When shelter-in-place orders began in March, our spring workshops were only halfway through the twelve-week series. The COVID-19 virus and subsequent global shutdowns affected us all, and we knew we had to adapt our programs quickly to serve vulnerable youth in this new, at-home environment. Knowing parents were looking for summer distance learning opportunities for their children, we prepared to adapt our Amplify! Summer Creative Writing Camps to fit the new normal. For the first time, Amplify! would offer both virtual workshops as well as modified in-person sessions for a small number of youth (socially distanced, of course).
Each summer, 916 Ink opens the doors to our creative writing wonderland, the Imaginarium, for our Amplify! Summer Creative Writing Camps. Youth from all over the greater Sacramento area pour into this magical writing space for week-long sessions where they get to craft stories, create art, form new friendships, and leave as published authors.
For those students in virtual sessions, our programming team crafted adventure boxes—packages that included everything a child could need to write creatively at home, as well as a bit of Imaginarium magic. “The adventure box that came in the mail might be the coolest thing that has happened in 2020,” said one parent, Emily Kropp. “I was very impressed with the way staff used the time each day (activities, collaborative storytelling, guest speakers, multimedia projects) and with the supportive and loving staff members who truly amplified [my daughter’s] imagination and her sense of confidence.”
Our Wordslingers had plenty of practice in leading virtual workshops by the time Amplify! Summer Creative Writing Camps began. They had continued most of our spring programs via Zoom once the shutdowns began and found the best tactics for engaging youth in online workshops.
“My daughter has been far more engaged each day for this camp than she was for distance learning during the school year,” claimed Christiana Dominguez. “I don't think I'm overstating things to say that this camp has lifted her spirits in a way little else has since the start of Shelter-in-Place.”
While we had planned on having four weeks of modified in-person camp sessions, shutdowns returned the day we began our second week back in the Imaginarium. Our dedicated staff hurried to put together adventure boxes for students to take home, and they jumped right into virtual workshops the next day. The rest of the Amplify! sessions were transitioned to virtual workshops and allowed even more youth the opportunity to experience our workshops from home.
“Thank you to 916 Ink for providing such a high quality distance camp opportunity for our kids. Both Lukas and Emma were engaged at all times with the camp and they were sure it wasn't going to be fun when I told them about it. Of course, the instructors changed their minds very quickly with engaging activities, discussions and materials,” expressed Michelle Meditz.
Though this year’s Amplify! Summer Creative Writing Camps were a bit different than in the past, we were able to serve over 100 youth this summer! That’s 100 young writers that had the opportunity to improve their literacy skills, increase their confidence, and leave our workshops knowing their voices and stories matter.
