Mentally, physically stimulating activities featured
By:Vanessa S. Holt
BORDENTOWN TOWNSHIP For families that don’t want summer camp to mean being camped out in front of the TV all day, the Summer Playground program means a full month of fun, mentally and physically stimulating activities for local kids.
The Community Education and Recreation (CE/R) Summer Playground program has offered kids a variety of arts, crafts and field trips for close to 30 years, but the program has expanded to encompass school subjects such as science and computers, presented in a fun, approachable atmosphere, said Supervisor Mary Lynn Morino.
Each year, new activities and subjects are added to the program, which is held at the Peter Muschal Elementary School.
For example, this year, a certified science teacher brought different activities to every grade level, from a kindergarten study of plants and a second-grade dinosaur unit to fifth- and sixth-grade studies of chemistry and polymers.
Last Friday, science teacher Jackie de Menezes brought in a pet cockatiel for the students to meet.
She explained to a group of third-graders that birds eat both birdseed and fresh vegetables, and keep their beaks from growing too long by rubbing them on hard objects like wood.
"Pet birds get bored," she said, demonstrating some of the toys that the docile white bird plays with. She explained to students that the birds are very intelligent and need to keep busy and stimulated.
"They need toys so they don’t become ‘screamers’ or chew on their feathers," she told the third-graders.
In another classroom, the kids were making art out of wooden cut-outs, and have worked on projects such as batiking (a process of dyeing fabric) and scratch art.
Instructor Kathy Moscatiello explained the process of making a piece of "scratch art," which begins with a layer of colorful patterns drawn in crayon, beneath a layer of black poster paint.
Artists "draw" through the black layer to reveal the rainbow underneath, turning a drawing of a flower or a boat into a kaleidoscope of color.
In addition to science and the arts, kids have fun with the usual playground activities including kickball, coloring, puzzles and weekly movie trips in addition to "water days."
On water days, children can bring a bathing suit and play outdoor water games to cool off.
"It’s real hot this summer," said Midori Berry, 10, a fourth-grader at Peter Muschal Elementary School, as she played a game where one student holds a plastic bottle on top of his or her head and another tries to pour water into it. "I like getting water dunked on my head."
Jeffrey Longmuir, a fourth-grade student at Clara Barton Elementary School, said he has found his own way to keep cool in the summer.
"I like to jump in my cousin’s pool and hold my breath under the water," he said.
Some of the other things the kids have done this summer are a volleyball game against the staff, a carnival afternoon complete with cotton candy and a dance afternoon.
Cindy Mansour, who was in the program as a child, is now an instructor.
She said the counselors and teachers are very focused on safety now, keeping track of all of the comings and goings at the school.
"We know where all the kids are at all times," said Ms. Mansour.
Out-of-district school teachers, college students, teens and community volunteers act as instructors and counselors in the program.
Mary Lynn Morino and Chris O’Leary supervise the staff of about two dozen.
The monthlong program is offered every year during July as part of the CE/R summer series and sign-ups are held in May