Playtime: Remote and in-person art and craft options for kids this summer

Everett’s Schack Art Center are offering both remote and in-person art camps this summer. (Photos courtesy Schack Art Center)

Over the last couple of weeks, we (OK, I) have been hyper focused on taking the kids’ makeshift workspaces and preparing them for more long-term use — the Edmonds School District announced this week that the 20-21 school year would start with a remote learning schedule. It has been all kinds of cleaning out closets and shifting desks and looking at places to buy second hand office equipment – we have had luck on OfferUp, Facebook Marketplace, and have seen more options on local Buy Nothing and Buy – Sell -Trade pages on Facebook. It has also included a mental checklist of all of the things we donated over winter break that we were sure we would never use again, like mousepads and old monitors, what would sure have come in handy about now. This is all to say that after all of the ‘Do you want to keep this?’ and ‘How could this be so messy after we just spent a week organizing it?’ we really needed something fun to do together. Thankfully we had signed up for Sno-Isle Libraries Harry Potter Trivia that was held this past week. You could really customize your participation level at this event, held over Zoom. With fun team names, we chose “Mrs. Norris,” and some costumes, participants could have their cameras off the whole time if they chose and there was never a requirement to speak. While we got less than half of the answers that the winner got right, it was a nice chance to hang out together while not having to sit still or be particularly quiet and talk about the questions. I checked out the library calendar on Sno-Isle.org and see that there is a music-themed Family Trivia Friday, Aug. 7 at 4 p.m. — it requires pre-registration and last week’s event was full!

While not to the sourdough starter/banana bread level, I have seen a lot of people tie dying on social media. This is one of the few quarantine trends that I think about tackling though I am decidedly not crafty. Since I figured I may not be the only one wondering about it, I checked out the websites for JoAnn and Michaels, both in Lynnwood, and both had different level of tie dye kits in stock (though what they have has changed over the days of clicking on them,) of course they also both have the individual colors of dye and plain t-shirts/tote bags if you are at a level where you don’t need your hand held by the kit version of the craft. If you would really like a tie dye shirt and not to clean up any of the mess, Etsy has a pretty big collection of ready-to- wear/use tie-dye options.

A ferry boat cereal bowl project from Glazed and Amazed.

If your camper wants to do some art and you are more of a kit person, Glazed and Amazed in Edmonds, 514 Main St., has some “camp” options this summer. They are offering take home options for pottery, canvas, and clay projects and also an in-studio class option for a Glass or Clay project that has a maximum of five participants. These 90-minute classes require an RSVP and are for students ages 7 to 15. The project options cover a lot of interests, the themes range from animals, to mystical garden, to Ferry Boat, Pokémon, and Lego. The Ferry Boat Cereal Bowl caught my eye. You can find a list of projects and instructions on how to register for the in-person option at GlazedandAmazed.com.

The Schack Art Center in Everett, 2921 Hoyt Ave., is also offering a mix of in-person and online art camps. The in-person options are limited to six students who will each have their own 6-foot table to work at. Drawing and painting classes from home include a list of supplies, some of which I’ve seen at ARTspot Edmonds. Most classes are for artists in the 10 to 15 age range though one in-person option starts at 8 years old and another starts at age 15. For more information and registration you can visit Schack.org or Facebook.com/SchackArtCenter, which also includes video tours of their most recent exhibit.

Schack also offers online camps.

As we start to catch up on doctor appointments and find new ways to fit in previously planned but currently unavailable options, we revisited the Great Conversations classes. You may have heard of the puberty classes held at local Children’s Hospital locations. These classes, “designed for the physical, emotional, cognitive, and social developmental space of typical 10-to-12-year-olds,” are offered to preteens, teens and their families on “puberty, sexuality, communication, decision-making and other important topics surrounding adolescents.” While I didn’t get the call from the bullpen on this activity when we booked it before, I hear that it was a good mix of real information given in an easygoing way. Great Conversations describes it as a “down-to-earth approach combined with humor and clear factual information.” It took a bit of time before the class was offered in an online format, but now it is! You can find class descriptions and registration information, including scholarship options, at GreatConversations.com.

— By Jennifer Marx

Jen Marx, an Edmonds mom of two boys, is always looking for a fun place to take the kids that makes them tired enough to go to bed on time.

 

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