September 2008

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Lively Fun at Dead Critter Camp

Sixteen middle and high school students gathered at the Gettysburg Area Middle School this past July for a week of great fun and serious biology. The eight girls and eight boys formed the first session of Dead Critter Camp.

Dead Critter Camp, also called Comparative Animal Physiology, was offered as part of the Learning Adventures program sponsored by the Interfaith Center for Peace and Justice.

Campers spent most of each day in the lab doing actual dissections. The animals dissected included the sea sponge, earthworm, crayfish, grasshopper, clam, starfish, perch, frog, and fetal pig. Weldon-Siviy notes that “A handful of campers did balk at the fetal pig, and opted to just observe their neighbor’s dissection. But surprisingly few. Most of the kids dove right in. This could be a good decade for scientists in Adams County.” Co-teacher Sabrina Paxton-Daily agreed, commenting that the camp provided a really unique hands-on learning opportunity.

Campers also examined and handled live specimens including earth worms, wood lice, cockroaches, fresh water clams, sea urchins, dwarf and golden hamsters, juvenile rats, and guinea pigs. “The kids loved the live animal component,” Weldon-Siviy noted. “I expected that, but I was a bit surprised at how popular the sea urchins were. Looking a lot like an underwater porcupine, it’s not a terribly cuddly critter.”

Next year, ICPJ plans to offer two Learning Adventures science camps. In addition to offering Dead Critter Camp to a new group of campers, ICPJ will launch a new offering in forensics called CSI Gettysburg.

For more information about the new academic camps, email Weldon-Siviy at learning_adventures@live.com or leave a message at (717) 334-0752.

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Last updated September 7, 2008

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