Summer 2018 Zoo Camp

WHY ZOO CAMP?top 10 reasons to come to camp at the henry vilas zoo!1o. New lower price! We’re dedicated to helping as many kids as possible experience zoo camp, so we made the price more affordable. We’ve also added more activities to the day and reduced group sizes to ensure the highest quality experience.

9. convenience for working families and anyone looking or unique summer enrichment. Campers’ days are filled with fun, educational activities and our extended-day program makes it a breeze for parents to pick up and drop of their campers around a full work day.

8. spend your days at one of madison‘s favorite places. This year we’ll not only enjoy the shady paths and exhibits around the zoo, but we’ll also take advantage of the surrounding Vilas Park and Vilas Beach for more summer fun.

7. Build empathy for other living creatures. By forming deep connections with the animals at the zoo, campers learn to have respect for all life. Campers leave with a passion for animals and an understanding of what it means to care for each other and the larger world.

6. Get to know your favorite animal in a whole new way! You probably already have a favorite animal at the zoo and now you can observe that animal up close to learn so much more. You’ll probably find some new favorite animals along the way!

5. gain confidence in science. Our camps are built around real life questions that zookeepers and vets have to answer on a daily basis. Engaging in relevant science allows the campers to carry out their own science investigations. Our camps are highly educational and aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards.

4. fun! Learning about animals leads the way to lots of fun! Create a new toy for a lion or play your own games with other campers to better understand camouflage. Think like a polar bear and splash in the lake when it gets hot!

3. you’ll know the zoo better than anyone! Over 830,000 visitors a year come to the zoo, but how many of them get to work alongside keepers, or help feed their favorite animal behind the scenes? You’ll learn the stories about how to the zoo takes such incredible care of our animals and what you can do to help!

2. friendship Friendship bonds are sealed after throwing fish to the seals with a new friend, or solving the zookeeper challenge of the day with your teammates.

1. lifelong memories Touching a rhino, helping zookeepers set up a porcupine enclosure, having a red panda sniff your shoe. These and the other animal experiences at zoo camp are the memories that last a lifetime!

Summer Zoo Camp InformationREGISTRATIONonline registration opens:February 1: Members of the Henry Vilas zooFebruary 8: General publicBuilding on our unique animal experiences, Zoo Camp 2018 will include more hands-on opportunities for campers to go behind the scenes and help care for the animals. Our camps will present challenges that put campers in the shoes of keepers, vets, or zoo administrators and motivate campers to seek the information to solve real-life problems. Campers leave zoo camp with a greater awareness for the individual animals at the zoo and how to help animals in the wild, all while building their science skills and making new friends.

Parents are invited to join us for lunch on Fridays to learn about what their camper has been up to, and join us for fun actvities, informal presentations, and camper-led tours of the zoo. It’s an amazing week for all animal lovers!

Perhaps best of all, we’ve lowered our prices for 2018, making zoo camp more accessible to the community! We’ve managed to do this while reducing the group size and adding an hour onto the camp day. Aftercare is available, making it a breeze for working families to fit zoo camp into their schedule.

HoursDrop off: 8:00-8:30amK-1 Camp: 8:30-11:30AMFull Day Camp: 8:30am-3:30pmAftercare (Optional): 3:30pm-5PM

PricesK-1 Camp: $180 Zoo Members/$195 Non-MembersFull Day Camp: $300 Zoo Members/$335 Non-Members

In the camp session descriptions, all grades listed are for the grade your child will be entering in the fall. Don’t see a session that works for you? Please email us to discuss whether a different age group would be appropriate for your child. We like to be flexible as long as everyone thinks it will be a good fit.

Summer Zoo Camp scheduleKinderfarifor campers going into k-1st gradewild homes: What makes a home just right for an animal? Come and learn about different animal homes and design a home for one of your stuffed pals! All Kinderfari camps end with either a train or carousel ride.Offered Week 6 (July 23-27) and Week 8 (August 6-10)

animal babies: How do animals help their babies survive? Come make your own discoveries about animal babies. All Kinderfari camps end with either a train or carousel ride.Offered Week 4 (July 9-13)

Animal Builders, animal inventors: Biomimcry, Survival, and Animals that Change the Land. Come and create your own animal-inspired inventions and animal homes. All Kinderfari camps end with either a train or carousel ride.Offered Week 7 (July 30-August 3) and Week 9 (August 13-17)

explorersfor campers going into 2nd-3rd gradeHealthy animals: Food, Vet Care, and Babies at the Zoo. Learn what it takes to keep our animals healthy.Offered Week 1 (June 11-15), Week 5 (July 16-20) and Week 10 (August 20-24)

team players: How Animals Help Each Other Survive (and fun team activities for you, too!) Many wild animals work together to survive. Investigate the awesome animals at the zoo while making friends through fun teamwork games.Offered Week 2 (June 18-22) and Week 7 (July 30-August 3)

past to present: Dinosaurs at the zoo? Come and learn about the investigations scientists carry out to understand the link between dinosaurs and their living relatives at the zoo.Offered Week 4 (July 9-13) and Week 8 (August 6-10)

Summer Zoo Camp schedulescoutsfor campers going into 4th-5th gradeanimal rescuers: Let’s investigate what animals need to survive and how we can assist them. Are you ready to help animals?Offered Week 1 (June 11-15), Week 3 (June 25-29) and Week 7 (July 30-August 3)

trainers, inventors and engineers: Training animals with positive reinforcement requires a lot of problem solving skills and creative thinking. You’ll learn how keepers train animals, carry out your own investigation into how to train animals, and even design your own animal-inspired creations that can really help the zoo.Offered Week 5 (July 16-20) and Week 10 (August 20-24)

You are the scientist: What animals are in your backyard? What wild animals live in and around the zoo? Join an international habitat mapping project by carefully observing the zoo animals and Wisconsin’s wild animals to learn how you can make the world a better place.Offered Week 6 (July 23-27) and Week 9 (August 13-17)

Junior zookeeperfor campers going into 6th-8th gradegirls steam: Girls - come join us for a mix of everything exciting the zoo has to offer! STEAM curriculum covers science, technology, engineering, art and math while bonding with other awesome girls and animals at the zoo.Offered Week 3 (June 25-29)animal behavior: From instinct to action, behavior is everything an animal does. Animal Behavior is one of our most popular camps! Ideal for anyone who loves animals and wants to know the inside story about resident animals at the Henry Vilas Zoo.Offered Week 2 (June 18-22), Week 6 (July 23-27) and Week 9 (August 13-17)

If I Ran the HEnry Vilas Zoo: Careers in Engineering, the Sciences and the Zoo field. Come to carry out your own inquiry projects to learn more about a number of exciting careers. You will also get many chances to meet animals up close and go behind the scenes!Offered Week 4 (July 9-13) and Week 8 (August 6-10)

Summer Zoo Camp schedulesessions by weekKinderfari: Grades K-1Explorers: Grades 2-3Scouts: Grades 4-5Junior zookeepers: Grades 6-8

Week group 1 group 2 kinderfariJune 11-15Week 1

June 18-22Week 2

June 25-29Week 3

July 9-13Week 4

July 16-20Week 5

July 23-27Week 6

July 30-Aug 3Week 7

August 6-10Week 8

August 13-17Week 9

August 20-24Week 10

Explorers (2nd-3rd)Healthy Animals

Explorers (2nd-3rd)Team Players

Scouts (4th-5th)Animal Rescuers

Explorers (2nd-3rd)Past to Present

Explorers (2nd-3rd)Healthy Animals

Scouts (4th-5th)Scientists

Explorers (2nd-3rd)Team Players

Explorers (2nd-3rd)Past to Present

Scouts (4th-5th)Scientists

Explorers (2nd-3rd)Healthy Animals

Scouts (4th-5th)Animal Rescuers

Jr. Zookeepers (6th-8th)Animal Behavior

Jr. Zookeepers (6th-8th)Girls STEAM

Jr. Zookeepers (6th-8th)Careers

Scouts (4th-5th)Trainers, Inventors

Jr. Zookeepers (6th-8th)Animal Behavior

Scouts (4th-5th)Animal Rescuers

Jr. Zookeepers (6th-8th)Careers

Jr. Zookeepers (6th-8th)Animal Behavior

Scouts (4th-5th)Trainers, Inventors

Animal Babies

Wild Homes

Animal Builders,Animal Inventors

Wild Homes

Animal Builders,Animal Inventors

important information for parentsbefore coming:fill out all the registration forms completely. Anyone who wants to use aftercare mustpre-register. You can do this as an add-on button when you register.

What to bring: 1. We no longer offer the option to order lunch or snacks. All campers should bring a snack and lunch. (Kinderfari campers do not bring lunch).2. See our detailed packing list that was sent with you confirmation email.3. Please leave items of sentimental or financial value at home.4. If your camper is in Kinderfari, Explorers, or Scouts, please do not send them with phones. Junior Zookeepers are allowed to use cellphones for camp-related activities, but the Henry Vilas Zoois not responsible for lost or stolen phones.

During registration, you must list the names of anyone who is authorized to pick up your child. We cannot release your child to someone if their name is not on the list.

please contact us ahead of time with questions or to give us more information regarding the specificneeds of your child.Email: education@vilaszoo.orgPhone: 608-843-4213

drop off:drop off is from 8:00-8:30am. Some days we have appointments with the keepers shortly after 8:30am.Please do not arrive later than 8:30am.

allow extra time on the first day. Please be aware of the major construction on Monroe Street and leave extra travel time.

drop-off location: You can put Vilas Park Beach into your GPS. You will park in the lot next to the zoo with the sign on itthat says “Zoo Classes Meet Here”.This is not the main entrance. The main entrance will be locked at this time.There is a map in the registration forms. Feel free to get in touch with us if you are not sure where thecorrect entrance is located.After signing in, campers will be led to meet their group in the center of the zoo (new location this year),so be prepared to say goodbye and send them on their way from the gate.

important information for parentsdrop-off (Continued):Please send your child with a sweatshirt in the morning. It can often be chilly at drop-off time.Campers must wear closed-toed shoes every day.

make sure to pack a labeled lunch and snack each day.We will ask you to put your camper’s lunch in the appropriate basket when you arrive.

during camp:camp runs in all weather. Please remember weather can change unexpectedly. Please pack rain gearand appropriate layers all week.

please contact us if your camper is absent. We do not offer refunds or make-up days if your camperis absent.

contact information If you need to get in contact with our camp during the day for emergencies, please call the Henry Vilas Zoological Society and they will get a message to camp leaders. 608-258-9490. If you have general questions you can email us at education@vilaszoo.org

remember to bring swimsuits and towels for thursday and friday.

on friday you may send a sealed envelope with money for the gift shop.

if a family member stays at the zoo while camp is in session, please do not approach or interactwith your camper’s group. All campers should be comfortable being left on their own with the camp.

pick-up:please inform us ahead of time if you will need to pick up a camper early.

kinderfari pick-up is at 11:30am. Parking at this time can be difficult, so please leave extra time. We will have your camper ready for you, if you want to pull up right outside the gate and stay with your car.

full day camp pick-up is at 3:30pm. Please leave extra time for parking.

anyone who is picking up a camper must be on the list of approved names. They will be asked to show a photo ID.

aftercare runs from 3:30-5:00pm. Sometimes the group will be out exploring the zoo and we willleave a number to reach us.

zoo camp faqhow much time do campers spend with the animals and behind the scenes? This is the heart of the zoo camp experience! Throughout the week, campers will have multipleopportunities to step into the role of the zookeepers: putting food out for an animal or helping to prepan animal enclosure for the day. At least once a day, and sometimes more often, campers get to seeor touch an animal up close.

what’s new at zoo camp this year?Lots of great changes are afoot! Zoo Camp has new leadership this year and we’ve lowered the price, reduced our group sizes, and added an hour to the camp day (now 8:30-3:30 with extended-day options). We’ll be going into animals enclosures more and we’ve added many new animal encounters! We focus on investigating the real life challenges zoo staff and vets face. We’ll also be enjoying the rest of Vilas Park and the Vilas Beach this year. Campers will have more opportunities to play games together and build their teamwork skills as they complete our science challenges.

What group do i sign my child up for?We group our sessions by the grade that your child will be going into in the fall. If you don’t see a session that works with your schedule, please call or email us to discuss if it would be a good fit to sign your child up for a younger or older group. We are willing to make exceptions if everyone thinks it will be a good fit. Email: education@vilaszoo.org or call 843-4213.

why are daily science challenges used to shape the camp experience?With easy access to information online, teaching children how to approach a novel challenge is more effective than telling them animal facts. Our instructors build on campers’ innate curiosity by encouraging them to carry out scientific investigations. The challenges also create natural teamwork situations that bring groups together and are lots of fun!

what kind of science challenges are you talking about?We work with the kind of challenges zoo staff and scientists are faced with everyday, such as: • What kinds of food should we feed the animals?• What should we add to the enclosure to encourage natural behaviors?• How do we design the best habitat for an animal?• How do we care for an injured animal? • What new inventions can we create by studying animals?

At Zoo Camp, we use age-appropriate scenarios based on real life. The campers then have room to observe, wonder, and come up with their own solutions - some of which we can actually put into place at the zoo!

zoo camp faq (continued)what does a typical day at zoo camp look like?• Campers arrive and are welcomed with some games or activities while everyone checks in. • Small group bonding activities start the day.• Some days campers go into an animal enclosure to help the keepers set up for the day.• The challenge of the day is revealed. The group comes up with questions and suggestions for which animals to observe.• Campers explore the zoo to make observations that will help them solve the challenge. • Meet an animal up-close or go into an enclosure to learn more. • Lunch offers a chance to eat, relax, play at the park, or go swimming. We have some epic games of capture the flag and kickball.• After lunch, campers enjoy some downtime when older and younger campers meetup to have popsicles, read picture books together and discuss their scientific challenges. This creates opportunities for multi-age bonding and more teamwork.• Back in their smaller groups, campers discuss solutions to their scientific challenges and work together to design or build a model to solve the problem they have been working on. Some days there will be another up-close animal encounter in the afternoon. • Zookeeper mail - campers can write to keepers with questions to follow up on their challenges. Keepers write back to campers the next day.• Free choice, games, or more zoo exploration. Reflection on the day.• Campers who are registered for the extended day have a snack (provided by camp) and more time to explore the zoo, play at the zoo playground, make a craft or play games together.

who leads the campHi, I’m Talia Miller and I’m the Conservation Education Manager at the Henry Vilas Zoo. I have over fifteen years in the education field. My experiences range from working in camps, working with animals for education, and I’ve taught science and literacy in the classroom. I joined the zoo last year just in time to work as the lead instructor at Zoo Camp and my six-year-old son attended his first session of Zoo Camp last summer. I have worked hard to incorporate the best of Zoo Camp with the current trends in STEM education, in order to create an updated and fantastic camp for 2018.

Hello, my name is Jess Thompson and I am the Conservation Education Curator. I have been at Henry Vilas Zoo since 2010. I’ve been in the zoo field for over fifteen years, starting in the Education Department at San Diego Safari Park. I am especially passionate about training - both animals and people - and I am so excited to share the Henry Vilas Zoo and all its amazing qualities with the community.

We are joined by counselors and interns who have extensive experience working with children. All Zoo Camp staff go through a background check and are trained in CPR and first aid. Everyone is thrilled to get to spend the summer at the Henry Vilas Zoo with your child!

zoo camp faq (continued)what is the adult to child ratio?We keep our kindergarten - first grade groups to ten children and we typically have two adults with the group. Our second grade and up camps are limited to twelve children and usually have two adults with them.

why don’t you have camps for high school students this year?We are excited to tell you about a new program at the Henry Vilas Zoo for teens. Stay tuned for more information about our teen leadership program coming soon!

what kind of communication can i expect from you once i register my child for zoo camp?Communicating with families has become a much bigger piece of what we do at Zoo Camp. The week before camp, we’ll send you a detailed reminder email. During camp, you’ll have access to our online daily schedules (subject to change due to weather, the needs of the group, and animal or zoo keeper conflicts). At the end of the week, you’ll receive a link to photos from your camper’s group so you can see how awesome the week was. We’ll also send you links to learn more about the animals your camper met. After camp ends, we send out a survey so that we can get your feedback about how to ontinue to offer an amazing camp experience! And of course, we are available to answer any questions you have at any time!