ParentSpace Blog

Behind the gate of the pool, campers and staff members are splashing away, having fun in the pool. The slide is a popular attraction, and the cool water is a relief from the heat. Great things are accomplished at the pool every day. This year in Camp Simcha is the first time Chana has ever been in the pool, and today she went to the deepest part of the shallow water section! Chaya Liba went all the way to the bottom of the pool. Samara walked four laps in the pool. Sol learned how to float on her back and she kept her head under-water for a few seconds! We are so proud of everyone! Enjoy your swim!

In arts ‘n crafts, the project is making Marionette Puppets. Campers have a choice of making a girl, a boy, or a clown. They get the head of the puppet, on which they color eyes, eyebrows, and a mouth. They choose the hair style of their puppet, too: curly, or straight, brown or blonde. Clothing for their puppet is made from cloth of felt, and the campers design it on their own. When the doll is all finished, they’ll put strings on it and learn how to use the puppets. The most exciting part of this whole project is that there’s going to be a Marionette Puppet Show with a contest of the best puppet!

Well, that comes a little later… First, about last night’s presentations: Each team had to present a song, a dance or skit, and a banner. The songs were beautifully sung by campers. The Red team performed a skit, while the Blue and White teams both prepared dances. The banners were designed and painted all by campers.
The judges counted up the score while everyone waited in anticipation. The division heads wrote a song to break out the winners. Yes, the Blue Team did great, and the White Team was top-rate, but the RED TEAM is the winner!!

Teams Red, Blue, and White all decorated golf carts as floats for the Color War parade. Team Red made its float as a tank. The Blue Team’s float was a boat, complete with and fish. The White Team decorated its float in white fabric and ribbon. Inside the floats sat the captains and generals of the team, throwing confetti through camp. The rest of the team marched behind the float.

Color War is going strong in Camp Simcha! Swimming races are taking place in the pool, and boating races down by the lake. Some of the divisions are playing Steal the Salami. Whoever wins the races will get points for their team!

The game of the day is Battleship, hence today is Color War. Or maybe it’s the other way around – is today’s game Battleship because it’s Color War? Just something to ponder…

There’s more to it: Today is July 4th, American Independence Day, and the teams of Color War are red, white, and blue! Camp Simcha looks very patriotic in their Color War attire.

After breakfast, everyone stood up and said the Pledge of Allegiance in today’s honor. Then, we had some campers sang the Star Spangled Banner, in English, Spanish, and even Chinese! Alexis even did it in sign language!

Just like in the Improv show, there are three teams in CSS’s color war, red, blue, and white.

Below are the team names, colors, and captains / generals.

The Blue team is team Yam (sea) and they represent the Navy. Team heads are Bashi, Ayala, Meira, and Molly.

The Red team is team Aretz (land) and they represent the Air Force. Team heads are Leah, Racheli, Liat, and Dahlia.

The White team is team Shamayim (sky) and they represent the Army. Team heads are Tehila, Rivky, Caitlyn, and Simi K.

We can’t wait for tomorrow!

Improv is an acting show which performs on the spot. The group is split into two teams (red and blue) of two actors each, with an umpire, and the show begins! Each team challenges the other to act out a certain scene, and they are able to do it without any preparation! One of the challenges was to act out a scene in which all of the characters are boys, though the two actors were both girls! Another was to act out a summer scene. The umpire challenged one team to enact a scene in sixty seconds. He then made them reenact it in thirty seconds, then fifteen seconds, and then a last time – in five seconds! The actors also called up campers on stage to help with the acting. There are some very talented campers in CSS; thank you to Simi S., Jackie, Toby, Mattie, Melanie, Gittel, Frannie, Rachel, and others for making the show so great!

The umpire ended the show with a surprise. He commented how there’s nothing like having a healthy war between colors, like the one we had tonight. A “war” between the red team, the blue team, and the white team, himself. Everyone caught on quickly and began cheering, “COLOR WAR IS HERE!” And they were right! More updates on color war to follow.

Far beyond the fields and into the woods of Camp Simcha, the zip line and the flying squirrel are open. Campers are hanging from ropes and swinging in the air! As Bailue puts on her harness and gets ready to go up, she yells “on the way!” Then comes “flying” and she puts her hands out like a bird. Rock climbing is also available, and campers are using this opportunity at max.

For the game of the day, Apples to Apples, there is a special activity of Apple Mania. The campers are divided into two teams, Macintosh and Cortland. The object of the game is to get your teams apples into the other team’s bucket of water. So Team Macintosh has to get all the green apples into Team Cortland’s water, and Team Cortland had to get all the red apples into Macintosh’s. The catch? No one could touch the apples with her hands – she could only use an implement like tongs, a ladle, or a fork! When time is up, the team that has the most apples in the other team’s water bin wins! Water was being splashed all over as campers ran back and forth with their apples!

On the other side of the basketball court, another group of campers is playing Apple Hockey. Each team has to get its apples into the other team’s goal. Some girls are playing defense, and others are playing offense. Whichever team gets all of its apples into the other side wins the game!