Hands-On Projects

At Play Loft Camp, we have created a host of hands-on activities and projects. These include building models of the solar system and ancient structures out of sand, and exploring the physics of light and gravity, velocity and energy. Kids will enjoy building their own simple machines using our LEGO Robotics®. Campers in art and literacy will have the opportunity to write their own stories and poems, or other creative pieces and present their ideas to others. Kids will take home the crafts and art they may create. Your kids will get their minds and bodies in motion as they explore concepts such as force, energy and how thing move. Campers will learn about the universe around them, from the tiniest of particles to galactic superstructures. Board Games & Puzzles

Our Play Loft Campers will have a choice of different games designed to challenge their unique interest and skills in new ways, such as Multiples Tic-Tac-Toe, Math Twister, and Fractions War, Scrabble Blast, Word Searches, Once Upon A Time, Name That Tune, Finish the Story and so much more.

Digital Games

Virtual environments are a great way to play and learn mathematics and build intuition and comprehension around numbers. With literacy, computers help with learning new words and composing stories. Multi media, including video, is used in science to help our Campers understand how things work.

Activity List

Math

• Multiplication Tables Tic-Tac-Toe Use multiples and logic to fill a 3 x 3 game board with over 50 numbers.
• Platonic solids Start with square, triangle and pentagon tiles in a board game. When the right tiles join, snap together the corresponding platonic solid for a new game piece.
• Fraction War Use your quick fraction manipulation skills to take as many tiles as possible.
• Pattern Panic Kids will make their own patterns, and then try to solve others camper’s patterns.

Literacy

• Once Upon A Time Write a story or poem,which you share with your group.
• Word Surge Play choose your words and come up with new ways to express yourself.
• Journal Record your feelings about camp daily.

Science

• Sound Vibrations Build a new instrument/noisemaker or better yet invent one.
• Molecular Matter Work with molecular model kids. Children are introduces to the concept of very small particles of matter. Also, we aim to introduce the concept that what isn’t matter is energy.
• Bacteria Fun Factory Working with microscopes. We will study the microscopic world of plants, animals, fungi, protists and bacteria.

Ecofriendly Awareness

• Kids and staff discuss and come up with ways of how they can help reduce our carbon footprint.
• Dinosaur Bone Day Kids get the chance to see and handle actual fossilized dinosaur bones. including other specimens such as fossilized dinosaur eggs, petrified wood, and even coprolite!
• Element Day Kids get to discuss and explore various elements, and the impact on how we live. When possible, samples of different elements are provided.
• Earthquake Simulation Using foam to simulate tectonic plates, kids investigate how the movement of the Earth’s crust causes the earth to quake, and mountains to form.

Art

• Colourful Butterflies Study the life cycle of butterflies and then design your own beautiful butterfly! Children will decorate a pre-cut butterfly with oil pastels and tempera paint. They will then embellish their creation with coloured papers, jewels and metallic markers.
• Rain Stick What causes rain? Create your very own instrument! Decorate your rain stick with pipe cleaners, decorative papers, pastels, metallic markers and jewels. Children will finish their project by beading a pipe cleaner handle.
• Animals and Habitats Children explore various wildlife creatures and investigate their environments. Using a woodblock as a base, children will create their habitat with pastels, tempera paint, markers and pieces of various papers. An animal will be made out of Model Magic and decorated using markers and googly eyes.
• Young Picasso Portraits Study one of the great painters of our world and his art. Children assemble a self-portrait using various types of papers, fabric, pastels and foamy shapes. Once the portrait is made they will decorate a foam core frame.
• Space Creatures from Saturn Study the planets and our world. Children transform a simple tube into a space shuttle using pastels, tempera paint, foamy shapes and metallic papers. Kids form their alien out of model magic and bring it to life using markers and googly eyes.
• Masks Become a bird, a lion, or any magical creature from your imagination! Using a simple paper plate, pastels and tempera paint, partygoers create a mask. The project is completed with the addition of foamy shapes, jewels, feathers and decorative papers.

Our group leaders and teachers include experienced TDSB or OCT teachers with extensive background in science, art and language.