A Parent’s Guide to Junior Adventure Camp

1 Dear Parents/Guardians,

Welcome to York Parks & Recreation Department’s Junior Adventure Camp (JAC)! We are so pleased that you have chosen this program for your family. JAC provides children with the opportunity to engage in fun activities, while forming new friendships with other children and a positive relationship with our counselors. Here at Junior Adventure Camp, we encourage all campers to participate in activities and experiences that strive to benefit them emotionally, physically and socially. This parents’ handbook was written to help you better understand our program and policies. Whether this is your child’s first or third year with us, we ask that you read and thoroughly understand this handbook. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to email our directors at [email protected]. We hope that you understand and appreciate our policies, as they directly relate to the safety and well-being of your child, which is of the utmost importance to us. We look forward to your cooperation in helping us provide a pleasant and safe JAC experience for your child(ren)!

Sincerely,

Anna Schindler and Miriam Stevens JAC Directors

2 Welcome to Junior Adventure Camp!

Community Motto Be kind to one another for a fun and safe summer!

Community Pledge

• I will use polite language when talking with others.

• I will keep my hands and feet to myself.

• I will follow directions given to me by a counselor the first time asked.

• I will stay with my group unless asked by a counselor to do differently.

3 Important Contact Information Junior Adventure Camp Hours Phone: (207) 363-1040 Monday-Friday 7:30am-5:30pm Email: [email protected] Robin Cogger (Assistant Director): York Parks & Rec. Dept. Hours [email protected] Monday-Friday 8:30am-4:30pm

CAMP INFORMATION • Junior Adventure Camp is located at: Village Elementary School: 124 York Street York, • JAC is for ages 3 1/2 - 8 years old. • JAC is peanut/tree-nut free.

CAMP PAYMENTS There is an enrollment fee of $35.00 per family. Resident fees: $105 per week or $30 per day. Non-resident fees: $110 per week or $35 per day. ***Field Trip costs are additional - we try to keep them at a reasonable rate each week.

NOTICES Emails will be sent weekly to inform parents/guardians of upcoming field trips. We ask that you check your email often, as this is our main form of communication with you.

STAFF • Miriam Stevens: Miriam is thrilled to be returning to co-direct JAC with Anna this summer after some years away. She was a counselor and director at JAC in the summers of 2007-2010. Miriam graduated from York High School in 2006, earned her B.A. in psychology & education from Mount Holyoke College in 2010, and has just completed a master’s degree in clinical social work from Smith College.

4 • Anna Schindler: This will be Anna’s fourth year working at JAC, and second year as director. She is currently a sophomore at The University of Southern Maine in Portland studying Social Work. • Kayla Dunn: Kayla has recently graduated from York High School and will be attending Flagler College in the Fall hoping to double major in Art Education and Business. This is Kayla’s second summer with JAC. • Kendall Carr: This will be Kendall's second year at JAC as a camp counselor. She is a rising sophomore at Wesleyan University where she is fulfilling her Pre-Med requirements while majoring in Psychology. She is a two-sport athlete for the Wesleyan Cardinals as a member of both the Women's and teams. • Ashlea Gerbino: This will be Ashlea’s second year as a camp counselor at JAC, and she is very excited for another great summer. She is currently a junior at Thomas College and is a double major in Elementary Education and Psychology. She plans to continue with Thomas College for an additional year to receive her Master’s degree in Education. • Laura Cannata: Laura recently graduated from the University of Rhode Island earning a B.S. in Communicative Disorders. This will be her first summer working at JAC. • Daniel Cannata: This will be Daniel’s first year working at JAC. He is currently a junior at The University of Maine in Orono studying Psychology. • Reid Hogan: This is Reid’s first year at JAC. He is going to be a senior at York High School. Reid enjoys sports and is very excited to be joining our team this summer! • Elizabeth Spiller: This will be Elizabeth’s first year working at JAC. She just graduated from York High School and will be starting at the University of Maine in the fall, where she will be studying Elementary Education. • Matt Arsenault: Matt has been both working and volunteering with the Rec. Department the past 3 years. This is his first summer at JAC, and he’s beyond ecstatic! He has just graduated York High School and will be attending Lesley University to study Special Education and English in the fall.

5 • Madigan Cogger: This will be Madigan’s first year at JAC. She will be a senior at York High School, and is in the process of deciding where she wants to attend college, with the hope of studying interior/graphic design. She loves to be active, especially with sports. She was a member of this year’s state championship teams for both and spring track. Madigan’s favorite things to do in the summer are going to the beach, or having fun at her lake house! • Ben Cruz: This will be Ben’s second year at JAC. He is going to be a freshman in an accelerated masters program for expressive art therapy. He will be going to Prescott college in Prescott AZ for that. Ben loves art and long boarding • Libby Ware: This will be Libby's first year working at JAC as a junior camp counselor. She is currently attending Saint Thomas Aquinas High school and will be a Sophomore. • Katie Donovan: This is Katie’s first year at JAC working as a junior counselor. Katie will be a sophomore at York High School. She loves playing sports and being around others!

CAMP SCHEDULE • Drop off time is between 7:30-9:00am. We ask that you please try to drop your child off no later than this, as it can sometimes interfere with our field trip schedule, etc. If your child has previous commitments (i.e. doctor’s appointments, different camps, etc.) please let the directors know, and we will try our best to work our schedule around this. • Pick up time is between 4:30-5:30pm. We ask that you respect our closing time of 5:30pm, and if for some reason you may be later, please contact the directors. If you would like to pick your child up earlier, please let one of the director’s know, as we may be on a field trip until as late as 4pm.

PREPARING FOR CAMP We try to be outside as much as possible, so we ask that campers have the proper attire for outside play, a water bottle for staying hydrated,

6 and that you apply sunscreen before dropping your child off at camp each day. We will re-apply sunscreen throughout the day, so please send your child to camp with their own bottle of sunscreen. Since we have access to a slip n’ slide and sprinkler system, we highly recommend that children bring their bathing suit every day. Each day we have a morning snack, lunch and an afternoon snack, so please pack a lunch and two snacks for your child. When packing your child’s food for the day, please keep in mind that JAC is peanut/tree-nut free.

We recommend each child be sent to camp every day with a backpack containing the following: • lunch • 2 snacks • water bottle(s) • change of clothes • bathing suit • towel • sneakers • sunscreen • bug spray • a book

FIELD TRIPS • All field trips will be announced in advance using our email system. • Trips are subject to change based on weather or other unforeseen circumstances. • Field trip fees are NOT included in weekly fees. We try and keep the additional fee at a reasonable rate for all families. • There is a limit to the number of campers we can take on field trips. Since field trips fill up fast, please be sure to register your camper promptly. **Please note that payment must be received at the time of registration in order for a spot to be reserved for your child.

7 • On field trip days, every camper in attendance must participate in the trip. We cannot leave campers and staff behind. Our staff to camper ratios are based on full participation. • Departure: Be sure to check the departure time on the weekly schedule so you arrive at camp before the bus leaves. • Return Time: For all field trips, we will return to camp no later than 4:00pm. **All field trips require our staff and campers to wear their designated field trip shirt. This shirt will have the York Parks and Recreation logo easily readable, which will help counselors identify campers in busy places. The cost of this shirt is included in your fees, and will be given to your camper on their first day of camp.**

BEACH DAYS We will head to Harbor Beach in York, ME every Wednesday (weather permitting). We typically leave for the beach around 9:30am, and stay there for lunch. As we do everyday, we ask you to have your child sun- screened BEFORE coming to camp. We will re-apply throughout the day, so please have your child bring their own bottle.

WATER SAFETY Our campers’ safety is our top priority. When we are at the beach, we station multiple counselors in the water and at the water’s edge in order to supervise swimming campers from multiple vantage points. Counselors in the water will enforce our camp rule that campers go no deeper than their belly button.

8 FOOD We ask that you pack your child with a lunch, TWO snacks, and plenty of water. We have a morning snack at 9:30am and an afternoon snack at 3:30pm. Please keep in mind we are a peanut/tree-nut free camp!!

TOYS AND ELECTRONICS Please check with the staff before bringing any toys, game devices, collectable cards, iPods, etc. to camp. We may offer special times for these items, but in the past they have become points for problems. JAC is not responsible for lost or stolen items

BEHAVIOR All children are expected to behave in a proper and respectful manner. We will not tolerate any hitting, name calling, foul language, destruction of property, or any other behavior deemed inappropriate by the staff. In accordance with the severity and frequency of the behavior, the Parks & Recreation Department reserves the right to dismiss any child from the program.

ILLNESS/INJURY Over half of our counselors and directors are CPR/First Aid Certified. If a child becomes ill or injured while in our care, the camp directors, Miriam and Anna, will first attempt to contact the Parent(s)/Guardian(s). If we cannot reach the Parent(s)/Guardian(s), we will begin contacting the camper’s Emergency Contacts. In the unlikely event that your child requires immediate medical attention, we will transport your child to the nearest hospital.

**SIGN-IN AND SIGN-OUT PROCEDURES** Upon arrival each day, each camper MUST be signed in at the director’s table by their Parent/Guardian. The person dropping them off must

9 accompany campers to the check-in area. At the end of the day, Parents/Guardians MUST sign their camper(s) out at the director’s table. If a camper is going to be picked up by someone other than their parent/guardian, the directors must have a signed note from the parent/guardian prior to pick-up time, including the intended person’s name. Director’s will also require they bring proper identification (driver’s license, etc.). Your child will not be allowed to leave JAC with anyone other than a parent/guardian, without prior permission.

LOST AND FOUND There will be a lost and found area located near the director’s table. All items in the lost and found will be kept until the last day of camp (August 26th, 2016). At this time, all items will be donated to a local charitable organization.

MAKERSPACE We are hoping to have a “MakerSpace” at camp, modeled after the Creation Station at Village Elementary School, where campers can use their imagination to make everyday objects into something new. We are always looking for any supplies that you might be throwing away such as paper towel or toilet paper rolls, clean milk bottle caps or yogurt containers, shoe boxes, straws, etc.

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