Enroll Now for Scarsdale Rec Camp
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Spring may be suffering from a slow start, but summer is just around the corner. Early registration for Scarsdale town recreational camp began this week. Serving approximately 900 campers, the Recreation Department offers a summer program for Scarsdale children entering grades Kindergarten through Eighth Grade. Director Jim Andreski, a teacher at Scarsdale Middle School, runs the program with four returning Assistant Directors. The program is divided into four different camps by age:
- Camp Sagamore for campers entering Kindergarten housed at Greenacres School
- Camp Lenape for First Graders at Edgewood
- Camp Wapetuck for Second Graders at Quaker Ridge
- Camp Patthunke for Third-Eighth graders housed at the High School.
Suzanne Busby, Superintendent of Scarsdale’s recreation and parks department says that typically Sagamore and Lenape have the largest enrollments.
Older kids have the option of doing a combination package where they attend morning sports or soccer camp and then Camp Patthunke in the afternoon. Those campers also have the opportunity to register for one specialty elective that meets once a week for an additional fee. In the past, those electives have included horseback riding and golf.
The kids go to the pool once a day and take part in all the best things about camp from sports to arts and crafts to talent shows and the occasional day trip. They do this all close to home and with current and future classmates. Ideally, the friendships formed at camp will last throughout the school year.
Parents, get to enjoy the amazing value the camp offers. For those who register before May 6, camp costs $805 for the full summer, $955 when you register after that date. There are weekly options should you not need to the full five weeks. Transportation is also available for those who want it for an additional cost.
One thing that is new this year that Busby wants parents to be aware of is an enrollment deadline. A camper must be registered before June 17th to guarantee a full summer. Any registration received after that date is not guaranteed and the camper will have to wait until the second week of camp to begin. Busby explains that this new policy will ensure that the camp is properly staffed to keep the counselor to camper ratios at optimal levels.
Indeed, the weak in the economy over the past few years lead to a rise in rec camp enrollments.
“Two years ago when the economy was really at it’s worst we did see camp enrollment rise as well as at the teen camp,” Busby recalls. And while they didn’t track retention rate numbers for the campers, surveys the department conducted showed families in town gave the camp high marks.
The economy may be improving, but in many cases, the job market remains soft. That means the camp has their pick for counselors, which as Suzanne Busby tells it, can make for some hard choices;
“We hire up to 500 people for the summer, which is a lot. But what we are seeing is that a lot of college kids aren’t getting the jobs or the internships in the city that they once were. So they are applying for jobs with us. We’ve been able to hire then older counselors for the camp, which at times can make for difficult choices since there are so many good applicants.”
The town wants the residents to know that value does not mean compromised safety. The staff members have years of experience with children and each counselor is over the age of 16 and interviewed personally by the camp director. The entire camp staff has a 2-day orientation, with certain counselors trained in CPR, First Aid and EpiPen. A certified EMT is on staff at each camp.
Speaking of the value, some parents may think that there is a catch since the cost is so low. Not really. The town camp has use of the school facilities whereas private day camps have to run their own, which cuts down on costs. The use of the town pool also keeps costs low. The town camp purpose is to provide a service for its residents, not to make a profit. One catch, campers must bring a lunch from home each day.
New this summer: A family no longer has to belong to the pool for their child to attend the camp and enjoy swimming there.
One additional option for students entering sixth through ninth grade: A teen travel camp for those who want to get off the fields and experience something different each day. The excursions include trips to water-parks, ball games and tours in the city. Suzanne Busby says registration is nearly full, so if you are interested jump in. It’s on a first come, first serve basis.
Now all we need is some warm weather.
To learn more, look for the link to Parent Guide or sign up online here.
Jen is a freelance journalist who has covered the economy and markets for over a decade at a major financial news outlet. She lives in Scarsdale with her husband and 2 children. Jen has yet to bake a successful batch of cookies.
Young Writers Share Stories at March 26 Workshop
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Where do writers look for inspiration to create their stories, and what are the elements of a great story? These are just a few of the questions that an enthusiastic group of 440 third, fourth and fifth graders examined at the Young Writers' Workshop on Saturday March 26th. Every seat in the Scarsdale Middle School auditorium was filled for the opening of this optional event; a sign of the strength of the commitment to the written word.
The morning opened with a keynote address from Gail Carson Levine , author of Ella Enchanted, a Newbery Honor Book. She involved the young writers in an exploration of the creative process and someone managed to engage an overflowing audience of kids ages nine to eleven.
From there, each child attended two workshops previously selected from a list of 45 offerings. Topics ranged from investigative reporting, mystery writing and journal writing to fashion writing, covering breaking news and writing for television.
The staff of instructors was impressive, and the workshop brought together not only writers, but actors, comedians,
Suzan Colon, author of Cherries in Winter: My Family’s Recipe for Hope in Hard Times taught a class on writing memoirs. Her most recent book tells the story of how her grandmother’s recipes helped the family to endure the depression.
Bookmaker Karen Reetz has her own bookbinding studio and led the group through the art of making a book.
A group from the new Picture House in Pelham was on hand to help students learn to be film critics and to translate
Drama teacher, writer and actor Erika Radin chaired a session on creating great characters. Students were charged with creating a memorable character and then writing a monologue to perform. Her cabaret, “Mom’s the Word” will
Digital innovator Gail Horwood taught a class called App Happy, analyzing was some Apps are just good and others are amazing. Then the group learned how to create their own App.
Writer Yishane Lee taught “The Art of the Interview.” Lee regularly interviews chefs, Broadway stars and Olympic athletes and worked with the students on how to ask the right questions.
In addition to the talented staff, 120 parent volunteers and 27 student volunteers helped to make the day run like clockwork. Congratulations to Leesa Suzman and her team on an extraordinary event.
Ballroom Dancing at Heathcote Elementary
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The fifth graders at Heathcote participated in Dancing Classrooms, a project of the American Ballroom Theater Company, Inc. Over a 10-week period, the students learned six social dances (foxtrot, merengue, rumba, tango, swing and waltz.) The program also aims to build social awareness, confidence and self-esteem. The ballroom dancing program was funded by the Heathcote PTA. – Text courtesy of Fifth Grade Teacher Lisa Onofri and picture from Jon Thaler. See more photos at JonThaler.com .
Students Raise Funds for Japan
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On March 23, Edgemont High School’s Cultural Exchange Club hosted a bake sale to raise money to donate to the survivors of Japan’s recent disaster. Volunteer bakers provided about three hundred rice-balls (onigri), batches of brownies, cookies and other goods for sale. Students and faculty members crowded around the club’s bake sale, eager to make purchases. Every item was sold for just a dollar, and the club raised a grand total of about $730.
Edgemont Senior Kozue Iwasaki, who was the inspiration behind the bake sale, had the idea to form a fundraiser: “Many of my friends who are living in Japan right now have been updating their Facebook statuses, saying that they have no electricity in certain areas and are lacking simple things such as toilet paper. Even though my friends live in Tokyo where they weren’t as drastically affected by the disaster, they still experienced much of the same as those who are in Sendai.”
It seems like the citizens of every city in Japan got affected in some way or the other by the earthquake or tsunami. “My aunt was stuck in 
a car for thirteen hours on the roads because of the earthquake,” said Kozue about her family members experiencing the earthquake. Ally Martin, a junior who is part of the club added that, “[her] friends who live in Kawasaki, which is close to Tokyo, were trapped in their school for three days straight. They couldn’t reply to my emails and I went to school worried each day thinking that something had happened to them.”
Ally has already made a contribution to help Japan: “I’ve donated three hundred dollars to the Red Cross already with my family and I’m probably going to raise more for charities. The amount of money we made today was a lot more than I think anyone expected. People were extremely generous towards making donations. Some students just donated money without even taking any of the pastries.” In addition to the club’s efforts, community members are supporting Japan in many ways. The eighth graders at Edgemont are holding a coin collection soon while the Edgemont-Aid, Builder’s Club and the student body is planning on holding fundraisers as well. All of the proceeds made by the bake sale are going to be donated to an organization called the Japan Society which will help provide necessities for those suffering from the aftermath of the disaster.
Submitted by Tiffany Jiang
Tiffany Jiang is a freshmen at Edgemont Jr./Sr. High School and a photographer for the school's newsletter. She is interested in writing, photography and multimedia.
Quaker Ridge First Graders Take Initiative
It all started during recess. A group of Quaker Ridge first grade girls were discussing the horrible disaster in Japan—the visual images, the plight of the people, and the tremendous devastation and destruction. The girls decided that they had to get involved. They would create their own charity.
The first grade girls are Samantha Friedland, Juliette Silk, Julia Schnipper, Chloe Wise, Julia Raskin and Nicole Cohn. By the end of recess, they had a name, logo, plan, and of course… a handshake. They were “Friends For Change”. They took the logo to one of the mothers who designs clothes and created t-shirts.
“Friends For Change” had its first event on Friday, March 18. The group created posters, baked cookies, popped popcorn and made 
lemonade. They raised $442 at that event alone and to date have raised $1,200! The Girl Scout Organization heard about their efforts, endorsed the group, and pledged assistance as well. More events have been discussed. All proceeds are going directly to the relief effort in Japan. Congratulations to these little kids with big ideas!
Who said that recess was all play?
Submitted by Rhonda Schnipper
Fourth Graders Save Endangered Species
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Right now, the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) conservationists are working on the ground, across four continents and five oceans, to save some of earth's most spectacular and imperiled wildlife. From Thailand’s tiger territory to the nesting beaches of leatherback turtles in Gabon, and from the steamy South American jungles of the jaguar to the elephants and gorillas of the African forests, WCS is making groundbreaking discoveries and crucial progress against great odds.
In order to continue the important work of saving the wild animals and wild places, Greenacres 4th grade students in Mrs. McDermott’s and Mrs. Cooper’s classes embarked on an endangered species project to help. Specifically, each fourth grade student selected an endangered animal to study and then conducted research.
From their learnings, keynote presentations were developed about the animals. As part of the project, the eager students created pins, magnets, bookmarks and many more items to sell. All of the students’ parents attended the presentations and bought the handcrafted items. Close to $700 was collected from the sale of these items and donated to the Wildlife Conservation Society.
The students learned so much about these adorable animals and had a wonderful experience. Mrs. Cooper 
started this program nine years ago at Greenacres and it is our hope that the tradition will continue for many years to come.
If you would like to make a donation to the endangered species, please use the address below:
Wildlife Conservation Society
Attn: Donation Services
2300 Southern Blvd.
Bronx, NY 10460
