2022 Nature's Engineers Camp: Day 2
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EmailRock Climbing, Dam Building, and lots of Eating!
Nature's Engineers Camp: Day 2
Goats!
We talked about chickens, bunnies, and ducks, but we also have goats here at Tollgate farms, and today our younger campers got to try their hand at goat milking! Through this activity we teach the campers the ways in which we take care of the goats before, after, and while we are milking them. The campers got to give the goats a few nice pats on the head before they left.
Spider-Making
We didn't actually bringing in live spiders, that would scare the photographer off! Instead, the campers took some pipe-cleaners and made some spider rings, other campers got to make tiny spider-hotels, just like the bee-hotels from last week. The campers also got to learn about the ways in spiders help the gardens, including keeping bugs from eating the plants, as well as scaring away other critters.
Pumpkin Spice & Pico de Gallo
You might be wondering if we put the two things in the subtitle together. We did not! A Pumpkin Pie Smoothie was for the morning, and the zingy Pico de Gallo was for the afternoon. Each camper got to chop, add, and mix the ingredients into the final dish before gobbling it up! Each camper gets recipe cards daily for the things they made in Garden Kitchen.
ROCK WALL!
Our nature engineers have a lot of energy, which they needed to complete this activity, which was climbing a rock wall! Campers got harnessed and were able to try their hand at rock-climbing. Those who didn't want to climb, cheered from below. Who doesn't want people cheering them on! What a great way to encourage each other, the campers were even able to help each other while being on the rock wall. Amazing!
Build a Dam
As we are engineers this camp week, our campers learned about dams, which hold water for a variety of different reasons. Our engineers got to make their own tiny versions of a dam, using dirt, water, rocks, and sticks they found. Then they were able to test if it will hold the water on one side of the dam. Our engineers are so great at building things!
Biomimicry
Biomimicry is the way people use nature to solve problems, such as how the pointed beak of a Japanese bullet train mimics a bird's beak to prevent it from causing a sonic boom after leaving a tunnel, or how some buildings use inspiration from flowers of plants to make buildings more stable. Campers go to come up with ideas for biomimicry to potentially make and use in the future!
Hurricane Houses
From thinking about to finally making, our campers got to work making their Hurricane houses out of cardboard, tape, glue, and many more items that they think will help stop the structure from falling down in a tropical storm. Unfortunately the only rule is it has to be as small as a shoebox!
Check out the other pictures in our album here!
