June 23 2012 – July 13, 2012

Tuition: $4120

When the girls are getting ready for grade eight, we get real. We talk about magazines, movies, music videos, social media, mom, dad, boys, school, food, clothes—everything. Girls examine the messages they receive about what kind of girl they “should” be, determine who creates those messages and explore why those messages exist. Campers get time and space to reflect about who they want to be, why, and how to stay true to themselves.

Life at GLI
The best thing about life at GLI? Friends! We make sure that campers are matched with awesome roommates and divided into close-knit advisory groups. It’s the relationships girls form at GLI that give them the confidence to take risks, be silly and try things they’ve never done before. In the grade eight program, girls explore how they think about themselves, their bodies, their schools and their families. GLI pushes girls to reflect on their passions and dreams.

Workshops
Our eighth grade program highlights girls’ agency. In middle school, it’s easy to feel like your life is out of your control, but we teach girls that they have opportunities every day to take action, make positive choices and create change in their lives.

We encourage girls to activate a powerful channel to their authentic selves by becoming aware of and expressing emotions. When girls are emotionally intelligent, they can better understand and regulate their thoughts, behavior and impulses. They can also navigate intimacy and difficult choices more effectively.

Project
At the start of the session, each girl chooses a creative project to focus on for three weeks.  Guided by teaching artists, campers play, improvise and create unique works of art. Last summer’s projects included: photography, theater and improvisation, creative writing, book making and more.

Trips and Events
GLI presents girls with positive challenges so that they can experience a real sense of mastery and accomplishment. We visit a high and low ropes course, take hikes and enjoy outdoor adventures. We get off campus every few days for a leadership challenge or just for fun.

Weekends are all about chilling out. We head to the lake for a day, look for fun shows to see or plan over-the-top July fourth celebrations. We finish camp with one big all-camp sleepover.

Food
Every meal is served buffet style. Campers pick from a wide selection of delicious options. Counselors are aware of what is on campers’ plates and make sure that protein makes an appearance a couple times a day. We encourage girls to have at least two or three colors on their plate for lunch and dinner.

Schedule
We keep GLI campers moving!
• 8:45 – Theater games and improvisation
• 9:30 – Morning workshops
• 11:15 – Lunch
• 12:15 – Free time. The highlight of this time is mail! Letters and care packages are distributed, and everyone enjoys an hour of snacking on gummy worms, playing games, reading quietly or just swapping stories.
• 1:15 – Small group advisory discussions
• 2:00 – Pick your art project!
• 4:00 – It’s time to get moving. If it’s hot, we head to the pool. Other choices might include a short hike, yoga, basketball, Pilates, soccer, tennis and more.
• 6:00 – Dinner
• 7:00 – Evenings are 100% fun! Activities include game show night, scavenger hunt, mask making, jewelry making, a trip to the theater or movies, and much more.
• 9:00 – Love notes! Hall time, then we get ready for bed. An adored GLI tradition, Love Notes is the time where we gather in the hall, dance to GLI playlists, and write notes to fellow campers who made our day!

On the weekends, we love sleeping in, watching cartoons and eating breakfast in our PJs! After a morning of tie dye, crafts and bubble contests we might head to the lake for the day, or snuggle indoors with hot chocolate and a movie.

If the stars are out, we might stay up late to find the Big Dipper.

For more information, please contact Marsha Philitas, Summer Camp Co-Director, at marsha@girlsleadership.org or 866-744-9102 Ext 2.