Summer Program Students “Travel” the World
The Richwood Community Development Agency (RCDA) completed its fourth Mid-Summer Enrichment Program on August 2, 2012. The program was held at the RCDA Building on Brown Street in the town of Richwood and operated Tuesday through Thursday each week from 1 – 4 pm. All activities were free to children between 6 and 14 years of age.
This year’s theme was Travel. Each day, participants explored the customs and facts associated with a particular country or region of the world, completed activities that related to those areas, and sampled food from those areas. Participants mapped their trip around the world as they traveled and were sure to get their passports stamped at each entry point. One evening session was devoted to space travel where participants explored the concept of propulsion, reviewed planets and constellations, built personal telescopes and used those to stargaze, and participated in an old-fashioned wiener roast. Participants also traveled through the human body and explored internal organs and their functions. A session devoted to mathematics and science explored statistical probabilities and effects of heat on chemical reactions.
Other enrichment activities included; Manners and Table Etiquette, Money Management, Music, Arts & Crafts, Origami, Games, Gardening, Social Studies, French, Spanish, Latin, and Sign Language. As part of the money management program, students earned monetary rewards during the program and were encouraged to use their funds to start or contribute to existing college savings accounts. RCDA will make biannual contributions to the accounts of participants who actively maintain and contribute funds to their accounts. This year’s program was featured in the Monroe News Star print edition (July 20, 2012) as well as in their online gallery.
Instructors and support personnel for the summer program included three teen workers (Kalliyah Gardner, Kristin Gaddis, & Charles Hollis) and ten volunteers (Jamecia Horne, Sean Hollis, Margie Davis, Veronica Lewis, Debbie Gardner, Emma Jackson, Lommie Jenkins, Louise Harris, Vivian Blow, & Anastasia Baggett).