File photo
Josh Green picked through rocks to find pieces of pottery and kiln furniture during archeology camp at the Castle Museum.
For the first time since 2019, The Castle Museum will hold all three summer camps.
Pre-registration for the camps is being accepted, with limited space for each camp.
The first is a five-day history camp exploring from 1900 to 1920 for students entering third through sixth grades. It will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. July 11-15.
Registration is $30 per day or $125 for the week. Registration is required by June 17 and limited scholarships are available.
“Each camp is different and we cover a different time period,” said Kyle Yoho, the museum’s education director. “We’ll do crafts, games, tours, music and dancing as it pertains to some of the topics we cover.”
He said this year’s camp will cover the beginning of the 20th century, womens’ suffrage, World War I and technological innovations and inventions.
Students entering sixth through eighth grades who are interested in digging up history can attend the archaeology camp from 9 to 11 a.m. July 18-21.
Pre-registration is required by July 1 and space is limited. The cost is $50 per person.
Yoho said students will work with expert archaeologist Wes Clarke during the camp.
“They’ll be working with a grid system on a real, active archaeology site,” he said. “The museum is on one of the oldest pottery manufacturing sites in Ohio.”
Campers have found pottery from back in 1808 and pieces from the house when it was being built.
“They’ve even found prehistoric artifacts as the mounds are so close to us,” Yoho said.
Clarke will also lead high school age students and adults in an archaeology field school from 6 to 8 p.m. Aug. 1-4. Space is limited and pre-registration is required by July 15. The cost is $50 per person.
Yoho said it’s similar to the archaeology camp, only for older students and adults.
He said the classes fill up quickly, so register as soon as possible.
“I think it’s because it’s experiential learning,” he said. “At the end of doing the activity or craft, they realize that they’ve learned something. They’ve stepped into the shoes of people gone before them.”
He said the camps are intended to make history fun.
“In history camp, there’s at least one activity a day that sparks interest,” he said. “Or they are finding history by digging through the earth.”
Registration can be completed at mariettacastle.org or by calling 740-373-4180. Registration forms can be picked up during hours the museum is open to the public. Spring hours, which run until June 1, is 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday, Thursday and Friday, and 1 to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.
Michele Newbanks can be reached at [email protected].