Boys and Girls Club announces summer schedule for Gravette

GRAVETTE -- The Boys & Girls Club of Western Benton County in Gravette announces a special summer program this year.

"In partnership with the Gravette Public Schools, support from the 21st Century Grant and local support from Care and Share, an exciting summer program this year for children in the Gravette community is free of charge," said Chris Shimer, chief professional officer. "Unfortunately, for many children, when school doors close, they struggle to access educational opportunities as well as healthy meals and adult supervision," Shimer added.

"One type of program that is desperately needed in our community is summer programming with a strong academic component. Studies show that youth lose about two months of grade-level equivalency skills over the summer months. Our summer program in Gravette is designed specifically to help reduce the summer slide, especially for those children that need us most," explained Shimer.

The Daily Schedule

Unlike previous years, the doors will open at 7:30 a.m. at the Gravette Upper Elememtary. A healthy breakfast will be served each morning, with targeted educational programs implemented by Gravette school teachers and Boys & Girls Club staff once breakfast is concluded.

Children will participate in the lunch program offered at the Gravette Middle School. Upon the conclusion of lunch, children will be walked to the Boys & Girls Club facility currently located in the Civic Center.

Afternoon activities will consist of fun games, along with swimming and splashing at the local pool.

The program ends at 5:30 p.m. at the Boys & Girls Club.

Summer Camps

"Because of the partnership between the Boys & Girls Club, the 21st Century Grant and Care & Share, the Gravette school students in grades 3-8 have an opportunity to participate in an outstanding summer program," said Richard Page, Gravette superintendent of schools. "This summer, students will be on an adventure to space camp, sports camp, art week, earth week and several other fun and exciting learning opportunities. I hope all of our students get to join in the fun," he added.

The eight-week summer program is slated to begin June 9 and run through Aug. 8. The program will be closed the week of June 30 through the 4th of July. Registration is required and space is limited.

Summer registration packets are available at the Boys & Girls Club in Gravette, located at 401 Charlotte St., S.E. (Civic Center) and online at www.bgcwbc.org. For more information, contact Ben Onnen at 787-6524 or [email protected].

Eight Special Weeks

Week 1: June 9-13 --Space Camp -- This camp will include rocket building and launching along with a special field trip related to Space Camp.

Week 2: June 16-20 --Sports Week -- This camp will include a field trip to a Naturals home game along with team challenges and races.

Week 3: June 23-27 -- Art Week -- This camp will include a field trip to Crystal Bridges and focus on painting and pottery.

Week 4: July 7-11 -- Mystery Week -- This camp will include a field trip to Spanish Treasure Cave (tour and digging for gems) along with a crime scene mystery and identifying clues.

Week 5: July 14-18 --Earth Week -- This camp will include a field trip to the Illinois Watershed for a day on the river along with programming focusing on the environment.

Week 6: July 21-25 -- Discovering the Oceans -- This camp will include a field trip to Siloam Springs Aquatic Center along with ocean trivia and underwater life discovery.

Week 7: July 28 - August 1 -- Entrepreneur Week -- This camp will include a local walking field trip to tour local businesses. It will also include children inventing, producing and selling a product with the proceeds to be donated to a local nonprofit agency of their choice.

Week 8: August 4-8 --World Cultures Week --This camp will include a field trip to the Boys & Girls Club in Siloam Springs to participate in a local cookout and talent show along with programming focused on diverse cultures.

General News on 05/14/2014