Summer brings a huge shift in momentum to my household. My wife Kristin is a high school art teacher who loves her job, but also enjoys the summers off with our two daughters – Jillian (6) and Cora (11 months). Jillian has a voracious appetite for creativity and has the drive of an artist. She simply has to make art or she will implode. There’s no waiting for “inspiration†or anything like that, she just has the need to create.
While in school, kids get on a set schedule. Bedtimes, mornings, school, and after-school times all get wired into their routine and they know what to expect at those appropriate times. While on summer break, our schedule loosens and Jilly gets to stay up later and sleep in a bit more and her daytime activities become less predictable. As a parent concerned with the creativity of my child, I want to make sure that she keeps her creativity sharp.
My wife and I are excited that our oldest daughter is finally old enough to take advantage of the summer camp offerings available in our area. We’ve gotten her signed up for the Community Arts Center’s Arts Exploration Camp (shameless self-promotion) and West T Hill Community Theatre’s Camp Causewelovetoact and I honestly can’t say if she’s more excited about art camp or acting camp, but she is super pumped about both opportunities.
For the younger kids, like our eleven-month old Cora, it’s never too early to break out the sidewalk chalk and let them explore their creative side.
If you have slightly older kids than Cora, 18 months to 4 years, the Community Arts Center offers a new “Munchkin and Me†Camp starting in June that may just be the thing to get your little munchkin primed-and-pumped for a lifetime of creativity. When I was younger, there simply were not enough opportunities like these in our area for the “art kids.†Plenty of athletic opportunities were available, but there simply wasn’t as much of a community focus on the arts as we see going on today. Take advantage of these opportunities to enrich and nurture your child’s inner artist and watch them grow.
