Session 3 is here at Spree!

Session 3 is underway here at Summer Spree 2014, and we're happy to see some familiar faces alongside a bunch of new friends! This morning at Spree, the Orange Group made beetle-prints, while the Yellow Group worked on some colorful collages, and the Purple Group made millipedes out of bottle caps and pipe cleaners. Back in the main building, the Turquoise Group learned about contrast in a new geometric project and the Blue Group assembled kites and flew them around their classroom!

Adam and Izyan (of the Orange Group) using found materials to make prints that look like beetles (to be decorated after the pain dries).

Maisie, Anna, and Maya (also Orange Group) posing in their masks. 

Minori and her friends in the Yellow Group working on their collages.

Martha helping her Purple Group Girls construct creative millipedes from painted bottle caps and pipe cleaners.

Nathan, Hallie, and Dean learning how to use contrasting colors and patterns to make designs pop off the page.

The Blue Group decorating and assembling their kites...

...before flying them around the room like Sophia!

Day 2 of Fun in Session 1

Day 2 of the summer saw our Spree teachers and aides getting right back into the swing of things. The aides were all smiles as they met the kids at their cars and took them safely to their teachers this morning. Once divided up into their groups, the kids dug right into their art supplies. (Many of which are generously donated to the CAC by members and art lovers throughout the area - Thanks Donors!) 

This morning, I stopped into Jen's Art Start room to check up on the youngest group of campers, where I found Maddy working on a little piece of make-believe made from repurposed soda bottles and tissue paper. As the Red Group transitioned into snack, I popped over into the Kid's Ceramics studio to find Juanita guiding the Orange Group through a new project: making snails out of clay. (Try to imagine the last time you concentrated on anything as fully as a 5-year-old molding a huge wad of clay into something he's proud of.) My final stop this morning was into the Turquoise Group's room where Pat was in the middle of instructing the oldest group of campers in a geometric art project using graph paper.

Maddy (of the Red Group) hard at work on her fairy house!

Bryce (of the Orange Group) deeply concentrating on his clay snail.

Sophia D., Sophia B, Mira, and Mia accessorizing their snails with clay-jewellery of their own creation.

Pat helping her 5th & 6th graders in the beginning of a new art project...

Can't wait to see the final products!

Today marked the first day of the summer that we have yoga in the afternoons with our favorite yogi, Kim! I popped into the ballroom just in time to see the Red Group playing yoga-Simon-Says and have some relaxing time in the air-conditioned ballroom. Down in the kitchen, the Red Group did some out-of-the-box art by making their own little pita-pizzas. Yum!

Kim leading the Red group through a game of Yogi-Says.

Sarah helping her Orange Group make mini pita-pizzas...

...which Finn, Liam, and Reese definitely enjoyed, by the looks of it!

Session II: Awesome Afternoon

This afternoon, I went upstairs to check out what was happening with Martha's Purple Group on the third floor. Turns out, they've been super busy! They were all hard at work on their accordion books. Earlier this session, each camper designed their own character and made a stamp of him/her to use inside of their book. They are making collages with tissue paper and other materials, and have stamped their character numerous times to be cut out and incorporated into their book. You could almost feel the creativity flowing around the room as the kids were working.

(Above & Below) Purple group works on their accordion book collages. Can't wait to see how they turn out!

Next, I got to sit in on a couple of the Afternoon specials here at Summer Spree! We have another musical special this Session, led by the stylings of Jack and Emily. The duo teaches the kids songs and rhymes with messages about unity and oneness with the Earth. The kids learned the words "I am Earth, I am air, I am water, I am fire, I am everything and all is good, so I sing." The Red Group picked right up on these lyrics and learned hand motions to go along with the song.

Red Group learning the symbol for "water"...

and "fire." Get those hands up!

For my last stop of the afternoon, I went down to Andrea's Ceramics Studio and found Sarah's Orange Group working on a new project making ornaments with a sgraffito technique, meaning the color is applied before the clay has dried. Each child got a ball of clay, which they flattened out and then chose a base color to paint on the top of the flat disk. Then, they made designs in their piece by scraping out a drawing with a pointed wooden tool. 

Members of the Orange Group working on their sgraffito ornaments! along with Andrea (far left) and her visiting daughter Sophia (far right, opposite side of table).

Lucy and Hannah, of the Orange Group, hard at work on their ornaments. Look at that concentration!

Can't wait to see everything come together at the art shows on Friday!

Session 1, Friday: Sculpture Challenge

This afternoon at Spree, I caught up with Jenna's Yellow Group. They have not forgotten about their underwater books from earlier in the week, but their classroom has gained some new wall decor, and these kids are really getting their creative juices flowing! In addition to working on their books, I came to check in on the Yellow Group as they were starting a Sculpture Challenge.

The supplies for this challenge were every color of construction paper imaginable, scissors, and glue sticks. Campers were asked to think about all of the different ways they could change the construction paper: folding, cutting, ripping, gluing, rolling. The Challenge? Change the paper and combine at least 6 different pieces to make a new sculpture. Eventually, Jenna said, they will work with these methods and make 3D Sea Anemones.

The Yellow Group brainstorms ways in which to alter the construction paper.

And they're off! The Sculpture Challenge is underway. Can't wait to see how these Anemones turn out!