Summer Day Camp: What We Did!

Over the week of July 18 to 22nd, Christ Church Cathedral hosted 16 energetic and creative children for a day summer camp. Through outreaching to office buildings in the local area and through Diocesan channels we were able to get a great number and we were thrilled at how the trial of the first Summer Camp of its type went here at the Cathedral. Over the summer we had the help of our amazing CYF Summer staff person Alysha Creighton who brings a wealth of knowledge as both an Art Teacher and curator, who is very skilled in Godly Play and Children's ministry. Through our work together we created the week and all of the activities, arts and crafts. The theme of the week was learning about and caring for creation. We based our whole week on the story of creation and began each day with a Godly Play story. Each child was given a wilderness scrapbook which included activity sheets for each day as well as a small tote bag that the children were able to use to collect items they liked on pour adventures, such as leaves, shells and rocks. The week took place in the parish hall and included several workstations around the room, such as a reading nook, Godly Play exploration area, soft play with blocks, and a mural wall. On the first day, we kicked off the week with the story of Creation and introduced the themes for the day, the theme for Monday was light, dark, and space! So after playing some space-themed games such as “alien traffic lights” and “pin the crescent on the moon” we made Galaxy canvas prints. The children got to follow a demonstration and get creative with space colors and sponge techniques. The other craft activity we did on Monday was glitter calm jars, where you use a jar which is 3 parts water, 1 part soap and clear glue, and then get creative with glitter textures. It helps children when they feel overwhelmed to calm down by watching the glitter settle. Tuesday, our theme was land and plants and we began our day with the Parable of the mustard seed. We played a few games before starting a round of station activities. These were creating flower-shaped pinwheels and getting started on Cyanotypes, which is light sensitive paint, sometimes known as sun prints, you paint sheets of thick paper with special paint, and once its dry, being careful not to expose it to too much light, place plant leaves on top of the paper, and sandwich between two pieces of plexiglass. Later we were able to take them outside and expose them, rinsing them afterwards to create bright blue pieces of artwork! Afterward we heard a story called “The Empty Pot” by Demi, read by one of our volunteers. The children then got an opportunity to create their own terrariums. That afternoon, we went to a water park at coal harbor for a few outdoor activities, snacks, and of course bubbles.

On Wednesday our theme was water and birds of the air. We heard our Godly Play story which was the story of Jonah and the Whale. Afterward we played some underwater-themed parachute games before getting ready for our next craft. For our water theme, we made underwater blue slime and layered coloured sand bottles. In the afternoon we had the opportunity to take the older children to the beach for the afternoon, for wading and collecting shells.

On Thursday our theme was animals, so we heard the Godly Play story of Noah’s Ark, and played some fun games such as “guess the animal noise”. In the morning we got to go upstairs into the Cathedral space and do a scavenger hunt looking for animals around the church, we also learned some of the history of the Cathedral and what makes a regular church different from Cathedral! Then we got the opportunity to study different animal photographs to get inspiration for making our own animal mask. The children got very creative with paint and drew out their ideas before making them come to life. After lunch, we shifted our focus a little to create some space for the children to find inspiration from the creatures from this land to create fabric squares for a prayer pole that the Congregation is creating as part of the Feather Dance Project. They introduced the project and the symbolism of the buttons found on each square. We heard the story of “Phyllis's Orange Shirt”. The children then had the opportunity to create a design taking inspiration from the world around them, whilst honoring the children. For more information on the “Feather Dance Project” go to: https://www.thecathedral.ca/events/feather-dance-at-the-cathedral. This important story and reflective time gave the children opportunities to take part in the wider project and even learn new skills in sewing as well.

On Friday, our theme was humans and care for the world, so we heard our last Godly Play story which was the “Great Family” which introduces the story of Abraham and Sarah and how all humans are interconnected. Throughout the week we had asked our Cathedral Outreach worker, who also happens to be an artist and photographer; Francis Hart D’Emilio, to take portrait photos of the children, so that for our last craft we could create frames for these photos, which could be printed and placed in the frames, these were a gift to the families but also a reminder that changes in the world start with ourselves! The children got the chance to decorate the frames and see their photos. Then that afternoon we went over to Vancouver Art Gallery to help inspire us as we closed off the week. We got to see the Kids Take Over Art exhibit where the children got to learn about and experience interactive and beautiful artwork, made and inspired by children. For our last snack, we went outside the Cathedral on Burrard street by the fountains to have popsicles and sidewalk chalk before home time.

A huge thanks to Alysha, Deb, Francis and Areeta for helping out through the week, and we cannot wait for next year!