What a Week in Tiny Tots!

It's been an awesome, action-packed week here in the Tiny Tots classroom. On Monday, we had a blast splashing in Buhr pool. Then on Tuesday, we headed to Domino's Farm, where we saw unbelievable things, like adorable piglets and claves, even a baby lamb that was just born that morning. We had a great time feeding carrots to the sheep and goats, and getting our fingers all slimy! We went on a hayride to feed the cows and see the llamas. On Wednesday, we started off with a sweet, yummy, chocolatey batch of cookies in Creative Cooking, then decorated crowns because we're all Jewish princes and princesses. To top off a great day in style, we ran out in the heat for a dip in the pool and a splash in the sprinkler! Thursday was an awesome day too, we started off by making silly sock puppets that can talk and remind us to make good choices! Then we got to go for a real ride in an old old old car (older than our grandpas!) called a Model T. After all that we were pretty hungry, so we came inside and made some sushi, candy sushi that is, which we all enjoyed at our grand goodbye party for our counselor Kelly, who we're going to miss sooooo much.

Brachot Week!!!!

This week was the most amzaing, spectacular week Camp Gan Israel has seen yet! Starting with workshops on Monday, where we kicked our way through karate, or beaded and wove beautiful bracelets in jewelry making, made adorable fruit baskets in cooking, or had a great time learning about weather! Then we took off to the Scrapbox, where we had a blast making our own creative shakers and filling up a goodie bag with recycled craft materials! Tuesday was an action-packed day. First a magician came and shocked us with his incredible tricks, which of course are not real magic, but just look really cool. Then we got to explore the inside of a real ambulance and hear all about a day in the life of a paramedic. After lunch we trekked to Jungle Java and went crazy running sliding and climbing. On Wednesday we went back to workshops, like sports, weather and jewelry, then went off to the swimming pool...finally! Thursday was the Grand Brachos Fair, we had a great time running from booth to booth, making adorable potato creatures for Ha'adoma, and much more. Then we went... swimming, swimming in the swimming pool... We ended off a great week with a great Friday full of challah baking, sports, swimming, tie-dying challah covers, and of course an awesome Shabbat party!!

Kindness Week in Tiny Tots

Wow, we had such a busy week in the Tiny Tots room. We started off with a huge splash into Buhr Pool on Monday. We learned about being nice to everyone, the special mitzvah called ahavat yisroel. Then on Tuesday, we had a fabulous time climbing, jumping, and sliding through the jungle in Jungle Java. On Wednesday, while the rain poured down outside, we stayed nice and cozy inside, playing sports in the gym and jumping in the indoor moon bounce! We also baked our very own hot pretzels, shaping the dough and painting it with egg. Since we learned about saying thank you to our parents for all the nice things they do, we beaded beautiful neckalces to take home to our mothers. On Thursday, we learned that you don't only have to treat other people nicely, we even have to be kind to animals! We had a crazy time playing musical chairs and decorating heart necklaces beautifully. Then, of course, we got to have Music and Movement, which we all loved, clapping and waving and dancing! On Friday, we baked challah, and tie-dyed challah covers. We had a great time playing sports in the gym, and, when the sun came out, we finally got to go out to the playground and moon bounce! A great Shabbat party ended off our amazing week!

Brachot Week in Tiny Tots

We've had quite a busy, tiring week here in Tiny Tots! On Monday, we had a great time splashing in the fountains and sprinklers at Buhr pool. On Tuesday, we went to an awesome field trip to the Scrap Box, where we learned about insects, that have six legs and three body sections, and then made our own insects out of recycled materials, like foam and plastic. Then we each got a bag to fill with cool recycled stuff that we can use at home for cool recycled art projects. Afterwards we played a fun, musical game called Brachos Step On It. On Wednesday, we learned more about which foods go with which bracha, and talked about how saying a blessing is like saying thank you to Hashem for the food he gives us. We made grassheads that we will water until grass grows, to learn how food grows out of the ground. Then we got changed for some Wet n Wild fun of our own. First we played in the kiddie pools and sprinkler and on the playground. Then we got to wash the car with sponges and paint and shaving cream and buckets and buckets of water. We looked like little painted people by the end, so we ran back in the sprinkler to rinse off. Then we got an extra special treat of sliding down the huge water slide!
On Thursday, we continued learning about brachos, this time about brachos we say on things that are not food -- like lighting Shabbat candles, the blessing that parents give their children, the blessing on washing your hands, and more. Then we started our day by mixing flour, sugar, and eggs into delicious cookie batter, which we shaped with cookie cutters into the Hebrew letters of our names. Then we played Life-Size Candyland, which is just like the board game except the floor was the board and we were the pieces. Then we had a blast at Music and Movement1

International Week!

Wow, what a week it's been, flying around to visit so many different countries for International Week. On Monday, we found ourselves in China. We had amazing workshops, like the extremely cool liquid nitrogen experiment in science and learning a really fun dance together with the counselors in dance workshop. Then we headed off to make a hole-in-one at Putters, golfing, playing arcade games, and collecting some awesome prizes. Thankfully, the rain waited just until we got on the bus! When we got back to camp, we watched Lauren and Noah compete to drink a bowl of water through a straw, but wait! There's a catch here, isn't there??!
On Tuesday we each got a lei and a "aloha to Hawaii!" The Hawaiian tropical rains prevented us from going on an outdoor trip, so instead we got an exclusive visit with Fireman Dan at the fire station and got to see a real fire truck and pole up close! Then we went to the Ann Arbor Hands On Museum, where we had a blast in the ambulance, the tornado exhibit, the miniature house, and all the other cool things that they have to learn and see. When we finally made our way back to camp, who should we find but a very strange looking visitor with huge glasses and colorful hair who called herself Mrs Smoothie, and her little friend Bluey!! I don't know who the mystery visitor was, but somehow I couldn't find Mrs. Goldstein all afternoon. Strange. Mrs. Smoothie whipped up a storm full of bananas, pineapples, ice, orange juice, and each of us got our very own delicious authentically Hawaiian smoothie!
What a wacky, wonderful, Wet n Wild Wednesday we had! In the morning we had workshops like making beautiful lava bottles in science and crafts, chess, and sports! Then after lunch, we got into our bathing suits for a smashing time outside. First we warmed up blowing giant bubbles at the big bubble pool. Then the real action started, with water balloons flying in every direction, and buckets of water everywhere. We had a great time 'washing' the counselor's car, though most of the paint and shaving cream ended up on our friends instead of the car! Then came the highlight of the whole day -- a terrifying ride down the enormous water slide, with jets of water streaming down on me and a huge splash in the pool on the bottom! It was a blast, I kept running to the back of the line to go again!
Shalom yeladim! when we walked into camp on Thursday, the lunchroom was gone and instead, we had to find our seats on a huge airplane. Destination: Israel! When we touched down in the Holy Land, we each got a handy map so we won't get lost, and to make sure we visit all the important places. On our action-packed itinerary was: creating a unique piece of artistic expression in the artist's colony of Tzfat, making our own fish-shaped photo frames in sunny Eilat, making sand art in the dry, sandy Negev desert, and of course, writing a personal letter to Hashem to stick between the cracks of the Kotel in Jerusalem. Of course, what would an Israeli vacation be without the food, so we stopped in Haifa to squeeze oranges into fresh, delicious orange juice, and in Tel Aviv for a yummy bite of felafel! After lunch, we went to our local Petco for an awesome tour, where we saw cool and weird animals. Lehitraot l'kulam! Goodbye, everyone!

Tiny Tots -- Shabbat Shalom!

As I said, a huge mazal tov goes to Shternie, Zalman, Mendel, Rivkie, Chanie, and Yisrolik on their brand-new little sister! Today was spectacular! We got to shape and bake our very own challah dough into cats and triangles. Then we went out to sharpen our soccer and basketball skills in sports. We made beautiful colorful Kiddush cups for the Shabbat bags, which are really starting to fill up! Then we changed and headed out for a great time swimming, "sprinklering", swinging, and "sand-boxing"!! Shabbat Shalom, tiny tots!!!

Shabbat Shalom!

First of all, I would like to wish a very special mazal tov to Shternie and the whole Zweibel family for their newest addition! It's a girl!!! Today was yet another great day of CGI. We learned about recycling and played a great recycling game called Clean Up My Backyard. We had sports outside in the beautiful sunshine, and baked our very own challahs! Mmmm, the whole camp smelled so yummy while they baked. We got to do the third art project of our Shabbat Bag -- a colorful Kiddush cup! We had a Shabbat party with songs and treats and a special Shabbat Ima and Abba. Everyone got to sign a huge poster we hung up to congratulate Shternie. Then we rushed off to the pool for free swim and lessons, and then, all too soon, week 3 of the greatest camp in the universe came to a close. Bonjour everyone! Shabbat Shalom! See you next week!

Eat Your Fruits and Veggies Day in Tiny Tots!

Today was one awesome packed day in the Tiny Tots room. We started off the day with circle time and snack, as usual, but this time snack was yummy, juicy watermelon, and we saved all the black seeds. We had a great time in Music & Movement with Devora Leah, sitting, standing, and dancing! Then we took the black seeds and made our own watermelons to take home with them and construction paper. After that we played a silly game called Fruit Basket. Finally our clay models from yesterday were dry, so we painted them in bright colors. Before lunch, we got to wash and chop vegetables all by ourselves, and then stick them on sticks for a colorful vegetable rainbow! We learned about the different kinds of vegetables, like celery and tomatoes and colorful peppers. After lunch, we got one more treat -- we cut up fruit to make silly clown faces on our plates with strawberries, bananas, apricots, and kiwis...what a yummy day!

Happy Healthy Thursday!

Hey everyone, today was another absolutely amazing day at CGI. The theme was health, and we learned all about it in crazy ways like having a toothbrushing competition! Every bunk took turns making healthy peanut butter and jelly roll-ups, getting some exercise in the obstacle course, and decorating visors for the sun! Then we headed to the bus to Dominos Farm! It was true fun in the sun, from petting the chicks and bunnies, to feeding the goats and sheep, to seeing a real milking and shearing. We ended off with a real hayride, before we all piled tiredly back on the bus!

What's Going On In Tiny Tots

Wow, we've had two chock-full busy days! On Tuesday, we spent the morning learning and playing in the Ann Arbor Hands On Museum. There was so much to do, we didnt even know where to start! We played with sharks and spinning wheels at the water table, dressed up as firefighters and sped off in the firetruck, helped create a real live tornado, saw how a toilet works, built our own house...it goes on and on. Best of all was the health room, where we measured our height, weight, balance, and strength. We loved playing paramedic in the ambulance, especially when our counselor Devora got sick (for pretend!) and we had to give her medicine, bandages, and shots to help her feel better. On Wednesday, we talked about all the ways we have to take care of our bodies to keep them healthy and strong, like eating healthy food, drinking water, exercising, and getting plenty of sleep! We had an awesome time in Dance with Beth, dancing and playing musical hot potato. Then we got to shape our own air-dry clay into dishes and other cool shapes, which we'll paint after they're dry. We had a blast out in the sun, swimming and sliding and sprinkling. Then, before we went home, came pizza time! Yummy!

Tuesday & Wednesday Update

Continuing this week's theme of Health and Safety, Tuesday was Healthy Food Day, where we learned all about what kinds of food are good for you and what kinds aren't. We realized when we chopped veggies and mixed the dressing for our very own homemade salad, that healthy food is really yummy! Then we got some exercise running around camp, and some mental exercise working on clues in a grand Watermelon Treasure Hunt. When we found our watermelons, we dug in and started counting the black seeds. Everyone got their very own mini flower pot, which we painted and carefully planted with a real live flower. Don't forget to water it every day! Tuesday ended off with an awesome trip to the bowling alley, where we let the balls rolllllll down the aisle and - crash! - knock down the pins. (bumpers optional). Then, on Wednesday we learned about the importance of being clean and organized...something our parents probably sometimes wish we were better at! We split up into our funshop groups. In science we made really cool slime with Lair the Science Guy, in dance we played some musical games, we had a great time in the chess workshop, and everyone in sports had an awesome game of basketball, thanks to the beautiful weather! After lunch, we ended off the day in....you guessed it! the pool!

Moms N Muffins Monday! -- Tiny Tots

Hi everybody, we're so excited to be back in Tiny Tots again! Welcome to all our new campers, and welcome back to some really special people we haven't seen in a while. We missed you! Today was Moms and Muffins, we had so much fun singing our circle time songs with our moms, and making beaded necklaces for them. We ate yummy chocolate chip and blueberry muffins. Then out came our good friend the parachute, and we had fun singing and making it fly up in the air. We introducedour theme this week -- Health and Safety. We learned how our bodies are special gifts and we have to take good care of them by eating healthy food, and only doing things that are safe. Then, after a quick spray of sunscreen to keep our skin healthy, we jumped on the van to the absolute best place to go in weather like this - Buhr pool! We had a great time running through the fountains and playing ring around the rosie. See you all tomorrow!

Moms N Muffins Monday!

Hey everyone and welcome to all the new faces we saw today at CGI. Today was our annual Moms and Muffins event, thank you to all the moms who came and made beautiful beaded necklaces with their children and sampled the delicious muffins. Afterwards, we had some awesome workshops. Some of us chose science lab, where we experimented with mixing different chemicals, and even make our own batteries! In chess workshop, we sharpened our chess skills and learned new things. Other kids had a real workout (and a blast!) in sports and dance. Happy Birthday Jacalyn!! We all had a great time at Jacalyn's birthday popsicle celebration. Then, after lunch, we ended our day with a refreshing splash in the pool!

Tiny Tots Update

Wow, is the week over already?? How'd it go by so quickly? We started off on Friday with challah baking, shaping the dough into fun, original shapes. Mmmm, it smelled yummy as it baked. Then we jumped into our swimsuits and went out to the pool, throwing the yellow balls into the pool. After swimming, we ventured out to the big camp, to decorate Shabbat candles and dip them in wax for our Shabbat bags. Then we had lunch and Shabbat party, where we had a blast singing "Shabbat Shalom"...bim bum bim bim bim bum, Shabbat Shalom, hey!

Wrapping Up Week 2!

I can't believe its already Friday, the very last day of the best (so far!) week of CGI! Today we started off with some outdoor sports, like soccer and other fun games, and a huge limbo competition out in the field. Then we shaped our challah dough into spaceships, smiley faces, and of course, braids. For the ongoing Shabbat bag project, we decorated candles and dipped them into wax to make awesome colorful candles. At our smash Shabbat party, we sang Happy Birthday to Jacob, Mira and Coby!!! Then we cooled off from our busy week with a dip in the pool. Shabbat Shalom, everyone, see you on Monday!

As the week rolls along...

Time flies when you're having fun, especially with awesome, smiley CGI fun. On Tuesday, we had a special visitor, Roy the Bubble Man, who amazed us with his cool bubble tricks, like blowing one giant bubble inside another, and making helium bubbles! Then we got a chance to try it out ourselves with a huge bubble-blowing bonanza. We ran off to the bus to go to Nelson's Safari! Boy, was that cool. We saw (and touched!) some unbelievable animals, like glow-in-the-dark scorpions, a giant tortiose, a soft and furry chinchilla, and a real live miniature alligator!! Don't worry, they don't bite! We didn't have any camp on Wednesday, so everyone rested up and got ready for another smash hit of a day. On Thursday, we learned about being really eager and happy to do a mitzva, like running to do what your mom or dad asked you to do - with a smile! We practiced our running skills with a grand relay race competition, then we mixed up some yummy rice krispies treats. We played a really funny blindfolded partner game, then ate lunch and ran to the bus with our sweatshirts for a fantastic ice skating trip. We had a blast zipping around on the ice with our counselors! Can't wait for tomorrow!

What's new in Tiny Tots

Wow, we've had a few really busy dizzy days in CGI Tiny Tots, let's try to remember everything that happened. On Tuesday, we went to Urban Toddler, a really cool indoor playspace with a supermarket, a firetruck, a stage, and so much more. We all had a blast dressing up as firemen, princesses, and pirates, and cooking up a storm in the play kitchen. Time flew by until we had to go home. On Wednesday there wasn't any camp, so we all sat by the front door with our lunchboxes waiting... actually, I'm just kidding, we had a great time. Then on Thursday, we had an absolutely action-packed day learning about the mitzvah of Tzedakah, charity. First we mixed up a batch of rice krispies treats, then we had a Music and Movement session with Devora Leah, pulling on our bubble gum and searching for the missing parachute. Then we painted and decorated treasure chest tzedaka boxes to take home. Outside, we played some fun games and races with the big bag of pretend coins, then sharpened our detective skills searching for real coins in the grass.

Tiny Tots Update -- Monday!

Welcome back to Tiny Tots, everyone! Today was an unbelievable day at camp! We started off with Music with Steve, which was really interesting. We sang songs in all different silly voices to learn about the different music signs, we practiced clapping with the rhythym blocks, and then we got to see and hear real instruments, like a bugle and a french horn. Then, after circle time and snack, we put on our swimsuits and hopped into the van for an awesome swim trip to Buhr pool. We had a great time blowing bubbles in the water and running in the fountains. See you all tomorrow!

Happy Smiley Day!!

Hey everyone, and welcome back to the second amazing week of CGI Treasure Island. Welcome to all those smiling new faces, we're so glad you joined us in camp! The treasure we found this week is a really shiny, sparkly, and smiley one -- Happiness! We learned all about being happy with what you have, and smiling even if sometimes things don't work out. Everyone got a shiny smiley face sticker to remind them to always be happy. We started off with some awesome funshops, choosing between learning how our bodies work and doing some cool experiments in science, or playing kickball in sports, or trying out different brass instruments in music. Other kids chose computers or got down on the yoga mats for an awesome yoga session. Then after lunch, we hopped onto the bus and had an incredible time splashing in the pool and taking swim lessons. Boy, were we tired by the end of that action-packed day!

Friday at Tiny Tots

Wow! Is it Friday already? The week really flew by! Today was an action-packed fun day, starting with playtime, snack, and circle time where we sang our favorite songs. Then we all marched outside for some fun sports and outdoor games! After a quick drink, we got to paint our very own Shabbat bags, which we will be filling up with Shabbat-themed crafts in the coming weeks. We had a great time mixing the colors and spraying the spray bottles. Shaping the challah dough into braids and other interesting shapes, and smelling the yummy challah smell as they baked, was tons of floury fun. Before lunchtime, we put on our swimsuits and ran outside for a great time in our very own kiddie pools, sprinkler, and sandbox.
Shabbat Shalom everyone! See you on Monday!

Fabulous Friday!

Today was an absolutely smashing end to our unbelievable first week of CGI '07. We learned all about listening to and respecting your elders, like your parents and teachers. Then we got to experiment with all different kinds of fabric paints -- spray-on, puff paint, and more!-- when we decorated our Shabbat Bags. We're going to be filling the bags with all kinds of cool Shabbat crafts in the coming weeks! Then we put on our baking caps and shaped the challah dough into beautiful braids and creative shapes. Every bunk got a turn in the prize room, redeeming our treasure stamps for fantastic prizes. We all sang songs and drank the grape juice at Shabbat party, then watched an awesome play put on by none other than our very own bunks Simcha Silver and Giving Gold! A round of applause for that amazing performance! Finally, we ran to the bus to end off a busy week with a refreshing splash in the pool.
Shabbat Shalom everyone! See you on Monday!

Welcome To Tiny Tots!

Hey everyone! Welcome to Tiny Tots! We've been having such an amazing week, I don't even know where to start. On Monday, we greeted all the cute, freindly, (sometimes shy!) new faces with our daily name-practicing ball game. Our new favorite playtime toys are smelly playdough, the big bucket full of animals, and of course the dollhouse. We quickly changed into our bathing suits and got sprayed with the tickly sunscreen before heading off to swim at Buhr pool, splashing in the huge pool and running under the fountains! Tuesday started off with circle time, snack, and spaonge-painting, before we piled in the van to score tons of points at Colonial Lanes. We had an awesome time wearing those cool flourescent shoes and pushing the balls off the ball ramps and down the lanes to knock down all the pins! Wednesday was a hit, from making our bodies into all kinds of cool shapes and getting rolled like a burrito in yoga, to sports, to swimming in our very own camp kiddie pool. We loved sliding down the water slide and playing duck duck goose with water! On Thursdaywe had an absolutely packed day. We started off learning in circle time all about the special present that G-d gave us - the Torah! We stuck all different kinds of foam shapes onto our picture frames...more about that later. Then we carefully measured the oil, cracked the eggs, and made our very own chocolate cupcakes! While they baked, we had a special visitor, Devora Leah Goldstein! We had a grest time dancing with her, wiggling our etzbaot (fingers) and twirling the parachute. Then we headed outside to blow giant bubbles and decorate the pavement with sidewalk chalk. Finally, we decorated our cupcakes with green frosting, sprinkles, and graham crackers to look just like Har Sinai. Whew, were we tired by the time our parents came!

back in the swing of things....

Welcome back to all those oldies and welcome to the new smiling faces!!! Camp started off on a roll with the most amazing activities, workshops, field trips...and of course the awesome counselors!!! On the first day of camp, we found out that we will be spending our summer on an island, and not just any old island... it's CGI Treasure Island! Throughout the summer, we will be discovering and collecting all the buried treasure on our sunny, tropical island. The first treasure we managed to dig up was an old bronze chest full of Kindness, so we spent the week learning all about that special mitzvah. Starting from the very first day, after some get-to-know-you games, we jumped right into funshops, getting to choose betweeen sports, yoga, computers, music or art. It was a hard decision, but everyone in all the groups had fun, whether they were bending and twisting in yoga, or kicking the ball in sports. Then we ran off for some swimmiong before it was time to go home.... On Tuesday, we each got our very own treasure box, which we had a blast decorating with gold coins and gems. As the summer goes along, our treasure boxes are going to get filled up with all the stamps we're going to collect. After lunch, it was time for the field trip to Northfork Farms, where we rode a bucking bronco, and best of all, got to see a REAL Indian in his teepee! On Wednesday, when we learned how much it helps sick people when we visit them or do other nice things for them, we made Get Well cards that we're sending to sick people. After sports and funshops, we ran through the raindrops to the bus to swim in our nice, cozy, indoor pool, until --BAM!-- the lights went out! Boy was that scary!Luckily, they went on again a moment later and we kept on swimming. Thurday was Appreciation DAy, so we learned all about appreciating and respecting the people who do so much for us -- our parents! We wove a thankfulness web with a ball of yarn, and filled up a "sand" art with chocolate chip cookie ingredients. We'll have fun pouring it out and baking up a big batch of cookies at home. (Cleaning service not included!) Then we ate lunch and jumped on the bus for an awesome time at Putt N Glow, the coolest glow-in-the-dark miniature golf course around.