July 24, Duct Tape Shoes

Today was my last day at camp, so I was trying to use the different lessons I have learned to make it the best day.
At the beginning of free time, a boy came up to me and told me he wanted to make shoes out of duct tape. Like the girl who wanted to paint a picture, this was a new idea. Because the painting had worked out so well, I went along with it. The craft shop was well organized, so I was easily able to find duct tape and some scrap pieces of cardboard. This again reinforced the importance of organization for me. I wasn't sure, but I thought the kid was in Sr. High and so were many other kids sitting at the table with us. Because everything went so well during Sr. High week, i wasn't bothered by being in charge of kids older than me. I was still confident and could keep control of the situation. I was able to help the boy making duct tape shoes, teaching him what I knew. Another boy at the table, who had made duct tape shoes before, kept giving us suggestions. Because listening to other people had helped me so much while I was making monkey's fists, I took his suggestions and he usually turned out to be right- it helped me a lot. Like with the pipe cleaner animals, I was working with new materials to create something different. Because the pipe cleaner animals had turned out well, I was confident that the shoes would also. I was also reminded of how important it is for the crafts to be useful. Just like the girls who enjoyed making bracelets during quest because they could wear them, I think the boy who wanted to make duct tape shoes liked the shoes because he could wear them. This is a really important lesson when choosing crafts for kids to do, and I will try to apply it again in the future. Lastly, after we had completed the shoes, I made sure to clean up well and put everything back where it belonged. Organization had proved to be very important again and again.
The shoes also helped me complete my goals and one of my learning objectives. I experimented with new materials, which I hope made me more creative. I think I did a good job leading the camper through the activity, showing him what I knew. The project was very successful; the shoes turned out great. The camper even came back later to thank me and show them to me again he like them so much. I think this also helped the camper feel accomplished and confident and learn more about art. I hope this confidence and knowledge will help him in his everyday life. The shoes were a new challenge, testing me in creativity and leadership. I'd never made duct tape shoes before, and I had to figure it out and teach the craft while being in charge of someone about the same age as me.
I think this whole experience will be very useful to me in the future. Today I discovered that each of the lessons I have learned are really good to know and will continue to help me if I continue to apply them. So, this experience not only reinforced the lesson I had learned before, and completed my goals, but taught me a new lesson: that I should always apply what I learn. In the future I will try to do this.