A great update from our Summer Camp intern Taylor Woodruff:
Planning the whole camp was one thing, but actually running the Sustainable You summer camp was awesome! I was a little nervous to meet all of the campers, but everyone was extremely kind and caring. The kids are what made the camp so great! Of course the activities were fun, but seeing them engaging and actually caring about our planet is what makes it all worth it. They were all such a joy to be around. Although I am the intern, I didn't feel like I was working. I wanted to be there and I was having just as much fun as all the other campers. The whole property of HREC is gorgeous, and exploring the area with fun activities was my favorite part. The hardest part of camp was to not just be their friend, but to keep reminding them that I am an adult and they needed to be listening when I was talking. If Hannah and I split into groups to do an activity, my group seemed to be a lot more off-task and thought they were allowed to do whatever they pleased. It was difficult for me to keep their attention when they just wanted to hangout and play, not listen to what I was trying to teach them. But for the most part, everyone tried to listen as best they could. Of course it can be difficult at their age, but they really tried and that's what matters. For me, the activities which involved a little more science were my favorites. For example, I got to do some chemistry with the campers. They performed water quality tests, and determined whether the water was healthy or polluted. It made me happy to bring out the microscopes, and have the campers observe spiders and snake skin extremely close. Putting the solar cars together was also great. Then I got to help tweak their cars to race faster. We got to see and appreciate the animals: five lambs, a giant wolf spider, multiple species of snakes, lizards, rats, mice, scorpions, and the sheep dogs with their sheep. Although we didn't see them in-person, the campers found so much more wildlife on their trail cameras. They got some awesome pictures of raccoons, foxes, and more! When I was planning for Tuesday morning, I was worried about our water treatment tour. We haven't been there before, so we weren't sure what to expect. It actually was a lot of the kids favorite tour, so that was great. Hannah and I might've been too prepared with planning, and ended up with a lot of backup activities. It was way better to overplan, than to have empty spaces where the kids would be bored. Overall, the whole camp was a blast, and I would love to come and help out if they ever need me again.
-- Taylor Woodruff
