It's been an amazing week at Sitka Fine Arts Camp's Elementary Session. Campers have been immersed in classes taught by professional artists and performers. For this newsletter, we sought out firsthand perspectives from a camper, a parent, a faculty member, and several junior counselors. Sitka Fine Arts Camp pulls people in for a variety of reasons, but one thing that seems to remain consistent is that campers love learning new things, parents see development of new forms of creativity, and faculty and counselors see campers become more and more engaged in learning and creative exploration in a short period of time.

When asked about a favorite camp experience, a camper details an adventure with a diabolo, a juggling prop adapted from the Chinese yo-yo, wherein the sides came unscrewed from the axle, washers and bolts went spinning off in different directions. She tells the story with the kind of urgency that accompanies something truly authentic.

Campers find new skills in Circus Camp [photo by Alethea Busch]

"She's learned new ways to be creative," says the parent. Why did they decide to come to camp this year? The parent states, "my experience as a counselor here in 2003...I wanted my kids to experience Camp."

Michael Eisenstein, actor, fight choreographer, musician, clown, martial artist, and an SFAC theater and Circus Camp instructor, shares his perspective on some of the high points of Elementary Camp:

"It's been amazing to see how, in just four days, a student can go from not wanting to talk at all in class to contributing to a story. Just in four days, they go from being completely quiet, to 'wait, no, I want to be part of this.'"

He continues: "You take a kid who has never told a story on their own before, and now they're contributing with four other kids to create Rapunzel or to retell Goldilocks and the Three Bears. One of the things I was really struck by last year, and that I'm struck by again this year is how much material the kids are able to take on. They're doing four classes in the morning, a lot of them are doing master classes in the afternoon."

From the Junior Counselor perspective, as well, camper development has been marked and inspiring. One states, "I've really noticed an increase in willingness to do the dance classes. All of my kids were really reserved at first, but they have been a lot more willing to participate as the week has progressed." Another counselor states, "a lot of the kids that were nervous at first are really coming out of their shells, and it's really cool to watch them become more outgoing, especially at such a young age."

Campers immersed in Visual Arts [photo by Alethea Busch]

Elementary Camp concludes this week. And as the summer continues, we're thrilled to see the Camp experience continue to change kids lives for the better. Be on the lookout for more perspectives on an SFAC summer in the coming weeks.