• Summer camp not only means getting out and enjoying the great outdoors, but also providing fun things for children to do. Many of these activities center around learning about the natural world, creating camp values such as community and friendship and learning life skills. These activities not only provide entertainment but useful outcomes as well. Arts and crafts activities can provide camp memories as well as help develop important qualities in kids that life in a camp setting can provide.
  
  

Stick Art

• One of the benefits of camp is being able to be outside. Crafts that utilize the treasures from the natural world are especially fitting in a camp setting. Items found on a hike like pine cone bits, interesting sticks and flowers all fit into this project. Cut out pieces of contact paper in circles or diamond shapes. Have your kids place their objects on one of the pieces of the contact paper in designs. Make sure you take off the protective backing so the paper is sticky. If they have larger items like pine cones, they may have to take individual pieces off the cones. Punch a hole in the top of the design and string a ribbon throw it. The kids can hang their creations in the opening of their tents for decoration.
  
  

God's Eye Memory Keeper

• God's eye memory keepers are another camp project that takes advantage of the resources provided by the forest environment. As you go out and about, have your campers gather up two sticks that are fairly straight and about the same length. Once you begin this project you'll also need yarn of different colors and scissors. You're going to weave the yarn around the sticks continuously until a diamond shape starts to form. When this portion of the project is done, your camp kids can tie bird feathers they have found on the trail as well as strings of beads to the God's eye to decorate it.
  
  

Friendship Sticks

• One of the best parts about going away to camp for a child is the opportunity to make new friends. This craft celebrates the friendships made at camp. To make this craft, you will need flat sticks like Popsicle sticks or chopsticks, cotton swabs or small paint brushes, paint, charms, sequins and other decorative craft items, glue and yarn. Have your kids paint the sticks. They can be all one color, with dots or stripes or other decorative motifs. Once the sticks are dry, have them write their friends' names on the sticks with paint or with a marker. Finally, have them add decorative touches like charms or sequins, and then tie a piece of yarn around the ends long enough to so that it fits on a key chain. Glue the yarn in place. Once the craft is done, they can pass them out to their friends as camp mementos.