Dandelion
Fall/ Winter/ Spring CampS
Camp Overview
We believe young people need more time, space, resources, and support to explore their interests and passions and build meaningful connections. Dandelion Camps provide these kinds of experiences. After two very successful Summer Camps, we have expanded camp opportunities to Fall, Winter, and Spring breaks. Kids from local elementary schools as well as homeschools are invited!
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Rooted in care for ourselves, each other, and our environment, we focus on community building, creativity, and curiosity. Each day, we invite young people in fun experiences, activities, and trips around our South Philly neighborhood. Join us!
Spring Camp
Monday, March 25, 2024 thru Friday, March 29, 2024
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Who is camp for? Young people age 5-12 years old
When? March 25th-29th
Drop off: 9:00am
Pick Up: 3:00pm
Where? MWF: 1415 Sth 9th Street (corner of 9th and Reed) Philadelphia, PA 19147
TTh: 1500 Pattison Avenue &, S Broad St Philadelphia, PA 19145
Program overview:
We are thrilled to offer Philadelphia families an exciting week of Spring Camp that centers experiential learning and play! We will divide the camp week across two locations! On Monday/Wednesday/Friday we will gather iIn our beautiful building space where young people will have the opportunity to participate in cooking offerings, crafts, games, science experiments, and sensory play. We will also explore the South Philadelphia neighborhood, with trips to nearby playgrounds, the Italian market, and more. On Tuesday and Thursday, we will meet in FDR park to explore 342 acres of park land in our city. In FDR, we will spend our time in large collaborative games, building with natural materials, cooking over a fire, and youth led exploration and experiences. At the Dandelion Project we have a deep respect for young people, which means that young people are empowered to make decisions about how they spend their time throughout the day!
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Tuition:
Spring camp is offered at a per week rate. We ask that families who have more access to wealth offer higher tuition so our sliding scale can go even lower, making it accessible to more Philadelphia families.
Sliding Scale Tuition: $275.00/week-$425.00/week
Registration:
Families will complete the Spring Camp Registration Form to provide background information about their family as well as offer a tuition amount that feels right. The Dandelion Project will be in touch with enrollment forms and a spring camp invoice. Once we receive these items, registration will be confirmed.
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CAMP Daily Rhythm:
9:00-9:15AM Student Drop Off
9:30AM Set the Day + Intentions
9:45-12:00PM Whole Group Offerings
12PM Call for Lunch (though kids can eat anytime they are hungry!)
12:30-2:30PM Self-Directed Activities
2:30-2:45PM Community Clean Up
2:45PM Afternoon Reflections + Gratitudes
3PM Parent Pick Up
3-6PM Aftercare may be possible if enough folks need it!
Camp offerings:
We love creating meaningful and exciting experiences for young people in our care. For each camp, our facilitators will design a number facilitated and self-directed offerings, so young people have the opportunity to explore new things while also being empowered to lead and direct their experience while with us.
The below descriptions are meant to give families an idea of what kinds of offerings our camps will host. Our ideas and offerings are subject to change.
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Whole Group Offerings:
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Bead Baking: Young people will have access to different bread making ingredients and recipes and make a bread of their choosing. Young people can offer a piece of their bread for a later Bread Taste Test later in the day. In this offering, we can explore how people experience taste differently and not “yucking people’s yums.” Whenever we do a baking project that has leftovers, we take them to the Community Fridge located at Bok Building.
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Soap Making: With the support of a facilitator, young people will participate in each step of making their own bar of soap using local ingredients and natural essential oils.
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Cyanotypes: Using the light of the sun to capture an image through a special chemical reaction, young people can gather interesting materials to make their own prints.
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Microscope Exploration: Young people will learn how to use a microscope to look at things up close and draw what they see. Young people can view prepared slides and find objects and materials they'd like to look at up close.
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Community Games: Young people and facilitators will come together to participate in large, gross motor games such as dodgeball, capture the flag, obstacle course building, etc. In these games, we’ll intentionally prioritize skill building in the areas of communication, teamwork, and understanding consent/non-consent.
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Recycled Material Sculpture Design and Building: Using supplies gathered from recycling bins, young people will design their own upcycled sculptures and use a variety of materials for adhesion. Young people may have the opportunity to paint and decorate their creations.
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Neighborhood Walks + Visits to the Playground: We are centrally located to a number of playgrounds in South Philly, including Capitolo, Gold Star, and Columbus Square. We are also located near to a number of murals, Percy Art Street, and the Italian Market.
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Self-Directed Activities:
Young people will have ongoing access to books, puzzles, sensory bin materials, dramatic play clothing and props, microscopes and magnifying glasses, paper and art supplies, maker space supplies, etc. Facilitators will support young people in connecting to supplies.
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COVID POLICY
Our programs are currently mask optional. Upon enrollment, we will send you our updated COVID-19 policy that outlines our practices and the agreements we ask participants to commit to based on current conditions and information.
Application Process
Families will complete the Camp Application Form to provide background information about their family and a tuition offer. The Dandelion Project will be in touch once we have enough applications, and we'll send a camp invoice. Once we receive these items back, registration will be confirmed. To be transparent: we need a minimum of 10 young people registered in order to run days of camp.
Cancellation
We are committed to balancing our need to fully compensate our staff for their committed time with our desire to refund families who need to cancel registration. To cancel registration for a refund, we kindly ask for 30 days notice. If you need to cancel within a shorter timeframe, we will do whatever we can to fill the camper's spot, which will allow us to refund your money, but we cannot guarantee it. If we fill your camper's spot at a different rate on our sliding tuition scale, we can offer a refund up to the diffence. All refunds will be less any processing fees.