Camp Opportunity

Whitworth's Summer Program for Gifted Middle School Students

A one-week, daytime program for students entering grades 6-9. What am I passionate about? What would I like to learn more about? What are my specific gifts and talents? At Camp Opportunity, gifted youth explore answers to these questions by investigating academic interest areas. Campers choose their own path and select three classes for the week.

When: July 17-21, 2023 | Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
Where: Whitworth University, 300 W. Hawthorne Road, Spokane
Cost: $365 per participant. There is a $25 discount per child when you register more than one child for camp. Whitworth staff discount available, please inquire at kweathers@whitworth.edu. 

Campers should plan on bringing a nut-free lunch and a snack to camp each day with the exception of the special Wednesday lunch at the Hixson Union Building (HUB). Wednesday’s lunch is included in the registration fee. The lunch is "buffet style," a camper favorite. Campers who do not elect this option will eat their sack lunch in the HUB as well.

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Interest Areas

Each camper will select three classes for the full week. In addition to the three classes, campers will spend some time outdoors every day, engage in team building activities and strategy games.

• The World of 2D Art – From Realism to Cubism
  This drawing class will take campers through the basics of facial proportions. They will learn how to shade their features in a realistic appearance. Then the campers will take their self-portrait and change it into a line drawing and create a line pattern for the background. The third part of the series is to explore two famous artists Wassily Kandinsky, one of the pioneers of abstract art, and Pablo Picasso, who is known as the father of Cubism. Campers will create a self-portrait in an abstract and Cubist style.
• Archery - Past and Present
  Campers will learn about the origins of archery and its history. They will explore the machine of archery and how it is ruled by physics. Campers will engage in the functional engineering progression from a long bow to a modern wheel bow, while also cherishing the aesthetic connection an archer has to their equipment. They will also engage in a sport that is mindful, skillful, built on a growth mindset and useful. By the end of the week campers will be a functional archer, creative artist and more thoughtful person. 
• STEM - Escape the Change – Advanced Challenge
  Hello scientists! Will you help the team solve issues that are facing our planet in the future? If you choose to accept this challenge, then open the time capsule from 2031 and receive the message from the future. In this challenge you will learn about invasive species, climate change, disappearance of bees, lack of drinking water and water pollution. By the end of the challenge, you will understand how your team can be part of the solution to saving the planet. This climate change escape room will be full of puzzle solving, clue deciphering, team challenges and map reading as you explore inside and outside.
• Book Club – Understanding Differences
  Are there ways to find connections despite language, cultural, generational or background barriers? Can people from different backgrounds be true friends?Let’s take a look at books, illustrations and poetry that explore different themes of connection. We can think about how our own lives might reflect some of the experiences of the characters we read about. Get ready to do literacy analysis, have some great class discussions and delve into the author’s purpose.
• Get Outside – Fun and Games
  Time to get off the screens and get outside. We will explore a different topic of outdoor games every day that gets campers up and moving. Campers will have the opportunity to use different locomotor and physical skills in themed outdoor game days. We will begin with team building incorporated into our daily activities, and move into other games such as frisbee, yard games, spike ball, capture the flag and pickleball. As we all know, the summer heat can make outdoor activities challenging, especially in the afternoons. Because of this, campers will need to come prepared with water and sunscreen so that they can be ready to safely move and have fun!
• Get Your Game On – Board Games and Games of Strategy
  An exciting and thought-provoking class where you will learn and experience playing different board games, and explore strategies that will have you winning the game! We will also consider which tactics to use as you learn how to play, and how to strategize against your opponent. If you want to stretch your thinking and be challenged, this is the class for you!
• The World of 3D Art – Creating Captivating Creatures in 3D
  Campers will choose from a precocious pig, a dashing dachshund or an exuberant elephant to create using the versatile medium of paper mache clay. The process begins with cutting cardboard out in the basic body parts from a provided pattern. Campers will learn how to add to the cardboard using tinfoil, paper, or foam to give the body parts dimension. Connecting and posing the body, head, legs and ears process precedes applying the paper mache clay. Expression and attitude are added through layering the paper mache and paint. Come create and captivate.
• Get Creative Tinkering
  Spend a week “tinkering” with a wide variety of materials. Campers will combine their interests and hobbies to solve problems through engineering. Some activities may include creating a unique musical instrument that solves a problem, taking a current toy and improving it, or re-engineer a childhood game. Campers will learn to work through the tinkering process: initiative and intentionality, problem solving and critical thinking, conceptual understanding, creativity and self-expression, and social and emotional engagement.
• Kitchen Chemistry
  Who doesn’t love food? I know I do! It’s fun to eat, it’s fun to make, and fun to… study? That’s right! There’s a lot of science that goes into the foods we love to eat every day. In this class, we will explore questions like – how does heating and cooling change our foods, why some foods taste yummy to one person but not the next, and why we can take ingredients and turn it into something delicious! 

COVID-19 Regulations

To keep our campers and community safe, we will be sanitizing our classrooms and equipment daily. Antibacterial hand-sanitizer will be available and hand washing will be encouraged throughout the day.

 Campers must adhere to the following:

• Leave all nonessential items at home.
• Sharing of food will be prohibited.
• If a camper has COVID symptoms they will not be able to return to camp until five days after a positive test, and symptoms have subsided. Parents/guardians of campers should notify the camp director immediately to allow camp staff to take necessary precautions. 

Questions?

Please contact Whitworth University's Center for Gifted Education at gifted@whitworth.edu, kweathers@whitworth.edu or 509.290.1276.