American Camp

We spent July 24-30 working at “American Camp” just south of Chernivsti, in a neighboring oblast (region). The camp is run by a local Ukrainian NGO, Ukrainian-American Cultural Center “American Club”, and emphasizes teaching English in addition to regular camp activities such as games, discos, and excursions. We were quite impressed with the camp because of its lessons, structure, and administration. Camp sessions last 2 weeks and there were three sessions in July and August. Many of the kids at the camp during our session were from the nearby city of Chernivtsi. But, there were children there from the country of Belarus, Moscow, and from Kiev.
Each day the camp arose at 8 am to prepare for the day. At 8:30 everyone was doing morning exercises followed by a healthy and hearty breakfast. English lessons were taught from 10-12, with groups based on ability and age. Subjects taught included: St. Valentine’s Day, school, Halloween, music, animals, likes and dislikes, want to and have to, etc. From 12-1 was free time to play games or watch movies. Lunch was served at 1 pm and always included soup and an entrée. From 2-4 pm the children were to rest or relax in the rooms. During the “rest time” we went for 2 hour walks, exploring the beautiful surroundings. At 4:30 everyone received a healthy snack of fruit and a sweet. From 5-7 pm the camp had concerts, games, and competitions with other children from Ukrainian camps held at the site. At 7 pm dinner was served, usually rice, cabbage, or porridge. From 8-10 pm the camp had a film or disco. For the fifth “meal” of the day, we had another snack, usually a cookie and fruit juice or milk. Just what every growing child needs before bed, sugar and more sugar! And at 10 pm everyone was to go to bed to get enough rest for the following day!
Beth worked primarily with young children, 6-10 years, while Scott worked with teenagers and young children, 8-11 years. Most of the groups were eager to learn and enjoyed speaking English with Americans. A few of the children were especially well educated in English and enjoyed just spending time with us. Every time we had free time the children wanted to play cards, dominoes, or just simply talk about books, music, movies, or life in America. We were excited at the chance to speak a blend of English, mixed with Ukranian and Russian (which we don’t even know!) in order to communicate. Many times we would hear Russian or Ukrainian words, but with practice, hand gestures and patience we were able to come to some conclusions on different topics.
Picture: Scott and Bohdan outside of the dormitory. Bohdan is only 13 years old! And, as the picture shows, he towers over Scott. He is at least 6’ 6”, and plays the piano and football (soccer). He throws with his left hand, imagine the scouts that would be at his Little League baseball games, if they had them here!!!!!