For the second summer in a row, I have led a week of  clown themed camp at Windham Christian Academy's summer day camp.  This year was a big step forward from the initial year.  First of all, enrollment was up: we had 13 kids this summer as opposed to nine in 2020.  Also, my wife, Sue, is the director of the camp programs this summer, so we worked together this time.  

After a I did a performance each day, I would teach a skill:  juggling, magic, balloon sculpting, mime and costume/ make up.  After a break, we may watch a video  (including Emmitt Kelly, Lou Jacobs and others), learn the eight commandments of clowning, plan costumes and make up for the final day, and then they had free exploration time to work on juggling, balloons and more.

Although we didn't plan a show of anysort, the kids all definitely advanced in their skills through the week.  Some of the campers are LOL members, and Amber mastered club juggling, Liam and Killian learned multiple card tricks, and seven year old Grace became a balloon sculpting wiz!  

One of the clown commandments is to never break character.  At dismissal on the final day, little Grace was crossing the parking lot with her dad.  She was still in full make up and costume, and I overheard this conversation:

Dad: "Hey, Grace..."

Grace: "I'm not Grace, I'm Bubbles.  And that means I can call you 'Bill'."

I didn't hear the rest, but I bet Bill and Bubbles were in for a long afternoon together.

Read about camp here:  http://news.thewindhameagle.com/2021/08/kids-clown-around-at-warrior-explorer.html