My Day at Summer Math Camp

My Day at Summer Math Camp

Through funding provided by the Literacy and Numeracy Secretariat and great coordination by the Council of Ontario Directors of Education, the Ottawa Catholic School Board was able this summer to offer 3-week long math camps for primary-age students at Dr. F. J. McDonald and St. John Paul II schools.  There were 2 goal for this summer learning program: to prevent summer learning loss and to close the achievement gap in mathematics.  Our camps were called Count Me In.

Math Camp T-shirts given to all students

At the camps, the children participated in rich and engaging learning activities that not only reinforced the children’s mathematical skills but also increased their interest in numeracy.   The summer learning program also featured a healthy living component with nutritional snacks and many recreational activities.

Agenda for the day at Dr. F J McDonald Summer Math Camp

Each day, the children were presented with a challenging but fun collaborative math inquiry. The inquiry tasks were activity-based, and in the interest of differentiation, the children were provided with a variety of resources and encouraged to show their thinking in as many different ways as possible.   

Newer technologies, such as iPads and Smartboards, were incorporated into these hands-on learning opportunities in order to increase student engagement.

Smart board math tasks

At St. John Paul II, I participated in a sandcastle building contest with the campers. First, the teachers had the students brainstormed on various ways math is seen or used on the beach. Next, students worked in teams to create castles that were high, wide and incorporated many different geometric shapes.  

Finally, teams worked to measure, count and compare all of the castles and come up with one team that won in the most categories. The campers not only learned a great deal about geometry throughout the process but as well had loads of fun – and I had loads of fun in the sand, too!

I was quite engaged,along with the students, at
St. John Paul II during the sandmcastle building challenge

I also had a great time at Dr. F. J. McDonald School participating in a math scavenger hunt. The students were grouped in teams of 3 or 4 and were given 10 tasks to complete in the playground near the school.  

Thanks to the the wonderful programming and caring assistance provided by the Count Me In math camp staff, the children had an enriching and enjoyable summer camp experience. 

When asked what they most enjoyed, here are just a few of the responses that children gave:

• "making pattern bracelets"   
• "making chocolate chip cookies"
• "doing the math scavenger hunt"
• "using the iPads"
• "Everything!"

With 3 happy Count Me In math camp attendees at Dr F J McDonald

Who loves summer math camp?

Scavenger Hunt - An outdoor math-based activity