Continuing on our topic of camp from last week, I wanted to share another activity that we did. This one was called “Unicorn Boat Races” and it was put on by the staff that ran the camp. All of us were wondering what in the world the activity entailed (all we knew was it took place at the pool). Finally the afternoon came and we discovered that it was not only a boat race, but a competition to build a boat that would float from one side of the pool to the other. Sounds easy, right? Of course there’s a catch. (It wouldn’t be camp without a catch, of course!) the boat must hold one counselor during its trip across the pool!
Don’t give up!
I will admit that there were a few campers who thought it might be a good idea to put me in one of the boats, but since I didn’t have a swim suit, I was not one of the chosen few. My Child Life Practicum student on the other hand was chosen as a… tribute, as some of the campers said. She gamely got in the boat and did her best to get it from one end of the pool to the other.
Stroke! Stroke!
The kids all had lots of fun creating their boats and got very creativity. They each got a bunch of large sheets of cardboard, scissors, and duct tape. Plus some markers for decorating. And that was it! I really liked how it encouraged team building, but I will say that it was hard to keep everyone involved the whole time because the teams are so large (10-14 people in a group). If you want to replicate this activity, I would limit the groups to 6-8 people each. I also liked the idea of having the campers create the boats and then the counselors ride in them. It gets both campers and counselors involved and let’s be honest, who doesn’t want to see if you can sink your counselor! Plus it takes away chances of campers getting overly competitive in the actual race and instead turns it into a silly race where everyone can laugh.
Have you ever done an activity like this before? What was it like? Would you do it again? Share your story in the comments below!
A Little Playfullness 