more letters and stories in Typing. In Outdoors they ran obstacle courses, played intense games of Paintball, and worked to perfect their Archery skills. In Woodshop, many of the campers have been building small houses, boats that they’ve been testing in the pool, and even yoyos! Building yoyos seems to have become the new camp trend. They are all working hard in Tutoring and are improving every day. Finally, one of our most exciting additions to camp are 4 new Kindles that the campers get to use during Reading Hour. The Kindles have allowed them to read books at higher reading levels and are helping them read more pages each day.

During evening activities, the Junior Girls got to have a movie night as their prize for working very hard to win Room Inspection. On Tuesday the whole camp decorated masks which they wore at the Masquerade Dance the next night. The campers dressed to impress in their formal wear and showed off their moves! On Thursday we held the infamous Skit and Talent night. Hilarious skits were performed about three of our campers that were leaving the next day, and counselors and campers alike showed off their performing talents. After saying farewell to our departing campers on Friday, the crew still remaining played a mean game of Capture the Flag at the Bakersville field, had a blast in the pool during a night swim, and ate s’mores by the campfire.

Needless to say these guys have been busy! They were worn out and fast asleep after all the excitement this week, but stay tuned…because they are always recharged by Monday for another week of fun!

Over and out,

Alysha

Week 5: New Campers

Hey! How’s it going? My name is Blinky and I’m the Scottish counselor.  I am in charge of archery and help run the other outdoor activities at camp. This is the first year camp has had archery in their curriculum, and the kids are having a blast. We’ve even hit the “bullseye”. This past week was fun, especially getting to know all the new campers who arrived last Sunday. During the week we had a lot of rain, so most outdoor activity time has been spent inside doing indoor games. But this weekend has been super busy and full of activities. On Saturday we went to the Storytelling Festival in Bakersville, where the campers got to hear old stories from all over the US. Afterwards we went to Tom Huskins Falls, where we used biodegradable shampoo and stared in our own L’Oreal commercial. Once bathed and shampooed, we headed to the bowling alley in Marion, had lots of fun, hit a few strikes and spares, and ate far too many sweets! On Sunday one of our camper’s family graciously invited us to visit their house on Lake James and use all their cool water “toys”. The kids had the chance to go swimming, paddle boating, kayaking, wakeboarding, kneeboarding, tubing and waterskiing; some for the very first time. Following a barbeque lunch, grilled by me…. we arrived back to camp late…. Worn and exhausted, even the counselors were ready for bed.

So, that’s 5 weeks down with 3 more to go. We are all a bit tired but still having lots of fun together. We will keep you all posted about next week!

Blinky.

Week 4: Starts With A Bang

Hi my name is Sara Keller and I’m one of the tutors.  I’m originally from Alaska but have lived in NC for the past five years.  This is my first year at camp, and I look forward to many more.  I can’t believe how time flies, that the first four weeks are over and we are saying goodbye to so many wonderful kids.  Every day is an adventure at camp from the moment they get up to the time their heads hit the pillows. At the start of week four we learned that the adventure can continue even after their eyes are tightly closed.  We had a huge thunder storm that came through on Sunday night.  Since I’m the one writing this, I can say that I was the first one up and knocking on someone else’s door.  By the time we all settled back in for the night we had no power and the rain was still falling with rapid force.  The girls all piled in for a sleepover just to make everybody, including myself feel safe.  As for the boys I heard the next morning that most of the junior boys slept right through the whole thing, and the senior boys braved it out in their own beds.  How anybody slept through the crashing of thunder and the buckets of rain I’m not sure, but I guess they were just that tired.  All in all it is never a dull moment at Camp Spring Creek even when the lights go out. Last weekend we took a trip camping and to the US National Whitewater Center in Charlotte.  Everybody had a great time even though we had to walk a mile to our campsite with all of our gear.  The next morning we packed up and headed to Charlotte for a day of rope climbing, kayaking, zip-lining, and the most sought after event of the day-- rafting the same waters where the Olympic tryouts take place.  It was a day filled with laughing, helping, team-building, overcoming fears and enjoying everybody.

Tuesday night brought our second dance for the summer with a Salsa theme.  It’s very rewarding to see the kids trying new things and letting their free spirits take them.  Earlier in the day everybody learned a few moves for the dance floor in their outdoor class, which also included the polite way of asking a lady to have a dance.  That night the young men did a nice job of using there manners to get everybody up and moving.

Next came the Fourth of July and the much anticipated Penland parade.  The kids spent the last week in art class getting ready to walk in the parade.  They painted a bacdrop that told part of a story, and the rest was the kids telling the story… not just by speaking, but acting out characters.  There costumes were wonderfully sculpted balloon animals to represent the characters.  They did such a wonderful job that they won most inventive.  Following the parade we had some ice cream while waiting for dusk and the fireworks.  Another very full day but it was full of love and laughing.

Thursday brought, yep you guessed it, another busy day with tutoring, swimming, art and woodshop.  It also brought us to our last night for eight of our campers.  We had fun acting out skits, giving awards, and having a few last laughs.  Some tears were shed as all of the kids have made such wonderful friends and truly have come together and supported one another.

After a jam packed week Friday finally rolled around.  We had a wonderful day and when 6^th period rolled around everybody was more than ready for the weekend.  After everybody said goodbye and eight wonderful kids drove away, camp was very quiet.  With only ten left we enjoyed a lazy night by watching a movie and an early to bed to catch up on some much needed sleep.  The girls had a cozy sleepover which brought many giggles.

As for Saturday we went hiking at Linville Falls and stopped for some ice cream on the way home.  We had a night of swimming and a campfire.  I can’t believe that a month has gone by, and we are halfway through our summer.  Sunday brought us ten new campers, and the adventures will continue.  Stay tuned to see what next week will bring… I doubt it will be any fewer adventures than the last.

Week 3: Still Having Fun

Hi I am Jenny, the English counselor, I am spending the summer working on art projects with the kids at camp, as well as helping out and participating in all the fun activities. Now that the third week of camp is over, I can’t believe how fast the weeks are flying by, and we are almost half way through our time here. Everyone is doing such a great job, the campers and staff are working very hard and also having so much fun! We had a fantastic weekend. Saturday we took a trip to Wilsons Creek. We all really enjoyed spending time by the waterfalls and in the pools as well as the beautiful scenery.  Sunday we went tubing (floating down a river on a rubber ring) nearby at Loafers Glory.

As well as their tutoring classes this week, the children have been involved in paintball, archery, creating planes in woodshop, and mosaics in art. Toward the end of the week we started work on our float for the 4^th of July parade, so look out for pictures of that next week. We’re all very excited to be involved. This weekend we are taking a camping trip so during outdoor activities the children have been practicing tent pitching.

Nightly activities have been a hit this week and have included a film night, paintball, friendship bracelet making (which has become the craze this week!), kick ball at Bakersville baseball field and a scavenger hunt.

Next week marks the middle of our summer camp program and whilst a few of our campers will be leaving us, we will also be welcoming a bunch of new campers. It will be a busy week full of dance night, skit night, and 4^th of July celebrations so it’s going to be a great week, and I’m sure we’re going to have a terrific time.

Week 2: A Bit Late

  Hi, I'm Tracy Krug.  I am one of the tutors.  I live in Bakersville, NC.  This is my 1st year at Camp and I'm having a great time.  In just two weeks we have seen tremendous progress, in the campers reading fluency and decoding skills.  They are building independence and self confidence during Strdy Hall.  They look forward to Reading Hour each morning with tutors and counselors.

2012 Week 1 - Mission: Lift-off

Friday, 15^th June  

My name is Breeze and as the Australian representative I am one of seven counsellors that have come to Bakersville, NC to help organize games & activities, supervise campers, drive the big yellow camp bus, as well as running a computer touch-typing course at Camp Spring Creek. Did someone say multi-tasking? Well, it goes without saying that all the staff including counsellors, tutors, cooks, cleaners, and our camp directors Steve & Susie van der Vorst have been multi-tasking and working very hard to prepare and schedule for weeks leading upto the arrival of Camp Spring Creek’s campers. I have no doubt this summer will run smoothly and most importantly, it will be FUN!

So, week 1 at Camp Spring Creek is coming to a close – and what a fast week it has been! All the campers arrived on Sunday and after registration the 14 campers were straight into the pool for fitness testing. Next we had some group activities and games run by our very multi-culturally diverse group of counsellors in order to familiarize the campers with each other. During this time campers were quietly whisked off one by one to be assessed by their tutors to see where their specific peaks and valleys were in regards to their language skills in reading and spelling. What a long day!

This week we’ve had swimming classes, clay art, wood-shop, river walking/exploring, dance class, and even a spot of archery towards the end of the week. With all the fun and games one wouldn’t even think we were an educational summer camp but of course we have still managed to find time for buddy reading, one-on-one tutoring, math, study hall and the campers are responding with positive, noticeable progress already.

Our evenings have been full of more activities including night swimming, Capture the Flag, and a trip into Bakersville soccer field for an intensely competitive game of soccer. So far all campers, counsellors, and even Steve have come out of our daily group games unscathed.Daily room inspections began with high standards, resulting in a win by the junior boys’ cabin – and now revenge is a high priority! The junior boys were rewarded for their cleanliness with a movie and rootbeer whilst the rest of camp participates in daily group games…

Stay tuned until next week! Which is right around the corner…..