Behind the Scenes: Camp Curriculum

Did you know that our camp curriculum is written by a long time camp counselor and school teacher? At Camp NAC, we strive to make summer break as fun as possible for the campers, while still incorporating a structured curriculum that includes mind-enhancing activities & play.

We sat down with camp manager and school teacher, Alex Davies, as he closely reviewed with us how he makes the camp curriculum.

“It takes a lot of research. More and more every year, we are building programs that are breaking the boundaries between play and learning. It is very important to me that I incorporate the latest trends and activities that are engaging, while providing the tools that campers need to be successful in their lives. Studies show that students can lose skills learned during the year while on summer vacation if education is not incorporated into summer plans. In fact, 2-3 hours of learning per week during summer vacation is needed to prevent any learning loss. Our intentional incorporation of team sports, exploration, and mini-lessons is what sets us apart from other camps in our area. All of this while having the most fun experience ever.”

“It really depends on the camp because learning occurs in various ways. When it comes to planning sports programs, I focus on kinetic and collaborative learning. Our staff is heavily trained on team building and our competitive sports camps are lead by counselors with years of experience in each sport offered. To increase camper learning, we team up with Parisi Speed School for all of our sports programs and collaborate on their mission of providing curriculum based in science and sports psychology. Whether our campers attend a specialty camp or NACster camp, we consistently provide them with mini-lessons, including science labs, history games, kitchen safety and more. Because we want these lessons to stick, I make sure to give counselors the tools to teach in ways that benefit all learning styles. In addition to these methods, all of our camps have an aspect of applied learning. Whether it is building a unique invention from scratch in Cardboard Creations or cultivating environmentally-conscious meals in Farm to Table, our campers are proof we can learn while having fun.”

“If I had to pick a favorite camp, it would definitely fall under The Arts or STEM categories. These camps are awesome because many of them start a task on Monday and, through collaboration and diligence, build it into a final creation by the end of the week. For example, in Lego City camp, each camper gets to take home a unique Lego kit. As if that weren’t exciting enough, campers push themselves further to build alongside each other to create an entire Lego city and invite their parents to check out an aerial view of their city at the end of the week. Because of my love for literature, my actual favorite has to be Harry Potter camp, but I love planning everything at Camp NAC.”