Over the course of three summers, Sierra Health Foundation hosted a weeklong summer youth development camp for REACH coalitions at its Grizzly Creek Ranch retreat facilities in Portola, California. Located 130 miles east of Sacramento, Grizzly Creek Ranch is set in the mountains of Plumas County and encompasses 1,500 acres of forests, streams and…

Six teachers reflect on the meanings of a ritual of confession, sharing, and forgiveness during a school retreat. During a night of great honesty and integrity, students spoke to each other of their lives, their choices, their regrets, their wishes, and, above all, their love. During that evening, four students came out to their classmates and…

As summer comes to close, students are already buzzing about what they plan to do for summer. Many student are likely to choose (along with the help of their parents) summer camp. There may be a few students and families, however, that are "on the fence" about what summer camp to choose. This article offers some advice to help parents sort through…

This article profiles Camp Barnabas, a non-denominational Christian camp for people with special needs located in southwest Missouri. For one week, campers have every opportunity possible to be a participant in the world around them, not just an observer. The camp's goal is to provide a typical camp experience--bugs, chants, cheers and incredible…

This article is the eighth part of a 12-part series that chronicles the life of a fictional family--Amita and Samir, and their daughter with special needs, Anjali. This article describes the transition process experienced by Anjali as she learns to become independent despite her disabilities. In this article, Anjali's experiences as an employee at…

Culture and tradition are two highly contested concepts in religious education. Grounding their theoretical contribution in concrete practice, the authors begin with a report on a summer camp with young adults and analyze that experience in light of concepts of culture and tradition, focusing on participation and transformation as two core…

Summer camps provide opportunities for children to experience play, pleasurable activities, and social interaction with other children of similar ages and interests and are an integral part of the modern-day American cultural landscape. The authors discuss the emergence of summer camps for children with special needs, the types of play activities…

Geospatial and Robotics Technologies for the 21st Century (GEAR-Tech-21), teaches science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) through robotics, global positioning systems (GPS), and geographic information systems (GIS) activities for youth in grades 5-8. Participants use a robotics kit, handheld GPS devices, and GIS technology to…

An external evaluation documented what occurred in an inaugural summer camp to teach high school students how to preserve religious freedom by learning about and acting on the history and current state of church-state separation and other first amendment issues. Camp designers hoped to promote religious diversity values and civic engagement in…

Camps have long addressed multiple components of young people's development, including spiritual development. In particular, transcendental communion with nature and the outdoors may provide one pathway for young people's spiritual development. The physical, mental, social, and spiritual growth of young people has been at the core of camps for…

Briefly described with anecdotes by a mother and camp counselor is the Appel Farm Arts and Music Center, a summer residential camp program for children with talents and interests in these areas. (DB)

Describes the successes and challenges of David King. King's long-standing service to children in Ohio and West Virginia through Camp Horseshoe is presented. (EV)

Describes one summer camp's leadership groups, special programs for promising 13- and 14-year-old boys and girls, that teach outdoor and leadership skills, provide challenge and adventure, and screen campers for future jobs on the camp services staff. (SV)

Throughout much of the world, boys continue to outscore girls on standardized mathematics tests. For example, in most of the 57 countries that participated in the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2006, boys' performance was significantly higher than girls on the mathematics scale. This fact alone can harm girls' opportunities…

Camp Mind's Eye is a one-week residential summer program for intellectually and creatively gifted children provided by Camp Tyler (Texas), one of the oldest outdoor education facilities. The camp program stresses right brain thinking, a flexible curriculum, and autonomous instructors. (DB)