Making learning fun!

Today's field trip to the Gordon Head Recreation Center brought back many fond memories of my childhood. I remember the fun I had attending summer camps for various activities such as bicycling, camping and the ever popular soccer camps. As a teenager, one may find it difficult to keep yourself entertained and that is where these camps came in very handy. It was always such a positive learning environment with the staff doing their best to accommodate all of the participants as much as possible. Through the activities, we learned as a group how to communicate with each other, have fun, and learn other essential skills that are necessary in group dynamics.
It was really nice to see that the staff at the rec center were still displaying those same qualities that I remember from when I was there. One group outside was playing some sort of team building game and their leader seemed to be having just as much fun as the kids who were playing. On our walk around the facilities, I came across a baseball camp where the kids were just in the middle of lunch break. I took this opportunity to ask some of the players their thoughts on what it was like to participate in the activities. Their responses were very positive. The boys were having fun, learning new baseball skills or improving on old ones and making new friends at the same time.
After us PDPP people came back to the center from our rounds, we sat down and had a discussion on what we saw and how we perceived it. The instructor (I can't remember his name) felt that these types of camps were an important development tool for the kids because it taught them all about balance. By that, he meant balancing between fun and learning, which are in my view key components in making the learning environment an enjoyable one where not only do we learn but also find gratification in what was learned and how we went about it.