2018 Camp Kindness

8:00-8:30 Morning Circle (Focus on kindness and learning each other’s names)

8:30-9:00 Animal Name/Sound game

9:00-9:30 Learn how to safely interact with dogs (with Behaviorist Lauren)

9:30-10:00 Lesson about writing for animals (with Staff Writer Andee)

10:00-10:30 Observe playgroups (Observe dog playgroups and record on paper the kinds of behaviors and emotions the dogs are demonstrating in one column, and in another column write down whether they have ever experienced the same emotions)

10:30-10:45 Snack and Reflect on playgroup observations (Ask: How do dogs show emotions? Why are some dogs so different than others? How can we relate?)

10:45-11:15 Stuck Bug Tag (Like freeze tag. When someone gets tagged they lay on their back with their arms and feet waving in the air. Talk about how insects sometimes need our help too)

11:15-11:30 Walk through AC (Choose dog to write a profile for. Tell the children to write a profile for a dog that needs help getting adopted)

11:30-12:00 Help dogs get adopted (Write a profile from a dog’s perspective)

12:00-12:30 Lunch (Talk about how to help dogs. Have the children come up with ideas - adopt, spay, neuter, volunteer, work with animals, etc.) 12:30-1:00 Animal Art (Practice drawing animals)

1:00-1:30 Communication and Empathy (HE Lesson - how to understand what dogs are saying)

1:30-2:00 Rock painting (Children will paint rocks with humane messages. Talk about what humane means)

2:00-2:15 Deliver letters to dogs

2:15-2:45 Water Game (Splash tag - Whoever is “it” has a soaked sponge. They will use it to tag someone. After they tag someone, they will give them the sponge and that person is now “it”)

2:45-3:00 Snack (Tell stories about dogs - ask children to share stories)

3:00-3:30 Animal charades (Give one child an animal to act out and have the others guess what the animal is)

4:00-4:30  Create Giant Memory Game (Create oversized memory game by drawing pictures of animals and something that goes with each animal)

4:30-5:00 Closing Circle (Ask how they showed kindness today - to animals, each other, or the environment. What are some ways we can do better tomorrow?)

8:00-8:30 Morning Circle (Focus on patience and review names)

8:30-8:45 Learn about cats (with Arwen - What do cats like? How do we know? How can we respect cats?) 

8:45-9:00 Nikita’s New Home (HE Lesson and nonfiction story about a tiger)

9:00-9:30 Be an engineer (Design toys for cats)

9:30-9:45 Snack (Share stories about cats - ask the kids to share their stories)

9:45-10:00 Hula Hoop Relay

10:00-10:45 Visit/Help cats (Try out toys with adoptable cats/kittens)

10:45-11:00 Game of Tag 

11:00-11:30 Visit cats in the AC (Choose a cat to write a profile for)

11:30-12:00 Write a profile to help a cat get adopted (Use techniques from Andee’s lesson on writing)

12:00-12:30 Lunch (Talk about how we can help cats. Have the kids come up with a list of ways)

12:30-1:30 Learn about TNR and Rapid Response (with Community Cat manager Eric)

1:30-2:30 Learn about orphaned kittens (with Andee)

2:30-3:00 Visit/Help cats (Visit with cats in Re-Tail store)

3:00-3:30 Snack (finish cat profiles)

3:30- 4:00 Deliver profiles to cats 

4:00-4:30 Giant Memory (play the oversized memory game the kids created on Monday)

4:30-5:00 Closing Circle (ask how they showed patience today - With animals? With each other? Their parents?)

8:00-8:30 Morning Circle (Focus on generosity)

8:30-9:00 Animal Art (Create watercolor background. Let it dry and outline animal in pencil. Trace animal with glue, cover with salt, and set aside to dry. While painting, have children tell what they know about small animals and write it down. Then have the have the children come up with questions about small animals and write them down)

9:00-9:30 Learn about rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters, and other small animals (With Behaviorist Lisa - Have the children ask their questions and write down what they learn)

9:30-10:00 Snack (Share stories about small animals)

10:00-11:00 Visit rabbits (with Animal Caretaker Lauren)

11:00-12:00 Wildlife Rehabber (The children will learn about how wildlife rehabbers help wildlife and what to do if they find a wild animal)

12:00-12:30 Lunch and rest time (Talk about how we can help wildlife and small animals)

12:30-1:00 Animal Art (Knock salt off salt painting and add watercolor to salt animals. While painting, ask the kids how small animals are the same/different as other animals)

1:00-2:00 What does an animal shelter do? (with Animal Care Manager Audrey)

2:00-3:00 Visit guinea pigs (or rabbits if there aren’t any guinea pigs)

3:00-4:00 How to make videos to help animals (with Marketing Manager Jackie.) Do Mouse vs. Zucchini HE Lesson on Perspective with the other half. Switch after 30 minutes

4:00-4:30 Animal Charades

4:30-5:00 Closing Circle (ask how they can show generosity to animals, remind them to be at the AC by 8:30 tomorrow to go to the sanctuary)
 

8:00-8:30 Meet at AC

8:30-9:00 Drive to Sanctuary (Play memory game on the way. The first person thinks of an animal that starts with the letter A and says “A is for___”. The next person has to say “A is for___, B is for___”, and so on.)

9:00-9:15 Say hello to pigs

9:15-9:30 Morning Circle (Focus on empathy - What is empathy? How can we empathize with animals/humans?)

9:30-10:00 Moo, Oink, Cluck (HE Lesson about the unique traits of farmed animals)

10:00-10:30 Watermelon Party with Potbellys (Kids can go into enclosure to feed watermelon)

10:30-11:00 Watermelon Party (Kids must stand outside the fence and throw watermelon to pigs. After they finish with watermelon, kids can go inside the farm pigs’ enclosure and pet the pigs)

11:00-11:15 Water Game (Relay game)

11:15-11:30 Write a letter from a pig’s perspective 

11:30-12:00 Tie dye camp shirts

12:00-12:30 Lunch and rest time (Answer questions about farmed animals)

12:30-1:00 Seed bombs (Make pulp out of different color construction paper. Shape the pulp and add seeds. Let dry on parchment paper. During the activity, talk about the importance of pollinators and how we can help them. Have each child make at least two seed bombs, one to plant at the sanctuary and one to take home.)

1:00-2:00 Cooking with Compassion (Make vegan cupcakes and talk about how to cook with compassion - ask: What does it mean to cook with compassion? How does cooking with compassion show compassion for animals/the environment/humans)

2:00-3:00 Visit Cows/Wonder Walk (This activity is done in complete silence. The walk is done in pairs with a leader and a follower who switch halfway through the activity. The leader will be taking the follower on a very special journey to awaken their senses and invite them to meet different aspects of nature. The one being led will have their eyes closed. Firmly holding their partner’s arm, the leader brings the follower to whatever they notice in nature. Perhaps a particularly beautiful tree. The leader brings their partner to the tree, gently tilts their head up and taps next to their eye to signal they should open their eyes and view whatever they have been led to see. The leader gives the follower a few moments to observe the tree and then taps the follower’s temple to signal they should close their eyes. To awaken the sense of touch, the leader may place their partner’s hand on the bark of a tree. If the leader hears a bird, they may gently pull on their partner’s earlobe to signal them to listen. If there is a flower, the leader may bring their follower close to it and tap the back of their knee to signal them to bend down, gently position their head close to the flower and tap their nose, the signal to smell. After 10 minutes, have the children switch roles. After another ten minutes, call the children back and discuss the activity.)

3:00-3:30 Eat cupcakes (Talk about ways to help farmed animals)

3:30-4:00 Splash tag (Splash tag - Whoever is “it” has a soaked sponge. They will use it to tag someone. After they tag someone, they will give them the sponge and that person is the new “it”)

4:00-4:15 Clean up 

4:15-5:00 Drive to adoption center (Ask if they felt empathy today - for the animals or for each other?)
 

8:00-8:30 Meet at the AC 

8:30-9:00 Drive to the Sanctuary (Play memory game on the way. The first person thinks of a vegan food item that starts with the letter A and says “A is for___”. The next person has to say “A is for___, B is for___”, and so on.)

9:00-9:15 Say hello to pigs

9:15-9:30 Snack (Talk about compassion. What is compassion? -Empathy combined with the desire to help. How can they show compassion to each other, animals, and the earth?)

9:30-10:00 Make recycled bird feeders

10:00-10:30 Visit pigs (Watermelon party!)

10:30-11:00 Visit cows (Scavenger hunt!)

11:00-11:30 Water game (Dribble, dribble, drench! Duck, duck, goose with a giant sponge.)

11:30-12:00 Write a letter from a cow (Have the children write letters from a cow. Tell them to use their imaginations to put themselves into the cow’s position)

12:00-12:30 Lunch and rest time (answer questions about BW)

1:00-1:30 Make book about Brother Wolf (Give the kids a blank book and have them fill out the pages to create a book about BW)

1:30-2:30 Council of All Beings (Children will meditate with their eyes closed for a few minutes and let an animal visit them in their imaginations. They will become that animal. They will create a mask to represent that animal. Wearing their mask, they will speak to the council about who they are, what their life is like, and how they spend their time. After each being speaks, the rest of the council will say “We hear you___.” Each being will speak again, telling the others what is happening to them, including what humans have done to them, and what they would like to say to humans. The rest of the council will say “We hear you___.” Each being will speak once more, sharing what gifts or knowledge they have to offer, and what they might teach people who are willing to listen. The group will say “We thank you___”. The children will remove their masks and turn them towards themselves. They will make a small promise to change one aspect of their lives that harms their being. After everyone has made their promise, say “These promises we made shall not be broken. Many thanks to the beings who have come together to share their feelings, dreams, hopes, and wisdom.”

2:00-2:15 Snack 

2:15-2:30 Visit cows (plant seed bombs along the way)

2:30-3:00 Nature Walk (Walk up the hill to the path in the woods)

3:30-4:00 Visit pigs (Say goodbye to pigs.)

4:00-4:15 Clean up

4:15-5:00 Drive to the adoption center (Talk about compassion. Did they feel compassion today? How will they help animals in the future? What was their favorite part of camp?)