Wednesday Out Trip Adventures!

Wednesdays are out trip days here in the Junior OSC program and the children seem to love it! So far our destinations have included The Village Garden Pumpkin Patch, Garden City Park and South Arm Park. However with daylight fading sooner and sooner we will likely be changing our trips to more indoor locations. So far each trip has been accompanied by a group of Senior OSC children and staff, who have been great big buddies for the younger ones. The big buddies have been amazing role models and both the Junior children and staff enjoy having them join us on our trips. 

Just a reminder that if we are going to an outdoor destination, that you pack proper clothing and footwear as it is getting colder as the weeks pass. Keep an eye out for out trip signups because the spots do fill up fast!

-Emmett

Garden City Park's bird nest climbing structure.

The children quickly discovered jackets make great luges.

KIDS KORNER

Ever wonder what kids think about REAL issues?

This week in KIDS KORNER:  "What do we do on Remembrance day?"

Here are some of the wise responses...

Emily- "when we remember the people who fought for this place"

Adrianna- "we watch a movie about soldiers"

Jackson- "no fighting...no pushing"

Nyah- "when you have to wear a poppy and care for the war"

Emily- "about poppies...about the war"

Noa- "to remember the soldiers who fought in the war"

Tune in next time for another gripping edition of KIDS KORNER.

If you have an questions you think we should ask the children on KIDS KORNER, please leave them in the comments below.

-Jason

Oh the Drama!

Drama Club is back by popular demand! Originally this was used as a rainy day distraction, but it has really caught on. Drama club has been an active way to exercise creativity, and some of the favorite games include “Death By…”, where the children act out a dramatic death by something thought up by a leader, “Museum” and “Silent Zoo.” Not only have the kids impressed us with their willingness to participate, but have awed us with their independence and group work. Some favorite moments from last drama club include a group of boys stumping Aislinn and I with a peacock impression, and three girls coordinating to act as a single spider.

-Gemma

Moments from a game of "Death By..."

Another dramatic scene.

 

Keva Blocks!

Keva Blocks have become incredibly popular among the children in our Junior OSC program here at West. Many of the children use the blocks to build marble tracks. Marbles have become some of the most popular toys at West Richmond since getting these blocks. Some of the children spend most of their day building complicated ramps for the marbles to roll down. Besides marble tracks, the children also enjoy making structures such as towers. They either create their own buildings or they try to copy buildings from a Keva Block pamphlet which ranges from easy to difficult projects. Some children have even built Beyblade stadiums out of Keva Blocks to host their battles. Overall the Keva Blocks are a huge hit at West Richmond.

-Aislinn

Our leaning tower of Keva.

Keva City

Pumpkin Patch and Halloween

Just in time for Halloween, we started our weekly mini out trips with the kids on Wednesday October 23rd.  So many children were interested, we sent another group again the following Wednesday! We got to take the children to the pumpkin patch! We went to The Village Garden Pumpkin Patch on No. 2 Road in Richmond, where a pumpkin farmer gave the children a brief explanation of how the pumpkins are grown before each child got to choose a pumpkin to take home for Halloween. Luckily the weather held up for the most part and all the kids had so much fun. We had some great costumes on Halloween. If you didn’t get a chance to see us, all the leaders dressed up as superheroes. Hopefully you all had a wonderfully spooky Halloween! 

-Katrina

The farmer explaining what's inside a pumpkin.

He had pictures to show us the different stages of pumpkin growth.

The field the children got to choose from.

Happy Halloween from Super Cow!

Music Club

Hi folks! This past week has been a fun one. I'm excited to announce that I've started

a music club!!! It's still in it's experimental stage, but basically the kids have been learning the basics of music making using simple instruments like shakers, bells, and sticks. We may even work on a specific song and make a music video for it. Look out for more information. 

-Peter