Published: June 27, 2008 04:55 pm            

Summer camp emphasizes academics in non-traditional setting

DANVILLE — For the past two weeks it’s been about discovering the joy of reading. But on the last day of the session, the prevailing distraction was ice cream.

That was the reward, courtesy of Dairy Queen in Avon and Danville, for a group of children participating in Sycamore Services’ first summer academic camp.

Phyllis Hart, Sycamore’s director of children’s services, talked about expanding the program when she started there a year ago.

“It was time for it to branch out and grow,” she said.

What followed was an afterschool play group for 2- to 4-year-olds in the spring. The summer program is called PATHS (Positive Alternative Thinking Strategies). Though Sycamore Services’ mission is to help those with disabilities enhance their quality of life, PATHS is open to children of all abilities in grades kindergarten through sixth.

“The goal is to promote academic achievement throughout the year for kids with and without developmental disabilities,” Hart said.

Only four weeks into the 10-week camp, and already the reviews are glowing.

“Our kids love it,” said Brian Petree, who has two in the camp. “They want to come to it after school now.”

Don Wilson, who has three children in PATHS, likes how it keeps children academically engaged, even when they’re not in school.

“Thanks to this program, they’re able to keep learning through the summer,” he said.

Tracy Brabec has seen tremendous improvement in her son, who’s getting ready to start kindergarten.

“Before, I couldn’t get him to do anything,” she said.

Brabec signed him up for PATHS as a sort of experiment, to see how he’d do in a day-long structured environment. The results have been better than anything she could’ve dreamed.

“Now he wakes me up at 6:45 every morning ready to go to camp,” Brabec said. “He loves it.”

She credits the program’s format for the positive response.

“They keep them active,” Brabec said. “They encourage exercise, which the children need. But they also foster imagination. Being able to use that is fun for them.”

Hart says Sycamore has received a lot of community support for the camp. Besides Dairy Queen’s donation, Ferguson Hardware contributed the tent. The Avon and Danville school corporations collaborated with Sycamore in helping spread the word for PATHS in the community.

“They were the best help with our recruitment,” Hart said.

Participants can still sign up. Session three, a creative writing program called “Write On!,” starts Monday and goes through July 11. The final two sessions are about science and back-to-school readiness.

Cost is $50 per child per week for a full day or $35 for a half day. Enrollment also is now open for Sycamore’s after-school program, which serves Avon and Danville and starts Aug. 25. The program is open 2-6 p.m. every day after school. Cost is $50 per child per week.

For more information, call Sycamore Services at 745-7503 or visit the website at www.sycamoreservices.com.



wade.coggeshall

        

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