Week 1
Squash on Track Summer Camp has officially begun!
We kicked off each day with a morning circle while the coaches had one-on-one check-ins. After everyone shared how they were feeling, we got right into a fun game to pick up the energy. We gave the campers a quick break and a snack to boost their energy before heading into two hours of dedicated squash time. Most days, the kids would play warm up games, run through different drills to learn new skills and at the end of the week played a tournament to put those skills to a test! After working up a big appetite, we would have group lunch outside to take in the sun and get some fresh air. Everyday there was a different activity waiting for the kids after lunch. We ended with a closing circle to wrap up for the day with a group check-in about the day. Friday was our field trip day! This week we visited Rinconada Park to play outdoor games and go on a scavenger hunt.
Egg Drop
The kids this week all participated in an egg-drop experiment! They all had a budget of “$100” to spend in the class store on building materials such as cardboard, newspapers, cotton balls, balloons and more. We had a variety of different designs, ranging from cushions to parachutes. Energy was at an all-time high as their creations dropped from 20 feet highl! Out of our 9 creations 4 eggs made it to tell the tale! Congratulations to Angel, Ryan, Kelvin and Gio.
Shout out to our neighbor, Manny, from El Dorado Forklift Co. for operating a scissor lift to drop our eggs from 20 feet above the ground! The kids all made a thank you card for him to show their appreciation.
Art With Cathy
On Tuesday and Thursday our friend Cathy from the Palo Alto Art Center came by to teach the students some techniques for drawing plants and animals. Using actual flowers as still models, some from the Squash on Track garden, the students first sketched out the shapes of five of the flowers before drawing their final art pieces. Although it was challenging, everyone kept trying and on Thursday Cathy even taught the campers how to add in hummingbirds and bees to complete the landscape!
Coding
Twice this week, one of our Sr. Program Leaders, Nihal Verghese, led a segment on coding! The students loved interacting with familiar games like flappy bird and minecraft, where they were able to change how the game was played and what it looked like. Coding was one of the students’ favorite activities this week, even though for many of them it was their first time trying it! They started asking to do some coding in their free time and we are excited for them to keep working on their skills throughout the school year.
Rinconada park day
At the park, the students enjoyed getting dizzy on the spinning attractions, and climbing up to the top of the play structure! Some campers played football or ran around playing tag after eating together at the picnic tables. After, one of our leaders Rianne Lui led a scavenger hunt around the entire park before we headed back to Squash Zone to do our last closing circle of week one. The kids answered riddles to find clues that took them around to the swings, water fountain, pool and more check points! After a long hunt running around the park in the heat, the kids were tired so we went back to Squash Zone to enjoy some popsicles thanks to Rebecca Liu, Rianne’s mom, who donated some sweet treats for them.
Week 1 Camper of the Week
This week Jose Luis was our camper of the week! Whenever a leader or teacher was giving instructions, Jose Luis was always quiet and actively listening so that he could participated in the next activity. Jose always respected his fellow campers and was considerate for what activities everyone else wanted to do!
Week 2
In the second week of Squash on Track Summer Camp, campers continued improving their squash skills with more drills and practice matches. Both weeks, the kids got to train together with the Squash Zone Summer Camp students which allowed them to learn from more experienced players and invision how they may play one day as they continue to work hard. Richard put on two tournaments combined with the squash zone campers where Ryan won one bracket, and Gio went undefeated in the other! They participated in more activities including building solar ovens, more art with Cathy, and ending the week with a field trip to the zoo!
Solar Ovens
On Tuesday, the kids built their solar ovens out of pizza boxes which was led by our Program Coordinator Assistant, Noah Lee! The students learned about how we can turn light from the sun into heat to cook with. by using foil for reflection and black paper to trap heat. The students were surprised to learn that different colors store heat differently. On Wednesday each student got to enjoy toasted marshmallow s'mores with melted chocolate courtesy of their homemade solar ovens. The activity ended with lots of energetic campers with chocolate all over their faces.
Art With Cathy
Also on Tuesday, we began creating a flamingo sculpture with Cathy to get the students prepared for their zoo field trip at the end of the week. A skeleton made out of metal wires was wrapped with aluminum foil for the neck and molding clay for the head. They put these heads into a mini water bottle with sand in it to stabilize the statue. To secure the head and neck the campers used plaster which hardened like a cast around the whole thing. On Thursday, when the statues were all hardened, Cathy came back so the students could paint the birds. They were asked to pay attention to the eye color, beak structure and the range of color each flamingo has in their coloring. Each camper’s bird was painted a unique shade of orange/pink. At the end of the day, each of them received two googly eyes to crown their projects which they had worked so hard on!
Endangered Animals class!
On Thursday, Rianne Lui led a class on endangered animals! Students learned about what endangered means, and why certain animals were becoming endangered. After, each camper got to choose a different animal, and research it. They learned about why the animal was endangered, drew a picture of the animal, and found out what foods the animal ate!
Zoo trip!
Friday was zoo day! All of the campers made sure to arrive on time so that they could make it to the zoo right when it opened. First they explored the museum which had fun activities including marble roller coasters, circuit building, and scavenger hunts. After the museum, the students stepped outside into the zoo area. Here they participated in many activities like finding all of the animal statues. Fears were conquered both when feeding the flamingos, and also when climbing the tall wood and rope structure that towered over the zoo area.
Week 2 Camper of the Week
This week, Alyssa was chosen as Camper of the Week because of her excellent displaying of the TRACK values (Teamwork, Respect, Appreciation, Communication, Kindness). Alyssa was always attentive whenever her tutors or squash instructors were giving directions, and showed respect to her fellow campers. Even when she wasn’t feeling 100%, or was tired from the day's activities, she gave it her all until pickup time!