By Dylan McDonough
The theme for this Camp Roger Homeschool Day was Survival. It was the last Camp Roger before Christmas so we did some Christmas-themed activities. It will be written from the viewpoint of an energetic squirrel.
When I woke up to the sound of kids’ voices at Camp Roger, the first thing I noticed was the chill in the air. I shook myself off and scampered down the trunk of my tree. There was a dusting of snow as I pranced through the brush towards Ridge Hall to where the campers were walking. Right before the door closed, I slipped in hidden from sight. I had heard rumors about how great these homeschool days were. I had to see for myself.
Reuben read the kids a devotional about a spitting spider that lurks in the dark waiting to catch its prey. Satan can be the same way, waiting to pounce on you and trap you in a web of lies. We should not stray from the truth, nor from God.
Three groups and their different leaders ventured out on their own. I chose one group that was staying inside. As you should know, I am a squirrel that is very quick and nimble. The kids sat down at one table that I was hiding under. Mary Jo showed the campers how to make an origami paper boat. I snatched a piece of paper and tried to make one myself but my tiny paws were not able to even fold the paper in half!
The kids jumped off the benches to throw paper boats up onto the Christmas tree. After that, we could either make a 3D paper snowflake or a Christmas chain to hang on the tree. I let the kids decide on their own. I was not working with paper again! The Christmas tree looked dazzling when they put the chain up. It looked so nice that I climbed up the trunk to the top where nobody could see me.
The campers enjoyed hot chocolate and snacks before they went off again. I wanted to see what was going to happen outside. I leaped from the tree and raced across the mantel, then at lightning speed bolted across the floor until tumbling out the door. I was only stopped a minute to catch my breath before racing across the frozen ground.
Julia and the campers were outside of a cabin up on Girl’s Hill. She talked about survival. I burrowed under the snow and wrapped my fuzzy tail around my body as I listened. She said that you can survive for three minutes without air. You can survive three hours without any warmth in the freezing cold. You can go without water for three days and have no food for three weeks. This I found very interesting!
The campers built shelters from nature. Within this group, we split up into three groups. One group propped a branch against a stump. Julia called this kind of shelter a squirrel hut. Now I had to help make this! I hunted for twigs and branches and leaves. Asher and Minte went inside of the fort to test it out. I squeezed inside myself and I must say, it was well built!
Sadly, we had to go back for lunch. I said goodbye to the fort and scurried beside them. I got a frosted acorn before sliding in through the doors to nibble on my lunch. While the campers ate their lunch, Reuben read them a picture book called, Song of the Stars by Sally Lloyd-Jones. It was a book about how the animals rejoiced when Jesus was born. I was sitting behind the coat rack with a plump belly.
For the last adventure we went with Hannah. They went downstairs so I slid down the handrail at full speed. The only problem was the landing that turned out to be a hard cement floor. I landed with a thud. Hannah led us into a room with couches and began to read us another picture book called I Want my Hat Back by Jon Klassen. I curled up inside a kid’s hat while she read the story. It was about a bear who lost his hat and tries to find it by asking different animals. We learned how to use compasses and maps. Hannah taught us how to use a compass properly. I got ahold of one and tried to adjust the dial and to my surprise, it worked!
We went outside and paired up as two. Each pair marked off a different square of land as their base and then used the compass while following Hannah’s directions to go to different areas. The object was to make a square back to your base. I had trouble using the compass to navigate, so I settled with twisting the dials which was relaxing.
It started to snow as we headed back to Ridge Hall. It was almost time for the kids to leave, but we still had a bit more to do. We got to make Christmas cookies! I inched my way towards the countertop where they were serving the cookies. Some sprinkles spilled in my reach and I gobbled them down quickly. You could also color pictures and make ornaments, but I passed. It had been a fun day.
This Camp Roger Homeschool Day was one of the best. The rumors were definitely right about this camp. I learned so much and I think you should go too!
