In each two week session at Centauri Arts Camp, we have two festivals – one based on magic, fantasy and fun - the other based around the arts. Yesterday was our first big arts festival of the summer, in which campers chose arts disciplines and worked together collaboratively to mount a theatre festival in a [...]
Overnight Camp Changes Lives. Here’s 6 Reasons Why: Camp = Astounding Self Growth Young people grow more in 2 weeks away from home than the rest of the year combined. They learn independence and self-awareness. They discover new interests, and strengths they never knew they had. They figure out who they are, and who they [...]
It is 1pm on a beautiful, sunny day at Centauri, and everyone is busy creating. I took a stroll around camp this morning to have a better look at everything going on in programs. I sat in the shade of the Poet Tree with Blair’s Screenwriting program, and listened to a lively discussion about the [...]
This annual festival is one of the most-anticipated of our summer camp calendar, and this year it was held in session 3. Campers are arranged into theatre troupes, with everyone choosing whether they act, write, direct, design, dance, choreograph, sing, write music or play instruments. The entire day is led by our campers with staff [...]
It may seem strange, but because Centauri Arts Camp is located in the Niagara Region and not up North, families don’t expect us to have access to a whole lot of nature here. That couldn’t be further from the truth! This morning as I headed to breakfast, there were over 200 tree swallows sitting on [...]
Most of our blogs are about campers (of course). But now, it’s the parents’ turn. Day 1 Drop your child off at Centauri. Let’s face it, this person is one of the most precious (perhaps THE most precious) person in your life – so don’t just drop them off. Bring them to camp, and meet [...]
In times past, it was usual for families to be ‘extended’. Young people were more likely to experience closeness to - and respect for - family members of different ages. Today, many youth live on the other side of the world from grandparents, uncles and aunts. Meanwhile, families are smaller - meaning that children are [...]
I had a surprise in the office this morning. A parent called out of the blue to tell us what a difference we had made in her daughter’s life. She said that years ago, her daughter attended a traditional camp, but as a child with a creative spirit and a keen interest in drama, she [...]
Recently I came across a terrific book about summer camp by bestselling author and speaker, Michael Thompson, entitled, ‘Homesick and Happy’, Thompson argues that in today’s world, when many parents consider it unsafe even to let their child walk to school by themselves, overnight camp has never been more important. Children are rarely away from [...]
Last week, most members of our Senior Staff Team took time out from their regular year-round schedules to attend the Ontario Camps Association annual conference here in Toronto. We took workshops in everything from health and safety to mental health at summer camp, and from staff training and evaluation to leadership techniques. It was an [...]