Tradition!!!!

No, this has nothing to do with my excitement over the fact that Topil will be starring in “Fiddler on the Roof” in Cleveland next summer and I have every intention of going…it has to do with the importance of tradition in programs for children, especially when they only happen once a year.

Last week I was a counselor at my church’s VBS. We have this fantastic program called Heroes Camp which was created at our church and is now used all over the state. This year someone new is in charge of the program. While she did a wonderful job she made a lot of changes to the program that really changed the overall feel of Heroes Camp.I was working with the older campers and they were always questioning me as to “why we aren’t doing things the way we did them last year?” These kids only come to this program once a year but it makes such an impact that they remember every detail of what we did.

Now I could go on about my opinons of these changes (some good some bad) but I am NOT here to bash anyone’s creativity.

I am going to make a point about how I use tradition. In the case (since it is what I am stuck working on for the rest of summer) of Truassic Park Adventure Camp at the museum.

This is the fourth summer we have done this program. I created it from the ground up and I am happy with the result. Every year we have the same themes “Dinosaur Day, Nature Day, Fossil Day, and Adventure Day” and we always have a reptile show, mock fossil dig, some sort of activity in Vier’s Ditch, a fossil talk, and use the playground equipment in the park (zip-line, water balloon launcher, giant slide, swamp maze, etc…)Then all the crafts, snacks, and other projects are new each year.

Co-workers and family members will sometimes question why I repeat so many activities every year. Won’t repeat campers get bored?I think they think I am getting lazy…lol!

I see their points, however, since Truassic Park Adventure Camp happens once a year the kids actually look forward to these activities. I hear things like “Are we going to dig for fossils this year? That is my favorite!” and “When are we going to go to the creek?” So I guess if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it…if it keeps on working….it’s a tradition.

Now the fact that we are having Miss Katie’s Famous Campfireless S’Mores is another story…I am running out of snack ideas for Adventure Day…..

Kids and the value of crafts

So while at work I am researching frog crafts online for the “Awesome Amphibians” program I am doing at the museum on Saturday. I was looking on the DLTK website for ideas and I found an interesting article.

It is about how to do a craft with a young child. So often I feel like when the kids come home from my camp with their crafts, the parents are a little unhappy that the crafts aren’t “pretty.” All the crafts we do at camp the kids make 100% their own. Sometimes we will pre-cut the pieces or help them glue things together but it’s always their own project.

This article boosted my morale and I’ve decided to make a slide in the camp parents slide show about why we do the crafts and projects we do.

With kids and crafts, it’s all about imagination, creativity, and developing skills not whose paper butterfly is the prettiest.

I must get back to work but please check out this great article:

http://www.dltk-kids.com/animals/mefrog.html

Under the Sea

Here is an old post from the museum yahoo group. I thought I would post it up here.

“One of the programs we do at Akron Fossils and Science Center is
called Super Science Saturday. We do it the second Saturday of every
month at 1:30. This event is geared specifically toward 5-10 year
olds. Children participate in a science experiment or demonstration
and do a craft on an exciting topic.

Last week, we had a Super Science Saturday titled “Under the Sea.”
We introduced the topic by playing a video clip with the song “Under
the Sea” from “The Little Mermaid”, next we watch a slide show I had
made with pictures of diffrent sea animals and while we looked at the
pictures I read facts about the animals. When we got to pictures of
the bottle nosed dolphin and killer whale we listened to WCRF’s
Nature Corner interviews between Uncle Bob and those animals. Then we
did a demonstration to illustrate how and why the ocean has tides and
waves. We ended our class by making jellyfish windsocks out of paper
bowls and streamers. I focused on jellyfish because the local zoo is
opening a special exhibit on them this summer and I always try to
make our programs relate to things that are popular with kids at the
moment because 1. it’s a money maker and 2. people like to see the
creationist perspective on what they are seeing other places.

Our next Super Science Saturday is “Amazing Astronomy” and if anyone
has any ideas they would like to share, I would love the input! I am
an education major (4th-9th grades) with concentrations in language
arts and social studies and while I am really good at coming up with
fun activities ,especially “hooks” and crafts, I lack a science
background.

We have done Super Science Saturdays on topics like “Under the
Sea”, “Dangerous Dragons”, “Messy Matter”, “Awesome
Amphibians”, “Going Buggy”, “World Wide Flood”, “The Food Web”, “Were
the Wolly Mammoths really woolly?”, “Diggin’ Dinos”, “Fantastic
Fossils”, “Things that go bump in the night”, “Nature’s Burried
Treasures”, “Volcanoes”, “Oh, Ohio”,”Bubbleology” and more that I
can’t remember the titles of at the moment.

We also do a day camp called “Truassic Park Adventure Camp” for
students ages 4-11. Camp runs 9:30-12:30 and everyday day has a
diffrent theme (Dinosaur Day, Nature Day, Fossil Day, and Adventure
Day) and every activity we do (lecture, craft, science project,
snack, and game)reinforces that days theme (yes, even snack!)

I also have some great things we do for birthdays, including
new “Stuff n’Fluff Dinos” but I realize this post is really long, so
just ask, lol!

I would love to share my any of the projects we have done with you! I
have a lot of craft ideas, lesson plans, fun snacks, a few power
points,science projects, and some puppet shows I’ve been working on.
So if anyone needs anything, please let me know. It is really hard to
find good stuff out there so we need to all stick together.

Thanks!”

P.S. We are doing Under the Sea again this summer along with Awesome Amphibians and Bubbleology.

Pretty in Pink Princess Workshop

So I hosted this event at my mom’s store last weekend and it was a huge hit! I wanted to share with my blog what I just posted on the NAAW board about it. That way any readers..ha ha..maybe someday…lol can modify this for their own party…that is if they live too far away to book me.

All the girls reserved a spot in advance. We had a very small group because we were doing this in a small classroom but this could easily work for a large group. They flier informed all the girls to wear their best princess outfit and everyone did!

When the girls arrived the “Princess” (my sister dressed in a pink prom dress and tiara) greeted them at the door. They walked through a doorway covered in streamers and into the classroom. As all the princesses were arriving everyone colored their take home bags.

Once everyone was there, I introduced myself as their Fairy Godmother Katie ( I dressed the part, complete with GIANT fairy wings) and my lovely assistant Princess Kelly. Then I read “Princesses are Pretty” out loud and we talked about what it means to be a princess.

Then, I asked them what a princess needs…A crown! I gave each girl a pink foamie tiara that we decorated with foamie stickers. Then we decorated wands with foamie stickers. The wands were a craft kit from JoAnn Fabrics. The crowns and stickers came from JoAnns and Hobby Lobby.

Next we made our stuffable purses (each girl picked their animal when they registered.) I did my usual rainbow wishing star ceremony and I had Princess Kelly help with the birth certificates while I closed up the animals. Then I gave each girl a Princess Crown ‘Stamp’Too’

Then we took a group picture and some individual pictures in the “fashion show.” Then we played a “Put Cinderella in the Castle” game I found at a local party supply store for like $3. In the next game we played each girl tried to “walk like a Princess” while balancing a book on her head. Then we played some Disney music I got from online and all the princesses did their best pose, princess waive, curtsy, and dance.

Finally, we all sat back down at the table and talked about how princesses have good manners. Then I served sugar cookies with pink frosting (from the grocery store) and pink lemonade with pink cups, plates and napkins.

While the girls ate I gave a little talk about what Noah’s Ark Animal Workshop is because the moms all stayed in the room. I didn’t get any bookings but everyone signed up on the mailing list and is really looking forward to the next event.

I only charged $12 per child at this event so I probably only broke even. Next time I plan to charge more like $15. The reason I charged so little was because when I came up with the price I didn’t plan on doing wands or cookies and punch.

All I did for decorations was put put pink and princess table covers (we used 3 tables total, ) hang streamers in the doorway, hang the game up on the wall because it was a plastic poster of a castle with Disney Princesses on it, put the cookies on pretty plates, put the punch in a fancy pitcher I borrowed, and put a castle shaped box I got at the dollar store in the center of one of the tables. Instant Princess Palace!

If you would like to check out the pictures I have a link posted on my website

www. katelynsark. com

If you have any questions or ideas to share let me know! This was A LOT of fun!

Read Across America

In honor of the birthday of Theodore S. Geisel a.ka. Dr. Seuss I invite you all to not only remember the Lorax but to check out an idea from a lesser known work “Bartholomew and the Ooobleck”and make some oobleck!

Step One: Check out this book from your local library!After all, Dr. Seuss’ birthday is celebrated with “Read Across America Day!”

Step Two: Make some Ooobleck! It’s a Non-Newtonian Fluid, which means it isn’t a solid or a liquid.

Here are some directions I found on Google:

YOU NEED: a large mixing bowl, mixing spoon, green food coloring, 10 cups of cornstarch,6 cups of room temperature water

DIRECTIONS: Put water in the large bowl and add food coloring drop by drop until the water turns green. Mix in the cornstarch a cup at a time. Mix thoroughly. Have some extra cornstarch available for thickening the mixture (I always have to add more.)

Enjoy! You can bounce it, roll it in your hands, then let it ooze through your fingers. If you had enough you can even run across it! As seen on Mythbusters, the Ninja Myth Episode. There are some great clips of this on youtube if you search oobleck!

Have fun! Just don’t invite any hat wearing felines in to play!

Face paint for dummies

I consider myself a creative person but I cannot draw to save my life. I can’t paint on paper let alone on the face of a fidgety child. I once tricked my sister into doing face painting at a event for the museum. It was a nightmare and she hasn’t forgiven me yet.

However, I did want to add face painting to the list of things I can do when I discovered “Stamp Too Kits” They are made by the Stampin’ Up company and are a fast and easy alternative to face paint. Each kit comes with FDA approved markers and an FDA approved ink pad specially made to use on skin. They also come with several cute stamps. There is a boy kit and a girl kit (I bought both) but once you have the ink pads and markers you can use any stamps with them. Kids love them, they are easy to use, easy to wash off, and only take a few seconds to put on.  If you bought a bunch of cheap rubber stamps you would be set for any themed event you did. The kits cost like $15 each but last a really long time.

Two weeks ago I face painted 24 kids in 2 minutes! I gave every girl a butterfly and every boy a shark. They looked professional but with no hassle. Another nice thing is that if you want to get fancy you can buy more detailed stamps and use multiple colors.

Currently, I am offering free “Stamp Too” face art every 2009 workshop I do. So far it has been a big hit!

Hot Tip: The girl kit comes with a crown stamp. I like to give this one to Birthday Girls/Boys only. It makes them feel special and it helps you remember which kid is the birthday child.

If you would like to know more check out http://www.stampinup.com and look under Products-Stamps-Kids. I think it’s on the third page.

Tips of all sorts

I got a $45 tip over the weekend! That is one major perk of the “edutainment” industry.

Speaking of tips…here are two important ones that have been on my mind as I plot my future in this business:

1. You must control the food. I’ve been doing a lot of research and if you can supply the food for events then you can rake in the big bucks. Some places will let you bring in your own food but I have heard from several small business owners that there are some major liability issues associated with this. Plus, you would rather your clients spend every cent they budgeted for their event with you. One place I know makes pizza, chicken fingers, and other kiddie food on site and has cakes and cupcakes made for them at a local bakery and charges accordingly. They also have special catering services available but everything they offer is fairly simple. You don’t have to be a professional chief to make the most of the food situation.

2. You MUST find a way to have indoor and outdoor events. In the winter places with indoor parties are very popular but come summer people feel more comfortable having the party in their own backyard.  I think having an outdoor picnic area at you facility is a major plus. Another way to work around this is to offer your party planning services at people’s homes. If your facility is air conditioned I would advertise this big time in the summer because sometimes it is just too darn hot to have a party in your backyard…use this to your advantage.

So those are my tips: Control the food, control the weather, and $45!!!

Control Freaks

So I have become  obsessed with this developing my own birthday party company. Today, while cruising the web I discovered that some zoos, museums, aquariums etc…actually outsource their birthday parties to private companies. Now there is an idea worth tapping into!

Today I encountered one of the most dreaded creatures of the child entertainment industry…..the control freak mom. This mom brought her own treat bags and table settings and she insisted on the children doing an activity that really was not age appropriate.  Remember,  a birthday party is about celebrating a special day with the people you care about. A child will only turn 5 once, please don’t insist on them doing activities more suited for 10 yr olds, let them enjoy being 5!

I think the worst control freak mom I ever encountered was at the first year of day camp at the museum.  This mom would hang around camp the whole day and basically just bug me and the rest of the staff while we were clearly busy. Worse still, she would not leave her children alone. I could over look most of the issues we faced with this parent except for one: She would “help” her children with their crafts!

I let craft time at this particular day camp be very open. I give the campers directions and materials but I let them put their own unique spin on each project. On this particular day, the campers were making construction paper “W” puppets of dinosaurs. I helped the campers fold the paper into a puppet but after that they could decorate it however they wanted. Some puppets had scales, some had feathers,  some had like 15 googley eyes, some resembled actual dinos, some were Princess-O-Saurouses, whatever…let your imaginations soar! This mom would actually come over and say things like “No son, a dinosaur shouldn’t have 3 eyes!” or “Oh, you can make it look nicer than that!” I just wanted to be like “Lady, it’s his puppet, let him do what he wants!” at one point the kids had all left to go to play on the playground and the mom actually stayed in the craft tent and “fixed” her kids’ projects.

After that I added a new rule:
Unless parents are official volunteers who fill out an application, get selected, and attend training…they will not stay at camp. There are shopping centers and restaurants down the street…go there.  Camp is about the kids…not you!

Here is another thing along those lines: When selling craft projects, what looks good to the parents and what the kids actually enjoy and learn from are two very different things. Parents seem to like to see what I call “craft kits” where every kids comes home with a lovely looking craft and every kid’s craft looks the same. After nearly 5 years in this business and more years than I care to admit to at Heroes Camp I can tell you this: It means a heck of a lot more to the kids if they design the craft themselves.

Case in Point: On the last day of every camp I have the kids make picture frames and I put a group picture in each one. I’ve tried using those “foamie” craft kit picture frames in the past. The make them with a “camp” theme and each one looks basically the same.  Personally, I think they are really nice and I don’t know how much the parents liked them but the kids were unimpressed. You know what the kids do love? My new tradition is to put all the left over craft supplies like stickers, Popsicle sticks, glitter, paint, etc…on the craft tables and let them go nuts. Then I give them each a sticker with the camp name and year on it. They love it!

Well I best be off, I am doing a birthday party tomorrow!

F.Y.I In my previous post I mentioned a party planning book I am reading by a well known company. I also mentioned how I highly reccommend Oriental Trading Co. Can you guess what company that book recommended in chapter one? Oriental Trading! See, the experts agree with me!

Next Big Idea

So the thought that has been on my mind nonstop lately, besides the whole finding a teaching job thing, is that I need to hit on another big selling point for my business. I’ve got the “make your own stuffed animals” and “Glamour Girl” workshops, which I love but what else can I offer?

Here’s what I need:

Games

Decorations

Dress-up

I think my next project will be developing birthday party packages all based around some popular themes.

So enough of my ranting and on to some useful advice for myself and anyone in my position looking for the next big idea:

Take a look at Oriental Trading.

Either get a catalogue or visit there website www.orientaltrading.com (or call 800.228.2269 even.)

This company has everything! Their motto is “Fun products for every occasion!” They have party supplies, craft supplies, toys, games, craft kits, and a line called “Hands on Fun” which has everything you need for classroom activities for all occasions. This would be really helpful for daycares.“Hands on Fun” has a line of fabric markers that Noah’s Ark Animal Workshop uses for their “Color-A-Shirt” activities so you know they must be good. If nothing else, I use them.

All I have to do is look through some of these catalogs and I am bound to come up with some sort of amazing idea.

Here’s one now: Carnival games! Like duck pond. They sell those. I wonder if people would pay to have my crew come and run a small carnival in their backyard… My friends and I raised a lot of money with a backyard carnival for a good cause when we were like 13.

Well I am off to explore the Oriental Trading catalogs strewn about my floor. Then, I think I will take a look at “The Penny Whistle Birthday Party Book” which I picked up at the local library along with 16 other books on the subject of activities for children. Expect quite a few book reviews in the near future.

Wheel

A couple of years ago, I was asked by my boss to take part in a short Q&A session at a conference. I don’t remember exactly how we got on the topic but somehow, we got on the subject of the #1 piece of advice I would give someone trying to start any children’s program.

So here it is. Let’s start this new blog off with the best I have:

“Don’t reinvent the wheel.”

As I told the people at the conference (a few of whom were members of MENSA so why they wanted to hear what I had to say I shall never know,) start with a format you are familiar with then work your way from there. When we first decided to start a day camp at the museum I was a little overwhelmed. I didn’t know where to start. How long should the camp be? What age groups should we have? What are we going to do with these kids all day?

Now, for a rather substantial part of my life I have been blessed with being involved in an amazing Catholic version of VBS known as Heroes Camp. It’s an amazing day camp program for children ages 4-11, runs 9:30-12:30, consists of 4 activity stations, opening and closing activities where the whole camp is together, and every activity the campers do (even snacks and games) reinforce the topics learned that day. Well, since that model worked so well for Heroes Camp and after 6 or so years of being a Heroes Camp counselor I knew it pretty well, I took it and applied it to “Dino Camp” as the kiddies call it. Overall, I have to say it works pretty well. Camp costs about $80 a week, we get a nice turn out every year, and most people keep coming back.

Ok, so I realize that these camps are very different. One being about dinosaurs and fossils and the other being about Catholic Saints but I used the bare bones of Heroes Camp (hours, how the hours are broken up, age group etc…) and applied it to my Dino theme. No need to reinvent the wheel and I did not break any laws…this time.