Summer Camp

2006 Summer Camp: SAHRA again supported The Phoenix Zoo's Camp Zoo program for 5th and 6th grade students. The theme was "Working As A Team", and campers discovered how working together helps animals survive. Through the generous support of the Salt River Project (SRP), students received rain gauges to participate in the rainlog.org citizen science project with SAHRA. Click here to reach the Camp Zoo web page.

SAHRA was also pleased that The Desert Botanical Garden's used the WATER kits program in their 2006 Summer Eco Camp featuring "Survivor: DBG" and "Wild Water Ways", where campers discovered the many ways water makes life possible in the Sonoran Desert. Campers explored how plants and animals are specially adapted to live in an arid environment through hands-on science experiments, crafts, and unique field trips. After learning about local water resources and conservation, campers had the option to spend the night in the Survivor: DBG Camp or take a river ride down the Salt River.

In 2005, SAHRA collaborated with the Phoenix Zoo to present Desert Survival ZooCamp for 5th and 6th grade students. This exciting summer program combined SAHRA water invertebrate and water sampling activities with Zoo desert conservation explorations so campers could learn about what it takes to survive in the desert. Topics investigated included water, weather, botany, geology, and of course, animals! Campers enjoyed hands-on experiences with desert creatures, took edible desert hikes, went rock climbing, and designed a desert conservation plan based on their new knowledge. Scholarships were provided to students from low-income families.

In 2004, SAHRA and Flandrau Science Center co-hosted Camp Wildfire, which focused on the causes and outcomes of the Aspen Fire in the Catalina Mountains. Camp activities included creating sun prints, simulating how trees compete for essential needs, interpreting tree rings, exploring the chemistry and physics of fire, and using a computer simulation to manage a wildfire. Campers participated in on campus field trips to the Tree Ring Laboratory and the Center for Creative Photography. Each week culminated in a field trip to the Catalina Mountains to observe and collect data in recovering burned areas. Scholarships were provided to students from low-income families.

                                                                                       2004 Camp Wildfire

2003 campers hear a Native American monsoon story

During the summer of 2003, SAHRA and Flandrau Science Center co-hosted Monsoon Madness Summer Camp. The theme of the camp was Tucson's summer monsoons and included hands-on activities and field trips. We provided financial support for families that found the camp fee prohibitive.

For more information, contact John Madden at (520) 626-8683.
maddenj1@sahra.arizona.edu

page last updated: 12-27-07