Summer Camp 2019
A week of fantastic outdoor adventures for kids in Taiwan ...
On this summer camp we created a series of adventures for children age 6-13 and they got to experience many things they've never tried
Some of these challenges were scary firsts but with a bit of courage every participant gave each activity a go and as a result will have the confidence to take on even bigger and scarier things next time! The experiences on this summer camp were designed to develop leadership, teamwork, communication and creativity skills. It was awesome for us coaches to see quite how much the kids confidence improved during the trips.
Nature is a constant source of inspiration, learning to appreciate it at a young age offers kids a fountain of positivity, for life...
For this summer camp we had one of Taiwan’s most colourful endemic species the Taiwan Barbet (五色鳥) incorporated into the Imagine logo and follow us around courtesy of artist Allice Tamms. This charming little bird is easily identifiable by the 5 distinct coloured feathers and is certainly one of Taiwan’s many wonders. We want the adventurers on our camps to develop their observation skills and immerse themselves in the nature around them.
With so many biodiverse patches of subtropical jungle scattered about it, Taipei is a fantastic place to go for a forest bathing walk and soak in the sites and sounds of nature.
On of the nature walks we chose one of the many biodiverse patches of forest around the city to set out our Jumanji trail challenge. An additional objective was to try and spot the vibrant blue tailed lizard (石龍子) while walking the trail, in the end we spotted over 20!
After all, there are literally as many ideas as organisms ~ Janine Benyus of The Biomimicry Institute
The Civilisation Game & Raft Building
This original Imagine creation is where kids have the freedom to explore the forest and use their creativity to form their own civilisations.With resources split unevenly among the teams its up to each group to decide how to organise themselves, interact with the other civilisations and what they would like to construct. The coaches enable the groups by offering new ideas and sharing different techniques for construction. On this camp we had 3 different civilisations competing and collaborating in the forest together and the resulting constructions were quite impressive. One group decided to build a zen stone pond with a live stream of water feeding it through a bamboo channel. At the end of the day each group is tasked with starting their own fires to toast some marshmallows.
Raft building seamed to be a real favourite of the kids joining this camp. After learning an important lashing technique to bind the bamboo the challenge is to use the raft to cross the river.
Highwires, Zip lines, River tracing, Kayacking & Sailing
This summer camp was inspired by the idea of offering children in Taiwan new experiences. It is designed to be an opportunity to break out of comfort zones and give participants the confidence to try new things. One formative experience in a child’s life could pave the way for many more opportunities in their future.
Courage is not the lack of fear. It is acting in spite of it ~ Mark Twain
River tracing and the highwires offered situations for kids to overcome their fears. On one section of the river we traced there was the choice to jump into a section of rapids. After overcoming the idea of jumping into a fast torrent of water many kids wanted to come back for round two. The same for the zip line, after the initial hesitancy the obstacles became a source of fun. Now they’ve experienced this conversion of fear to fun once I’m sure a lot of the adventurers on this camp will carry that attitude with them and apply it to other challenges.
We were excited to add sailing to the collection of experiences this summer. This was a real crash course in sailing, and after a brief intro of sailing fundamentals, every kid had the opportunity to take the helm and have a go at driving the boat. You can expect to see plenty more opportunities for sailing with imagine!
What’s in store for our next adventure? We havent shared our plans for autumn camp yet but we can say it will involve an overnight camp and some tree climbing. Check back here soon to find out more….
