Farm Visits and Nature Play

One of the Young Naturalists' favorite parts of the day is outdoor playtime, an unstructured recess-style time after lunch. During this time, counselors step back from teaching and campers have a chance to just be outside in whatever way they choose. Some find worms to feed to Speedy the box turtle. Some take it upon themselves to organize a game such as "Ghosts in the Garden". Some collect sticks or seeds or other treasures. And some just wander around in nature. This is one of the most important parts of camp and reflects one of the Hitchcock Center's most fervent missions: to give kids time to just play in nature. We believe that free playtime in nature is crucial to the healthy growth of children in mind, body and spirit. Counselors supervise but do not interfere as campers are left to their own imaginations in the great outdoors every day.


The Nature Explorers have been busy visiting two different farms. On Thursday, Farmer Hans of Bramble Hill Farm gave us a tour of the farm he manages and campers lent a hand while sampling some yummy vegetables. Friday they journeyed to Many Hands Farm, a new farm in Amherst for a tour and to dig in the soil. Farmer Ryan had prepared a HUGE hole in the ground so campers could see the different layers of soil, take temperatures, and even go inside! Ryan lowered kids into the hole to feel the difference of temperature for themselves (it was much cooler than the topsoil!). After a tour of the farmland and crops (and some sampling of green beans and lemon cucumbers!) campers took out their tools and did some digging of their own. By the end of the day they had taken data from three different habitats, so they shared their observations in a discussion at the end of the day.

Guess How Many...

...flower species the Explorers found on their flower walk yesterday? Campers spent the morning walking - no, running - around the Larch Hill conservation area and adjacent Bramble Hill farmland, counting as many flowers as they possibly could. No one could believe their final tally: ninety five! In the afternoon they dissected flowers they found around our gardens, arranging the flower parts on bookmarks using contact paper. Campers used flower part identification sheets to help them identify the parts of their own flower. One found that pollen makes a good ink for writing!
Meanwhile, the Young Naturalists have had a busy couple of days learning about the layers of soil and picking blueberries. On Tuesday, campers got into groups equipped with trowels, buckets, sifting screens and thermometers. First they visited a meadow habitat, digging holes, taking soil temperatures and observing the different layers of soil. Campers sifted out the different layers of soil, feeling the textures and seeing the colors. Then they trekked up to shady Larch Hill, where they dug more holes and compared the soil of a forest to the soil of a meadow. Most campers agreed that the forest soil was cooler in temperature and richer in organic material. In the photos, campers show off their "edible soil" and solar print art.

Soil, Seeds and Sun

Session 2 is underway and campers are gearing up for another hot day here at the Hitchcock Center. This morning the Explorers are off to go raspberry picking and the Young Naturalists are investigating the components and layers of soil out on our trails.

Yesterday, the Explorers spent their first day at camp getting to know the plants of our trails. In the photo, campers explore the orange ink of yellow celandine, aka "marker plant", which can "write" on skin! In the afternoon, campers watch the solar balloon lift off the ground with the help of the sun.

Ponding and Raspberry Picking

The air-conditioners were buzzing at the Hitchcock Center yesterday to offer campers and staff refuge from the searing 90-degree weather. Campers took lots of breaks to cool off with sips of water and rest. The Explorers were hard at work all afternoon painting their papier-mache animal creations, all of which are masterpieces dreamed up by the campers, complete with wacky adaptations that help the animals survive in their habitats. In the morning the Explorers journeyed to the irrigation pond at the farm next door to discover the pond critters that live there, shown above. In the other photo campers enjoy shady tire swing time in the woods.

The lucky Young Naturalists went berry picking yesterday as part of the theme: Where Does Our Food Come From? Campers got a chance to see a common meal ingredient growing in plant form: raspberries! It is the beginning of raspberry season and campers came back with delicious ripe fruit from Nourse Farms. Yum! While one group picked berries, the other went on a Dinner Plate Scavenger Hunt next door to scope out what common foods look like in their plant form.

Parents, don't forget: Family Share is at 2:30pm on Friday afternoon. Please come and see what your camper has been up to this session. Also, please fill out an evaluation so we can make camp even better next year.

4th of July Hike

What a beautiful day for a hike! The Young Naturalists trekked to Skinner State Park this morning for a hike up Mount Holyoke. What a view! Today's theme was The Watershed We Live In, and campers got to see the Connecticut River watershed from up high. This afternoon they had more fun with water, damming up a small stream on our trails and later, painting with watercolors. Happy 4th of July!

All Kinds of Homes

Friday's theme of the day for the Explorers was All Kinds of Homes. Campers visited the bike trail at Station Road in Amherst, a great example of a swamp habitat. Equipped with binoculars, campers observed the different plants, birds and insects that call the swamp home. There lots of beaver evidence: lodges, dams, and many trees with metal cages protecting their trunks from being chewed down by beavers. It was a good chance to see beaver habitat and build on the things they learned Wednesday about the special adaptations beavers have for living in ponds. The cavities in the dead trees of the swamp also provide excellent homes for many birds, such as tree swallows and wood ducks. Red-winged blackbirds make their nests among the cattails and reeds in shallow water.

Happy Bird Day!

The theme of the day on Thursday was Birds of Prey for the Young Naturalists. Campers discussed birds and their adaptations and went for a morning bird walk, and the craft of the day was making bird nests! In the afternoon had a visit from Katie the camp director, whose favorite animal is birds. Katie showed campers some of the bird mounts we have here at the Hitchcock Center and pointed out the sharp beaks, strong talons and forward-facing eyes that all birds of prey, or raptors have in common. There was a lot of interest in the process of taxidermy! Then everyone stood up and flapped their "wings" like the different kinds of daytime raptors: buteos, accipters, and falcons. This may sound very sophisticated for young ones, but afterward, the counselors sent silhouettes of these birds "flying" over the campers' heads and many identified them correctly!

For the Explorers, the theme of the day was NOT birds, but birds managed to squeeze their way in anyway! It was a perfect teaching opportunity when on the walk to the natural history museum at Amherst College, campers came upon a red-tailed hawk perched on the train tracks! It did not fly away as campers got a closer look. It soon became apparent that it was a young red-tail still dependent on its mother, who visited to give it food. Awesome!
In these photos, campers enjoy the Beneski Natural History Museum at Amherst College., posing in front of rocks and minerals, and comparing human feet to dinosaur feet!