The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Camps during COVID-19
Some are modified, some moved online
As Connecticut eases COVID-19 rules for public gatherings across the state, towns and organizations are reevaluating their summer camp programs. And while many towns have canceled their usual camp programs altogether, citing an inability to meet the state’s restrictions, others have found creative ways to have them anyway.
A wide variety
In Woodbury, Flanders Nature Center and Land Trust is moving ahead with its regular outdoor camp programs for children. Registration is open for the center’s series, “where children can explore nature, art, agriculture and ecology in a fun, healthy and stimulating outdoor environment,” according to a statement.
Flanders’ summer camp runs from
June 22-Sept. 1 and offers more than 60 programs for ages 3-13.
The programs are held at the Van Vleck Farm and Nature Sanctuary, 5 Church Hill Road. Morning and afternoon programs can be combined to provide a full-day, outdoor experience. There is an “all day” discount, and available extended afternoon as well as morning care. Programs are led by Flanders’ staff of experienced
educators and naturalists on Flanders’ 200-acre campus of forest, field, farm and pond.
Summer series include Little Explorers for ages 3 to 5, Outdoor Adventures, Amazing Art Adventures, Kids in the Kitchen, Farming Fun, and Environmental Youth Leadership Habitat Investigations: Kids Explore. Each program provides daylong or halfday sessions and fees vary. Children can hike, do nature projects, cook with farm-grown foods and learn about healthful meals, meet and care for resident farm animals and learn about protecting the environment.
Flanders has also added three science academies, including Wetland Ecosystems, June 29-July 10; Landforms and Maps, July 2024; and Animal Structures and Adaptations, Aug. 17-21. Campers are educated on the importance of water, ecosystems and wetlands; create their own maps using tools including compasses and binoculars; and study domestic and wild animals and how they survive.
Discounts are offered for full-day registration, and for registering before June 29. A further discount is applied for those families who are or become Flanders’ members at the time of registration. Registration continues, depending on availability, all summer long but families are encouraged to register early to ensure getting their top choices. For the complete summer catalog and details on programs and online registration, visit www.flan dersnaturecenter.org or call 203-263-3711.
Flanders Nature Center & Land Trust became one of the first land trusts in the area in 1973, when it received its initial gift of land, the 6.5-acre Manville Kettle, located in the heart of Woodbury. Today, through direct ownership and conservation easements, Flanders manages more than 40 open-space properties, totaling more than 2,300 acres in Woodbury,
Bethlehem, Middlebury and Southbury. These holdings include two popular nature preserves in Woodbury: the 200-acre Van Vleck Farm Sanctuary on Flanders Road and the 686-acre Whittemore Sanctuary on Route 64.
Audubon’s virtual approach
The Connecticut Audubon Society’s summer camp is going virtual this year with Connecticut Audubon Adventures: The “Not So Bummer” Summer.
This camp alternative offers interactive, live, nature-themed explorations and activities for ages 6-10. The program of online and outdoor adventures, designed and run by a highly experienced team of summer camp directors and educators, is a way for kids to have fun at home this summer while connecting with the natural world.
The weekly programs run Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to noon, June 15-Aug. 21. The programs, adapted for online and backyards, “will spark curiosity and sharpen thinking skills through experimentation, exploration, art and citizen science. There will be many opportunities throughout to share findings and socialize with others,” according to a statement.
This year, Connecticut Audubon favorites such as Fantastic Flyers and Wacky Water Wonders are offered along with new programs: Nosy Neighbors and Digging In. For all subjects, a good balance of engaging hands-on activities, combined with investigative STEAM learning, ensure it will be the solution to a “not so bummer” summer experience that exercises minds while having fun, organizers said.
Camps are $150 per week for CAS members and $175 for non-members, with discounted pricing for additional sibling(s) or if registering for five weeks, or all ten. To view all the details, including descriptions of weekly topics, a program FAQ and how to register, visit www.ctaudubon.org /summer2020.
Virtual jazz
The Litchfield Performing Arts’ Litchfield Jazz Camp is marking 2020 with two online sessions, July 13-17 and July 20-24. Litchfield Jazz Camp,Virtually Yours! was born out of the COVID-19 shutdown.
“The staff at the 24-yearold institution has worked diligently for the past few months to work out the kinks and craft a virtual experience second to none for players age 13 to adult,” members said in a statement.
Vita Muir, founder and director of Litchfield Performing Arts and producer of Litchfield’s jazz programs, wants to assure prospective students “the Litchfield Jazz Camp, Virtually Yours! program is unlike anything else out there,” she said.
Litchfield Jazz Camp faculty members will teach from their home studios, offering more than 20 hours of interactive, engaging instruction each week. Campers will learn jazz theory, the building blocks of all jazz improvisation, at their own level. Participants will determine their level with an online presession assessment and will learn the secrets behind the best practice routines. Master Classes will put students together with pros to work out issues unique to their own instrument. Among the participating summer faculty are guitarist Doug Munro, pianist Zaccai Curtis, trombonist Peter Mceachern, vocalist/pianist Nicole Zuraitis, alto saxophonist Kris Allen and tenor sax/flutist Don Braden.
Transcribing classes will help students score, learn, and play solos of the greats. Interactive listening classes will sharpen their critical skills. Late day concerts by top-notch musicians round out the camp day.
Virtually Yours! culminates in the free, live streamed Litchfield Jazz Festival July 25.
To learn more or register for Litchfield Jazz Camp, Virtually Yours! visit ljc2020.eventbrite.com. For updates, go to http://www. litchfieldjazzcamp.com or email info@litchfieldjazzfest.com.
Creativity in a box
In Washington, ASAP! is presenting Summer Connections Box, an online program that provides opportunities for children to connect with each other while at home. The camp runs from July 27-Aug. 7.
The Project ASAP! Summer Connections Box offers art and engineering projects, with supplies and instructions included; invites to a series of online “meetups” with teachers, and a pen-pal postcard program .
Each camper is invited to participate in a camp-wide collaborative mural project with locations in Torrington and Washington. ASAP will host a blog to follow the progress of the mural, and exhibit performances, photos, or show-and-tells that campers wish to share.
To register or for more information, go to https:// asapct.org/2020/06/ summer-camp.
Weekly outdoor themes
The Institute for American Indian Studies, 38 Curtis Road, Washington, has developed a modified summer camp program, with outdoor and educational activities in weekly sessions from 9 a.m.-3 p.m., June 26-Aug. 7. Programs are suitable for ages 6-13.
“We decided to offer our camp programs because we feel it can be a gateway back to normalcy for children. We expect these experiences will help our young campers face new challenges with resilience,” said Executive Director Chris Combs. “This year, parents can definitely expect to see safety as the first and foremost focus at our camp. For all of our staff, the health and safety of our campers is paramount. All camp activities will be held outdoors and there will be regular sanitizing, social distancing, and smaller group activities as well as staggered arrivals and pick-ups, all in accordance with guidance issued by various state and federal agencies.”
For more information, registration and protocols, visit www.iaismuseum.org/ education-programs/ summer-camp-2020.
Each week, campers will join experienced educators on a journey through one of several themes that relate to the museum’s core mission, such as ecology, archaeology and traditional skills. While hiking in the woods, playing games and creating crafts, campers will practice survival skills, teamwork and problemsolving as they develop confidence while experiencing the great outdoors and making new friends. Campers will learn valuable skills and connect with a culture that has more than 10,000 years of history in this area.
For complete registration information, visit www.iaismuseum.org.
Summer sessions
Region 6 school district, which serves the towns of Goshen, Morris and Warren, recently released a list of summer camp programs in the area. Locations include Camp Mohawk in Litchfield, Eagle Rock Day Camp, Northwest CT YMCA camp programs, and local parks and recreation programs. Note that the town of Litchfield’s summer day camp has been canceled.
For details and contact information visit https://bit.ly/2Ytk8yJ or https://bit.ly/30Abn8Q.