OK, I'm being a bit cheesy here, but it was a pretty awesome summer camp.
To attend Virginia Forestry camp, you have to be nominated. (Thank-you Mrs. Jackson for your kind referral.) For the 97.5% of kids who attend public or private schools, those would be teachers of any sort. My homeschooler got nominated by her co-op science teacher, so even though she's homeschooled, she went a very traditional route. If you live in Va and want to nominate a science lover, 13-16, go for it! Homeschooled or not- as long as the nominee is not related to you, they can get the nod.
Once you get the nod, you're sent a set of papers about the camp, and the applicant must answer 5 essay questions.
I loved the ideal that only the kids who really wanted to be in the camp were there. All the kids share a common interest in science and were at least beloved enough to get nominated by a non-custodial adult.
It did take us 6 hours for the drop off and 6 more for the pick-up, but it was totally worth it. My 13 year old who doesn't really talk to us all that much, spent the first 2 solid hours relaying all the funny stories, all about the campers, all about the events (like the kid who made fun of her and then turned around to run face first into a tree...) and proudly showing us her accomplishments- a well turned bowl, a tree identification book, and more- that she picked one by one from her pillow bag sack. As soon as she stopped talking, she fell asleep in the car.
It seems they wook up at 6 am (an unknown hour of the day for my daughter unless she has managed to stay awake until than), showered, ate breakfast as a group and then moved onto activities. They had classwork, quizzes, written work, and reviews, as well as doing forestry type stuff like tree climbing (with ropes), got picked up with a bucket crane, learned about insects, arbor diseases, measured trees with proper tools and took core samples. She choose to take a class on lizards and amphibians and do a wood turning class. Other classes were archery, fish, water sample testing and soil analysis to name a few.
It is an overnight camp, so parents- you will miss your kids- but if you love a nature lover, it's worth all that "missing" to have your 13 yr old as excited about outdoor forestry as mine is now. For her to get to learn more about herself and get to know more about she loves- and might love to do as an adult- is a gift that we may never be able to properly thank Mrs. Jackson for. But here goes- THANK-YOU, Mrs. Jackson!!
To attend Virginia Forestry camp, you have to be nominated. (Thank-you Mrs. Jackson for your kind referral.) For the 97.5% of kids who attend public or private schools, those would be teachers of any sort. My homeschooler got nominated by her co-op science teacher, so even though she's homeschooled, she went a very traditional route. If you live in Va and want to nominate a science lover, 13-16, go for it! Homeschooled or not- as long as the nominee is not related to you, they can get the nod.
Once you get the nod, you're sent a set of papers about the camp, and the applicant must answer 5 essay questions.
You're still not in the camp yet.
Now those answers get judged (I suppose) and the applicants get in, or not. Mommy and Daddy aren't simply stroking the check for this outdoor adventure- which, by the way, will only set you back a tiny bit ($75 for 2011's camp.) Each camper that gets accepted is awarded a $300 scholarship :)I loved the ideal that only the kids who really wanted to be in the camp were there. All the kids share a common interest in science and were at least beloved enough to get nominated by a non-custodial adult.
It did take us 6 hours for the drop off and 6 more for the pick-up, but it was totally worth it. My 13 year old who doesn't really talk to us all that much, spent the first 2 solid hours relaying all the funny stories, all about the campers, all about the events (like the kid who made fun of her and then turned around to run face first into a tree...) and proudly showing us her accomplishments- a well turned bowl, a tree identification book, and more- that she picked one by one from her pillow bag sack. As soon as she stopped talking, she fell asleep in the car.
It seems they wook up at 6 am (an unknown hour of the day for my daughter unless she has managed to stay awake until than), showered, ate breakfast as a group and then moved onto activities. They had classwork, quizzes, written work, and reviews, as well as doing forestry type stuff like tree climbing (with ropes), got picked up with a bucket crane, learned about insects, arbor diseases, measured trees with proper tools and took core samples. She choose to take a class on lizards and amphibians and do a wood turning class. Other classes were archery, fish, water sample testing and soil analysis to name a few.
It is an overnight camp, so parents- you will miss your kids- but if you love a nature lover, it's worth all that "missing" to have your 13 yr old as excited about outdoor forestry as mine is now. For her to get to learn more about herself and get to know more about she loves- and might love to do as an adult- is a gift that we may never be able to properly thank Mrs. Jackson for. But here goes- THANK-YOU, Mrs. Jackson!!
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