Get your children outdoors this summer and book them in a Nature Explorers Summer Camp. Our nature camps are hands-on, fun-filled learning at Allan Brooks Nature Centre! Children will learn about our local ecosystems and wildlife through outdoor lessons, play, crafts, games, and activities!
Our Nature Explorers Camp is a day camp for children ages 6 – 8. These are full-day camps that run for 4 days from 9 am – 4 pm, Tuesday – Friday.
Nature Explorers Theme: Glow, Gloam & Creepy-Crawlies
For kids who love bugs, beetles, and all the tiny things. Learn how to explore micro-habitats safely, use simple survey tools, and discover life cycles. Add navigation challenges and team games, then finish with a Creepy-Crawly Expo where campers share their favourite finds.
Day 1 Micro-habitat explorers and bug ethics
Indoor: Welcome and camp culture. Name game and “bug names” (each child chooses an insect nickname for the week). Camp rules framed as “Field Scientist Code” (kind hands, gentle feet, return everything). Discovery Room “Meet the Residents”. Track-matching warm-up and wingspan check-in as “measurement practice”. Live critter observation (bee colony/turtle/snake) with sketch-notes. “My favourite micro-habitat” field journal page (draw + 3 labels). Build a “Bug Rules” poster as a group. Predator/Prey tag: “Birds vs Beetles” (beetles must freeze at “under cover” spots). “Micro-habitat trays” (leaf litter, twigs – use magnifiers), observation stations.
Outdoor: Micro-habitat ethics bootcamp. “Lift like a lizard” practice: safe log/rock lifting, look, replace exactly. Habitat boundaries talk where we can and can’t look (stay on trail edges/designated search zones. Bug handling skills: bug viewer demo (hand-held magnifiers), “one-minute observation then release” First field survey: Timed “4 sqft hunt” in pairs (not collecting, just observing) count how many different tiny creatures you can spot. “Where are they hiding?” Create a scavenger list: under leaf litter, on stems, near pond edge. Camouflage challenge: hide coloured clips/poms etc. in grass and see which colours disappear fastest when you walk away from them.
Day 2 “Night bugs in the daytime” and life cycles
Outdoor: Daytime methods for “evening” insects. “Pollinator patrol” around native plant gardens: who’s visiting today? Sound scavenger: listen for insect sounds (short sit-spot). “Build-a-bug” movement game: move like a beetle, hop like a grasshopper, creep like a mantis.
Indoor: Glow and Gloam lab. “Glow signals” activity: how animals use light/dark (fireflies concept, bioluminescence as an idea). Create “night vision” dark box peek activity (what can you see when your eyes adjust?) Build a simple “insect sense” demo: scent trail game ants – vibration game. Life-cycle flipbook: egg–larva–pupa–adult with a chosen insect. “Pollinator badge” craft – use pin maker (bee, butterfly, hoverfly etc).
Day 3 Navigation with reflective markers plus team challenges
Outdoor: Bug Ranger Navigation. Intro to trail awareness and respectful movement on the Grasslands Trail (stay together, eyes up, no trampling). Reflective marker course: “How to use a compass”: N/E/S/W with landmarks. Follow 5–6 markers to “habitat checkpoints”. Team round: relay teams collect “habitat tokens” from checkpoints in grasslands theatre area.
Indoor: Problem-solving lab: Build a simple “bug hotel” craft to take home (no installing on-site, kids take it home that day) using paper straws etc. Team engineering: design a shelter that keeps a pretend beetle cool and safe (shade, airflow). Games: “Web Weavers”: string web teamwork game (move a “fly” safely through it). “Ant Trail”: follow-the-leader with obstacles, then swap leaders and compare strategies.
Day 4 Creepy-Crawly Expo and sharing
Outdoor: Expo stations (rotations): Magnifier station: “tiny wonders” (safely observe what you can find). Camouflage station: “spot the hidden bug”. “Bug Parade” (each child demonstrates their creature’s movement and the group guesses).
Indoor: Posters and show-and-tell circle: Campers make a simple poster: My creature, Where it lives, What it eats, One cool fact. “Field Scientist Awards” – kindest observer, best teamwork, sharpest spotter etc. Habitat station: build a mini habitat tray and explain why it works. Navigation mini station: a short marker trail to a “final find”.
Once you are registered for a camp you must fill out this Family Information Form.
For inquiries about our 2026 summer camps please contact the ABNC office. Email: education@abnc.ca Phone: 250-260-4227.
