Staff Games - Monkey Business Camp!

Transcription

Circle Games
We have circle time in the morning and afternoon. These games are geared for the entire
group and most are designed to be played sitting down in a circle. Almost any shortish
game can be played during circle time, so don’t feel confined by this list. For more ideas
check out the movement and drama sections and the peace games binder.
Alien Invasion (aka Murder Handshake)
Age: Easier with older, but can work with both
Time per Round: 2-8 min.
We call this game Alien Invasion instead of Murder Handshake because aliens are more
exciting than murderers. If you have another alternative to the killing version, go for it!
Here’s how it works:
1. Explain how the game is played, especially the special handshake that only the alien can
use (one finger scratches the palm of the person they are shaking hands with).
2. All the campers close their eyes and one counselor walks around and taps one camper on
the head, while explaining what they are doing. If you want, ask campers to raise their hands
while they close their eyes if they want to be the alien.
3. Tell everyone they can open their eyes. Welcome them to the party and warn them that
there is an alien in the group.
4. Everyone walks around shaking hands. You cannot refuse to shake hands with anyone. If
someone shakes your hand with the special alien handshake you either wait 10 seconds or
shake two more people’s hands and then fall down on the ground, beginning the
metamorphosis the alien has catalyzed! (aka they “fall asleep”)
5. Here are two variations on how guessing who the alien is works. Feel free to use your own.
-Whenever someone thinks they know they raise their hand and when the counselor calls on
them they say who they think it is. If they are wrong they must fall asleep. If they are right
the game is over. This version is best for younger kids.
-Whenever someone thinks they know they raise their hand but must wait for another person
to raise their hand. When two people both have a guess, a counselor holds both their hands up
and on the count of three they must point to the person they think is the alien (or say their
name). If they point differently, or if they both point to the wrong person, they must fall
asleep. If they both point to the right person, the game is over. This version makes a bigger
challenge and hampers cheating with older kids.
Make sure to end the game before it stops being fun! A good clue is whenever a lot of
accusations of cheating are being made.
Doggie, Doggie, Where’s Your Bone?
Age: Everyone!
Materials: “Bone”—Can be anything small enough for a camper to conceal.
One person (the Doggie, or detective) is sent out of the circle and closes their eyes. A
counselor hands the “bone” to one of the campers in the circle and they hide. Then everyone
is told to pretend like they are hiding the bone. Everyone sings: “Doggie, doggie, where’s
your bone? Somebody stole it from your home,” which is the cue for the doggie to return to
the circle and try to figure out who has the bone.
Two really great things about this game:
-The rounds are really short so it can be squeezed in whenever a little time needs to be
filled, or used as a “main course” kind of game.
-It can be adapted for whatever theme is happening. For example: “Pirate, pirate,
where’s your sword? Somebody stole it from your hoard!”
Duck, Duck, Goose! MBC Style
Age: Everyone!
Materials: Nothing needed. On hot days a sponge and bucket of water can be used for the
“Duck, Duck, Splash!” variation.
I’m sure you know how to play duck, duck, goose. MBC Style means that campers are
invited to substitute whatever they like for duck and goose. Furthermore, if someone ends up
in the mushpot, the name of that changes based on whatever the camper chose for their duck
and goose substitutes. Usually a creative counselors names the mushpot. Some examples:
monkey, monkey, gorilla (mushpot could be the jungle); apple, apple, orange (orchard?); ice,
ice, cream (freezer?); or my favorite, soybean, soybean, tofu (Berkeley, of course).
For a hot day, the camper who is tapping heads has a water-filled sponge and dribbles a little
bit on people they are not choosing, and when they choose squeezes the whole thing on the
person’s head.
With younger kids it is sometimes best to have no mushpot at all.
When playing Duck, Duck, Splash, remember to make a clear gesture (such as putting
one’s hand on one’s head) that campers can do if they do not want to get wet.
Evolution
Age: Older (younger kids can usually get it in a mixed group though)
Materials: None.
Evolution can be a great drama game because it involves acting like animals, but its also a
good circle game for any theme, because it’s so fun!
Everyone starts out as an egg. The goal of the game is to evolve through all the stages to
reach the final, Supreme Being stage. The way to evolve is to play rock, paper, scissors with
someone at your same evolutionary level. The winner evolves to the next stage and the loser
stays the same. The stages are:
Egg – Moves around in a ball and says “waddle waddle”
Chicken – Moves around crouched while flapping arms and clucking
Dinosaur – Walks around making big mouth gestures with arms and dinosaur noises
Monkey – You know. Hands in armpits. Monkey noises.
Human Being – Drives around honking and saying things like “Whatever!” on cell phone
Supreme Being – Forms a circle with other SBs and sings “Stop! In the name of love…”
Froggy aka Frogs and Flies
Age: Everyone!
Materials: None.
One camper is sent out to be the detective. The rest of the campers close their eyes while a
counselor walks around and taps one on the head. That one is the froggy. All the campers
open their eyes and start buzzing like flies, which is the cue for the detective to come back.
The froggy sticks their tongue out at flies, and when a fly sees the froggy stick their tongue
out at them, they must fall asleep. The detective tries to figure out who the froggy is.
Heads Up, Seven Up
Age: Everyone! (Youngest kids may have some trouble)
Materials: None.
Pick seven people to be 'it'. Everyone else puts their heads down and their thumbs up. The
chosen seven sneak around and push down the thumb of any one person they choose. Then,
when everyone has made their selections, a counselor calls out, “Head's up, seven up!'” The
seven people who had their thumbs pushed down stand up, and each person gets one guess to
pick who chose them. If they get it right, they take the person's place. If they don't, they sit
down, and their chooser stays up. To play with fewer people, have three or five people be it.
Beware of cliques, or campers only choosing their friends leaving shy kids completely
out of the game.
Honey if you love me… or OINK!
Age: Everyone!
Materials: None.
In the traditional version of this game, one camper is selected to be ‘it.’ They go into the
middle of the circle and must approach campers and try to get them to smile or laugh. They
cannot touch the person they are targeting, but they can do anything else as long as they
include the words “Honey if you love me won’t you please please smile?”
Oink, an alternate version from the Monkey Business files, seems like it might work better
with younger kids and probably be fun for older kids too:
This game is for two or more players.
The object of the game is to make the other players smile with your funniest oink, snort, or
other pig noise.
To play, players take turns being the pig and going around to the other players.
If the pig makes a player laugh or crack a smile, the player's out. If the pig doesn't, the pig
moves on to the next player.
The last player left in the circle is the winner.
The no touching rule is big! Enforce it!
Pass the Squeeze
Age: Everyone!
Materials: None.
This is a great game when the group needs some focus. Everyone holds hands in the circle
and one person begins the game by gently squeezing the hand of one of the people next to
them. That person squeezes the next person’s hand and so on until the squeeze reaches the
person who started it. For more excitement, make two or three squeezes go around at once.
To enhance the focusing qualities of the game, make it a timed squeeze and try to go as fast
as possible—then get kids to suggest ways to make it even faster.
Remember to emphasize gentle squeezes!
Pattern-Maker (aka Who’s the Leader?)
Age: Everyone!
Materials: None.
From the Monkey Business Vault:
To play, one player is the guesser, one the monkey and the rest follow the monkey.
Decide which player will be the guesser. That player leaves the room.
While the guesser is out of the room, the rest of the players (or a counselor) decide who will
be the monkey.
The other players have to do whatever the monkey does. If she scratches her head, the rest of
the players have to scratch their heads. The guesser tries to figure out who is the monkey. The
monkey should try not to get caught changing the action.
Peek-a-Who!
Age: Everyone!
Time per Round: >1 min. but many rounds should be played.
Materials: 1 large sheet.
This is a fun name game that breaks out of the circle and that kids love. Campers are divided
into two groups. Two counselors (or CITs) hold the sheet between the two groups and one
camper from either side is chosen to go right in front of the sheet. On the count of three the
sheet is dropped and the campers who were chosen, who are now facing each other, must say
the other’s name as quickly as possible. The one whose name gets said first must go over to
the other side.
Who’s Missing
Age: Everyone!
Time per Round: 5 min.
Materials: 1 large sheet.
This is a good game to play after Peek-a-Who, when campers are starting to get familiar with
names and who’s in the group. One camper is sent away to be the detective. Another camper
is chosen to hide under the sheet. The detective returns and tries to figure out who is under
the sheet based on who is missing from the group. Try putting 2 or more people under the
sheet for humps of fun!
Telephone
Age: Everyone!
Time per Round: 1-5 min. depending on how many are in the game.
Materials: None.
You know. Telephone. One person (first time do a counselor) starts a message by whispering
in the ear of someone next to them. That person passages the message to the person next to
them, and so on. The last person says it out loud. If someone doesn’t hear it, they may request
operator once but then must say whatever they think they heard.
Especially with older kids telephone can turn into a great opportunity to discuss the
word “appropriate” and what it might mean in relationship to camp.
Things I Love
Age: Everyone! Will work best with older campers.
Materials: Cut out hearts (or just pieces of paper), and markers or pencils, a hat or basket.
From the Monkey Business Vault:
Give each person a heart cut out of paper and have them write down their favorite color,
movie, book, animal and food.
Then put all of the hearts into a hat and have people take turns reading them.
Try to guess who you think the author of each heart is.
If played with younger kids they will need a lot of help writing their things.
Clap Together
Age: Older.
Materials: None.
This is a rhythm and focus game. A counselor starts by turning to a camper next to them and
they clap together (each claps at the same time). The camper then turns to the person next to
them and does the same thing, and so on, so that the clap travels around the circle. The goal is
that each pair of claps sounds like just one clap. To make this possible two helpful strategies
are to keep a slow steady rhythm and look into the eyes of the person you are clapping with
(but try to get the kids to come up with these ideas). To make it more complicated, anyone
can reverse the direction of the clap by not turning but instead clapping twice with the person
who is passing it to them. Another level can be adding two or more claps at once.
This game is hard! Don’t try to get beyond just synchronized clapping the first time you
play it!
Zip-Zap-Zop
Age: Older (probably).
Materials: None.
In Zip-Zap-Zop there are three things you can do: You can Zip, you can Zap, and you can
Zop. The game begins with a counselor turning to someone next to them and clapping at them
and saying “Zip.” That person turns and claps at the person next to them and says “Zip.”
These are Zips. To Zap, you do not turn but just face the person who zipped to you and clap
back and them, saying “Zap.” A Zap reverses the direction. If you wish to Zop, you make eye
contact with someone across the circle and clap at the and say “Zop.” If someone Zops to
you, you can either Zop to someone else, or Zip in either direction? Makes sense? Great! If
you take too long or use the wrong word to do an action, you are out of the circle.
Bippetty, Bippetty, Bop!
Age: Older (probably).
Time per Round: Game is good for 10-15 min. (no rounds really)
Materials: None.
One person is ‘it.’ That person is in the middle of the circle and is trying to make someone
else it. The basic way to do this is to approach someone in the circle and say “Bippetty,
Bippetty, Bop!” to them. If they do not say Bop before the ‘it’ person does, they become ‘it.’
‘It’ may also say just “Bop” without the Bippetties, in which case the person they say it too
cannot say “Bop” or they will become ‘it.’
To make the game more exciting there are a bunch of commands that ‘it’ can give to people
in the circle. When a command is given the person who is targeted and the two people next to
them must act out the command within ten seconds (‘it’ counts). If one part of the
commanded groups fails to do so, they become it. Some commands:
Elephant – the middle person makes a trunk and the wings make ears
Viking – the middle person does a mask and the wings row
Charlie’s Angels – middle up, wings to the side
There are countless possibilities. Be inventive and ask for suggestions!
Field Games
Organized field games are often scheduled during the morning free time and after lunch,
and sometimes as part of a rotation. With all field games it is incredibly important to have
attention tuned to making sure everyone involved is having fun. Kids (and youth leaders
and adults) often forget that this is the goal and focus on the competition and winning
aspect of the games. Counselors must not only remember that “winning” is everyone
having fun, but help kids, and especially youth leaders, to remember this as well.
Skating Relay
Age: Everyone!
# of Players: Any!
Equipment: 2 plastic plates per participant (or team), line markers
The course should be about 30 feet long, with a start and finish line.
Players form two teams.
The object of the game is to be the first team to skate down the course and back on their
plates.
Players can't step off their plates. If they do, they have to start over.
Dog Ball Relay
Age: Everyone!
# of Players: Any!
Equipment: 2 balls (rubber works best), line markers
Mark start and finish lines.
Divide into two teams.
On the word "go," the first player of each team has to bark, get on her hands and knees and
use her nose or forehead to roll the ball to the end of the course, around the marker and back.
When players get back to their team, they tag the next person in line. Every player must bark
before they set off.
WOOF WOOF!
Giants, Wizards, and Elves
Age: Everyone!
# of Players: At least 4…more the merrier!
Time per Round: 2 min.
Equipment: Line markers
Mark a middle line and two safe zone lines. Explain these rules:
• Giants conquer wizards. To be a giant, raise your arms high above your head.
• Wizards conquer elves. To be a wizard, make a triangle with your arms over your
head (like a wizard hat). Or make magic gestures with your hands.
• Elves conquer giants. To be an elf, place your hands alongside your ears with index
fingers extended, and crouch.
Divide the kids into two teams on either side of the line. Direct each team to retreat a few feet
for a huddle to decide which they will be: giants, wizards, or elves. In their huddles, each
team decides what they will be, plus a backup choice. Then they come back to the line. On a
count of three, each team yells what they are. If one team yells "Elves!" and the other yells
"Wizards!," the wizard team will chase the elves to their safe zone. Anyone who is tagged
becomes part of the opposing team. If both teams yell the same creature, they do it over using
their backup choice.
Monkey Ball (aka Prison Ball)
Age: Everyone!
# of Players: 4 to Infinity!
Equipment: Line markers, many foam balls
Set up three lines: a back end for each team’s zone and a middle line. Divide the chillins into
two teams.
It’s just dodgeball with a twist. Kids start on the back line for their team and when a
counselor yells “Go” they race for the balls and start throwing them at each other. The twist is
that whenever someone gets out they have to go behind the back line of the opposite team.
From there they have two ways to get back onto their side: catch a ball in the air or use a
fallen ball to hit someone on the other team (whose side they are behind).
Specific rules:
1. You cannot cross the line of the section you are in, especially to get a ball.
2. You cannot take a ball with you when you go to jail or return from it.
3. You can only hold 1 ball at a time (2 if you’re playing with Ashkon)
4. If the person you throw a ball out catches it, you are out.
5. If you hit someone above the shoulders it doesn’t count.
Be sure to end the game before it stops being fun!
Medic Ball
Age: Older probably
# of Players: Lots!
Equipment: Line markers, many foam balls
Set up three lines: a back end for each team’s zone and a middle line. Divide the chillins into
two teams.
Specific Rules:
1. One medic per team, keep medic a secret from other team
2. Teams can’t cross middle line
3. No secret switching of the medic (counselor knows medic for each team before the
game begins)
4. Teams start at opposite ends of court, with balls in center
5. If you’re hit with the ball, you die and wait for you medic to tag you
How to play:
1. Each team chooses who will be their medic
2. When the game starts you each team runs to the center to get the balls
3. When you are hit by a ball you die and have to stay where you are and CAN”T move
4. Your medic can tag you and you can play again
5. If you catch a ball that is thrown at you, the person who threw it dies
6. The winner is the team who still has somebody alive
All the above is true, except monkeys don’t die! ;-)
Quidditch (a Monkey Business Original Version)
Age: Everyone!
# of Players: At least 11 (no max!)
Time per Round: ???
Equipment: Hoola hoops, big ball, foam balls, line markers, “snitch flag”
We set up two or three hula hoops at each end of the field for goals. Set up a center line as in
capture the flag.
Teams can vary in size, but the positions are:
RUNNER (2-4 per team)- This position tries to carry the quaffle (big ball - kickball?) and
throw it into a hula hoop in the opponent's side. Each goal is worth 5 points.'
BEATER - This position (1-2 per team) can pick up and throw bludgers (small soft
monkeyballs) at other players. If a player gets hit with a bludger, they must drop (not throw)
any balls they are carrying and count to ten. Each team starts with 3 balls.
KEEPER - Guards the goals. Immune to bludgers, but can't cross the field's center line.
SEEKER (1 per team) - Tries to catch the Snitch. Each catch is worth 50 points.
SNITCH - This player is not on a team. If possible, rig up a belt or sash or flag that can be
caught and taken off by the seekers (originally, we rigged a golden beanbag in pouch in a belt
that seekers could grab off, a la flag football).
Otherwise, seekers can just try to tag the snitch player.
You'll probably need to provide "safe zones" where the snitch player can rest for 30 seconds
(they're running constantly).
Also, we switched who was the snitch every time she was caught, or just after a certain
amount of time (5 minutes or so).
Play starts with a counselor throwing up the ball in the center, basketball-style. Play stops
if/when the snitch is caught. Play to a point total or just forever. Possession of quaffle
switches after a goal.
Change this game as you see fit!
Red Light, Green Light
Age: Everyone!
# of Players: Any!
Equipment: Line Markers
Establish a start and finish line.
• "IT" stands at the finish line. The other players spread out across the start line.
• "IT" yells, "Green Light!" turns away from the players and counts out loud from 1 to 10,
during which time the players run toward the finish line.
• When "IT" reaches 10, "IT" yells, "Red Light!" and turns back to the players. At the sound
of the words "Red Light," the players stop running and freeze.
• "IT" or an adult coach on the sidelines sends anyone still moving back to the start line.
• "IT" yells, "Green Light!" and the game continues until someone reaches the finish line and
tags "IT." The first person to do that is the next "IT."
Sharks and Minnows
Age: Older (Everyone for the land version)
# of Players: Many!
Equipment: Swimming pool or two line markers if on land.
These instructions are for the swimming pool version but it can just as easily be played as a
chasing game on land.
• A few swimmers are selected to be sharks, and they get to roam around the central part of
the pool.
• The rest of the swimmers line up in a safe zone on one side of the swimming pool (the
minnows).
• We leave all lane lines in the pool and the last line on each side of the swimming pool are
the safe zones. Depending upon the skill level of the group playing, we expand or contract the
size of the safe zone and the size of the area that is "legally" useable for crossing between safe
zones.
• On a signal, the minnows must swim to the opposite side of the pool to reach the other safe
zone.
• If a shark touches any part of a minnow while any part of a minnow is above water, the
minnow is caught and becomes a shark.
• When only a few minnows are left, the sharks and minnows switch and we play again.
• Sometimes we only give swimmers a certain number of seconds to get from one side to the
other, and add a "catch a breath" safe zone in the middle of the pool.
Only for experienced swimmers in the pool!
Spud
Age: Older
# of Players: 5 to 105
Time per Round: <1 min. 15-20 rounds = a game
Equipment: One ball (rubber bouncy kind is best)
Everyone must be assigned a number and boundaries for the game are set.
1. Everyone stands with one foot on a designated base.
2. The player who is "It" throws the ball high in the air and calls out one player's number. As
the other players scatter, the called player tries to grab the ball. When they do, they shout
"Spud," at which point the other players must freeze.
3. The ball holder can take two giant steps toward any person and then tries to hit them with
the ball. The target person can evade the throw by moving their body but not their feet. If
the thrower misses or the target catches the ball, the thrower earns an S. If the thrower hits the
target, the target player earns an S.
4. The person who the ball was thrown at becomes “It” and tosses the ball to start the next
round. Players are eliminated once they earn S-P-U-D. Last player still in the game wins.
Steal the Bacon
Age: Older
# of Players: At least 6, must be even teams
Time per Round: 1 min. Many rounds are fun!
Equipment: 1 carryable object (the “bacon”), line markers
Divide the campers into two teams. Each team numbers off, making sure that everyone has a
number that someone on the other team has as well. The bacon is set in the middle between
the two teams.
Teams start at their line markers.
A number is called and the campers with that number (one from each time) run to the middle.
One person will grab the bacon and run back to their side (whoever chooses to). The other
person will chase them and try to tag them before they get back to their side. If the bacon is
returned, that team gets a point, if the bacon thief is tagged, the tagging team gets a point.
Lemonade
Age: Everyone!
# of Players: Any!
Equipment: 3 line markers
Divide the campers into two teams. One line is for each team’s starting point and one is the
middle line.
The teams take turns being the actors and the chasers. Whichever team is starting as the
actors huddles up to decide on something they can all act out together (like “monkeys” or
“global warming”). Then both teams approach each other and say the ritual phrase:
Actors: “Here we come!”
Chasers: “Where from?”
A: “New Orleans!”
C: “What’s your trade?”
A: “Lemonade!”
C: “Show us some, if you’re not afraid!”
Then the actors show what they’ve chosen. The chasers guess and when the get it right the
actors run back to their line and the chasers try to tag them. Anyone who gets tagged must
join the other team. Rinse and repeat.
Capture the Flag
Age: Everyone!
# of Players: Many!
Equipment: Line marker, 2 flags, 2 safety zones (hoola-hoops), 2 jail markers (often trees)
Make both teams equal (at least five per team is generally a good number). The playing field
is divided into two sides. On each side the safety zone is placed far from the other team with
the flag in the middle. A jail is clearly marked for each side.
The object of the game is to capture the other team’s flag and bring it back to your side.
The game begins with each team huddling to choose flag and jail guards
While you are on the other team’s side you can be tagged unless you are in the safety zone
and not touching the flag.
If you are tagged you must go to jail.
You can be freed from jail if someone from your teams runs across and tags you or if you tag
the jail guard while you are still touching jail.
When you get free you get a safe walk back to your side.
If you free people from jail, you do not get a free walk back.
There are many variations, so choose however you want to play but be sure to explain
all the rules very clearly.
Bravery
Age: Older
# of Players: At least 10; 20 or more is ideal
Equipment: Line markers (4 lines), safety zone marker (bigger than a hoola-hoop), soft foam
balls (many), two baseball plates or similar markers, flags or clothespins or some sort of point
marker that can be carried while running
Bravery is definitely on the complicated side, but it is well worth the effort to set up and
explain! The field is set up with a start and end line. In the middle the circular safety zone is
set up. On either side of the safety zone (about halfway towards the starting and ending lines)
the baseball plates are set. The final two line markers go on the sides of the field so that all
four lines make a large rectangle, where the distance between the start and end is the longer
side. The stash of point markers is placed just past the end line.
• There are two teams. Each team takes turn being the runners and the throwers.
• The running team starts at the start line and runs to the end line, picks up a point marker
and runs back.
• In the middle they may stop in the safety zone as long as they like.
• The throwing team throws foam balls at them from either side of the field.
• When throwing balls they must stay out of the running portion of the field (past the
sideline markers).
• They may run through the field to pick up balls that have fallen but if they enter to pick
up a ball they must run all the way across before they can throw it.
• Two members of the team are “sentries” and get to stand on the baseball plates in the
field. They cannot start with balls and they can only get them by catching balls in the air
that are thrown to them. If they step off the plate at all, they must leave their post and no
replacement is given.
• The runners may block balls by making their hands into fists and punching them away.
• If runners are hit they must drop any point markers they are holding and sit at the start
line for the rest of the round.
• Runners may pick up dropped point markers on their return trip to the start line.
Movement Activities
Movement activities are often scheduled during the morning free time and after lunch,
and sometimes as part of a rotation. With all of these activities it is important to
remember that different children have different abilities and to find creative ways to
make sure that everyone can be involved who wants to be. Many “movement activities
are also songs or field games, so look in those sections if you can’t find what you’re
looking for. This is also a pretty short list, so please make notes of activities you would
like to see added!
Yoga
Age: Everyone!
# of Participants: 10-15 at a time
Time: 20-40 min.
Equipment: Comfortable and clean surface for kids to be on the ground
This one’s Heather’s specialty, but if you know poses to teach kids as well, hurray!
For extra suggestions, see the Yoga Deck of poses that kids can do.
For extra fun, try buddy yoga!
If kids are interested talk about where yoga comes from and why we do it Freeze Dance
Age: Everyone!
# of Participants: Any!
Time: 2-15 min.
Equipment: Sound maker.
When the music is playing, everyone dances. When the music stops, everyone freezes.
It can be fun with older kids to make it competitive where you are out if you keep moving
when the music stops.
Musical Chairs
Age: Everyone!
# of Participants: At least 4
Time: 5-15 min.
Equipment: One chair (or some place marker) for every kid playing minus one.
The music plays and everyone walks around the chairs. When the music stops everyone must
sit in a chair. One person won’t make it and they are out.
After each round remove a chair.
Make sure to clearly explain the level of roughness one can use to get a chair (very little)
Obstacle Course
Age: Everyone!
# of Participants: 1 at a time, usually
Time: Not so long
Equipment: Anything and everything!
This is all about creativity. What kids tend to love most is a challenging and interesting
obstacle course with as many complicated things to do as possible. Running, jumping, balls,
hoola-hoops, and bird calls are all fair game. It’s great to have a watch and time kids’ runs so
they can have fun doing it over and over.
The Parachute
Age: Everyone!
# of Participants: At least 10, 20 is great!
Time: At least 20 minutes…can be fun for as long as 45 or an hour
Equipment: One big parachute.
There are countless games that can be played with the parachute. For all of them you begin
with everyone in a circle around the parachute, each holding a handle. Here are some of our
favorites:
Cat and Mouse
In this game 1 or 2 children are chosen to be mice and they crawl under the parachute.
Then 1 or 2 children are chosen to be cats and they take their shoes off, and crawl on top of
the parachute. The game starts when everyone starts shaking the parachute to make waves
that make it hard for the cat to find the mouse. The game ends when the mouse is caught.
Burrito
For this game 1-3 children are chosen to sit in the middle with their legs crossed and
their elbows linked, back-to-back. Then everyone walks in a circle around them (wrapping
them in the parachute), while either naming all the things that they want to put in the burrito
or singing the chant “wrap the burrito, wrap wrap the burrito” over and over. When the
parachute has wrapped to just below the middle child’s neck (or lower with younger kids),
the counselor yells “stop,” counts to 3, and everyone pulls out the parachute quickly, making
for an exciting ride!
Mushroom
This is a great game because everyone is equally involved. On the count of three
everyone pulls up on the parachute so that it sails into the air, then as quickly as possible,
everyone gets under the falling parachute and sits on the edges so that the air is trapped
inside. Ideally a big mushroom is created, and campers can be called on to switch places
while under the mushroom.
Lifeguard and Alligator
In this game 1-4 campers are chosen to be alligators and they crawl under the
parachute. Then 1-4 campers are chosen to be lifeguards, and they let go of the parachute and
walk around the circle. Everyone else sits down with their legs extended all the way under the
parachute (they hold the parachute handles in their laps). When the game starts the alligators
try to pull campers under the parachute and when someone starts to get pulled they yell
“lifeguard, lifeguard!” and the lifeguard comes to the rescue, pulling them back out. When
you get pulled in, you become an alligator.
There are many more great games, play all your favorites! Just remember to make sure
all kids get a chance to be chosen for the special jobs in the games. Also, remember: no
shoes on the parachutes!
Free Time Activities
Free time occurs at various times during the day. The main times are early in the morning
(before circle), after lunch, and during extended fun. This section describes the
equipment and activities that we like to make available to campers during free time. Not
all of the equipment and activities must be available every free period! Lunch free play
and free play that happens after campers have finished a planned activity generally is
playing with the sports equipment (see field games and movement activities sections) or
toys that we have on site. For the morning and afternoon free times campers can use the
same equipment, but counselors will also set up a special activity for the day (such as
bubbles, lanyards, or an art project). When there is interest a counselor will lead an
organized field game during this time (see field games section for ideas).
Equipment
Toys
Legos
Zoobs
Etch a Sketch
Big Bubble Wands
Board Games
(Not all games available at all sites, most rules
included in boxes, some following)
Chess
Connect Four
Mancala
Twister
Checkers
Parcheesy
Clue
Goblet
Battleship
Tumbling Monkey
Sorry
Trouble
Guess Who
Scrabble Jr.
Apples to Apples
Dominoes
Playing Cards
Fishing Game
Uno
Pick-Up Stix
Art
(For more possibilities see the
Arts and Crafts section)
Lanyards
Friendship Bracelets
Watercolors
Face Paints
Sports
(For more equipment see the field
games and movement section)
Hoola-Hoops
Luna Stix
Jump Ropes
Velcro Catch
Scoop Catch
Legos
Age: Everyone! Some five year olds may have trouble with small pieces.
Prep Time: 1 min.
Cleanup Time: 2-5 min.
Project Time: 10-30+ min.
What a brilliant invention! No seriously! Legos can be tough for the youngest of our campers,
but mostly they are an ageless hit. Playing fantasy games with the finished products is an
integral part of the lego experience—and a great way to connect with the kids! Be careful of
losing pieces because that sucks.
Not a lot of supervision required. Beware of lego cliques!
Zoobs
Age: Everyone!
Prep Time: 1 min.
Project Time: 10-20 min.
Although they are slightly less cool than legos, zoobs do require less focus and fine motor
abilities.
Pieces break easily, so remind campers to be careful with them.
Board Games
Age: Everyone!
Prep Time: None usually
Materials: Board game of choice.
Tumbling Monkeys is the best. Avoid Battleship at all costs. Why do we even own that
game? Find instructions in the box. If they are missing make a note here about it. If there is a
game we don’t have that you think Monkey Business should own make a note here about
that too.
Mancala
Age: Everyone!
Prep Time: 1 min.
Cleanup Time: 1 min.
Materials: Mancala board and pieces
Instructions: (Sometimes these vary, go with the kid if they have a different set!)
1. The Mancala 'board' is made up of two rows of six holes each.
2. Three (or four) pieces -- marbles or stones -- are placed in each of the 12 holes.
3. Each player has a 'store' to the right side of the Mancala board.
4. The game begins with one player picking up all of the pieces in any one of the holes on
their side.
5. Moving counter-clockwise, the player deposits one of the stones in each hole until the
stones run out.
6. If you run into your own store, deposit one piece in it. If you run into your opponent's
store, skip it.
7. If the last piece you drop is in your own store, you get a free turn.
8. If the last piece you drop is in an empty hole on your side, you capture that piece and any
pieces in the hole directly opposite.
9. Always place all captured pieces in your store.
10. The game ends when all six spaces on one side of the Mancala board are empty.
11. The player who still has pieces on their side of the board when the game ends captures
all of those pieces.
12. Count all the pieces in each store. The winner is the player with the most pieces.
Lanyards
Age: Older
Prep Time: 1 min.
Project Time: Forever.
Materials: Lanyard strings, scissors, attachment device (keychain ring or hook)
The goal is to make a keychain or necklace, or some such device. There are a lot patterns for
the weave, the simplest (and most commonly used at camp) being a square stitch. If you don’t
know how to make lanyards, ask a counselor or camper to teach you…that’s really the only
way to learn.
This project must be well supervised. Counselors, JCs, and CITs are the
only ones who may cut the lanyard string. Each child can have strings
about 15-20 inches in length (about the length from finger tip to shoulder),
NO LONGER! Campers MUST FINISH one lanyard project before they
can begin another. They can leave any unfinished ones in their backpacks
to work on later.
Friendship Bracelets
Age: Everyone!
Prep Time: 1 min.
Materials: Colored string, scissors, tape or safety pins.
Friendship bracelets are simple weaves of colored string that anyone can make. There is no
set pattern campers must follow, and even a simple twist will work. When showing how to
make friendship bracelets, be sure to give a cheesy (or heartfelt) talk about friendship.
Watercolors
Age: Everyone!
Prep Time: 5 min.
Materials: Water dishes with water, watercolor paints, paintbrushes, watercolor paper.
You know what watercolors are! To set up, just arrange watercolors on table with water
bowls/containers, paintbrushes, and blank paper. Keep at least one eye on the campers to
avoid wasting paper and getting water everywhere. For an added treat, put crayons out too
and show how if you draw with crayons on the paper first, the crayon wax will resist the
water colors, making a really cool effect!
DO NOT store paintbrushes wet!
Face Painting
Age: Everyone!
Prep Time: 5 min.
Project Time: 5-15 min. per kid
Materials: Face paints, brushes (or face paint pencils), faces
Faces or arms or legs or whatever! Full faces are the coolest for sure!
Easier ideas: Hearts, stars, shapes, “designs”, solid colored faces, polka dots, words
Harder ideas: Cats, Dogs, Tigers, Butterflies, Fairies, Vines, Flowers
DO NOT store paintbrushes wet!
Bubbles
Age: Everyone!
Prep Time: 5-10 min.
Materials: Plastic tub, dish soap, water, bubble wands
First fill bubble bin with dish soap, enough to cover bottom 50%. Then add water and mix
gently, making sure not to create too much foam. Dip wands and make bubbles! To make
large bubbles, wave wand and twist wrist at end. Bubbles are great for windy days!
DO NOT let kids foam up bubbles! They will no longer work!
Paper Airplanes
Age: Everyone! Younger kids will need more help with the folding.
Prep Time: 0 min.
Materials: Paper
Just fold and fly. There are countless ways to make a plane. Here’s the basic, best design:
Make sure kids either take home their airplanes or recycle them!
Songs
Songs are really an integral piece of the camp experience. We always fit a song or two in
during circle time, but there is no wrong time for a song! Here are some favorites. The
lengths are shorter, medium, and longer, but you can always skip verses to make a song
shorter and make new ones up to make it longer. Remember, any song can be a repeat
after me song!
Alligator
Age: Younger (maybe Everyone)
Length: Medium
Chorus:
Aaaaaa……..lligator
Aaaaaaaaaaaaa……..lligator
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa……..lligator
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa……...lligator
He could be, he could be, he could be your friend too
1) The alligator is my friend
He can be your friend too
I’d rather have him as my friend
Than wear him on my shoe
(Chorus)
His skin is rough when felt
Than wear him on my belt
(Chorus)
He loves to kiss and flirt (kiss, kiss)
Than wear him on my shirt
(Chorus)
4) The alligator ate my friend
It was a sad sight to see
I’d rather have him eat my friend
Than have him eat me
(Chorus)
Aristashah
Age: Everyone!
Length: Medium
This is a repeat after me song! (Except the chorus, which everyone will catch on to)
Chorus:
Aristashah, Aristashah, Aristashah-shah-shah
Thumbs Up!
(Chorus)
Thumbs up!
Wrists together!
(Chorus)
Thumbs up!
Wrists together!
Elbows in!
(Chorus)
Continue adding, one add a time:
Knees knocking!
Toes touching!
Bums out!
Tongue out!
Baby Bumble Bee
Age: Everyone!
Length: Medium
I’m bringing home my baby bumble bee
Won’t my mommy be so proud of me
I’m bringing home my baby bumble bee
Ouch, it stung me!
I’m squishing up my baby bumble bee
I’m squishing up my baby bumble bee
Yuck, its all over me!
I’m licking up my baby bumble bee
I’m licking up my baby bumble bee
Ugh, I don’t feel so good!
I’m barfing up my baby bumble bee
I’m barfinging up my baby bumble bee
Ew, what a mess!
I’m sweeping up my baby bumble bee
I’m sweeping up my baby bumble bee
But, my mommy wasn’t so proud of me!
Boom Chick-a Boom
Age: Everyone!
Length: Any!
This is a repeat after me song!
I said a boom-chick-a-boom!
I said a boom-chick-a-boom!
I said boom-chick-a-rocka-chick-a-rocka chick-a-boom!
Uh-huh.
Oh, yeah!
One more time,
________________ style!
(Styles are infinite. Below is a small list. Need more ideas? Ask for suggestions!)
Styles:
Baby, Monster, Whiny, Whispering, Faster, Slower, Race Car- vroom, Flower- bloom,
Louder, Quieter, Underwater, Janitor style “broom, sweep, mop”, Valley girl “like a”, Opera,
Ghost, Robot, Accents
Button Factory
Age: Younger (maybe everyone)
Length: Shorter-Medium
Hi, my name is Joe
I work in a button factory
I have a wife and a dog and a family
One day, my boss came up to me and said,
Hey Joe, are you busy?
I said, No!
He said then turn the button with your right hand
(pretend to turn something with your right hand, and continue turning or pushing it through
the rest of the song)
Repeat the song adding a different body part to turn the button with each time.
Down by the Bay
Age: Everyone! Especially Younger!
Length: Any!
Down by the bay
Where the watermelon grown
Back to my home
I dare not go
For if I do
My mother would say
Did you ever see a ______________________________
Down by the bay
Possibilities for blank: (make new ones up, call on kids to do their own)
Bee with a sunburnt knee?
Mosquitto eating a doritto?
Cat with a polka dotted hat?
Llama wearing pajamas?
Everywhere We Go
Age: Everyone!
Length: Any!
Everywhere we go
People want to know
Who we are
So we tell them
We are the Monkeys!
The Mighty, Mighty Monkeys!
And if you can't hear us
We’ll sing a little louder
(Repeat, gradually get louder and move up in pitch at each repeat. Alternatively you can
replace “we’ll sing a little louder” with any of the styles as in Boom Chick-a Boom. The
traditional last verse ends instead with “then you’re probably deaf,” but watch out for making
it sound like an insult)
The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin’ Groovy)
Age: Counselors
Slow down, you move too fast
You've got to make the morning last
Just kickin' down the cobble stones
Lookin' for fun and feeling groovy
Ba la la la la la la
Feeling groovy
Hello lamppost, what ya knowin'
I come to watch your flowers growin'
Ain't you got no rhymes for me
Do-n-do loo, feelin' groovy
Ba la la la la la la
Feelin' groovy
I got no deeds to do, no promises to keep
I'm dappled and drawsy, and ready to sleep
As the morning time drappall its petals on me
Life, I love you, all is groovy
Ba la la la.....
Length: Forever
Fish Heads
Age: I have no idea
Length: Too long
REFRAIN
Fish heads fish heads roly poly fish heads
Fish heads fish heads eat them up yum
REPEAT REFAIN
In the morning laughing happy fish heads
In the evening floating in the soup
REFRAIN
Ask a fish head anything you want to
They won't answer they can't talk
REFRAIN
I took a fish head out to see a movie
Didn't have to pay to get it in
REFRAIN
They can't play baseball they don't wear sweaters
They're not good dancers they don't play drums
REFRAIN
Roly poly fish heads are never seen drinking cappuccino
at Italian restaurants with oriental women yeah
REFRAIN
REFRAIN AGAIN
REFRAIN YET AGAIN
REFRAIN ONCE MORE (with music "off")
Yeah
Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes
Age: Younger
Head, shoulders, knees and toes,
Knees and toes.
Knees and toes.
And eyes, and ears, and mouth,
And nose.
Knees and toes.
Place both hands on parts of body as they are mentioned. On second time speed up, and get
faster with each verse.
Hermie the Worm
Age: Younger
Sittin' on the fencepost
Chewin' my bubble-gum……. chew-chew
Playin' with my yo-yo……… whoo-whoo.)
When along came Hermie the Worm
He was this big (demonstrate with hands)
I said, "Hermie, what happened?"
"I ate breakfast"
(repeat: lunch, dinner, dessert, burped)
Length: Medium
If I Had a Hammer
Age: Everyone, Everywhere
Length: Medium
If I had a hammer
I'd hammer in the morning
I'd hammer in the evening
All over this land
I'd hammer out danger
I'd hammer out a warning
I'd hammer out love between my brothers and my sisters
All over this land
If I had a bell
I'd ring it in the morning
I'd ring it in the evening
All over this land
I'd ring out danger
I'd ring out a warning
I'd ring out love between my brothers and my sisters
All over this land
If I had a song
I'd sing it in the morning
I'd sing it in the evening
All over this land
I'd sing out danger
I'd sing out a warning
I'd sing out love between my brothers and my sisters
All over this land
Well I've got a hammer
And I've got a bell
And I've got a song to sing
All over this land
It's the hammer of justice
It's the bell of freedom
It's the song about love between my brothers and my sisters
All over this land
My Bonnie
Age: Everyone!
Length: Shorter
My bonnie lies over the ocean. My bonnie lies over the sea. My bonnie lies over the ocean.
Oh bring back my bonnie to me. Bring back, bring back, oh bring back my bonnie to me, to
me! Bring back, bring back, oh bring back my bonnie to me.
Movement: start sitting down. Every time you hear a B, stand if you’re sitting and sit if
you’re standing. Then try it faster!
Peanut Butter and Jelly
Age: Younger
Chorus:
Peanut, peanut butter
And jelly
Peanut, peanut butter
And jelly
First you take the peanuts
And you smash 'em,
You smash 'em
And you smash 'em,
You smash 'em
(Chorus)
Then you take the grapes
And you squish 'em,
You squish 'em
And you squish 'em,
You squish 'em
(Chorus)
Then you take the bread
And you spread it,
You spread it
And you spread it,
You spread it
(Chorus)
Then you take your sandwich
And you bite it,
You bite it
And you bite it,
You bite it
'Cause its good, (Chorus)
And you crunch 'em,
And you squish 'em,
And you spread it,
And you eat it
'Cause its good, (Chorus)
Length: Medium-Longer
Pile of Tin
Age: Younger
Length: Shorter
I’ve got a little pile of tin
Nobody knows what shape it’s in
Got 4 wheels and a runnin board
It’s a 4 door
It’s a ford
Honk honk, Rattle rattle, Crash, Beep beep (2 times)
The Princess Pat
Age: Everyone!
Length: Medium
This is a repeat after me song! (There are gestures too)
The Princess Pat
Lived in a tree
She sailed across
The seven seas
She sailed across
The channel too
And brought with her
A Rig-a-bamboo (Repat several times)
Chorus:
Now what is that
It’s something made
By the Princess Pat
It’s red and gold
And purple too
That’s why it’s called
A Rig-a-bamboo
Now Captain Steve
Had a mighty fine crew
They sailed across
The channel too
Their ship did sink
And yours will too
If you don’t have
A Rig-a-bamboo
(Chorus)
Swimming
Age: Everyone!
Swimming, swimming, in the swimming pool, when days are hot and days are cold, in the
swimming pool! Breaststroke, sidestroke, fancy diving too! Don’t ya wish ya never had
nothing else to do, but…
(repeat, dropping the lyrics for one movement phrase at a time—i.e. “swimming, swimming”)
Movements:
Swimming – forward crawl
in the swimming pool – draw square with index fingers
breaststroke – imitate breaststroke
days are hot – hand on forehead
days are cold – cross wrists on chest
in the swimming pool – draw square with index fingers
sidestroke – imitate
diving – imitate
don’t ya wish – wag finger
The Grand Old Duke of York
Age: Everyone!
The Grand old Duke of York,
He had ten thousand men.
He marched them up the hill,
Everyone stands up
And marched them down again.
Everyone sits down
And when you're up, you're up;
Everyone stands up
And when you're down, you're down.
Everyone sits down
And when you're only halfway up,
Everyone half-way up
You're neither up nor down!
(This song can be repeated omitting “up” or “down” or both)
The Green Grass Grew
Age: Everyone!
This is a repeat after me song! (Except the chorus!)
There was a hole,
In the middle of the ground,
Prettiest little hole,
That you ever did see,
Chorus:
And theeeeeeeeeeee
The holes in the ground and the green grass grew all around all around and the green grass
grew all around
-- and in that hole...there was a tree…prettiest little tree…that you ever did see…
-- and on that tree… there was a branch…
-- and on that branch… there was a limb…
-- and on that limb...there was a nest…
-- and in that nest...there was an egg…
-- and in that egg...there was a bird…
-- and on that bird...there was a flea…
Bananas
Age: Everyone!
Bananas of the world: UNITE
Peel banana
Peel peel banana (3x)
Slice banana
Slice slice banana (3x)
Dice…
Mash…
Stomp…
Eat…
Barf…
Go bananas!
Go go bananas! (3x)
The Milk Song
Age: Everyone!
Chorus:
Don't give me no pop, no pop
Don't give me no tea, no tea
Just give me that milk,
Moo, moo, moo, moo, moo
Wisconson Milk,
Moo, moo, moo, moo, moo
Give me a long M (Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm)
Give me a short M (Mm)
(Chorus)
Give me a long I (Iiiiiiiiiiii)
Give me a short I (Ii)
Other Verses:
Give me a long/short L
Give me a long/short K
Give me a long/short Milk
Action: When you do the "Moo, moo..." thing (say it fast), lace your fingers together, leaving
you thumbs hanging out. Turn your hands upside down so your thumbs dangle down like
udders. The first "moo, moo..." have your friend pull on your thumbs like he/she is milking a
cow. (the cow is your hands) The second "moo, moo..." do this to your friend.
Variations:
“don’t give me no”
“don’t want no”
long=big
short=little
after the second “moo,moo,moo,moo,moo” both kids take their utter hands and do a high five
saying “yeah”
This Land is Your Land
Age: Everyone! (Hard to learn)
Length: Longer
This land is your land, this land is my land,
From California to the New York Island,
From the redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters,
This land was made for you and me.
As I was walking that ribbon of highway,
I saw above me that endless skyway,
I saw below me that golden valley,
I've roamed and rambled and I followed my footsteps,
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts,
And all around me a voice was sounding,
When the sun came shining and I was strolling,
And the wheat fields waving and the dust clouds rolling,
As the fog was lifting a voice was chanting,
Titanic
Age: Older
Length: Medium
Oh they built the ship Titanic
to sail the ocean blue
and they thought it was a ship
that the water couldn't go through
But the good lord raised his hand
said that ship would never stand
It was sad when the great ship went down.
Chorus:
It was sad (so sad)
So very sad (so sad)
It was sad when the great ship went down
to the bottom of the sea (EEEEEEE, eeeeeeeee, EEEEEEEE)
(husbands and wives, little children lost their lives) OR (uncles and aunts, little children lost
their pants)
Oh they sailed away from England
and were almost to the shore
when the rich refused
to associate with the poor.
So they put them down below
where they'd be the first to go.
(Chorus)
the moral of the story
Is very plain to see
Always wear a life preserver
Whenever out to sea
Worms!
Age: Everyone!
Nobody likes me,
Everybody hates me!
I guess I’ll go eat worms.
Chorus:
Long, slim slimey ones,
Short, fat juicy ones,
Itsy, bitsy, fuzzy, wuzzy worms.
First you get a bucket,
Then you get a shovel,
Oh how they wiggle and squirm.
(Chorus)
then you pull off their heads,
and you suck our their guts.
(Chorus)
Down goes the first one,
Down goes the second one,
(Chorus)
Up comes the first one,
Up comes the second one,
(Chorus)
Everybody likes me,
Nobody hates me!
Why did I eat those worms?
(Chorus)
Chop up their heads and
Squeeze out their juice,
And throw their tails away.
Nobody knows how I survive
On worms three times a day!
Flea, Fly, Flo
Age: Older
Flea!
Flea fly!
Flea fly flo.
Veesta.
Cumalata, cumalata, cumala-veesta
Oh no, no-no na veesta
Eenie meenie decemeenie, oo-wa-owallameeenie
Beet bittlee-oh boat-oat an beet an bot an chsshhhh
(Do again but faster!)
Or, do it English:
Flea!
Flea, fly!
Flea, fly, mosquito!
Lotion.
Calamine, calamine, calamine lotion.
Oh no! No, no more lotion!
Itchy itchy, scratchy scratchy, ooo I got one on my backy!
Get that big black bug with the bug spray! Chsshhhhh
The Yodeling Ostrich
Age: Everyone!
Length: Any!
(The clapping rhythm to this song goes: pat the knees, clap, snap. During the long held words
drum roll on knees.)
Oooooonce aaaan
Ostrich went yodeling
On a mountain so high.
When along came a cuckoo bird interrupting his cry.
Ooooo-laaaaa-keeeee…
Oh la kiki, oh la cuckoo cuckoo (3x)
Oh la kiki oh.
(Each subsequent verse replace cuckoo bird with another animal. Add that animal’s sound
movement after “Cuckoo cuckoo.” To spice things up get two animal suggestions and create
a new animal from them.)
The Moose Song
Age: Everyone!
There was a great big moose
Who liked to drink a lot of juice
There was a great big moose
Who liked to drink a lot of juice
Chorus:
Singing oh-way oh
Way-oh, way-oh, way-oh, way-oh
Way oh, way oh
Way-oh, way-oh, way-oh, way-oh
The moose's name was Fred.
He liked to drink his juice in bed.
(Chorus)
He drank his juice with care,
But he spilled some in his hair.
(Chorus)
Now he’s a sticky moose.
Cus he’s all covered in juice.
(Chorus)
All his hair went stiff.
So he combed it in a quiff.
(Chorus)
His friends began to laugh.
So he had to take a bath.
(Chorus)
As the water went down,
Fred the moose began to drown.
Singing glug-glug-glug-glug
(Chorus)
Now let's all count to five.
Fred the moose is back alive.
(Chorus)
Length: Medium
Tarzan
Age: Everyone!
Tar-zan
Was swinging on a rubber band
Tar-zan
Smacked into a frying pan!
Ooo, that burns.
Now Tarzan has a tan
Ja-ane
Was flying in her airplane
Ja-ane
Crashed into a freeway lane!
Ow! That hurts!
Now Jane has a pain.
And Tarzan has a tan.
Chee-tah
Was rocking to the beat-ah
Chee-tah
Fell into a pizza!
Ew. That’s gross.
Now Cheetah is velveeta.
And Jane has a pain.
And Tarzan has a tan.
And our story has an end.
Sunny-Side
Age: Everyone!
Length: Any!
Stay on the sunny side,
Always on the sunny side,
Stay on the sunny side of life.
You'll feel no pain as we drive you insane,
If you'll stay on the sunny side of life.
(Then counselor says “joke or riddle” and a kid supplies one. Repeat.)
The Wishy-washy Washer Woman
Age: Younger
Way down in the valley where nobody goes
There’s a wishy washy washer woman washin’ her clothes
She goes (wash motions & sounds)
That’s how the wishy washy washer woman washes her clothes
There’s a wishy washy washer woman dryin’ her clothes
She goes (drying motions & sounds)
That’s how the wishy washy washer woman dries her clothes
There’s a wishy washy washer woman foldin’ her clothes
She goes (folding motions & sounds)
That’s how the wishy washy washer woman folds her clothes
…pickin’ her nose…
…eatin’ oreos…
…paintin’ her toes…
…puttin’ on pantyhose…
…sayin’ goodbye...
Arts and Crafts Projects
Cereal Necklaces
What You Need:
- Box of fruity “O” cereal
- Hemp String (from art box)
- Paper towels (use trays in art box if windy)
- Scissors
What You Do:
1. Hand out a handful of cereal on paper towel (or tray) to each camper.
2. Cut and hand out string long enough for necklace.
3. Tie one piece of cereal to end of string to start.
4. Have kids string on the cereal to their necklaces.
Wood Magnets
What you need:
- Wood cut-outs
- Tempera paints
- Paint tray
- Paint Brushes
- Sharpies
- Magnet stick-on pieces
- Glitter glue
Set up:
- Cover table with table cloth in the art bin.
- Squirt small amounts of the paint around the paint trays. Little globs are fine.
- Set out paint brushes along the sides of the paint trays.
What you do:
1. Have each camper choose 1 (2 if small) wood magnets to paint.
2. Have them write their names with the sharpies on one side.
3. Next, hand out 1-2 small magnet stick-on pieces to each camper to put on their magnets (same side as
their names).
4. Once the back is finished with name and magnets, they can begin to paint the front side.
5. They may use the glitter glue at the very end so as not to use or waste too much.
6. Set the magnets aside to dry and send home with campers.
Collage Box Project
Needs:
Masking Tape
Sharpie
Art Cloth
Shoeboxes
Scissors
Glue/Gluesticks
Construction Paper
Magazines
Modge-Podge
Paintbrushes
Set-Up: Make sure to cover table with artcloth
Part 1:
Take a shoebox. Have child write their name with Sharpie on
bottom- with masking tape if it is a gift
Cover it with construction paper, cutting paper when necessary
Have kids look through magazines finding pictures they like.
Present it to them like this: They can have a theme or not, since
it is gift day they can think of the person and what s/he would
like. They can also choose numbers and words as well.
They can then glue or glue stick whatever they have chosen on
the box.
Part 2:
Have campers finish gluing on whatever they have not.
Do final brush gloss coating with Modge-Podge. It will look like
it has a white coating, but it dries glossy.
Colored Sand
What You Need:
• Colored Chalk
• Plastic trays
• Salt
• Baggies/Plastic Containers
• Paper
• Glue
To Make the Colored “Sand”:
1. Place a couple of handfuls of salt onto tray.
2. Next, choose a color of chalk and rub over the salt using a piece of paper between your hand and the
chalk.
3. Rub until you have the color you like.
To Make Colored Sand Art:
1. Create a design using the glue on a piece of paper.
2. Carefully using your fingers and pinching the colored “sand” and placing onto glue to create a
cool design.
Pinwheels
What You Need
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Construction Paper, card stock, or old folders
Ruler
Thin line markers or pencils
Scissors
Push Pin
Unsharpened pencils with eraser (one for each kid)
Pennies
Paper Clips
How To Make It
1.
2.
3.
Mark and cut a 4 1/2" square out of the paper.
Place the penny in the middle of the square. Trace around it.
Cut diagonally from one corner towards the opposite corner. Stop cutting when you reach the mark you made from
the dime.
4. Repeat for following 3 corners.
5. You now have 4 cut sections.
6. Take the right corner of the first section and bend to the middle of the pinwheel.
7. Take one corner of the NEXT section and bend the right corner to the middle of the pinwheel.
8. Repeat for other two sections.
9. Carefully hold the sections together.
10. Push the push pin through the front of the pinwheel completely through the back.
11. Once you use the push pin to make the holes, straighten a paper clip and poke the paper clip through the sections of
the paper and then through the eraser.
12. Push the pinwheel into the eraser of the pencil. Let the pinwheel loosen up between the corners and the back. Blow
on the pinwheel and watch it spin.
Note: Please watch the children with the straight pins!
Dancing Lion or
Dragon Toy
Make a dancing paper lion or dragon toy for Chinese New Year.
Traditionally, on Chinese New Year, two people wear a huge lion or
dragon costume and dance. This toy is a tiny paper version of this
traditional puppet.
Supplies:
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Colored paper
Scissors
Crayons or markers
Glue, tape
2 wooden barbeque skewers (or 2 straws or disposable
chopsticks)
Optional glitter, feathers
Draw the head and tail of a lion or dragon on
a piece of paper.
Cut the head and tail out and decorate with
bright colors.
Optional: Decorate with glitter and feathers.
Fold a piece of paper in half the long way.
Cut along the fold line, making two long
rectangles.
Fold each piece of paper
up like an accordion. Glue
or tape the two pieces
together, forming one long
piece that will be the
animal's body.
Glue or tape one end of the
body to the head. Glue or
tape the other end of the
body to the tail.
Tape one skewer (or straw)
to the head and the other
skewer (or straw) onto the
tail.
You now have a dragon or
lion that can dance for
Chinese New Year.
Divali Candles
Materials:
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Clay
Acrylic Paint
Tealight candle
Directions:
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Roll the clay into a ball
Stick thumbs into the center of the ball, pinching the sides to make a hollow
(you're making a bowl shape, not a donut)
It should not be too deep (the flame of the candle should stick up over the top of
the diya
Flatten out the bottom of the ball to make a nice flat surface for the Diya (so it
will sit sturdily on a table without risk of it falling)
Let air dry or bake dry depending on the type of clay you are using.
Use acrylic paint to decorate the pot however you like (the colors of India's flag
are green and deep orange. Also typically, Diyas were earthen pots so any brown,
orange, yellow colors would be appropriate)
Let dry
Add tealight candle which you can actually light (make sure the flame doesn't
touch the edges of the pot)
Example:
Ball of clay
pinch hole into the
center to make a bowl
Finish product w/o paint
Lanyard Instructions
This project must be well supervised. Counselors, JCs, and CITs are the only ones who may
cut the lanyard string. Each child can have strings about 15-20 inches in length (about the
length from finger tip to shoulder), NO LONGER! Campers MUST FINISH one lanyard
project before they can begin another. They can leave any unfinished ones in their backpacks to
work on later.
Watercolor Instructions
Regular Set-Up:
• Arrange watercolors on table with water bowls/containers, paint brushes, and blank
paper.
• DO NOT store paintbrushes wet!
Crayon Resist Method:
• Kids can draw a picture/design using crayons.
• Then, they watercolor over their picture/design and see how the water resists the
wax from the crayon and colors only the white parts of the paper.
• DO NOT store paintbrushes wet!
Bubbles Instructions
1. Fill bubble bin with dish soap, enough to cover bottom 50%.
2. Add water and mix gently, making sure not to create too much foam.
Hints and Tricks:
• To Make Large Bubbles wave wand and twist wrist at end.
• DO NOT let kids foam up soap – it will no longer work.
• Bubbles are great for windy days.
Good Luck Hand (Khamsa) Craft
The khamsa is a symbol of good luck from Morocco, Africa. This
good luck hand has been used as an amulet in northern Africa for
centuries - it is often made from precious metal, like silver. You can
make this simple version out of paper or aluminum foil. Khamsa
means "five" in Arabic.
Supplies needed:
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Construction paper (optional: aluminum foil)
Scissors
Glue
Crayons, markers, or paint
Optional: sequins, glitter, glitter glue
Trace around your hand on a piece of construction paper or
aluminum foil.
Cut the tracing out and glue it to a piece of construction paper.
Decorate the hand with crayons, markers, glitter,
glitter glue, glued on sequins, and/or bits of cut-up
aluminum foil.
Magical Wands
What you need:
- Newspaper
- Ribbon strips
- Masking Tape
- Markers
- Adult Scissors
- Child Scissors
What you do:
1. Give each camper about 2-3, sheets of newspaper (or other paper provided).
2. Demonstrate rolling up the newspaper starting at the corner on a diagonal.
3. Have the campers roll up their papers.
4. Using the tape, tape the loose ends, usually along the side of the wand and the tip.
5. The bottom of the wand can be cut to form an even and flat end.
6. Let the campers decorate the wands with markers.
7. Make sure they write their names on them!
8. Hand out one ribbon from each bag to each camper.
9. Have the kids tape the ribbons on to the top of their wands.
10. Finally, counselors or junior staff can help the campers curl the ribbon on their wands using adult
scissors.
Magic Potions
What you need:
- water bottles
- potion mixes
- glitter
- plastic eye droppers
- labels
- markers
What you do:
1) Pass out one water bottle to each kid. They can drink they water (preferred) or give it to the plants/trees
to half-empty the bottle.
2) Once emptied, explain the different “magical potions” to the kids, each one’s significance/power.
3) They use the eye droppers to squeeze up to 5 drops of their choice of potions into their bottles.
4) They can add the glitter to their bottles as “magic dust.”
5) Once they have finished creating their potions, they may need help in tightening their bottles closed.
6) The last step is to have the kids name their potions and decorate their labels for their bottles. Make sure
they have their names on them. When done they can go around and talk about their potions and then put
them in their backpacks.
Magnetic Photo Frames
Materials:
- Cardboard Frames
- Glitter Paints
- Paint Brushes
- Magnet Pieces
- Paper towels
- Tablecloth
- Sequins
- Paint Containers
- Smocks
- Markers
Set-Up:
1. Make sure the table is covered with a tablecloth and smocks on each chair ready for kids to put
on (1 smock/kid).
2. Set out paints in paint containers, squirting small amounts into containers (as large amounts, if
unused, are more difficult to put back in bottle)
3. Set out paint brushes (about 2 brushes per color) down the middle of the table.
Instructions:
1. Have kids put smocks on.
2. Let them choose if they want:
a. ONE large (5x7) frame OR
b. TWO small (3x5) frames
3. Once they have chosen their frames, have them write their names on the back (brown part)
4. Next, give each kid 2 pieces of magnet to stick onto each frame (e.g. 4 pieces for 2 small
frames.)
5. Once they stick on their magnet pieces and have their names on their frames, have them flip the
frames over and decorate the white side using glitter paints. They can also add sequins with the
glitter glue.
6. Let dry on paper towels with their names on them for easy recognition.
Marshmallow Towers
What you need:
- Mini marshmallows
- Toothpicks
- Paper towels
- Box of markers (from journals)
- Table cloth (from art bin)
Set up:
- Cover table with table cloth provided in art bin.
What you do:
1. Pass out one paper towel to each camper.
2. Have each camper write their name on their paper towels (this is in case they want
to save and take them home).
3. Give each camper a handful of marshmallows to work with and some toothpicks.
Pencil Facepaint
What You Need:
- Watercolor colored pencils
- Water cup/container
- Pencil sharpener
- Mirror
What You Do:
1. Fill cup/container with water and
place colored pencils in water,
sharpened side down.
2. Once the pencils have been sitting
and softening for a couple of
minutes, you can begin to paint
onto campers faces.
3. Once done, dry off pencils and
place back in bag.
Paint Pillow Cases
What you need:
- Fabric Paint
- Smocks
- Paint Trays
- Tablecloths
- Paint Brushes
- Cardboard
- Clothesline and pins to hang dry
Set Up Prep:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Cover tables with tablecloths.
Pour small amounts of each fabric paint color into trays.
Set out paint brushes on table.
Hang clothesline (preferably outside if possible)
What to do:
1. Have campers put on smocks.
2. Help campers insert cardboard into their pillow cases.
3. Have them choose one side only to paint.
4. They can go ahead and paint their pillow cases.
5. When finished, hang pillow cases on clothesline to dry.
Papel Cortado
Papel picado (punched paper) is a Mexican popular
art form with roots in the country's ancient cultures.
The Aztecs used the bark of wild mulberry and fig
trees to make a rough paper called amatl . Amatl
was used to make flags and banners to decorate
temples, streets and homes.
Today, professional craftsmen use awls, chisels and blades to make intricate designs
depicting flowers, birds, angels, crosses, skeletons, historic figures and even words. The
design the pattern on a piece of paper and then cut through it and as many as 50 sheets of
tissue paper with their special tools. Sound complicated? Well, never fear... in it's
simplest form, papel picado is done as papel cortado (cut paper) and is made a lot like a
paper snowflake.
Materials:
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tissue paper (I cut store bought sheets into 4 pieces -- each about 8x10 inches)
scissors
string
scotch tape
Directions:
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Fold tissue paper a number of times.
It should be folded edge to edge, not corner to
corner.
For younger children, don't fold too many times
or it will be difficult for them to cut.
Cut shapes from the paper, but don't cut off any
corners (we want the rectangular shape of the
tissue paper to remain.
Unfold
Edges may be straight, scalloped, zig-zagged or
fringed.
these are the shapes we cut...
you can do any you like
Fold over the top 1/4 inch of the papel cortado over a long piece of string and tape
to make a pocket
Add additional sheets (we used all green, but they're usually done in different
colors) to form a long decorative streamer
Paper Lanterns
What You Need:
-
Construction Paper
Stapler
Staples
Scissors
Pencils (colored are fine)
Markers
What You Do:
1. Have each camper pick out 2 colors/sheets of construction paper. They must
choose which color will go inside (the candle to “light up” the lantern) and which
will go outside (the lantern part).
2. Once they have their papers, the will fold the construction paper they wish to use
for the lantern part in half, lengthwise.
3. Next, they will cut off one strip (about 1 inch) to be used later as a handle.
4. Have campers unfold their papers and draw a line, about 1 inch wide, along the
top and bottom edges, lengthwise. This will be the stopping point when cutting.
StoppingLine
5. Next, they will draw lines, top to bottom, across the page (as above). These lines
will be the cutting lines for the lantern.
6. Once the lines are drawn, they can fold the paper back in half, lengthwise, and cut
along their short lines. Make sure they don’t cut through their stopping lines.
7. Once they finish cutting, they can write their names in Japanese along the top or
bottom of their lantern and decorate with markers on the outer side of the lantern.
8. Once done decorating, counselors and junior staff can help them staple the lantern
together, including the handle.
9. Finally, the last part is to roll up the second piece of construction paper to fit
inside the lantern and attach with a stapler.
Make a Rain Stick
For ages 8 to 14
This is a great activity for kids of all ages. You can help your little ones, and older kids
can make the instrument on their own. Your kids will flex their creativity as they decorate
the stick, and fine-tune their listening skills as they hear all the separate items in the tube
mix together to make one rain-like noise.
What you'll need:
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A mailing tube;
Packing tape;
An assortment of nails, un-popped corn, sand, gravel, and beads;
Lots of stuff to decorate the tube -- wrapping paper, markers, stickers, glue, etc.
What to do:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Put above items in the tube. Fill it to about 1/4 inch from the top.
Seal the tube tightly -- use packing tape if necessary.
Have your child decorate the outside of the tube.
Show your child how to move the tube slowly from side to side.
Ask your child to listen to the noise it makes. What does it sound like? Rain, of
course!
6. Have your child experiment with the rain stick -- moving it slowly and then more
quickly.
You and your child may find that "playing" the rain stick can be very relaxing!
Materials:
o elastic ponytail holders or Chinese jump rope (one jump rope will make 7 jingle
bracelets)
o elasticized gold thread
o scissors
o jingle bells (available by the handful at craft and fabric stores, or on cards at variety
stores)
Instructions:
If using Chinese jump rope, cut into seven inch lengths, and form form bracelets by tying
ends in a knot.
Using elasticized thread, tie 4 jingle bells on each bracelet, Space them equally around the
bracelet.
Materials :
o
o
o
o
o
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six metal bottle caps for each stick
six inch dowels or sticks
common nails, approx. 1 3/4" long
one nail larger in diameter, to use to punch holes in bottle caps
Polyurethane or other clear finish
optional: different colored electrical tape, and permanent black marker
Instructions :
Coat dowels with 2 coats of polyurethane, and allow to dry.Using larger nail, hammer holes
in the centers of the bottle caps.Using common nails, hammer 3 sets of 2 bottle caps each
along one side of the dowel, leaving enough dowel for handle.If desired, decorate handle
end of dowel with bands of electrical tape, and draw design on tape with maker
Sock Puppets
You will need:
a clean sock
buttons
yarn
Googly eyes
felt pieces or material scraps
Fabric pens or markers
odds and ends
What You Do:
1. Put your hand in the sock and decide where the mouth and head are going to be.
2. Make the following parts:
Mouth: Make a mouth or lips out of felt or draw with markers
Make button, felt, or googly eyes, glue on
Draw or make a fabric nose.
Make ears (hint: Cut ovals and sew one end to the sock on each side)
Add yarn hair or fabric hair ( fabric hair can be made by cutting a rectangle of fabric and
cutting 1/4 inch strips to one inch of the edge)
Sock Puppets
You will need:
a clean sock
buttons
yarn
Googly eyes
felt pieces or material scraps
Fabric pens or markers
odds and ends
What You Do:
3. Put your hand in the sock and decide where the mouth and head are going to be.
4. Make the following parts:
Mouth: Make a mouth or lips out of felt or draw with markers
Make button, felt, or googly eyes, glue on
Draw or make a fabric nose.
Make ears (hint: Cut ovals and sew one end to the sock on each side)
Add yarn hair or fabric hair ( fabric hair can be made by cutting a rectangle of fabric and
cutting 1/4 inch strips to one inch of the edge)
Spin Art Instructions
Preparation:
1. Hang clothesline and ready clothespins for drying.
2. Pour small amounts of paint into plastic containers.
3. Add water to paints to make them thin enough to use eye droppers.
Making the Art:
1. Make sure campers have smocks on and sleeves are rolled up.
2. Have them write their names on the back of their spin art papers.
3. Place the paper in the center of the machine.
4. Turn on and place cover on.
5. Using one eye dropper, for one color, at a time they can gently drop the paints
into the center.
6. Make sure they do not touch the paper with the eye dropper as it will cause the
machine to stop working!
7. Once they are done, turn off machine, and they can hang their art on the
clothesline, securing it with a clothespin.
Spin Art Instructions
Preparation:
4. Hang clothesline and ready clothespins for drying.
5. Pour small amounts of paint into plastic containers.
6. Add water to paints to make them thin enough to use eye droppers.
Making the Art:
8. Make sure campers have smocks on and sleeves are rolled up.
9. Have them write their names on the back of their spin art papers.
10. Place the paper in the center of the machine.
11. Turn on and place cover on.
12. Using one eye dropper, for one color, at a time they can gently drop the paints
into the center.
13. Make sure they do not touch the paper with the eye dropper as it will cause the
machine to stop working!
14. Once they are done, turn off machine, and they can hang their art on the
clothesline, securing it with a clothespin.
Sucker Ghost
These make up so fast you can create them for all your
Trick-or-Treaters.
This project is rated VERY EASY to do.
What You Need
For each Sucker Ghost
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Kleenex
Sucker
White yarn
Scissors
Black marker
How To Make It
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Cut a small length of yarn.
Center the Kleenex over the top of the sucker.
Tie the yarn in a bow right under the sucker.
Draw on eyes and mouth with black marker.
Give as a party favor.
Tissue Paper Flowers
These flowers are made from folded tissue paper (crepe paper). You can make an entire bouquet of them for a
great gift or decoration.
Supplies needed:
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Tissue paper (crepe paper)
Green pipe cleaners (or twist ties)
Cut a few pieces (about 4-6) of tissue paper (crepe paper) about 8 x 10 inches (the
exact size doesn't matter).
Put the paper in a pile and fold it like an accordion.
Tie the center of the folded paper with a green pipe cleaner (or twist tie).
Gently pull each piece of paper towards the top center of the flower, separating
each sheet of paper from the others (forming the petals of the flower).
Wacky Pom Pom Monkeys
Materials
Pom Poms
Pipe cleaners
Googly eyes
Hot glue gun or Elmer’s Glue
Scissors
Directions:
The kids will choose a larger pom pom for the body, a medium one for the head, and two
tiny ones for the ears. The pipe cleaners will also need to be cut into small pieces for the
peripherals. They will use pipe cleaners for the arms, legs, and tail. Counselors may need to
help younger children glue on all peripherals. They can use any colors that they want.
Walnut Boats
Walnut Boats
You will need:
Hot-glue gun and glue
Walnuts
Toothpicks
Paper
Nutcracker
Scissors
What You Do:
1. Split a walnut in half, being careful not to break the shell.
Remove the nut meat. The boat will be made from a walnut-shell
half.
2. Cut a triangular piece of paper to provide a sail or flag in
proportion to the size of the walnut shell. Hot-glue it to the top
third of a toothpick.
3. Hot-glue the other end of the toothpick inside one end of the
walnut shell to make a mast or sail for the boat
Waxed Paper Stained Glass Butterfly
A simple-to-make butterfly window hanging.
Supplies needed:
• Waxed paper
• Crayon shaving (crayons shaved with a scissors or a knife - by an adult)
• Scissors
• An iron
• Holepunch
• A few inches of string
Fold a piece of waxed paper in two.
Draw half a butterfly with the body at the fold.
Flip the paper over and draw the other half of the butterfly (using
the original as your template).
Open the waxed paper and put it on a flat surface.
Put some crayon shavings on the waxed paper (and inside the
butterfly).
Cover the waxed paper with another piece of waxed paper.
Have an adult iron the two layers of waxed paper together on
low heat (protect your iron by putting a paper towel on top of
the waxed paper while ironing).
Cut out the butterfly. Punch a hole near the top. Put a string in
the hole for hanging it. This butterfly looks beautiful hanging in
a window.
Food Projects
Cereal Necklaces
What You Need:
- Box of fruity “O” cereal
- Hemp String (from art box)
- Paper towels (use trays in art box if windy)
- Scissors
What You Do:
1. Hand out a handful of cereal on paper towel (or tray) to each camper.
2. Cut and hand out string long enough for necklace.
3. Tie one piece of cereal to end of string to start.
4. Have kids string on the cereal to their necklaces.
Edible Bugs, Butterflies
(a.k.a Frogs on the Ganges for India Day)
Have campers w ash hands with instant hand sanitizer or at the bathroom
Give out a P aper Towel with:
A piece of celery
6 pretzel rounds
15 pretzel sticks
12 chocolate chips
4 gummie bears
Campers then s it down and take turns f illing the inside of the celery with peanut
butter and decorating to make a butterfly, a bug of their own creation, a frog, you get the
idea.
Pretzel sticks can be antennae or legs.
Pretzel rounds can be wings.
Other stuff steps in as spots, eyes.
Ingredients:
Edible Campfire
paper towels
half bag of cheerios substitute
bag of coconut flakes
bag of pretzel sticks
bag of grated carrot
licorice
miniature marshmallows (for “roasting”)
Preparation:
Fill individual bowls with each of the ingredients. Have kids wash hands and get paper towel. Feel free to chat with
the kids to see if they’ve ever built a fire, how they made one, why do they think a fire is built this way.
1. Stone Pile- handful of some sort of cheerios substitute.
2. Newspaper- handful of coconut flakes
3. Twigs- 1-10 pretzel sticks
4. Fire- handful of grated carrot
5. Logs- 1-4 licorice
If site director wants to run two tables simultaneously, s/he needs to prepare two different bags with the
ingredients.
Edible Snowflakes
Ingredients:
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Flour Tortillas
Oil
Supplies:
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Scissors
Directions:
1. Preheat tortilla in the microwave.
2. Using the same technique as cutting out paper snowflakes, make snowflake
shapes out of flour tortillas.
3. Put a touch of oil in a pan and fry tortilla until it is crisp.
Ice Cream
What You Need (per 2 campers):
- 1 cup Milk
- 1 teaspoonVanilla Extract
- 1 tablespoon Sugar
- Ice
- cup Rock Salt
- Quart size Ziploc bags
- Gallon size Ziploc bags
- Measuring cup and spoons
- Hand towels or old pillowcases
What You Do:
1. Have campers get into pairs to make their ice cream.
2. Hand each pair of campers a quart size bag.
3. Help kids, having them take turns holding/pouring, add milk, vanilla extract, and
sugar to their bags and zip up tight
4. Give each pair of campers a gallon Ziploc bag filled half way with ice.
5. Pour rock salt over the ice.
6. Add small bag to larger bag and zip up tightly.
7. Have kids hand the bags back and forth, shaking lightly, for 10-15 minutes, using
hand towels/pillowcases to help with cold/wetness.
8. Scoop out into cups equally, add sprinkles, and enjoy!
GUACAMOLE: Guacamole is made out of mashed avocados - a fruit that grows on trees
in tropical climates.
Details: Kids will work in groups of 4 with one youth leader helping each group. They will
each make a batch of guac to share with the group.
Non- Food Set-Up:
1. Tablecloth
2. For each camper:
Paper plate
Plastic Knife
Spoon
3. For each group:
Medium Bowl
Wooden Spoon
Large Metal Fork/Masher
Recipe Sheet
4. For leader or to share:
Sharp knife- for lemon/avocados
Garlic crusher
Aluminum Foil- to cover until eat
Cooler- to store food
Food Set-Up: For 20 campers
Small-medium Avocado for each camper
Lemons- 2
Salt- pinch
Garlic- I small clove
Directions:
All wash hands.
Hand out Paper Plate and a plastic knife to each camper.
Keep avocados with you until you explain the instructions to all the kids.
Guacamole Instructions:
To start, carefully slice an avocado in half, twist each half in opposite directions. You can
tell if the avocado is ripe when it's a little soft. If you're not allowed to use a knife, make
sure you have a grown-up cut the avocado.
Remove the big pit in the middle of the avocado and scoop out the green stuff into the
medium bowl.
Add juice from lemon, a pinch of salt, and 1 small garlic clove (crushed- share tool).
Take turns mashing the avocado with a fork until it is smooth.
Cover with foil and put into cooler until time for snack. It's muy rico! That means very
delicious in Spanish.
Lemonade
In early morning, heat sugar in hot water so it dissolves. Around cup of
sugar and 3 cups of water per pitcher Set aside water to cool (put in
fridge to speed cooling).
Cut lemons in half and put in a bowl. One lemon per camper.
Set up electric squeezers and hand squeezers. Make sure cords are safe,
so they do not trip any children.
Put lemon juice in pitchers.
Add sugar water mix to taste.
Add ice cubes.
Serve in cups immediately or save for later.
Marshmallow Towers
What you need:
- Mini marshmallows
- Toothpicks
- Paper towels
- Box of markers (from journals)
- Table cloth (from art bin)
Set up:
- Cover table with table cloth provided in art bin.
What you do:
1. Pass out one paper towel to each camper.
2. Have each camper write their name on their paper towels (this is in case they want
to save and take them home).
3. Give each camper a handful of marshmallows to work with and some toothpicks.
Nut Butter
What you need:
- Nuts (peanuts or almonds)
- Snack Baggies
- Hammers
- Newspaper
- Crackers
What you do:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Cover the table with a table cloth.
Have Campers work in pairs.
Hand out a good thick section of the newspaper to each pair of campers.
Next, hand out one snack baggie to each pair.
Each pair of kids will choose which kind of nuts they will use to make their nut
butter.
6. Give each pair a small handful of nuts in their bag and have them zip it up.
7. Next, demonstrate putting the bag in between the layers of newspaper and begin
to hammer the nuts in the bag.
8. Have the campers take turns hammering their nuts.
9. Once they have pounded thoroughly, they can “spread” their nut butter onto some
crackers (about 2-3 crackers each) and enjoy!
10. Note: The “butter” will seem crumbly. It won’t be completely smooth. No
worries because it’s the idea that they can make the “butter” from pure/raw nuts!
Root Beer Floats
What you need:
Root Beer
Vanilla Ice Cream
Cups
Spoons
Ice Cream Scoop
1.
2.
3.
4.
Give each camper about a half a scoop of ice cream.
Add root beer slowly.
Give each camper a spoon.
Make sure to rinse/wash all utensils well and DO NOT store wet!
Shaved Ice
What You Need:
• Shaved ice machine
• Crushed ice
• Small Paper cups
• Frozen fruit juice concentrate (for the “syrup)- 3- 4 flavors (depending on #s)
• Spoons
What You Do:
1. Place enough crushed ice into machine that will fit.
2. Place cup below machine to catch the shaved ice.
3. Turn handle and fill cup below.
4. Pour small amounts of frozen juice concentrate over shaved ice.
5. Kids can choose up to two flavors.
6. Grab a spoon and enjoy!
Smoothie Making
What you need:
- Blenders
- Cups
- Tongs
- Bowls for fruit
- Pitcher for extra smoothie
- Fruit Juices
- Frozen Fruit (usually strawberries and bananas)
- Ice Cubes
What you do:
1. Have kids work in pairs or threes.
2. Each pair will decide what fruits/juices they want in their smoothie.
3. Have campers share adding all ingredients into the blender.
4. Amounts (for 2-3 campers): Juice = 1 cup, Fruit=1 cup, Ice=1 cup.
(Hint: add juice first to get the blender moving more easily)
5. The campers take turns pushing buttons to blend their smoothie together.
6. Once blended, pour the mixture into their cups and they can enjoy!
7. Be sure to rinse out the blender between each group (food allergy awareness!).
*Note:
This project can also be done by individual campers. In that case:
1. Camper chooses juice and pours in cup.
2. Camper adds 1 banana, 2 strawberries and 2 ice cubes.
3. Camper blends and staff helps pour into cup and extra into pitcher/cups for staff and youth leaders.
Tomato Salsa
Ingredients:
Tomato
Lime
Jalapeno
Olive Oil
Garlic
Materials:
Large Bowl
Mixing spoon
Blender
Instructions:
1. Using the plastic knife and a paper plate, slice off green top of
tomatos and put them in the medium bowl.
2. Each camper gets one tomato and cuts and pours it and juices into
bowl
3. Each camper gets lime and squeezes into bowl.
4. Staff person puts in the jalapeno pepper- only for one group so that
we make one hot salsa, the rest mild.
5. One camper put in tablespoon of olive oil.
6. One camper crushes a small clove of garlic.
7. Using measuring cup, scoop out and place ingredients into the
hand-crank blender. Use tool to scoop out remaining mixture.
8. Take turns mixing the blender!!!
9.
Pour mixture into container, cover and store in cooler until
afternoon!! Make a label for your salsa with your group using labels
in journal bin. Make sure to include if yours is the “hot” or “mild”
version.
10. Clean-Up- rinse your items by the fountain, throw out paper plates.
Mad Science Projects
Penny Cleaning
What You Need:
- Dull/Dirty Pennies
- cup vinegar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- Clear plastic bowl/cup/container
- 2 clean steel nails
- 1 clean steel screw/bolt
- Paper towels
What You Do:
1. Have campers split into groups of 2-4. Each camper should have a penny.
2. Give each group a plastic cup/container.
3. Put salt and vinegar in and stir until salt dissolves.
4. Dip a penny halfway into the liquid and hold for 10 seconds. What do they see?
5. Dump all pennies in liquid watch them change.
6. After 5 minutes, take half the pennies out and put on paper towel to dry.
7. Take the other half out, rinse well under water,
8. put on paper towel to dry and write “rinsed” on it.
9. After about an hour, look at the pennies on the paper towels. What happened to the ones that were
rinsed? What happened to the others? What color is the paper towel under the unrinsed pennies?
Scientific Explanations!
Why did the pennies look dirty before I put them in the vinegar?
Everything around you is made up of tiny particles called atoms. Some things are made up of just one kind of
atom. The copper of a penny, for example, is made up of copper atoms. But sometimes atoms of different kinds
join to make molecules. Copper atoms can combine with oxygen atoms from the air to make a molecule called
copper oxide. The pennies looked dull and dirty because they were covered with copper oxide.
Why did the vinegar and salt clean the pennies?
Copper oxide dissolves in a mixture of weak acid and table salt-and vinegar is an acid. You could also clean
your pennies with salt and lemon juice or orange juice, because those juices are acids, too.
Why did the unrinsed pennies turn blue-green?
When the vinegar and salt dissolve the copper-oxide layer, they make it easier for the copper atoms to join
oxygen from the air and chlorine from the salt to make a blue-green compound called malachite.
Silly Putty Recipe
Ingredients:
3 cups white glue
3 cups liquid starch
Food coloring
Mixing Bowl
Large Mixing Spoon
Permanent Marker
Plastic Eggs
Recipe:
1. Make sure to cover table with table cloth.
2. Have kids put on smocks. The silly putty may stick to their clothes!
3. Mix glue and liquid starch until it is the consistency of putty. You may need to add more
glue, if the texture doesn't act like silly putty in its elasticity.
4. Divide putty equally amongst campers in group.
5. Add 2-3 drops of food coloring (their choice) to each camper’s silly putty and have
them mix with their hands.
6. They can put silly putty in their eggs and label with permanent marker.
7. Recipe makes enough for groups of 8-10
Oobleck Recipe
What you need:
Corn Starch
Green Food Coloring
Water
Plastic Baggies
Mixing bowl
Tablecloth
1. Mix 2 cups of corn starch with 3 drops of green food coloring.
2. Add enough water to make a thick mixture (about the texture of pancake batter) It may require
equal amounts of water and corn starch, but mix water in slowly.
3. Mix all ingredients together. This makes a fun mixture to play with textures. Use different
utensils, such as a spatula, bowl, and funnels, to see what form the mixture will take.
Solar Ovens
What You Need:
- Two boxes (one should fit inside the other with 2-3 inch space on each side)
- Newspaper
- Heavy Duty Aluminum Foil
- Black Construction Paper
- Piece of cardboard (large enough to fit top of large box)
- Glue or tape (non-toxic)
- Stapler with staples
- Clear Plastic Wrap
What You Do:
1. Line the bottom of the large box with crumpled newspaper.
2. Place the smaller box inside the larger box.
3. Fill the space between the sides of the two boxes with crumpled newspaper.
4. Line the sides of the inside of the smaller box with aluminum foil. You can use a
non-toxic tape or fold the edges of foil over the top of the box to hold it in place.
5. Line the bottom of the inside of the smaller box with black construction paper to
absorb heat.
6. Lay a piece of cardboard on top of the large box and trace the shape of the box
onto the cardboard.
7. Add 2 inches around the trace line and cut out to make a reflector.
8. Cover the cardboard piece with aluminum foil. Smooth out any wrinkles and
secure the aluminum foil to the cardboard with non-toxic glue or tape.
9. Staple the reflector to the outside back of the large box.
10. Situate the oven with the box opening up and the reflector facing the sun for
maximum heat.
11. Place food to be cooked in the solar oven.
12. Stretch clear plastic wrap across the top of the large box. Secure the plastic with
tape around the entire box.
Tips
* Cooking time is about twice as long as in a conventional oven.
* Pre-heating takes about 30 minutes
String Telephone
Rrrring, rrrring, rrrring. It's a telephone made from string.
Materials:
two plastic (or paper) cups
some string
paper clips
sharpened pencil for poking holes
Instructions:
1. With the pencil, carefully poke a small hole in the bottom of each plastic cup.
2. Tie the paper clip to one end of the string.
3. Thread the other end of the string through the hole in the bottom of one of the
cups. Be sure to thread it from the inside of the cup. The paperclip will keep the
string from going all the way through the hole.
4. Then thread the string through the hole in the second cup, but this time do it from
the outside of the cup.
5. Tie the second paper clip to the other end of the string. The paper clip should be
inside the cup, just like the first paper clip.
6. Then, pull the cups so that the string is tight and have one person talk into the cup
while the other person holds the cup to their ear.
Now it is time for you to experiment. Think of a question you want answered. Like, what
is the farthest distance you can get the telephone to work using string? Would the sound
go farther if you used empty soup cans instead of plastic cups? What about using two
different sized cups? Make a prediction. Then change one thing-that's the variable-and
test it out.
Volcanic Eruptions
What You Need:
- Sand or plastic bottle and brown construction paper
- 1 cup vinegar
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- Red food coloring
What You Do:
1. Create your volcano in the sand, with a hole deep enough to fit one cup. Or, if
using plastic bottle, you can decorate with brown construction paper and tape to
make your own volcano.
2. Fill your hole or plastic container with baking soda.
3. Mix red food coloring and vinegar in separate cup.
4. Add vinegar to baking soda in hole and watch your volcanic eruption!
Scientific Explanation!
The baking soda, a base, neutralizes the acid in the vinegar. This releases carbon
dioxide gas, which causes the fizzing action in your volcano!
Swinging Cereal
What you need:
- Balloons
- String
- Small pieces of dry cereal (O-shapes, or puffed rice of wheat)
What to do:
1. Have campers in pairs, with one blown up balloon per pair.
2. Tie a piece of the cereal to one end of a 12 inch piece of thread. Find a place to
attach the other end so that the cereal does not hang close to anything else. (You
can tape the thread to the edge of a table)
3. Charge the balloon by rubbing it on dry hair several times,
4. Slowly bring the balloon near the cereal. It will swing to touch the balloon. Hold
it still until the cereal jumps away by itself.
5. Now try to touch the balloon to the cereal again. It will move away as the comb
approaches.
Scientific Explanation!
Rubbing your hair moved electrons from your hair to the balloon. The balloon had
a negative charge. The neutral cereal was attracted to it. When they touched, electrons
slowly moved from the balloon to the cereal. Now both objects had the same negative
charge, and the cereal was repelled.
Pirates!
PA R ROT CRAFT
Materials:
tp roll, glue, scissors, something to colour with and a piece of paper (I
prefer construction paper).
Color the pieces as appropriate and cut them out.
Glue the large rectangular piece around the toilet paper tube.
Glue tail onto the back of the tp roll. I glued it to the inside back and
then folded it upward (see photo above). I think it looks nice that way,
but be creative!.
Glue the head onto the front of the tp roll.
Glue the wings onto the side of the tp roll (as in photo) or make it look
like the parrot is flying by gluing the wings onto the back of the roll.
Fold the feet and glue the tabs to the inside of the tube.
http://familycrafts.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ/Ya&sdn=familycrafts&cdn
=parenting&tm=25&f=21&su=p284.21.140.ip_&tt=14&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//ww
w.dltk-kids.com/crafts/pirates/mparrot.html
PIRATE's TREASURE CHEST CRAFT
You will need an empty kleenex box, some black and yellow
construction paper, a printer, scissors, glue and something to colour
with. If you are doing this craft for a party, you may wish to pre-do
up to Step 3. CLICK HERE to see a full sized photo of the craft.
Close the photo window when done viewing.
1. Cover the kleenex box with black construction paper (all
sides). Use enough glue that when we slit open the top the
paper will stick.
2. Using sharp scissors, have an adult cut around 3 sides of
the kleenex box, about an inch from the top (so the treasure
chest opens). You will need to bend back the cardboard on
the remaining, attached side so the chest opens and closes
nicely.
3. Glue a piece of yellow or red construction paper, felt or
tissue paper to the inside of the "lid" and chest (so it looks
like a nice velvety lining)
4. Now comes the fun part! Print out the template of choice.
5. Colour the pieces, as necessary and cut them out
6. Glue the KEEP out warning onto the top (lid) of the chest
7. Cut 1/2 inch strips from yellow construction paper and glue
them to all the edges of the treasure chest.
8. Glue the lock onto the front of the chest
9. Glue the handles onto the sides of the chest.
10. OPTIONAL: Glue sequins, fake jewels or painted rocks
onto the lid for a jewel encrusted treasure chest
11. OPTIONAL: Print the key template to have a key for your
treasure chest. You may wish to glue the template to some
cardboard before your cut it out to make it more durable.
12. Fill with gold coins (chocolate ones are my favorite!)
PIR ATE'S TREASURE MAP
You'll need cold coffee or tea (about 1/2 cup), piece of white paper, a little imagination and
some markers.
1. Take a piece of nice white paper and rip off all the edges
2. Crumple the paper up as tightly as you can into a ball.
3. Flatten the paper out again and put onto a plate or cookie sheet. (if you haven't told the
kids what you're doing, they'll start thinking you're really weird right about now).
4. Pour cold coffee or tea over the paper. Swoosh around with your hands to make sure it
covers everything.
5. Let it sit for about 5 minutes
6. Pour the coffee off into the bowl in the middle of the table
7. Collect paper and hang on a clothing line to dry.
8. Hand out pre-made paper so that kids can get working right away.
9. Now... take some markers and draw your map. There should be a big X in the middle, a
dotted line trail that winds around and maybe a title that says "Pirate Island" and a North,
South, East, West arrow in the corner.
10. Once you've drawn the trail and X you can draw and label some "obstacles". Some ideas
are:
Bloody Beach
Waterfalls of Doom
Skull rock
Monster Mountain
Skeleton Jungle
Captain's Cave (Captain's Cavern)
Serpent Pass
11. You can roll the map up and slip into a 1/4 tp roll holder or tie with a ribbon, stick it into a
bottle or just hang it up on your wall!
Special Days
Travel Tuesdays
Every Tuesday we pick a country or a region to have a theme day about. This
section is merely a sampling of some the things we have done. Following this list of
countries and activities are some of the project cards and resources we have used in the
past.
Egypt Day
•
•
•
Trivia
Hieroglyphics
Pyramid Building
India Day
•
•
•
Fun Facts
Trivia
Yoga
Hawaii Day
•
•
•
•
•
•
Pineapple Relay
Paper Leis
Individual Game Pices
Ocean Mobile
Pressed Flowers
Surfboard making
Jamaica Day
•
•
Fun Facts
“Brown Girl in the Middle”—a circle game
Japan Day
•
•
•
•
Sushi Making
Paper Lanterns
Origami
Japanese Writing
Mexico Day
•
Papel Cortado
We have many other days and there are all sorts of examples of past curriculum in the
office in a box labeled: “Country Supplies.”
Egypt Trivia
1. The first known Egyptian pyramid was built for what king?
The correct answer is Zoser.
2. Who was the last ruler in the dynasty founded by Ptolemy I?
The correct answer is Cleopatra.
3. Who was entombed at the Great Pyramid at Giza?
The correct answer is Khufu.
4. Whose mummies were found in 1881 in a tomb near Dayr al Bahri?
The correct answer is Seti I and Ramses II.
5. Who established the first Egyptian dynasty?
The correct answer is Menes.
6. The ruins of how many pyramids still stand in Egypt?
The correct answer is 35.
What continent is Egypt in?
The correct answer is Africa.
Egypt is in northeast Africa. Its northern coast is on the Mediterranean Sea.
Question 2:
The largest artificial lake in the world. as of 1997, is Lake Nasser. True or false?
The correct answer is t.
Lake Nasser stretches along the border for 312 miles.
Question 3:
The fourth longest river in the world is the Nile River.True or false?
The correct answer is f.
The Nile River is the longest river. It is 4,145 miles long. The largest river is the
Amazon, which has a greater volume of water.
Question 4:
Who was the first Pharaoh in Egypt?
The correct answer is Menes.
King Tut was the 'boy king'. Ramses the second was pharaoh and may have been
around during the time of Moses. Nefertiti was queen of Egypt around 1300 B.C.
King Menes founded the united Egypt in 3110 B.C.
Question 5:
How old was King Tut when he died?
The correct answer is 18.
Hieroglyphics Workshop for Older Kids
Each camper at the table checks out Hieroglyphics chart and
receives a secret message paper
Campers use chart to decode secret message
Once campers understand how to decode, they can create their
own secret message from hieroglyphics
Games:
Time Challenge
Once a child makes a secret message, 2 other children challenge
each other to see who can decode first
Hangman
Children play hangman. Instead of letters, they can use
hieroglyphics.
Also, instead of drawing a person, campers can use a pyramid.
Art:
Campers can color pages in folder. Put out colored pencils.
The Hieroglyphic Alphabet
HIEROGLYPH
REPRESENTS
PRONOUNCED
vulture
REPRESENTS
PRONOUNCED
ah
(father)
reed
i
(filled)
two
reeds
y
(discovery)
arm &
hand
broad a
(car)
quail
chick
oo (too)
or
w (wet)
foot
b
(boot)
mat
p
(pedestal)
horned
viper
f
(feel)
owl
m
(moon)
water
n
(noon)
mouth
r
(right)
reed shelter
h
(hat)
twisted
flax
h!
(ha!)
placenta
kh
(like Scotch
'loch')
animal's
belly
ch
(like
German
'ich')
folded cloth
s
(saw)
door bolt
s
(saw)
pool
sh
(show)
slope of
hill
k
(key)
basket
with handle
k
(basket)
jar stand
g
(go)
loaf
t
(tap)
tethering
rope
tj
(church)
hand
d
(dog)
dj
(adjust)
You may notice that some hieroglyphs are vowel
sounds, these are considered weak consonants
and are used when a word begins with a vowel
or where it might be confusing without them, like
in a name.
snake
HIEROGLYPH
Pineapple Relays
Use pineapples, coconuts, guava, or mango (oh heck, you can use
oranges if you get desperate... we're going for fun here, not
authenticity... just write PINEAPPLE on your orange with a black
marker *grin*). You can use real fruit or plastic fruit (or make bean
bag fruit out of pieces of felt).
Basically team members have to run to the end, holding the
pineapple between them (without hands) ... stomach to stomach or
hip to hip. If they drop it, you can allow hands to be used to reposition
it. If you find the pineapple too heavy for the kids, use a mango,
papaya or guava instead.
Individual Game Pieces
Materials:
- Small Plastic Bottle Caps
- Tiny Things (beads, beans, rice, glitter, sand, etc.)
- Scissors
- Magazines, Colored Paper
- Glue
Directions:
1. Hand out one bottle cap to each child.
2. They can cut out circle pictures, slightly smaller than the size of their bottle caps.
3. Squeeze glue (teeny tiny dot amount) inside the plastic caps to fill them half way.
4. Put a few small things, or a circle picture, in each cap.
5. Leave them to dry, they probably won’t dry until the next day but they can take them home to
dry overnight.
6. They can be used for good luck charms, play shopping, jewelry, or game pieces.
Hawaiian Lei
Materials:
- Construction Paper
- White Flower Templates
- Colorful Straws (cut into 1” pieces)
- String
- Pencils
- Scissors
- Hole Puncher (use specific one provided in kit only!) to punch small holes
Directions:
1. Cut a string for each kid that fits loosely around their necks, slightly longer.
2. Have the kids trace with pencil and cut out about 20 flowers. The younger kids may need more
help with this. Counselors/CITs should cut multiple at a time, ahead of time if possible.
3. Once the flowers are cut, use the hole puncher to make small holes in the middle.
IMPORTANT: the holes must be smaller than the straws otherwise it will not work!
4. Once flowers are cut and punched, they can begin stringing their lei.
5. Begin by tying a large knot at one end of the string, and string a flower first.
6. Continue stringing flower, straw, flower, straw, etc.
7. Tie the two ends together once they are finished stringing everything on.
8. Make sure they write their name somewhere on their lei.
Ocean Mobile
Materials:
- Markers and colored pencils
- Mobile coloring templates (fish, coral, sea horse, sea star, etc)
- Scissors
- Glue
- String
- Paper plates
Directions:
1. Each kid can color 4-5 mobile shapes (fish, coral, sea horse, etc.)
2. Have them cut them out.
3. They will fold on the dotted line and glue the front and back of each piece together.
4. While the pieces are drying, give each kid a paper plate and have them write their name on it.
5. They can color and decorate the plate if they wish.
6. Next, have them punch holes at the top of each mobile shape they colored.
7. Then have them punch holes (as many as they have mobile shapes, equal distances apart) around
the edge of the plate.
8. Next, they can cut five short pieces of string and tie to mobile shapes and plate.
9. Finally, they can cut one longer string to loop for hanging purposes and tied to/through hole
punched in center of plate. (See picture above)
Flower Window Hangings
Materials:
- Dried Flowers or Leaves (kids bring from home)
- Wax Paper
- Iron
- Construction Paper
- Scissors
- Hole Punchers
- String
Directions:
1. Give each kid a two equal, medium size pieces of wax paper.
2. Next, have them flatten and lay out and arrange their dried flowers on one sheet of the wax
paper.
3. Once they have the flowers/leaves in the position they want, a counselor/CIT can iron the project
by placing the second piece of wax paper over the arrangement to fuse the two together.
4. Once fused and cooled, the kids can trim the excess wax paper edges.
5. Using a hole punch, punch a hole at the top and tie on some string to hang.
6. The kids can use construction paper to make a frame/border around their pressed flowers/leaves.
Fun Facts
India has been called Bharat even in Satya yuga (Golden Ages)
The name India is derived from the River Indus, the valleys around which were the
home of the early settlers. The Aryan worshippers referred to the river as the
Sindhu.
The number system was invented by India. Aryabhatta was the scientist who
invented the digit zero.
Chess was invented in India.
Algebra, trigonometry, and calculus are studies which originated in India.
India is the largest democracy in the world.
India is the 6th largest country in the world.
India is one of the most ancient and living civilizations (at least 10,000 yrs.old)
India has the most post offices in the world.
The world’s first university was established in Takshila in 700 BC. More than
10,500 students from all over the world studied more than 60 subjects.
Ayurveda is the earliest school of medicin known to mankind.
Although modern images and descriptions of India often show poverty, India was
one of the richest countries till the time of British in the early 17th Century.
Until 1896, India was the only source for diamonds to the world.
The art of navigation and navigating was born in the river Sindh over 6,000 years
ago. The very word ‘navigation’ is derived from the Sanskrit word ‘navgatih’.
The Baily Bridge is the highest bridge in the world. It is located in the Ladakh
valley between the Dras and Suru rivers in the Himalayan mountains. It was built
in 1982.
Detailed knowledge of anatomy, embryology, digestion, metabolism, physiology,
genetics, and immunity is also found in many ancient Indian texts.
Trivial Pursuit Questions
1. Name 2 languages spoken in India.
English, Hindi, Bengali, Punjabi
2. What is the mountain range with the largest mountains in the world, some of
whose are in India?
Himalayas
Bonus: What country is Mount Everest in? Nepal
3. What is the name of the common beverage drunk in the morning in indai?
Chai
4. Name an animal you might ride on in India.
Elephant, camel
5. Name the monkey god.
Hanuman
6. What city is the Taj Mahal in?
Agra
7. Name one major religion in India.
Hindu, Muslim
8. Who was the father of civil disobedience (freedom fighter who chose nonviolence as his main weapon)?
Mahatma Gandhi (Martin Luther King studied him)
9. Name a big city in India.
Bombay
10. Name a food dish from India.
Tandoori chicken, chana masala, (appetizers) samosa, pakora
11. What is the population of India?
950 million
12. Name a bread of India.
Papadum, paratha, poori
13. Name a piece of clothing women wear in India.
Sari, salwar khameez
14. What animal is sacred in India?
Cow
15. Name India’s holiest river.
Ganges
16. Name one of the Hindu gods.
Ganesha, Shiva, Kali
17. What is the capital of India?
New Delhi
18. Many of the cities of India have been renamed. One example is Kolkata.
What was Kolkata called before it was renamed?
Calcutta
19. What is the national animal of India?
Royal Bengal Tiger (chosen for its beauty)
Bonus: What is the national bird of India? Peacock
20.In which year did India win her struggle for freedom and independence?
1947
21. Under which captain, did India win its first World Cup in 1983?
Kapil Dev (they defeated the West Indians)
22.What sport is popular in India?
Cricket
23.Which city is called the “Bollywood City” in India?
Mumbai (it’s the main place for films)
JAMAICAN FLAG
The symbolism of the colors is: yellow, sunshine and natural resources; black, the
burdens borne by the people; green, agriculture and hope for the future. "Burdens
and hardships there may be, but we have hope and the sun still shines".
"The Jamaica National Flag came into use on August 6, 1962, Jamaica’s
Independence Day.
Jamaica's Motto is:"Out of Many one People"
The official language of Jamaica is English, spoken in proper fashion with a Jamaican
accent. But the language of everyday is patois (Pat-wa). This musical dialect is a
combination of English, Spanish, Portuguese, African phrases and a good dose of
Jamaican slang. Spoken in a sing-song style, the result is as exotic as any foreign
language. Jamaican patois is a fascinating use of the language. Below are a few
phrases you can use to make friends. To learn more about "Patois" please see our
online dictionary Patois English
ello dere = Hello there
Ketch yuh Layta = Catch you Later
Whey yuh a sey = How is it going?
Whey yuh name? = What is you name?
Ow ole yuh is? = How old are you?
Mi Fren = My Friend
Mada=mother
Fada =father
Nyam = eat
Likkle =little
Ax =ask
Bwoy =boy
Gal =girl
Circle Game:
Brown Girl in the Ring
This is a Ring game (no doubt adapted from England).
Players form a ring holding hand, one girl goes into the middle of the ring and starts
skipping around to the beat of this little tune There's a brown girl in the ring
cha la la la lah
There's a brown girl in the ring
cha la la la lah
There's a brown girl in the ring
cha la la la lah
She looks like a sugar in a plum -- PLUM PLUM
the girl will start doing her favourite bump adn grind dance during this song segment
Show me your motion
cha la la la lah
show me your motion
cha la la lah
show me your motion
cha la la la lah
during this segment the girl will pick her partner/friend to join her in the ring
Show me your partner(?)
cha la la la lah
show me your motion
cha la la lah
show me your motion
cha la la la lah
How to Make Sushi
What You Need:
- Toasted Seaweed Sheets
- Plates
- Sushi Rice
- Bamboo rolling mats
- Soy Sauce
- Plastic Knives
- Water
- Bowls (with water)
- Wasabi
- Sushi Fillings (cucumber, avocado, sesame seeds, tofu, baby corn, etc.)
Preparation:
- Cover table with clean table cloth from art bins.
- Arrange fillings and ingredients nicely on table for children to see.
- Have campers wash hands with soap and water before they begin.
\What You Do:
1. Have campers work in groups of 2-4 to decide which fillings they agree to put in their group sushi.
2. Once they have decided and agreed upon the ingredients, counselors and junior staff help the campers assemble their sushi.
3. First, hand each group a plate and a bamboo rolling mat.
4. Next, place one sheet of the seaweed on the rolling mat with the shiny side down.
5. Have the campers dip their fingertips into the water in the bowls to moisten.
6. Give each camper about one cup of rice to spread over the seaweed using their fingers.
7. Make sure they leave about of the seaweed sheet uncovered for rolling purposes.
8. Next, have the campers make a slight “valley” or indentation across the lower 1/3 of the rice.
9. Have them choose their ingredients and “fill” in their “valley” with the chosen fillings. Reminder: Don’t let them put too much
or it won’t roll properly.
10. Once the fillings are in, slowly and gently help the campers roll their sushi using the bamboo mat.
11. Once rolled, remove sushi roll from mat and cut into even pieces on plate for the group who made it to share.
12. They can try eating the sushi with soy sauce or wasabi.
Paper Lanterns
What You Need:
-
Construction Paper
Stapler
Staples
Scissors
Pencils (colored are fine)
Markers
What You Do:
1. Have each camper pick out 2 colors/sheets of construction paper. They must
choose which color will go inside (the candle to “light up” the lantern) and which
will go outside (the lantern part).
2. Once they have their papers, the will fold the construction paper they wish to use
for the lantern part in half, lengthwise.
3. Next, they will cut off one strip (about 1 inch) to be used later as a handle.
4. Have campers unfold their papers and draw a line, about 1 inch wide, along the
top and bottom edges, lengthwise. This will be the stopping point when cutting.
StoppingLine
5. Next, they will draw lines, top to bottom, across the page (as above). These lines
will be the cutting lines for the lantern.
6. Once the lines are drawn, they can fold the paper back in half, lengthwise, and cut
along their short lines. Make sure they don’t cut through their stopping lines.
7. Once they finish cutting, they can write their names in Japanese along the top or
bottom of their lantern and decorate with markers on the outer side of the lantern.
8. Once done decorating, counselors and junior staff can help them staple the lantern
together, including the handle.
9. Finally, the last part is to roll up the second piece of construction paper to fit
inside the lantern and attach with a stapler.
1. Phonetic Translation (Katakana)
As mentioned in the introduction, the proper way to write non-Japanese names in
Japanese is to use katakana. After the end of World War II, as a part of a process to
simplify the Japanese language, it was established that all non-Japanese words and names
were to be rendered using katakana.
Katakana
is a syllabary with each character having no meaning even though
each katakana character is a simplified form of a part of a kanji (Chinese) character.
Katakana's creation is attributed to the monk scholar Kibi no Makibi (AD 693-755) and
was the first syllabary developed. Initially it was used as a pronunciation aid for Buddhist
scriptures. Later it was used to write grammatical and inflectional elements. Today
katakana is used to write non-Japanese words and technical terms in Japanese,
Along with the basic characters, there are also a few modifiers commonly used with both
of the kana.
HOW CAN INITIALS BE TRANSLATED?
As Japanese is a language of syllables, it is not easy to translate letters. The translation
must be done based on the pronunciation, as in the chart below. The odd thing is that a
single letter such as ''W'' takes five syllables to pronounce, and would be written
[phonetically] in romaji as: daburyu-.
As an example, IBM's legal name in Japan is partly written as
As you can see, there are many factors to consider when choosing a style. For artwork, I
prefer to use a literal translation as it preserves the meaning of the name - I find that art
has everything to do with meaning. However, the method that is best for you, is the
method that you prefer.
Papel Cortado
Papel picado (punched paper) is a Mexican popular
art form with roots in the country's ancient cultures.
The Aztecs used the bark of wild mulberry and fig
trees to make a rough paper called amatl . Amatl
was used to make flags and banners to decorate
temples, streets and homes.
Today, professional craftsmen use awls, chisels and blades to make intricate designs
depicting flowers, birds, angels, crosses, skeletons, historic figures and even words. The
design the pattern on a piece of paper and then cut through it and as many as 50 sheets of
tissue paper with their special tools. Sound complicated? Well, never fear... in it's
simplest form, papel picado is done as papel cortado (cut paper) and is made a lot like a
paper snowflake.
Materials:
•
•
•
•
tissue paper (I cut store bought sheets into 4 pieces -- each about 8x10 inches)
scissors
string
scotch tape
Directions:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Fold tissue paper a number of times.
It should be folded edge to edge, not corner to
corner.
For younger children, don't fold too many times
or it will be difficult for them to cut.
Cut shapes from the paper, but don't cut off any
corners (we want the rectangular shape of the
tissue paper to remain.
Unfold
Edges may be straight, scalloped, zig-zagged or
fringed.
these are the shapes we cut...
you can do any you like
Fold over the top 1/4 inch of the papel cortado over a long piece of string and tape
to make a pocket
Add additional sheets (we used all green, but they're usually done in different
colors) to form a long decorative streamer
Carnivale!
Ring Toss Rules
1. Each child gets three rings to throw.
2. Depending on their age, they have to stand behind an
appropriate taped line.
3. They get 1 ticket for each ring they get on.
Ping Pong Toss Rules
1. Each child gets three ping pong balls to toss.
2. For each ping pong they get in, they get 5 tickets.
Coin Toss Rules
1. Each child gets 5 coins to toss.
2. For each coin they get in, they get 3 tickets.
Bean Bag Toss Rules
1. Each child gets 3 bean bags to toss.
3. For every 10 points, they get 1 ticket.
Tin Can Knockdown Rules
1. Each child gets 5 balls to throw.
3. For each can knocked down, they get 1 ticket.
Wheel of Fortune Rules
1. Each child gets 2 spins.
2. If the total of the 2 spins equals 10-15 they get 2 tickets.
3. If the total of the 2 spins equals 15 or more they get 5
tickets.
Prize Walk Rules
1. Using music, the children walk around the cards until the
music stops.
2. When the music stops, they have to pick up a card.
3. If they pick up a card labeled “Prize Winner”, then they get
5 tickets.
HALLOWEEN DAY
On Halloween Day, the kids trick or treat in the afternoon. This takes about 45 minutes with trading and eating
time.
AM PREP:
•
•
•
PM PREP:
•
•
•
Make sure that candy is in the shade, in case there is chocolate (prevent melting)
In the morning, set out brown lunch bags for kids to put their name on and decorate it if they
wish. Put aside in the Halloween Bag when finished.
We often do one of the art projects listed below.
Set up trick or treating “stations”, so that kids can go “door” to “door” and get something from
each station for their trick or treating bag.
Check to see how many items you have (in bag pre-prepared) to give away and plan accordingly
Youth Leaders are very useful for taking charge of a station-explain to them that they will get
their share of treats afterwards
WORKING WITH KIDS:
• Explain to the kids what’s going to happen-go around in a group, say “trick or treat”, get treats,
come to the tables when you are finished, okay to trade at that time with others for different
flavors, okay to eat
• hand out bags
• Send kids to line-up behind 2-3 counselors; each starts at different stations and travels around to
all with their group
• Site Director oversees whole process and does not have his/her own line
ART PROJECTS:
• Sucker Ghosts
• Candy Corn Hands
• Paper Bag Pinatas
Interactive Trick or Treating
How it works:
1. Counselors/JCs go out into four designated areas
(pretend houses) with their candy for their station. One
or more stations may include some sort of activity (e.g.
lollipop ghosts). Counselors can choose to tell ghost
stories or something creative at each station.
2. Hand out trick or treat bags they decorated earlier.
3. Split campers into groups of 4-5 kids.
4. Start each group at a different station and have them
walk around with their bags in the forest “neighborhood”
and trick or treat from “house” or station to station.
5. Remind them to say “Trick or Treat” and “Thank You!”
Sucker Ghost
These make up so fast you can create them for all your
Trick-or-Treaters.
This project is rated VERY EASY to do.
What You Need
For each Sucker Ghost
•
•
•
•
•
Kleenex
Sucker
White yarn
Scissors
Black marker
How To Make It
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Cut a small length of yarn.
Center the Kleenex over the top of the sucker.
Tie the yarn in a bow right under the sucker.
Draw on eyes and mouth with black marker.
Give as a party favor.
Candy Corn Hands
Ingredients:
- Candy Corn
- Clear Plastic Gloves
- Popcorn
- String
- Plastic Spider Rings
- Tape (to write names on)
Directions:
1. Give each kid a clear plastic glove.
2. Have each kid put two candy corn pieces at the end of each finger of the plastic glove. These are
the nails.
3. Next, have the kids fill in the rest of the hand with popcorn.
4. Cut and hand out the orange string to tie the glove together.
5. Hand out one spider ring to each kid to put on their candy corn hand.
6. Use the masking tape to write the kids’ names on their candy corn hands.
Paper Bag Piñatas
Materials:
- Paper Bags
- Scissors
- Stapler/Staples
- Glue
- Hole Punch
- String
- Goodies (small candies/prizes) to fill inside.
- Construction Paper/Glitter/Sequins/Tissue Paper (for decoration)
Directions:
1. Hand out one paper bag to each kid and have them put their name on it.
2. Staple the bag almost shut across the top, leaving a small opening to drop goodies into.
3. Punch a hole in the top corners.
4. Cut the paper/tissue into strips, then cut each strip like a comb, in fringes.
5. Glue the fringes to the edges of the bag, or however the kids like it.
6. Cut out other decorations (shapes/funny faces), glitter and glue to the bag.
7. Fill the bag with goodies. A couple of pieces of candy and one small prize.
8. Tie string through holes and it’s ready to hang up high.
9. Using a small stick or soft bat, the kids can hit their own piñatas or take them home.
MONSTER MASH
Please join us at a late night bash
It's Halloween's big Monster Mash.
On cold asphalt there is nothing finer,
We'll join the buzzards at Roadkill Diner.
Those scary beasts that terrorize,
And spooks that swoop down from the skies,
Each acts so mean but has bad luck
Beneath the tires of a pick up truck.
The ghosts and goblins boo, then frown,
As sixteen wheelers mow them down.
A wave of carnage fills the roads
With piles of kamikaze toads.
So there is laid a monster spread
Wings and fangs, sometimes a head.
So you can come and eat your fill
And never never get a bill.
There are popped out eyes and battered bats
An abundance of black splattered cats.
Splintered bones and gargoyle brains
Goblin guts and long red veins.
That werewolf wearing purple socks
Will fill a coffin take out box.
An artery that still can spurt
Will offer us a fine dessert
A prying stick will keep you neat
For Monster Mash is "sticker treat."
Roll those bones and pick them clean
And please come back next Halloween.
—Grandpa Tucker
Trick
OR
Trick
Wise jack-o-lanterns who have seen
The haunting horrors of Halloween,
Force smiles, while peering through scared eyes
To look on beasts that terrorize.
They see the gore, they see the fright
That fills each street on this dark night.
The shadows move, then screams and sighs,
Vile vampires bring blood curdling cries.
While witches brew with monkey brains,
Huge spiders fight for scarce remains.
Ghosts and goblins start the dance
That puts wierd zombies in a trance.
They dance the famous Monster Mash,
All acting tough and talking trash.
Then mold into a crowd so mean,
It just gets worse each Halloween.
So, trick or treaters, listen well,
This warning jack-o-lanterns tell:
"If THEY come, just run home quick!
With these wild guys it's Trick or Trick."
—Grandpa Tucker
Boo Hoo??
When you go out on Halloween
The ghosts will follow you.
Don't worry for they'll do no harm,
With just a boo or two.
Make sure you don't upset them,
Be careful what you say.
These friendly ghosts will walk with you
To scare the beasts away.
On Halloween the streets are filled
With creepy crawly guys.
Slinky, slimy hairy dudes
That come to terrorize.
The monsters won't attack you
When ghosts are by your side.
Don't think of it, you won't be hit,
By broomsticks witches ride.
So you'll be safe to trick or treat,
Though danger dims the stars.
So, thank your ghosts, and here's a hint:
They all like chocolate bars.

Staff Games - Monkey Business Camp!

Transcription

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