Camps, Fireworks, & Olympics

A few weeks ago we had Long day camp. It was probably my favorite thing that I have done at the center.  Kids from all over the Nagoya come to it. Most of the volunteers are people that help at the various children’s events we have all year.

Some of the wonderful camp leaders!

We were split into two fairly big groups. My group’s name was “Super 8.” Every morning, after singing the morning song, we would play a massive game of Jaka Jaka Junken (a.k.a. Rock Paper Scissors set to music). After several rounds miraculously there is a real winner. The winner’s group went first for every activity throughout the day. During the four day camp we went to the river, one day we cooked an amazing lunch, we made tie-dye Japanese towels, and we went on a treasure hunt. On the third night we had a bonfire. We played games and sang incredibly silly songs. I know I say this a lot but it was a BLAST! Some of the older kids stayed the night. That night they got to play with fireworks and roast marsh mellows. I tried to convince one of the leaders that eating a burnt marshmallow is actually ok. But for some reason he didn't believe me. i guess you need chocolate and graham crackers to truly appreciate burnt marshmallows.To end the night we had an epic tournament of Ping Pong using kitchen utensils and various other items instead of ping pong paddles. Needless to say it was ridiculously amusing. 

The lovely teachers I have worked
with all year.

A week later we had the English summer program. Every day there were three different groups that would come for 2 hours at a time. The groups were split between the various ages we had. So each session was a bit different according to the age group. The first day’s theme was the Olympics. We had trivia, crafts, and games all in English and all surrounding the Olympics. The second day was Italy day. We made Minestrone soup and learned a little about Italy. This was leading up to the last day when an Italian came to talk to the kids about Italy. She was great! We played Italian games and “toured” Italy through pictures. We danced to an Italian children’s song. In one part the kids were supposed to kiss the person they liked on the cheek. But being children they freaked out when she told them. It was hilarious! In the older class the boys literally ran to hide in the curtains. Overall the English program was a success.

Both of the camps were great. It was the perfect way to end this year. I am really going to miss those smiling faces so much.