Camp Swimming News

This week our Session 2 swimmers will be working on their Survival skills and tests. We practice safety and survival skills in order to prepare our swimmers for any potential situation or environment. While we do focus heavily on swim instruction as well our primary goal is to provide children for a platform for safety in and around water.

Camp swimmers will also be working on mastering skills required to move to the next level if they are ready and certificates will go home to those who pass a level. For children who are not continuing in Camp Chai or Simchah in session three there are options available to continue to improve their Swim Right™ skills through the LKSA for the remainder of the summer and on into the Fall. Please keep in mind that swimming, like any skill is at its best with regular practice. Swimming is also a skill that if practiced correctly can be a vital skill throughout life that has endless benefits in the areas of lifesaving, fitness and wellness.

For more information please contact, Daniel Taylor at 214-239-7141 or dtaylor@jccdallas.org. Please also visit www.jccdallas.org/swim for more details on the LKSA or the Swim Right Method™

Camp Simchah Week 5 News

Planting the Seeds of Learning

This week our children learned all about Fire Safety from Sparky the Fire Dog. He came in and talked about the importance of getting down as low as you can in the presence of smoke. He also talked about the importance of getting out in the event of a fire and designating a safe space for you and your family. The children really enjoyed our visit from Sparky!This week our campers also had the opportunity to experience gardening in the rain. Not only did they talk about the value of the rain to the plants and the gardens but they also had the experience of touching and feeling the rain for themselves. Miss Cheri also led the children through the process of making stepping stones for our labyrinth. She explained to them the thoughtfulness that should take place as campers walk through. In addition, the children had a Zumba movement experience.

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Growing Confidence

It is amazing to see how far the children have come in the pool. This is something we continue to talk about only because we are so proud of our campers. More and more children are mastering the back float, which is a life-saving tool in a water emergency. The children are learning to not only trust their counselors and the life guards in the water, but they are also beginning to trust themselves! If you are interested in your camper becoming even more confident in the water or learning more advanced swimming skills, talk with Daniel Taylor our Aquatics Director to get them enrolled in the Swim Academy. This week we also had another new experience at the pool. We had boat day on Friday! The children had the opportunity to be “sea” side and go for an amazing boat ride! Check out all of the pictures in the Gallery.

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Harvesting Lifelong Friendships

This week we had a visit from the Tzofim Friendship Caravan. This is a traveling group of young adults straight from the land of Israel. This group sings and dances and teaches the children the importance of friends. This high energy show is one that our campers always love. All of those involved are very interactive with the audience and make all campers smile from ear to ear. This group travels to the JCC of Dallas every year…you won’t want to miss them next year!

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Recap and Reminders

One of Camp Simchah friends thinks we may have forgotten something  That’s right…it is time for this week’s recaps and reminders!

• This Friday is Camp Group Picture Day! Please send your camper in their Camp Shirt for this picture. We will make them available for purchase next week in our Shutterfly gallery.
• We cannot wait for Friday and our Visit from the Fairies…shhhhhh it is a secret for our campers!! If you have any last minute items to send for the building of the houses please do not forget to do so 
• Thank you for those of you who are continuing to come to us with updated contact information. It helps to know that we have your correct e-mail so you can receive this newsletter and other important information we may need to send through e-mail.
• Remember carpool starts at 12:45! If you have not exited the preschool door prior to this time we will ask you to walk around to the front entrance. This is for your
  own safety!
• Don’t forget your bathing suits this week will be worn Monday through Thursday!
• Don’t forget to make sure you have a change of clothes for your camper…many campers have used them and need a new supply!

Thank you for sharing your littlest treasures with us at Camp Simchah,
Lisa and Cynthia

 

Camp Simchah Week 4 News

Planting the Seeds of Learning

This week some of our children had a great learning experience in the garden. The children had the opportunity to make their own pots from large coffee filters. Miss Cheri led them through the entire experience and the children participated in wonder. The pots are drying and the children will soon have the opportunity to plant in them! We love our gardening time with Miss Cheri! We also had a second visit this week from Ella. She taught us not only to listen and harmonize our singing to her music, but she also taught us how to focus on the movements our bodies can make to the music. In movement this week we also experienced Yoga. This reinforced the skill of focusing on our body and how it moves.

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Growing Confidence

By this time of camp the children are becoming so confident in the water. They are growing by leaps and bounds…literally! It is so great to be down supervising our little ones and witnessing the progress! In addition to increased confidence at the pool, our little ones are truly loving the experience of horse riding. Some of our youngest campers who were once apprehensive are now sitting tall and proud when they mount the horses. It is great to see the smiles all around with a sense of accomplishment behind them!

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Harvesting Lifelong Friendships

This summer many children are developing a strong attachment to another area of Camp Simchah…our Naturescape. In addition to the personal friendships between the children, Tammy is helping the children find ways to be kind to our natural play area. Tammy has been spending time with the children making this space more beautiful than when they found it! She has been allowing the children to paint rocks to add to our Recirculating Stream and our Dry Creekbed. The color adds excitement for the children. In addition, she has been guiding the children through the process of wrapping the trees in yarn. This is an innovative way to express their artistic expression inspired by the Dallas Musuem of Art!

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Recap and Reminders

It’s time to put our feet together…I mean our heads 🙂 J It is time for this week’s recaps and reminders!

This Friday is Car Wash and Boat Day so all campers WILL NEED TO WEAR THEIR BATHING SUITS!

• You should receive an email or a flyer from your camp group leaders this week telling you a little bit about our upcoming Visit from the Fairies. We are going to need YOUR help collecting beautiful items that they may want to add to the construction of their homes. If you have additional questions please ask…this will all lead up from to a fabulous Friday treat
  for all campers!
• Thank you for those of you who are continuing to come to us with updated contact information. It helps to know that we have your correct e-mail so you can receive this newsletter and other important information we may need to send through e-mail.
• Remember carpool starts at 12:45. If you have not exited the preschool door prior to this time we will ask you to walk around to the front entrance. This is for your own safety!
• Camp shirts are worn Friday over their bathing suits!
• Don’t forget to make sure you have a change of clothes for your camper…many campers have used them and need a new supply.

Thank you for sharing your littlest treasures with us at Camp Simchah,
Lisa and Cynthia

Camp Swim Lessons: Session 2 Update

Hello Camp Simchah & Chai Parents,

We are ecstatic to be swimming with your children this session! Session 2 of our swimming program started today with evaluations for new campers. Returning campers will be moving into their new classes today if they moved up a level in session one. This week: new campers will receive an evaluation sheet informing parents of the level in which they have been evaluated. Click here to see all the skill levels. For the next two weeks we will be working on the core skills in each swim level in the Swim Right Method™. Week 3 will culminate with survival testing and certificates for those children that are ready to move to their next level.

For any questions about the curriculum or your child’s swim level please contact Daniel Taylor, Aquatics Director at 214-239-7141.

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Camp Swim Lessons Update

Dear Camp Parents,

Our first session of Camp Swim Lessons for Simchah and Chai ends today and it was a great success. Following is a recap of what to expect moving forward.

If your child has mastered the skills in the level in which they were assigned, today, they will receive a certificate and will move up to the next swim level for the following camp session. If your child doesn’t receive a certificate that means they will remain in the same level they were assigned to during the first week of session one. If you are unaware of your child’s level or need clarification on our requirements for advancing levels, please contact the Aquatics Office at 214-239-7141.

For session two, we will continue working on mastering skills in each level. The third week of session two will culminate in evaluating safety skills and taking survival tests. If you find that your child is struggling or is communicating to you that they are having difficulties of any kind with our lessons,  please let us know so we can help support them in their progress.

Also, please keep in mind that swimming is a skill that takes patience and time. The LKSA program is not geared toward endurance but towards safety and water independence. The goal of the Swim Right Method™ is to build a platform of great swimming by focusing on correct body position and eliminating the risk of injury due to incorrect form.

We want all of our children in camp to advance in a timely manner but please do not be discouraged if they are in the same level for the entire summer. This is not an indication that they are not progressing, it simply means they need time to master the skills required and will only advance when they are truly ready.

In order to continue developing as a swimmer, we encourage all of our campers to continue learning and growing throughout the year.  We offer year-round lessons through the Lenny Krayzelburg Swim Academy working on the same skills from the Swim Right Method™ Curriculum.

Please take advantage of this amazing program, as we offer private and group lessons year round. Therefore, if your child is not continuing in Camp Chai or Simchah past session one,  please call us to set up a free evaluation for the Lenny Krayzelburg Swim Academy, so your child can continue to work on the skills they started in camp. Contact us at anytime, Aquatics Office at 214-239-7141.

Click here to see a full list of all LKSA levels and skills.

For more information about the Swim Right Method™, Lenny Krayzelburg or the LKSA please visit www.jccdallas.org/swim for more details!