Director's Message:

Summertime Belongs to Children & The Joy of Choosing  
 
As an Outdoor Educator, I often wonder where my intrinsic beliefs originated, regarding what I know is best for children being outside. Part of it comes from Donnie and his dog, Wiggles. In the 1950's Wiggles and I would be gone all day until somehow we knew it was supper time, or we would hear Dad whistling the Whippoorwill bird song. On weekend days, and those endless summertime days, we explored the woods, farm fields, and Bush River, all in Magnolia, Maryland. Childhood friends would share these adventures.

Some summers were spent with my cousin in up state New York. We would get up early, have breakfast, get our tennis rackets, hop on our bikes, ride across the bridge to the tennis courts, playing tennis for hours. We would stop to play checkers or marbles on the playground, swing, and sit on wax paper on the curving slide so we would go faster, or head over to the  library - getting a Hardy Boys book, or a Zane Grey novel, lying on the grass and reading. We would ride back across the bridge (pea shooters in hand), meet friends, and go exploring on the "island," often going gigging for frogs, or just revisiting special pine wood forest places. After supper, my aunt and uncle allowed us to head out on our bikes again, often eventually riding over to the drive-in movies, sneaking in, and sitting on the front row. Yes, the times were different back then, yet what an impact they have had!
 
What I hold dear from those summertime days was that I felt empowered to choose what I wanted to do outside. Be it with Wiggles, my neighbors, or with my cousin, I valued the trust and respect given to me my parents and relatives. Perhaps these childhood adventures, explorations, and my childhood sense of wonder, brought forth the birth of Nature Camps, as well as my teaching approach of always starting where the learner is coming from.
 
As the years have gone by, I have gleaned much from graduate school work, teaching, volunteer work with the Association of Experiential Education, listening to and learning with my own children, networking with professional colleagues and friends, and most recent graduate school work in Marriage and Family Therapy. These experiences have brought forth deepened understandings of meaningful educational and psychological theories at Nature Camps: experiential learning, adventure therapy, and mixed age learning. I continue the exciting challenge of putting practice and theory together in working with children, families, and NC's outstanding outdoor education staff. 
 
At Nature Camps, after the first day and a half of orientation -- of an all day hike, making a fire and cooking inks to draw and write with, making nature journals, playing initiatives, having a swim test, and cooling off at the pool -- all other activities are by choice.
 
In a highly structured setting, children delight in deciding what they (and their friends) want to do, choosing half day or all day adventures, crafts, and mellow times - all experienced in a safe and secure environment.
 
This is what makes Nature Camps unique and meaningful, allowing children to choose by placing value upon the inestimable worth of each child. And, it carries over to the Family Overnights and Concerts, where children and their parents can decide what they would most like to choose to do.
 
Be sure to enroll your child now so that he will have the opportunity to choose the activities that interest him this summer, and make this summer belong to your child!

--Don Webb

Nature Camps to hold it's First Annual Family and Friends Work Day!

Saturday, May 3, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Snacks, Drinks, and Lunch will be provided. Please bring your own water bottle. Please bring tools such as rakes, shovels, pruners, wheel barrows, etc.

Projects will include: Ropes Course maintenance (spreading wood chips, etc.); hanging cargo nets and swings; weeding, planting, maintaining rock walls in wildflower gardens; spreading rocks at water pump; moving picnic tables; hanging tarps; spreading wood chips at big swings and by Lodge; hanging tarps; organizing and cleaning Lodge; hanging signs, raking leaves from pool deck; etc.

Children are welcome, though young ones must remain with a parent at all times. Counselors will not be available to watch children.

Please call 410-935-1545 or email naturecamps@msn.com if you will be able to assist us in getting Nature Camps ready for another fabulous summer!

There are still openings in all sessions of Nature Camps!

Register now, as space is filling up quickly! I invite everyone to be Nature Camps Ambassadors, and keep spreading the word about your belief in the essentialness of such nature experiences for children and their parents.
Looking for those Special People: Knowing that you, your children, and long time friends are certainly Nature Camps' greatest resources, I ask for your input in helping us find applicants for this summer's RN and Riding Instructor openings. Pass the word along to those you sense would like to be our RN and Riding Instructor this summer. They can call or apply online at http://www.naturecamps.com/staff/jobs.html.

 
Be sure to mark your calendar for Sunday, May 18.

Nature Camps' annual Open House will be from 1:00-4:00 p.m. You'll have a chance to meet Don, the co-directors, some of our counselors, and previous NC parents. This is a terrific time to discuss questions and concerns, tour the grounds, check out the Adventure Challenge Course, and swing on the tall swings, celebrating the upcoming summer! Directions.