Category: Uncategorized

Greetings and love to my Shibley family.  I write to you today from the comforts of my home, specifically my dining room which is now my make-shift office.  As I glance out my window I see the gardeners starting their spring clean-up and my heart and spirits are lifted as I know Summer is coming.  And for those of you who know me, Shibley Camp is my happy place.

I have my Shibley special events calendar to my right and the yummy menu to my left.  I have binders filled with group schedules to check over and a pile of resumes to go through.  And while I love in-person face-to-face interviews in the Shibley Winter Mansion followed by a great tour of the grounds, I am practicing social distancing and having wonderful conversations with potential staff through Facetime, Google Duo and Zoom. Never in my wildest dreams would I have envisioned myself juggling 2020 technology and digital platforms, but then again never could I have imagined what’s going on around us either.  Usually, when I’m in the office I will give a nod to Heath or Danny to set me up, but these days I am doing it on my own and feeling quite proud of myself. Haha….. full steam ahead as we hire great staff who are equally as excited for Day 1 of camp to arrive.

Through the turmoil and uncertainty come hidden gifts and treasures.  All of us have been given the gift of time, which hopefully we shall use wisely. Think about our normal daily routines and how we take them for granted, and let’s face the new with a smile. Let your creative inner spirit blossom.  How many of us in our hectic busy daily routines dream about what we would do if we had a free day.  I have been spending oodles of time facetiming with family from all over the country and reconnecting.  Long walks with my husband around the neighborhood have been joyful.  I even cleaned a few closets and put pictures in photo albums-YES!!!!!!  PHOTO ALBUMS!!!!!

My favorite part of the day is facetiming with our Grandson, Brody, now 18 months old.  My son or daughter in law, who are also working from home, hold the phone and we watch him go.  We sing together, recite nursery rhymes, read books, play with puzzles and just gush over every move and sound he makes.  It’s heaven.  Most of us are home now with our core loved ones.  Take this opportunity to spend quality time.  Have special conversations, play board games, watch old home videos, share pictures of loved ones , share playlists, dance in the living room, cook recipes you always hoped to make but never had the time for.  You see what I mean…..you can do anything you want with your favorite people in the world and time is on your side.

As far as camp goes, we are at your service. The new normal still has us registering new campers for Summer 2020, hiring staff, planning programming and improving the grounds.  We can be reached on the camp office phone or you can reach out by emails.  We are here for you to answer any questions that pop up.  Our Shibley family remains our #1 priority and we wish you well and best wishes as we get through these challenging times together.

“A life is not important except for the impact it has on other lives.” – Jackie Robinson #42

Each day this week Heath is going to provide a little insight on working with your children  at home during this unique time. He is a former elementary school teacher and father of 2nd & 7th grade girls. Please share YOUR daily experiences and pictures in the comments on social media or email to heath@shibleydaycamp.com. We can all work through this together!

3/20/20

Field Trip Friday – Change things up once a week from your normal “teaching” routine. Many teachers have Fun Friday or something similar.

• Go outside (somewhere with space where people can keep their distance) and take an observation walk. Ask your chid to
  • • Write down notes about animals or plants they see
    • Compare the exterior of two houses
    • Sketch a picture of something they see in front of them, add in an element of fantasy like a uniocorn or monster to the picture and write a fiction piece about their picture

Try and have a routine most days but it’s great to do something different once a week. Make it a surprise!

3/19/20

It is important and helpful for children to speak their ideas aloud so they and others can hear their thoughts.

-Teachers call this “Turn and Talk.”

-Students often hear and correct issues with their reading/writing that they don’t see as easily while correcting on paper.

-It reinforces what they have learned.

• Have them FaceTime with peers working on similar assignments and discuss what they have learned – give them a question or problem to answer together
• Have them read stories or writing pieces aloud via FaceTime to grandparents and other relatives who may be isolated due to age or health concerns
• They can also record themselves on video and watch back to give themselves feedback

If your family has multiple children, have them all share work and ideas on a daily basis. It doesn’t matter how old they are.

3/18/20

You must review, give some sort of feedback or ask a follow up question about every assignment that your child completes. And in a timely manner. Why?

• to make sure they understand what they have done
• to make sure they’ve done what you asked
• to show them it’s important and not just busy work
• to show them that your expectations may be different from their teacher’s and that’s ok for the next few weeks
  • How many of you have already heard, “But that’s not how my teacher told me to do it!!!”?

“That is a great looking vampire, why did you choose to make the cape purple?”

“Can you tell me why you chose to add those numbers? Why not subtract?”

3/17/20

Find books or articles about topics that your children already love to read or talk about. This will help them develop a love for reading and make them more likely to become life-long readers.

• • Today we read “Spider-man vs. Sandman”. I asked my 2nd grader to write 3 sentences in response to this question- Who are the two main characters and why are they fighting?
  • She must use at least two details from the story in her answer.
  • If your child struggles with finding details- ask them to tell you their answer aloud. Many children will be able to speak their answer and it will help them organize their thoughts before putting them on paper.

It’s March. Take that in for a second. And no…you didn’t miss all of the snow, it’s either coming soon or just taking a year off. But March means spring. And spring means almost summer…and you know what that means!!!!

But before we get all the way to the opening day of camp, 120 days away if you are interested, we want to see you at these Shibley events throughout March, April, May & June. We host these events so that our families (veteran, new & prospective) have plenty of opportunities to connect with each other throughout the year.

We also know that the more time our youngest campers can spend at Shibley and with Shibley staff throughout the winter and spring, the more comfortable they will be getting on the bus on opening day.

Two events I’m especially looking forward to are our 2nd annual Outdoor Movie Night in Long Island City and our 3rd Annual Pre-camp Family Outing to Citi Field:

Saturday, May 30 – Outdoor Movie Night @Hunter’s Point South Park – Long Island City- FREE EVENT- BRING YOUR FRIENDS

We are happy to co-sponsor our 2nd Outdoor Movie Night in Long Island City on Saturday, May 30. This outstanding series is put on by the Hunter’s Point Park Conservancy throughout the summer and is FREE.  Long Island City is less than 20 miles from camp and just over the river if you live in Manhattan. We hope you will join us! This night will be a great celebration of ONE MONTH to go until camp. FAMILY FRIENDLY MOVIE WILL BE ANNOUNCED SOON!

Sunday, May 3 – New York Mets vs. Atlanta Braves @Citi field

For the third year we will be organizing a family outing to Citi Field before camp begins. The Mets host Family Sundays which includes free pre-game activities for children outside the stadium. Those who wish to attend the game at 1pm will purchase tickets directly from Shibley and have the opportunity to take a picture on the field before the game begins. Directions for reserving tickets will be sent via email shortly.

MORE EVENTS (and still more to be announced…stay tuned…):

Sunday, March 15 – Fun Day @Shibley

This is our third and final weekend Fun Day for 2020. We will have a spring themed craft, fun Martial Arts instruction with Tiger Schulmann Manhasset and free play in our indoor game room.

Wednesday, April 15 – Spring Break Fun Day @Shibley

Come play at Shibley on Wednesday during Spring Break. Activities are weather permitting; we hope to open the Green Giant and other outdoor play areas on this day. 

Saturday, May 16 – Spring Carnival @Shibley

The Spring Carnival is for all aged campers to come enjoy camp activities, play in playgrounds and play areas, reconnect with summer friends and get excited for the first day of camp. 

Tuesday, June 23 – Junior Camp Pool Party & Bus Rides

This event is for our youngest campers to come get comfortable taking a ride on a bus and swimming in our pool. Lifeguards, bus drivers, bus counselors and staff will be waiting to spend a few fun hours with our little ones who have finished pre-school for the year.

Saturday, June 27 – Camper, Parent Staff – Meet & Greet

After the staff completes their staff orientation early Saturday afternoon, we open the camp up for a few hours for families to come drop off items in bunks and say hi to camp staff. 

As it says above, more events and meetups will be announced as we lead up to camp. We hope to see you soon. If you have questions about which events are appropriate for your family, email me at heath@shibleydaycamp.com.

As we recently wrote about HERE, parents and friends are always asking us, “What do you do all year?” The previous post focused on what is happening inside the full-time office. Out in the rest of camp our amazing facility team is always working to make camp safer and more fun. They also keep our buildings and grounds looking great all year round for off-season events, tours and the upcoming summer.

Our Lego and Music rooms, also used for before & after care, have been totally renovated. Our team gutted this entire side of the building attached to our summer office. When they are finished there will be two separate large rooms so multiple groups can enjoy this improved space. The Lego room is now larger and will include additional toys, games and books for our junior campers.

The bathrooms for those program areas are also being completely redone.

Our biggest update for this year is what we are doing down in junior camp. We are making more space for our Junior campers to run and play. The Car Wash (it should be called the Kid Wash) is being moved closer to the pools so more of our campers can use it on regular basis. Once we break ground, I will update the blog with more pictures.

The Shibley Fun zone, an adjoining wall and fencing have all been removed in preparation for the rest of the project.

This corner will be a new wide-open play area for our youngest campers to enjoy during Summer 2020.

The facilities team has been working since the last bus left camp in August and they won’t stop until it’s time for camp. Make sure you tell them how great a job they are doing when you see them next. Our beautiful and unique facility just keeps getting better!

Probably one of the most important things we do at Shibley is to teach the campers to swim and be comfortable in the water.  We consider swimming a necessary life skill.  I personally started my own swim instruction at Shibley at age 4 and continued through age 12.  I started from the beginning at a pool made for my size and continued on to reach the card level of Junior Lifesaver, which was the highest camper level.  As an adult I continued my swim education by taking the Water Safety Instructor Course, the Lifeguard Training Course, the Lifeguard Management Course and the Nassau County Lifeguard Certification test.  I then worked as a lifeguard and swim instructor at Shibley for many years which I really enjoyed doing.

Why is being able to swim and be comfortable around the water so important?  The ability to swim for recreation is just a lot of fun and is a social thing that you do with family and friends throughout your life.  I remember as a child creatively building things in the sand and then playing in the ocean waves. Then as a father I can remember doing the same beach things with my son.  We spent hours and hours together playing in the water and creating all kinds of sand structures.  Those shared memories with my son are priceless.  He also learned to be a good swimmer at Shibley.

Swimming laps is also great exercise for the heart and easy on the body as opposed to the pounding of running on the legs.  It is an activity you can do from a young age all the way up to a very old age.  Being adept around pools or the ocean is also a safety issue.  You never have to worry about falling in because you are a good swimmer.  Plus as a good swimmer you have the ability to give aid to someone else who may need help in the water.  It is just a very valuable and necessary skill to have throughout your life.  If you become a lifeguard, it is a great summer job to have as well as a very rewarding kind of job.  Lifeguards are always in demand by the camps, schools, town pools and parks. Teaching others to swim is just such a satisfying experience because you are giving to others a lifetime skill that will keep them safe and that will also give them a lot of pleasure.

READ MORE ABOUT THE SHIBLEY SWIM PROGRAM

Greetings Shibley Nation!  Happy 2020 to all.  We have officially turned our attention to Shibley Fun Days as well as other Winter/Spring events that will bring our Shibley family together.  This past Sunday, we hosted our 1^st Shibley Fun Day and each of the two sessions we ran were filled to capacity with campers and parents. We separated the children into 3 age groups and rotated each group from a Tae Kwon Do class (Visit our friends at Tiger Schulmann’s of Manhasset) to an arts and craft project to a free play room.  Campers met and made instant friends with other campers who will be with them in the Summer.  Parents mingled with other parents, some who were first timers also and some veteran parents who shared the great experiences their family has had at Shibley.

These off-season events are so important, especially for our younger campers and their parents.  You and your child have the opportunity to get to know us and our staff on a more personal level. You get to see us in action and we get to see your child in action; how they behave and react to certain situations. Every time you sign your child up for an event and step onto the Shibley grounds, we become more and more familiar to your child and with your child.  When the Summer finally arrives, your child will see familiar faces and places when they step off the bus at camp.  We want your child to have a seamless transition when his/her first day of camp begins and what better way to then to take advantage of all the off season events we offer.  Our goal is to become family even before camp begins.

We have 2 more Fun Days offered, one on Saturday, February 8^th and the other on Sunday, March 15^th.  We will have a Spring break event in April and a Spring Festival in May.  We will also be taking our annual pre-camp outing to Citi Field on Sunday, May 3. In June, we will invite our nursery and kindergarten campers to a pool party and to take a special bus ride around the neighborhood so children can get comfortable doing both things that will be a big part of their summer experience.  We will also give you the opportunity  to come meet your children’s Group Leader and counselors the weekend before camp begins.

So here is your homework -PLEASE open up and read your emails from us.  Then sign up for as many off-season events as you can.  We are here for you and your child. We want your children to have the Summer of their lives, and feeling at home and comfortable on day one is a key ingredient to that end!  We hope to see many more of you next month and leading up to the Summer.