June 17 – Arrival Day
The Young Explorers evening activities on Sunday began after registration with an informal cook out on the lawn at ISVI. The campers then met briefly to discuss camp rules, meet staff, share information about themselves and outline the week’s activities.

The Young Explorers were very busy (but happy) campers during their week at ISVI. While they traveled around the world each day, at night they were closer to home in Hannibal, Missouri, the home of Tom Sawyer. "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" was the theme for evening recreation. So Sunday evening, all campers then took part in an icebreaker to get to know each other; they went fishing, one of Tom and Huck’s favorite activities. Instead of using poles, hooks, worms and trying to catch real fish, each camper used a magnetic fishing pole to "catch" a paper fish with a question for them to answer. Each question was in large print and Braille, and let the campers learn more about their new friends. After fishing, the children went outside to play the kind of games Tom and Huck Finn would have played in the 1840's. They played hopscotch, shot marbles, played pick up sticks, jumped rope, learned to play jacks, and experimented with hoops. At the end of the evening, the entire group took turns whitewashing a wooden fence on campus, a job everyone decided was more fun than work.

ISVI Educational Staff--Young Explorers Camp
The ISVI educators who worked with your child in Young Explorers Camp during the Day Sessions were: Cindy Miller, Serena Preston, Pat Langdon, Darla Chambers. The educators who directed the evening activities for the Young Explorers campers were Kathy Turner and Joni Frisch.

Daily Sessions
Breakfast each day was from 7:15 until 8:00 served in ISVI's Dining Hall where the Young Explorers campers set together at the same tables. Camp educators met the campers at breakfast each morning where they escorted them to the classroom areas for the daily sessions that ran Monday through Thursday from 8:00 until 3:30. A mid-morning and afternoon break was provided in ISVI's Snack Bar where healthy snacks were provided. Each day campers were escorted to the Dining Hall for lunch.

Each afternoon, the Young Explorers went swimming in ISVI's pool that was supervised not only by ISVI's staff, but also a registered lifeguard. Organized pool activities as well as an opportunity for "open swim" was provided each day.

This year the Young Explorers enjoyed a variety of activities centered around the theme "The World Through Our Eyes." The travelers enjoyed learning about many countries including Mexico, Asia, Australia and Italy. Each morning the passengers received their passports, went through airport security, received boarding passes and boarded a "Vision Air" flight. The passengers went on five daily tours including cooking, arts and crafts, and music/dance. The passengers also took a daily outdoor excursion.

During the foreign cooking classes the tourists made fortune cookies, graham cracker flags, faux French fries or chips as they are called in Australia, and personal pizza's, Italian style. The tourists enjoyed these snacks each afternoon during their outdoor excursion.

In Arts and Crafts the tourists made origami airplanes and dogs, clapping rhythm sticks, a mosaic coaster and serapes.

World Music activities included preparing music, lyrics and movements for the program on Saturday.

Finally on Friday, we made costumes for the final production and practiced in the auditorium. Each day during Arrival and Departures, passengers reviewed information about the country they would be visiting, their travel itinerary for the day, travel rules, and tourists of the day started the plane for the flights.

During the airplane movie passengers watched "Moulan" in Descriptive Video, "Moulan II" and "Finding Nemo" in Descriptive Video.

The Outdoor Excursions included activities such as the Tortilla Toss, Around the World Scavenger Hunt, breaking a pinata, a marshmallow relay using chopsticks, and played the Country Shuffle.

Evening Recreational Activities
Each afternoon, the campers returned from day camp at 3:30 p.m. They were given a choice of playing games and doing crafts inside, or playing outside on the playground. This year, the favorite activities inside were building with blocks and playing with play dough. Each camper also completed a popsicle raft of craft sticks, a replica of the raft Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn floated down the Mississippi. The last half hour before dinner, the group came together and listened to one of their teachers reading from the book, "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer."

Each evening, dinner was served in the Dining Hall from 5:00 until 6:00. The evening recreation activities began each evening at 6:00 p.m. and ended at 8:00 p.m. From 8:00 p.m. to lights out at 9:00 p.m., the campers took showers, ate snacks, and got ready for bed.

As previously mentioned, the theme for the evening activities was "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer." On Monday night, the Young Explorers joined the youngest recreation group from the other three camps (Technology for Today, Living Independently and Fine Arts) to go bowling in Jacksonville. To assure that each child had a successful bowling experience, the group used gutter-guard bumpers and a rack that helped support and aim the bowling ball. Everyone had a great time and the bowling scores ranged from 59 to 110.

Tuesday found the campers again joining the youngest group of children from the other camps to play BINGO. The bingo cards were in Braille and large print, white on black lettered, adapted boards. The games were played in the Teen Center at ISVI, and everyone enjoyed popcorn and drinks for snacks. Each camper won a prize by the end of the games, and enjoyed the opportunity to see some of their friends from other years at camp.

Wednesday the Young Explorers began their evening at Play for All Park here in Jacksonville. This park is new in Jacksonville and has an adapted playground that features a water pad, swings, and two big play toys. All of the park is accessible to wheelchairs and was designed to meet the needs of children with disabilities. One camper's thought when they arrived at the water pad was "this is way cool," and all of the children echoed his feelings. After playing at the park for an hour, the group boarded the ISVI's bus and traveled to the Dairy Queen for a snack. After playing hard outside, the cold treats really hit the spot!

To add to the camper's knowledge of Tom Sawyer, the group enjoyed watching the movie, "Tom and Huck," on Thursday. In addition to the movie, the group helped make snacks the old fashioned way; they made homemade ice cream, stirred up brownies and squeezed lemons for lemonade. The Young Explorers also tried out floating their popsicle rafts, all of which floated successfully!

The week ended with a Friday afternoon field trip to Sawyer Creek Fun Park in Hannibal, Missouri. "Sawyer's Creek" is a multi-faceted attraction that includes miniature golf in a garden setting, bumper boats in the fish pond, a rock climbing wall, a video arcade, a Too Too Twain, and Water Wars. With so many things to see and do, each child had a great time doing a variety of activities of their choice. After enjoying a snack in the Sweet Shop, the campers went to downtown, historic Hannibal to purchase souvenirs. Stopping at the Mark Twain Museum gift shop, the Young Explorers bought straw hats, jewelry, flash lights, toys, and books. Each camper chose their own memento of the trip to Hannibal. Dinner at the always popular McDonald's was an adventure that Tom and Huck would have appreciated!

Dormitories & Meals
Campers stayed on the first floor of the dormitory known as "Unit 18." The girls used the rooms at the north end of the hall while the boys used the rooms on the south end. There is a living room and kitchen area at each end of the hall where televisions, couches, chairs, stove, microwave, sink, etc. are available. Campers either had a single roommate or a room to themselves.

Each of the three daily meals was served in the Dining Hall located in the center of the campus. Campers went through the food line cafeteria style with assistance being provided to anyone who needed help. Campers were also provided assisted in locating a table so each could sit where and with whom they would like. Meals were planned and organized by ISVI's dietary manager.

Evening Snacks
Dinner was scheduled from 5:00-6:00. When all the Young Explores were finished, they returned to the dorm to prepare for the evening recreational activity. After the evening recreational activities, campers were offered a snack (popcorn, crackers, fruit snacks, cookies, etc.) and fruit punch, milk, or water to drink. Bathing and teeth brushing were supervised by the adult staff and assistance given if needed. Lights out for the campers was at 9:00.

All staff involved in the Young Explorers Camp thank you for allowing your child to spend the week with us here at ISVI's Summer Camp! The campers had a great time making new friends, learning new skills, and experiencing summer camp. We all are hopeful your child will choose to join us again next summer! We wish you and your child a pleasant remainder of the summer months.

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