TAS Grade 3 Group 3 Day 1
- Dave
- 4 days ago
- 3 min read
The campers arrived in a light rain. We got them all checked into their tents and went over some camp rules before getting them started on their first round of activities.
For those of you who are new to Camp Taiwan, we divide the students into teams of 12-15 students, designated by a colored lanyard on their name tag. Our day is divided into 90 minute activity periods. The teams will cycle through the activities as teams. When you see a picture of your child, notice the color of the lanyard. Photos will be organized by teams. I tried to find a group photo for each team and put it in the main folder, so you can find your children. I am not sure if I caught everyone (especially pink team). My apologies in advance if your child isn't in the picture.
The teams had the following schedules for today.
Blue Team started with archery in the morning and then moved on to Orienteering and Ecology in the afternoon.
Gray Team had the Giant Swing as their first activity in the morning and did ecology and archery in the afternoon.
Pink Team tried their hand at rock climbing in the morning period and then had archery and orienteering in the afternoon.
You can find a description of some of the activities here: https://www.camptaiwan.com.tw/activities
For orienteering, the campers get a brief lesson on map reading and are then sent out with a map and a list of hidden clues they need to find. If they find all the clues, they can solve a puzzle that allows them to open a locked box with a surprise inside.
During ecology, campers spent time learning about the watery habitats found around Camp Taiwan. After a brief introduction, they set off to investigate the nearby streams and small pools. They looked closely through the water and discovered shrimp, tiny fish, frogs, and even a few crabs. It is the kind of activity where the campers quickly become absorbed in what they are finding.
We finished the afternoon with a camp-wide game called Infection. At the start, one or two counselors were chosen as the “infected,” while the rest of the campers tried to stay away from them. Whenever someone was tagged, they became infected too and joined the chase. Little by little, the number of safe players got smaller until only a few were left, or the round came to an end.
After the final activity, everyone went back to the tent area to shower and clean up before dinner. They are finishing dinner now, and afterward they will spend some time writing in their camp journals. This gives them a quiet moment to think about the day and record a few memories from their first day at camp.
Tonight, we will come together for our campfire program. The counselors have prepared some skits, and we will add in a few games and camp songs before finishing the evening with roasted marshmallows and s’mores.
A final note on the weather. We have been watching the weather reports for the last few days, and we feared the worst. However, it turned out to be not too bad. It rained a bit in the first period, but after that, it remained dry. Not exactly sunny, but not raining. We'll take that.
Below is the link to today’s Dropbox photo folder. After you find your child’s color team folder, most of their pictures should be there. This blog will only be available for a limited time, so please download any photos you would like to keep.
