Camp Tree Circle is held in Luna’s Forest, our six acres of beautiful forested land here at The Children’s Garden. This camp capitalizes on the children’s natural curiosity, inquiry and love of play to lead our group though the week. Campers grow though hands on activities, songs, games and exploration. Each day is filled with new adventures, learning new skills and having lots and lots of fun!
Session 1 – June 15-18, 9 am-12 pm
Session 2 – June 22-25, 9 am-12 pm
Camp Tree Circle is open to all current Garden students.
To allow for maximum participation, please sign up for ONE of the following sessions. If space is available we will open enrollment up for campers to participate in multiple sessions.
Before Camp Starts
Payment
Camp Tree Circle invoices will be added to your student’s Brightwheel profile.
Camp T-Shirt
The first day of camp is tie-dye day! Please stop by the office to view samples and choose your campers t-shirt size or email Brin your preferred size using this sizing chart.
During Camp
Clothes
First day of camp is tie-dye day, please dress your child in clothes that can get stained.
Throughout camp, have your camper wear clothes that are ok for dirt, paint and dye.
The first day of camp is tie-dye day! We have aprons, gloves and goggles but please dress your camper in clothes that can get stained.
Weather permitting, we might do a creek walk or two and we will request rainboots.
Snack
Just like a day in class, please pack a daily snack and water bottle for your camper.
Camp Recap Message From Emily
*Please come join me at the Issaquah Chalk Art Festival 12-4 at the Community Center
Week 1:
What a beautiful week we had in the forest! Thank you to all who joined us! It was awesome getting to know some of our incoming Honeybees and watch the mixed age group gather to adventure. Brook joined Emily along with our amazing big kid helpers, Clio and Luca. Luca was our runner, builder, and scientist. He loved playing chase and building structures with the campers, while Clio was so helpful with organizing the crafts, helping the littles with bubble wands, necklaces, and fairy houses. This week there were several kiddos who really leaned into building structures for the fairies, leaving them notes, and making magical wands.
For the first day off camp, we started with tie-dying bandanas. This is a shift from the shirts, but I love sending home something that they don’t outgrow and are able to utilize in different ways. The campers loved seeing their creations the next day! The forest swing was also a very popular activity throughout the week. The swing provides a great opportunity to feel brave, try new movements, and practice the skill of waiting. The campers also created beautiful watercolor that they chose specific leaves for to do a print upon. There were ample pipe cleaners, beads, and string for whoever wanted to make a new accessory as well. We also experimented with yarn lanterns. Some campers were very into the sensory experience and some, not so much. It was a super fun and interesting experience for us all! Along with hiking and climbing, we also found an incredible amount of joy on the slides! We built ramps, tunnels with our bodies, and sent trucks flying.
A part of our routine at camp also includes climbing a big tree. It was inspiring to see the campers move through their nerves to brave new heights. Coco was my designated “Tree Lifeguard” and helped her friends who hadn’t been up before. Whether it was climbing a giant tree, being the leader of a hike, or swinging upside-down for the first time; it was inspiring to see our campers bravery and confidence. We also got the joy of exploring the creek and searching for cool rocks, along with making flower/leaf faces, and bubbles with our own pipe cleaner creations. We hope everyone had an amazing time and we cannot wait to see everyone in the fall or in the near future!
Week 2:
We so loved our adventurous week in the forest with our campers! Freya joined Emily, along with our helpers Clio, Luca, and Ransom. It was such a blast to have all hands on deck for this group. Our helpers were so amazing, whether it be leading games, playing chase, jail, or making sure everyone was safe on our hikes. Luca is the activity guy and awesome at building, which came in handy while building a very intricate marble maze. Clio had at least three little girls following behind her at all times and set just the best example of what it means to be kind and inclusive. Ransom was so helpful with the swing, hiking, and such a good sport when it came to being put in jail. A huge shoutout to them and all their hard work! Also, what a treat it was to see so many graduated Honeybees for one last Hooraw! We love the opportunity for families to come back and continue to be a part of our community.
We started our week out with tie-dying bandanas. We found that the bandanas are a way to keep something special that we won’t outgrow and we hope your kiddos are proud of their creativity! The swing was a hot ticket item this week. It was a great opportunity for the campers to try new moves, leap higher, and practice the skill of patience. We hiked, climbed trees, and read many stories. With some hot weather, we headed to the creek on Tuesday to look for cool rocks, search for fish, and splash around. It’s always so fun to see what adventures can be had in the creek. We searched for leaves on Wednesday to make a leaf print on our watercolor painting. With camp, some are interested in the crafts and some aren’t, so not all of the kiddos did the print..And that’s totally okay! We want our campers to be able to find their most amount of joy within with forest and have freedom to choose. We also built a cardboard castle that the kiddos were able to help construct and paint. What fun it was to see and climb into our creation! Who doesn’t love a fort!?
Throughout camp we gave the opportunity to climb into a giant tree where they could feel brave and gasp at the awe of being among the branches. It’s always inspirational to see those who feel quite nervous, feel safe and bold among the trees. On the last day of camp I decided to try my hand at face painting for whoever was interested. We had fairies, tigers, zebras, pirates and more. Throughout our endeavors and potential tears from falling, they didn’t look quite as they had started..but it was so fun! Freya and Clio made an obstacle course with yarn and pool noodles that was absolutely epic. Luca also helped create a marble maze with the noodles, pipes, and stumps.
It was undeniably a fantastic week in Luna’s Forest and we are all grateful that we got to spend it with you. Thank you for joining us and I hope you all have the best summer ever!
