Learning About ICELAND: An At-Home, Pre-K Summer Camp

I have spent WEEKS preparing for the dreaded month of July. 😫 Why dreaded? Because this July we have nothing to do and nowhere to go, and I’m home all day with a 2yo and 4yo. I love them dearly but worry about keeping my sanity without any breaks during the day!🤣

SO, I decided to plan an afternoon summer camp.💁‍♀️ You know that dreaded chunk of time in late afternoon, when dinner seems farther and farther away? I thought, what better time to do a super fun summer camp at home!

So I took out the globe and asked my older daughter (Natalie) which countries she’d like to study this summer.

She pointed to Iceland, Chile, the Philippines, and “that country Aunt Hannah is moving to” (Oman).

My goals? Read one book a day about that week’s country, and find all those books in the library. (Aka, save money.) CHECK.
Keep it simple so I don’t get overwhelmed. CHECK. (At least so far lol.)
Also, set up the week’s activity schedule like this:

Monday: Make a RECIPE from that country (that’s allergy-friendly!)
Tuesday: Do a SCIENCE EXPERIMENT based on that country
Wednesday: Learn a DANCE from that country
Thursday: Make a CRAFT based on that country
Friday: Go on an OUTING based on what we learned

So, if you’re also looking for a way to maintain your afternoon sanity this summer, let me share our Iceland week of summer camp with you!

Kids Learn About Iceland:
A 1-Week, At-Home, Pre-K Summer Camp

Monday:
Read: Portions of “Exploring Countries: Iceland” by Lisa Owings
Recipe: Make Viking Bread and/or Kjotsupa Lamb Soup for dinner

Tuesday:
Read: “Seeking an Aurora” by Elizabeth Pulbord & Anne Bannock
Science Experiment: Make Aurora Slime – see directions on page 017 of “Professor Figgy’s Weather & Climate Science Lab for Kids” by Jim Noonan (also found at the library!)

Wednesday:
Read: “How the Ladies Stopped the Wind” by Bruce McMillan
Dance: Learn an Icelandic dance with this YouTube video

Thursday:
Read: “Arctic Foxes” by Ruth Owen
Craft: Make a paper plate Arctic fox with this tutorial

Friday:
Read: “My Horse of the North” by Bruce McMillan
Outing: Pony rides!

Additional Reading:
“The Problem with Chickens” by Bruce McMillan
“Nights of the Pufflings” by Bruce McMillan
“Northern Lights” by Valerie Bodden
“Surtsey: The Newest Place on Earth” by Kathryn Lasky
“Puffling Patrol” by Ted and Betsy Lewin

Additional Optional Activity:
Sensory Play: Something with hot and cold, since Iceland is the land of ice and fire

Shopping List:

Here are the items you’ll need for the craft and experiment. (This list does not include grocery items that you’ll need, based on which recipe(s) you choose to use.)

Experiment Tools & Materials (per “Weather & Climate Science Lab”):

• Yellow highlighter
• Pliers
• 3 bowls or containers
• Measuring cup
• Hot water
• Protective gloves
• Measuring spoons
• 4 ounces clear school glue
• 2 teaspoons borax laundry booster
• 2 mixing spoons
• 3 types of glitter (fine iridescent, chunky blue, silver and gold stars)
• Black light

Craft Tools & Materials:

• Paper plate
• Scissors
• White tissue paper
• White cardstock paper
• 2 wiggly eyes
• Black pom pom
• Glue

In the next post, I’ll share Week 2 of the summer camp: CHILE!!

If you do this summer camp, I want to hear how it went for you! And I’ll update this post with photos after we actually DO this week of summer camp ourselves! 😍