Summer Camp Supplies for Children with Autism!

Sponsoring Organization:  Given Tree   www.giventree.org

Project Organization & Location: Clear Horizons Academy - Orem, Utah 

Summer Camp!  The "Ohana Summer Camp" is an inclusive arts and science camp for children with autism and other children in the community.  "Ohana" in the Hawaiian culture means "family".  This camp will bring together families, community members and children through fine art, drama, music and science.  Our intent is to create a camp experience that can serve as a model for others. 

Recipients:  36 Students

Volunteers: approx 4 parents/4 community volunteers

Paid Positions: 3 Special Education Teachers, 3 Community Specialists, 9 Para-Professionals

Funds Used For: *Drama costumes: $500  *Art supplies (paint, paper, wood, etc.): $350  *Sport supplies (soccer balls, kick balls, bases, T-ball stand, basket balls, soccer nets): $400  *Musical instruments (guitar, keyboard, 25 player special variety musical kits); $350  *Science equipment (gardening supplies, cooking supplies): $400  *An additional $120 will be used for processing and credit card fees.

Project Description: Children with autism tend to struggle with communication.  Art, music and drama offer an alternative way for children to express themselves.  These supplies will help facilitate academic learning and social development in children who participate in our summer camp this year.   We are in need of drama, arts, sports and science supplies which will help our students with hands on learning opportunities.  We anticipate these supplies will impact our student's academic and social emotional growth. 

Students will use art supplies to support creativity and fine motor development. We hope this will help in gaining an additional way to express themselves through this process.  Children will learn how to play different musical instruments such as triangles, rhythm sticks, bells and maracas.  This will also provide a way for children to work on their social skills through music.  Music is also a powerful tool in supporting language development and comprehension.  

Community Description:  Our camp is for children in Utah County with autism, their siblings and typical peers.  Autism today impacts 1 in every 88 children across the nation.  In Utah, our rate is much higher with 1 in 47 being afflicted by this disorder.  Siblings of children with autism also need support along with typical peers in our community.  Our camp offers support to both children with autism and typical peers in the community.  

Our Approach to Autism: Our school is based on the DIR/Floortime (Developmental, Individual Difference, Relationship) model which emphasizes the using a multi-sensory and individualized approach to learning.  For more information: http://www.icdl.com/dirFloortime/overview/.At Clear Horizons Academy (CHA), our philosophy for the Ohana Summer Camp is to engage our students with autism and other types of children in our community through the arts and hands on science.  The challenges of discipline, reasoning, and problem-solving inherent in the arts are especially effective in building self-confidence and self-esteem and in promoting positive social/emotional growth in all children.  Indeed, prominent educators agree that children unexposed to art are as lacking as children without math. 

Teaching Skills: Skills: Academic, life skills and social emotional development will be the focus of summer camp.

Starting Date: June 11, 2013

Ending Date: July 25, 2013

Life-Span of the Project:  We hope that this will be an annual project for our school.  The money given will be used to buy supplies that we will continue using for summer school each year.  We hope to use the supplies through the school year as well. 

Anticipated Impact:   Through the Ohana Summer Camp, children and families will be exposed to a broad range of arts education activities and continually encourage development of new skills and talents, express themselves, and expand individual creativity. The arts can transform the educational environment, making learning a lively, invigorating experience.  With their emphasis on creative discovery and their ability to stimulate a variety of learning styles, the arts engender enthusiasm and motivation for learning.  The arts also teach discipline, the value of sustained effort to achieve excellence, and the concrete rewards of hard work.  All these factors encourage better educational outcomes for all types of developing children.