At Camp Galileo

Nikhil  came back from summer camp yesterday with his face painted yellow and black. Said he has turned a cheetha and  growled at me . I acted suitably scared,  when Nikhil,  4 plus, with brother Sidharth, 6 plus, and their friend Suraj,  raided my room . They timed the attack to the afternoon hour when I have this post-lunch snooze.  Nikhil let it be known his coach at the camp was in on this engagement. She helped him put on the war-paint on Nikhil's face.  

Anyway, Nikhil and Sidharth left for the camp this morning wearing  a crazy cap. Wednesday is ‘Crazy Hat and Hair Day’ at Camp Galileo.  Yesterday  was the day for  ‘Team Color Spirit’.  The schoolboy campers dressed  up for the occasion in respective team colour.  Nikhil’s team color is blue. The ‘cheetha’ that attacked  me yesterday was dressed in blue.  Red, green, yellow and black are among other team colors. The campers  are split agewise under  three categories – Nebulas, Stars and Supernovas.  Nikhil , as Nebula, wore blue. Elder brother  Sidharth wore black. Campers wearing black are Stars. So are those in yellow. orange and purple.  Supernovas wore red, silver or neon green on Team Color Day, Tuesday .

Camp Galileo, says its website,  is a  summer day camp designed  for pre-K to  5th graders in San Francisco Bay Area. Idea is to encourage kids to brainstorm, create and think like innovators through the Galileo Innovation Approach. Each week-long summer camp session centers around an imaginative story or theme, which inspires art, science and outdoor projects for campers to explore . This week’s  camp  started, with Monday devoted to  the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco. Student campers learned about the Golden Gate’s history , the bridge's construction; and, about  its the main features.

 As Sidharth put it, In the beginning, when there was no bridge, you had to  either swim across the  San Francisco Bay to reach Marin County, or  take a boat that took a long long time. Besides, there were sharks out there . But then when an engineer  named Strauss  first suggested  a bridge across the bay,  everyone laughed at the idea.

The theme next week  is  ‘Olympic Games’. Besides class-room sessions , they have  art and  creativity hours and much outdoor activities. “Don’t forget to apply sunscreen  (to children) and to send water and lunchtime beverage with them,” says  the guide sheet to parents.  No wonder  chilldren get drawn to Camp Galileo. Nikhil and Sidharth wouldn’t   miss the camp for anything. The have signed on for two weeks of it.

The only snag is the cost -  it’s  $350 per week