4-H Camp: Our First Adventure at Feltner

Hello everyone!  I spent last week in Arizona so I really only have one week of intern experience to report.  June 4 - 7 Morgan County traveled to Feltner 4-H camp for the first time.  Many of the campers were apprehensive about the longer drive and the unfamiliar surroundings.  The layout of Feltner is very different from North Central and took some getting used to.  However, I think that by the end of the week most of the campers came around and enjoyed camp.  Actually, I think that some of the adults had a harder time adjusting than the campers!  Old habits really are hard to break!

During the week at camp I had the responsibility of teaching a class called Camp Spotlight.  This class is very slow paced and laid back, and many of the campers enjoy this difference from the other classes.  Each class divides themselves into small groups and is given a digital camera.  The groups then walk around camp, within certain boundaries, and take pictures of their friends and counselors in the various classes.  The campers love being able to see the other classes in action and friends they don't have class with.  Sometimes they even gain a little popularity because most campers want their picture taken for the slideshow at the end of the week.  After the last class on Thursday I then compiled the majority of the pictures and put them in a slideshow.  After the camp fire on Thursday the campers came back to the amphitheater to watch their friends on the big screen.  North Central did not have a place like this to view the slideshow and I think it made a big difference in the camper's ability to see all the pictures and enjoy a little down time.  Most of the campers said they would take Camp Spotlight again next year. 

Since my class did not require direct supervision at all times, and you can see so much more at one time at Feltner, I was available to help the agents if they needed something as well.  I think it was a very good experience for me to be able to see how agents handled moving to a new camp.  Not only was it our first time at Feltner, but it was the first time for two of the other counties as well.  The weather was great the first two days, but then the rain set in.  It rained off and on pretty much all day Thursday making for some pretty irritated campers with wet feet.  However, we played games in the shelter and were able to have Sally time and camp fire so all was well!  Overall, it was a great week at Feltner and our campers had a blast!