July 1-5 (Week 3)
All courses are dependent on minimum enrollment. For more information, please see our Courses page.
Counselors-In-Training (CITs) and Interns do need to register through our CampInTouch system.
When enrollment is three students from full capacity, we'll indicate the number of remaining spots next to the title of the course or that the class is waitlisted. CampInTouch always has real-time numbers as you move through the enrollment process. The numbers below are current as of 9:45 pm Sunday 30 June.
Here's a pdf tool you may find helpful in comparing options across weeks. This Course Master lists each week's options alphabetically (pp. 1-3) and by age (pp. 3-5) and also color-coded by type of course (e.g. Culinary Creations, Sports Fun).
This Course Listing matrix will allow you easily to discover when and what your favorite instructors are teaching throughout the summer.
Happy exploring!
- All About Art (4-5) | 1 space (b/c of a cancellation)
- Minecraft Community, Jr. (5-8) | Waitlist
- Mystery Brew and Magic (5-8)
- The Magic and Beauty of Nature (6-9) | 3 spaces
- LEGO Explorers (6-10) | 2 spaces
- Making Messes into Masterpieces: Art for the Adventurous (6-10)
- Sketch Comedy for Beginners (7-10)
- Harry Potter and Company (7-11) | Waitlist
- Textures and Techniques: Experimental Watercolor (9-13)
- River Adventure: Explore, Play, Fish (9-14) | 1 space
- Advanced Comic Design (9-16) | Waitlist
- Fun with Fashion (10-14) | 2 spaces
- Improv 101 (10-14)
- Patriotic Party in the Kitchen (10-14)
- Sports Action (10-15)
- Magic the Gathering, Math, and More (11-18)
All About Art (4-5) | 1 space (b/c of a cancellation)
Tuition: 310
Course: An amazing week of creativity awaits you. Each day we will have several guided activities. We will also venture out on our own to create artistic masterpieces using a variety of materials including wood, paint, clay, fabric, paper, beads and more! Guaranteed fun!
Instructor: Originally from Michigan, Ariel Durrant relocated from Oakland, California to join CFS in 2017. They hold a degree in Human Ecology from College of the Atlantic. Ariel has more than 15 years of experience working inside and outside the classroom as a nanny, environmental educator, and community-based artist.
As an artist, Ariel is creative, flexible, and passionate about projects. As an educator, they apply these same qualities to interactions with children and to the working environment. They design experiential and play-based learning environments that nurture the inner and outer worlds of students.
Ariel is deeply committed to social justice movements, and embraces the life-long learning required to live in constant conversation with the systemic inequities and injustices within our societies. They believe educational philosophies that support critical thinking, compassion, and creative problem solving are essential in creating a cultural shift towards social equality and solidarity. Ariel identifies as Gender-queer and uses they/them/their pronouns in the singular.
Minecraft Community, Jr. (5-8) | Waitlist
Week: 1 (June 17-21), Achiri Acha
Week: 2 (Jun 24-28), Achiri Acha
Week: 3 (July 1-5), Marshall Wilfong (Ages 5-8)
Week: 4 (July 8-12), Achiri Acha
Week: 5 (July 15-19), Marshall Wilfong
Week: 6 (July 22-26), Achiri Acha
Week: 7 (July 29-Aug 2), Achiri Acha
Week: 8 (Aug 5-9), Achiri Acha
Tuition: 315
Course: Prepare to enter a world of endless creativity and exploration. For nearly a decade Minecraft has soared in popularity across the world and has developed a massive fan base with both children and adults, including at CFS Summer Programs. In this pilot offering, younger students will be introduced to the limitless artistic and creative possibilities that Minecraft has to offer.
Starting with a introduction in the basics of the platform, every student will be granted the opportunity to learn, grow, and create at their own pace. Beginning with things such as a simple brick house and working their way upwards and outwards to build and show off their own personal masterpieces.
We’ll also spend time away from screens with other indoor and outdoor activities.
Instructor: Marshall Wilfong was born and raised in Durham. An Eagle Scout from Troop 400, he’s been volunteering and working as a summer camp counselor since the age of 12. When he was 15 he got his first job as a merit badge counselor at Camp Raven Knob instructing First Aid, Search and Rescue, Safety, Camping, and Wilderness Survival. His time spent in the Scouts gave him a massive amount of respect for the outdoors as well as for the youth he instructs. Marshall has also been an after-school counselor at the Orange County Sportsplex and Aldersgate UMC.
He’s a Red Cross and BSA-certified lifeguard and takes the time to swim whenever he can get it. He’s been playing drums since he was 13 and one day hopes to study at the Berklee College of Music. An avid animal lover, Marshall has a four-year-old dog by the name of Willow and a 18-year-old cat by the name of Melvin. Marshall and Melvin have been best friends since Marshall at age seven found him in the woods one day.
Mystery Brew and Magic (5-8)
Week: 5 (July 15-19)
Tuition: 290
Course: Come join the fabulous Mystery Brewers as we create healing herbal potions, flower essences, magic wands, and lots of zany concoctions that foam, explode, bubble, stink, and sparkle. Each day we join the ranks of mad scientists, witches, warlocks, and all good magic-makers as we explore and experiment with different ingredients guaranteed to bring new and fun ideas to life.
Be prepared to get messy as we tromp through the woods, swim and walk in magical pools and streams, and do experiments in our class lab. And, of course, you’ll be invited to test out all of our creations at week’s end!
You might also enjoy Rinah Rachel's "Wizard Land" Weeks 4 (July 8-12) and 7 (July 29-Aug 2).
Instructor: Rinah Rachel Galper has been doing creative summer and year-long programs and workshops at CFS and throughout the Triangle since 2006 that nurture children’s love and need for magic, mystery, mindfulness, curiosity, creativity, and deep connection to the natural world. She is a performing arts teacher with children grades K-8 at Maureen Joy Charter School in East Durham where she focuses on helping children find and use their voices to create new and different narratives. Rinah is also the the founder of Our Sacred Circles, a brave space for women changing themselves and the world.
The Magic and Beauty of Nature (6-9) | 3 spaces
Tuition: 290
Course: The magic and beauty of nature is all around us! We’ll spend the week exploring the natural surroundings of CFS, create art with and inspired by nature, create fairy gardens outside, make bird feeders and bee houses - and much more. Be ready to discover your inner naturalist this summer!
Instructor: Hallie Cherry joined the CFS community in 2006. She earned a B.S. in Child Development and Family Studies from East Carolina University in 1996 and has been working with young children ever since. Some of her favorite moments in teaching include making observations and discoveries about the natural world, reading with children, and following children's questions and interests in the classroom as well as outdoors. Hallie, her husband Dave and their two children (CFS students) live in Durham.
LEGO Explorers (6-10) | 2 spaces
Week: 3 (July 1-5)
Week: 5 (July 15-19)
Week: 7 (July 29-Aug 2)
Tuition: 290
Course: LEGO camp is just around “the block” for us! We’re going to have a fun-filled week of challenges building with LEGO. Imagine you are floating on the LEGO Coast Guard Station fishing and watching for sharks. Be Emmet or Wyldstyle, a figure from the LEGO movie, and look for the piece of resistance...it’s there somewhere. Become a Star Wars spaceship and zoom around with the enemy fighters. Into super heroes? You can enjoy building with Captain America, Batman, and Superman as you battle in Smallville. Feeling animal-like? Create cool battles with the Chima Scorpion Stinger or the Spider Stalker. Ninjago anyone? Be a master builder with the Ninjagos as they try to bring order to the LEGO environment. We can create our very own LEGO City and invite all the action figures to join in the fun.
If you have LEGO you would like to bring to camp, please visibly mark them well so they will not get mixed in with the camp sets.
Instructor: Sherry Wilshire-Eshelman lives in Orange County and is a graduate of Virginia Tech (VPISU) where she received a B.A. in Russian Language and a minor in chemistry and math. Sherry home-educated two sons and received her teaching certificate from UNC-CH. She taught third grade at Duke School for 10 years and then became an academic tutor in the Lower, Middle, and Upper Schools at CFS. Sherry loves to build and create with LEGO. This is her fifth year as LEGO teacher--she always hopes to ignite master building in the students. Everything is awesome in LEGO camp!
Making Messes into Masterpieces: Art for the Adventurous (6-10)
Tuition: 290
Course: Join us as we create life-size and miniature sculpture and assemblage out of strange and mysterious materials from the forest, the lost and found, the attic, the land of broken and beautiful toys and gadgets, and everywhere you’d least expect. Be prepared to think and jump out of the box as we create new and exciting installations of mystery and magic!
Instructor: Melody Smith teaches Spanish in the CFS Upper School and Middle School. After receiving a B.F.A. from UNC Greensboro, she spent three years in Central America as a language teacher and academic coordinator for a non-profit that connected education and sustainable farming. Melody then moved to Wisconsin where she taught Spanish at a Waldorf high school and also worked as the programming director for Driftless Folk School. She has also spent significant time in India and teaching Spanish in a Montessori school.
Her extensive international background deepened her beliefs in environmental integrity, local and global interconnectedness, and the incredible importance of education. In her free time, Melody enjoys exploring nature and collecting new hobbies.
Sketch Comedy for Beginners (7-10)
Tuition: 290
Course: This class uses the "Second City" model of turning improv into sketch comedy. Participants will get a chance to play as actors, writers, and directors as we turn their original ideas into comedic sketches. Over the course of the week, students will use improv comedy techniques to create fun and funny scenes and characters. We'll then work together to create a showcase of original (sometimes VERY original) performances for friends and families to enjoy.
This course pairs well with Week 1's "Whose Improv Comedy Class Is It Anyway?" taught by Ashley Melzer.
Instructor: Colin Dekeersgieter is a poet, screenwriter, and actor. He holds an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from New York University and an M.A. in Modern Literature from CUNY, Graduate Center and is a Ph.D. candidate in English Literature at UNC-Chapel Hill. His work has appeared or is forthcoming in the North American Review, The Paris-American, The Worcester Review, and elsewhere.
Harry Potter and Company (7-11) | Waitlist
Week: 1 (June 17-21), Cyrise Davis
Week: 3 (July 1-5), Cyrise Davis
Week: 5 (July 15-19), Katrina Gersei (Ages 8-12)
Tuition: 290
Course: Celebrate your love of all things Harry Potter as you create themed crafts, play wizard games, and whip up tasty snacks. During camp you will be sorted into a house so that you can mix and mingle with Gryffindors, Slytherins, Hufflepuffs, and Ravenclaws. Then, you'll spend your time immersing yourself into the world of Harry by making memorabilia and creating memories that you can enjoy for years to come. Activities include creating your own wand, making "potions," and enjoying playing the game of Quidditch!
Note: Previous knowledge of the Harry Potter series is helpful when participating in this course.
Instructor: Cyrise Davis holds a B.A. in Art Education K-12 and a B.S. in Commercial Art and Photography. In addition to her freelance photography, she worked 10 years as an art and photography teacher at The Hawbridge School in Saxapahaw, as a site coordinator and lead teacher for a middle school after-hours program, and as a YMCA summer camp counselor.
Five years ago Cyrise joined the CFS family as the Extended Day (AfterHours) Director, substitute teacher, and Summer Programs instructor. Cyrise employs her child-centered style of teaching (and passion for art, engineering and science) to help CFS summer students, Lower and Middle Schoolers learn to explore and create.
Textures and Techniques: Experimental Watercolor (9-13)
Tuition: 290
Course: Stretch your boundaries and play with fluid colors. Find out what the watercolors do on different types of paper. See what happens when you use salt, plastic wrap, pastels, or wax. Use a brush, use an eyedropper, and use a rag. Make a collection of textures and techniques, then create your masterwork from your favorite selections.Instructor: Jeannine Borzello is an artist and educator (and ASL interpreter, just to throw in a twist) who has been teaching in the U.S. and abroad for the past 24 years. Involved in both visual and performing arts, she has taught art, photography, and design as well as acting as set designer, choreographer and assistant director for productions that range from Seussical Jr. and Honk Jr. to Proof. She is very involved with promoting the arts both in and out of the classroom as a board member of the North Carolina Art Education Association (NCAEA) and teacher advisory councils at Duke University's Nasher Museum of Art.
When not working in the CFS Upper School, she continues to freelance as a graphic designer and photographer. A native of New York, she has called North Carolina home for the past 16 years, living in Chapel Hill with her husband, son, and dog.
River Adventure: Explore, Play, Fish (9-14) | 1 space
Week: 3 (July 1-5), Mary Barber
Week: 8 (Aug 5-9), Brian Ferrell
Tuition: 290
Note: some moderate trekking involved and a great deal of getting wet and muddy! Please bring a change of shoes or water shoes (Keens, Crocs, and Tevas are great). We promise to try to wash off the mud before heading home. We'll also offer fishing as an option for those with poles and a keen interest.
Instructor: Mary Barber began her work in education before her formal training as a teacher. After college she opted to take a job at SOAR, an outdoor education summer camp and boarding school nestled in the mountains of Western North Carolina.
During her two years there, she was in charge of a summer program for ADHD and LD youth ages 8 - 10. This program had the unique aspect of backpacking with llamas! The campers hiked, whitewater rafted, and rock climbed during their 10-day course in addition to the Llama Trek. She was a field instructor at the boarding school during the Fall and Spring, which meant that Mary and a partner took a group of eight students (ages 12-18) all over the country, and even internationally, to explore the great outdoors. In between rock climbing, whitewater rafting, snorkeling, and canoeing excursions, she taught English, Science, and Math to her students.
After these wonderful adventures, Mary elected to attend Duke University in Durham, North Carolina for her Masters in the Art of Teaching. She had the opportunity to intern for 28 weeks in Durham Public Schools, teaching sophomores and juniors. Because of her internship, Mary was able to take on a long-term substitute position at Riverside High School in the Exceptional Children Department. She worked for over two months leading a sheltered class for students with severe exceptionalities. Working with populations such as these has always been a passion for Mary and she was very grateful for this wonderful opportunity.
Mary came to CFS’s Upper School as a language arts teacher in 2018 from a local charter school. She spent her time there immersing her students in the Project-Based Learning approach to education. A priority for Mary is to make learning apply to the contemporary world, and to her student’s lives, through interactions with texts and experts. Mary’s goal is simple: to bring experiential education into the classroom. Through projects, group work, nature study, and "hands-on" work, she hopes to make subjects come alive for her students.
Advanced Comic Design (9-16) | Waitlist
Week: 3 (July 1-5)
Week: 7 (July 29-Aug 2)
Tuition: 290
Course: For our older students, here’s an opportunity to enhance your skills in comic drawing. Led by Jamie Charles who has been teaching Comic Design in CFS Summer Programs for many years, the workshop provides a meeting place for expanding skills and talents. You do NOT have to have taken Comic Design prior to this. This is for those students who want to work a bit intensely on their creations. Share your techniques, exchange tips, learn new skills, collaborate with a partner, and learn from the community.Instructor: Jamie Charles, a working illustrator, graduated from UNC-G in Fine Arts. Besides exhibiting his own work, Jamie works at CFS as an art instructor for Middle School students. He is also a champion Capture the Flag leader, having coached his workshop groups to many victories (not that he is bragging). Jamie offers private lessons in drawing and art.
Fun with Fashion (10-14) | 2 spaces
Tuition: 290
Course: Trendy styles and red carpet fashion are not just for celebrities. Fashion design is an extremely creative and personal form of artistic expression that can be explored and developed by anyone with a little imagination!
Throughout the week students will study the main components of fashion design by consulting with professional fashion designers and looking closely at the latest style trends hitting the runways. Students will utilize the principle of “upscaling” by transforming basic clothing pieces into their own fashion designs using a simple pair of scissors and a wide variety of accessories.
Some sewing may be needed but not required. Students will be provided with an assortment of clothing pieces at the beginning of the week, but they will also take a field trip to local thrift stores to select a few signature pieces to work with for the culminating talent show at the end of the week.
Instructor: Fabric artist Ali Givens joins the staff of CFS Summer Programs for her first year. She learned the joys of teaching in New York City while working primarily with students and families in the education department of The Cloisters, the medieval branch of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
After settling in North Carolina, Ali shifted from teaching about art to finding her own medium: fabric. As a CFS parent for the last several years, she’s enjoyed collaborating with the Lower School students on various art quilts. When she is not having fun with her family, Ali is creating fabric collages as an active member of the Hillsborough Gallery of Arts and the Orange County Artists’ Guild.
Improv 101 (10-14)
Week: 2 (June 25-29)
Week: 3 (July 1-5)
Tuition: 290
Course: Love acting? Love comedy? Sign up for Improv 101 to learn the basics of improvisational theatre! Throughout the week, students will learn improv games, character development, and other acting techniques, and will apply those skills in an improv show on Friday. Campers will also learn skills such as team-building and trusting one’s scene partner that can be applied on or off stage. Register for Improv 101 to become a better performer, make friends, and make people laugh! No experience necessary.
You might also enjoy the "Improv 201" course Abby is teaching Week 5 (July 15-19). She also offers "Act It Out" Week 7 (July 29-Aug 2) and "Musical Cabaret" Week 8 (Aug 5-9).
Instructor: Abby Kameny has been involved in Carolina Friends School Summer Programs for 15 years. She started out as a camper, then became a Counselor-In-Training, and later was hired to work in the Extended Day program. She is currently a linguistics major and Spanish minor at the University of Maryland, College Park, and plans to become a teacher. She’s studied theatre for years and has participated in school plays and a regional improvisational theatre team. Abby has also had experience singing throughout high school and college in musicals, choir, and a cappella groups.
Patriotic Party in the Kitchen (10-14)
Tuition: 300
Course: A patriotic party in the kitchen! Come cook up some fun as we celebrate this nation with a red, white, and blue themed week. Ever wonder what food you can create to make the table look more colorful at the 4th of July picnic? This week will be full of ideas that will wow your family, friends, and neighbors. We will cook, bake, arrange, slice, and dice appetizers, entrees, salads, and desserts, find our favorites, and create recipe books that can be used for years to come.
Instructor: Mary Forringer teaches math at CFS’ Middle School. She is a graduate of Boston University and received her master's degree from N.C. State University. When she isn't inspiring children about the wonderful world of mathematics, Mary loves to be outside playing soccer and hiking, hole away in her kitchen, cooking and baking, or get crafty, scrap-booking or painting. She is excited about her fourth year at CFS Summer Programs sharing her passions in cooking and athletics with children from the Triangle and beyond.
Sports Action (10-15)
Week: 2 (June 24-28), Jonathan McGovern
Week: 3 (July 1-5), Jack Crowley
Week: 4 (July 8-12), Mary Forringer (Girls, Goals, Glory)
Week: 5 (July 15-19), Jochen Wachter (Soccer)
Week: 6 (July 22-26), Jack Crowley
Week: 7 (July 29-Aug 2), Jack Crowley
Week: 8 (Aug 5-9), Markeith Gary (Basketball)
Week: 9 (Aug 12-16), Achiri Acha
Tuition: 290
Sports experience is absolutely not necessary. Our goal is for you to learn how to play so you’ll feel comfortable knowing the rules, understanding the strategy, and practicing good teamwork. We don’t stress competition. We're here to help you improve your game and have fun!
Instructor: A CFS alum and Durham native, Jack Crowley is an educator, parent, and working artist currently pursuing his degree in Art Education. After studying at the School of the Art institute of Chicago, Jack has lived throughout the US, where he has worked variously as an educator, community organizer, and disability advocate. Besides his studio sculpture and drawing practice, Jack is also an avid athlete and adventurer, hoping to help bring creativity, vision, and fun to the CFS summer program.
Magic the Gathering, Math, and More (11-18)
Week: 3 (July 1-5)
Week: 5 (July 15-19)
Tuition: 290
Math, mental discipline, and subject knowledge are necessary for success in any card game. In this camp we will work on all three with an emphasis on how we can use statistical analysis to improve our skills at the popular card game "Magic the Gathering." We will learn why and how math is important in card games, formulas that will help us succeed, how to use online calculators and tools to assist us, and, of course, we’ll play lots and lots of Magic.
Students are free to bring their own cards but do so at their own risk! We will provide physical cards and use electronic tools to simulate card games as well. We won't limit ourselves just to Magic either; in this course we will also learn to apply our math skills to a broad range of standard 52-card deck games such as Texas Hold 'em. Get ready for a week of learning, collaboration, and intense competition!
INSTRUCTOR: Achiri Acha has been at CFS since he was six years old! He mentored with Jordan Shamp in Sports camp, became a counselor-in-training, and then moved on to become a camp assistant and instructor for the past eight summers (especially of sports and Minecraft courses). Achiri has worked in Extended Day at Lerner School, School’s Out Camps at the Jewish Community Center and currently works at USA Ninja Challenge during the school year. Achiri's goal is to be an elementary school physical education instructor and coach.
Contact Us
tel: 919.383.6602 x*263
fax: 919.383.6009
ExtendedLearning@cfsnc.org