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June 8, 2009
 Bugs Bunny. Mickey Mouse. Snoopy. Yogi Bear. Scooby Doo.
There are few kids (and adults) today that don’t know these names. In addition to their iconic status, they all share the commonality of living their lives and sharing their adventures through the zany, multi-colored world of cartoons and comic strips.
So who will the next famous “toon” be? Maybe their living in your child’s head right now, just waiting for the opportunity to come out!
During the Create Your Own Cartoon camp — one of the dozens of camps being offered by Temple University Ambler and Fort Washington this summer — children will explore how to develop and draw their own cartoon characters. The camp will be offered at the Ambler Campus Monday through Friday, August 3 to 7, from 1 to 4 p.m. Registration is required.
“In the Create Your Own Cartoon camp, we will practice some of the basics of cartooning — character expression, writing a simple comic strip story, printing words in ‘thought bubbles.’ We'll talk about how to create a funny situation and we’ll look at lots of samples of great cartoonists,” said camp instructor Pat Achilles, of Pat Achilles Illustrations. “We’ll try visual puns, caricatures, editorial cartoons and super-hero cartoons, and we’ll use various media such as pen and ink, marker, and collage. Kids ages 8 to 12 are perfect for this class — they love to laugh and make other people laugh!”
Achilles, a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators who has in the past year illustrated Mommy’s High Heel Shoes by Kristie Finnan, and The Adventures of the Poodle Posse by fellow camp instructor Chrysa Smith, is also teaching Show it with Pictures: Story Illustrating, which is being offered for the first time.
During the camp, which will run from July 13 to 17, campers will use their imaginations to create original illustrations that fit the mood of several different types of written stories, from fairy tales and poetry to humor and more.
“I've always loved to draw and humor is something that keeps my family together — whether it is drawing funny ideas, acting in plays, or doing improvisational comedy. I'd like the students in both camps to come away feeling happy that that they know how to create a picture that conveys something more than what the words with it say,” Achilles said. “A cartoon can be so much funnier than just its caption, because of the expression on the character’s face, or the situation in which the words are spoken. An illustration often accompanies a story, but the illustrator can help the reader see the story so much more clearly and magically because of the images and colors the artist uses.”
According to Achilles, campers who are also enrolled in Chrysa Smith’s Press Kids Camp can also coordinate their illustrations from Show it with Pictures with their writing from the camp.
Press Kids Camp, which is being offered in a new format this year, interactively focuses on creating a camp magazine or newsletter. Campers learn about the various roles and responsibilities that go into publishing a newsletter.
“After 20 years as a freelance magazine writer, I have put together so many newsletters, I probably can't recount them all. So, I've taken this background and created a fun outlet for kids who like to write, create, draw, and use the computer in Press Kids,” said Smith. “Students cover features, editorial, advertising, mastheads, table of contents, and other features of a newsletter and they get to create some aspects of all of this. Some of the assignments are based on articles in kids magazines; some from their own imagination completely; and some on headlines or photos that I provide.”
Smith is also teaching Get Published, which is being offered in tandem with the Dear America Book Club Camp, from August 10 through 14.
During Get Published, an interactive writing workshop, students will employ fun activities that challenge the brain and enhance creative writing techniques. The group will produce a joint story lead that will actually be used in Smith’s future published endeavors!
“Late in 2007, I took the plunge into the world of books, with my first book in a juvenile fiction series entitled The Adventures of the Poodle Posse. Since then, I've spent many a day in elementary school classrooms, sharing my love of writing and dogs with young readers and aspiring writers — seeing their enthusiasm for topics that are fun, I encourage them to write their own adventures,” Smith said. “This led to the creation of this first time camp, Get Published, where campers will help create leads for new adventures in the series. These adventures will be published on my Web site, and the students’ names will be credited both on the site and in the next book. What a great way for kids to break into the world of publishing!”
In the Dear America Book Club, campers will travel back in time through American history with the “Dear America” journal series. Through fun activities and readings from the books, students will experience the 18th and 19th centuries through the eyes of the children who lived during that time period.
 There are more than a dozen additional camps designed to give kids and teens an “art attack” and help unlock their creativity in a variety of ways.
Campers can explore their inner Broadway star with new camps Acting for Teens and Be Scene, which explores professional acting techniques, improvisation, and character development.
Try your hand at sleight of hand in Experience the Magic or master your camera skills and photo presentations with Photoshop “Phun” for Photographers and Digital Scrapbooking. Take the Marconi Challenge, a camp that allows teens to explore the world of wireless data communication, or learn how to write jokes and deliver comedy routines like a pro in Tickle Your Funny Bone! Experience the art of filmmaking in front of the camera and behind the scenes with Film and TV Camp and Digital Video Editing, which is being offered for the first time.
Beyond the arts, additional camps offer experiences in robotics, Web design, creating computer games, interior design, understanding Wall Street, learning how to debate like a pro, becoming a “weather wizard,” exploring science, getting “down and dirty” with dinosaurs, and the intricacies of babysitting. Temple University Ambler and Fort Washington also offer a series of “Jumpstart!” camps designed to give students a leg up on reading, math, and writing.
According to Rhonda Geyer, Director of Non-Credit programs at Temple University Ambler and Temple University Fort Washington, Summer Education Camps are “a fun-filled approach to academic subjects in a small-group setting.”
“They provide a wonderful opportunity for kids and teens to learn about a specific area of interest, experience a college campus, and have a lot of fun at the same time,” she said.
Now in its 20th year, the Summer Education Camp program is offered in June, July, and August as a series of primarily one-week camps.
“With the one-week camp sessions, families can try several different camp programs throughout the summer,” Geyer said. “Children and teens today are interested in so many things that we wanted to offer them the widest variety of fun, educational experiences possible.”
This summer, a variety of full day and half day camp programs will be offered each week. Full day camps will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Half day camps will run from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 4 p.m. This allows campers the opportunity to stay for the entire day or just come for a part of the day. It also provides flexibility for parents who may need their child in a camp program all day, or just a half-day.
For more information on Temple University Ambler Summer Education Camp program, or to register for camps, call 267-468-8500. Or, visit us online at www.ambler.temple.edu/camps.
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