Week 1 — Fun in the Sun
The first week of camp. Five gentle days to settle in, build the routines that carry all summer, and end with a showcase of little sandcastles the whole class made. June 1–5 · Littles classroom, ages 2–3.5.
This guide pairs with the General Planning Guide — that's where the planning principles, the energy arc, and the full executive-function primer live. This Week 1 guide applies them to Fun in the Sun, built around the Littles (2–3.5) daily schedule. Week 1 is the highest-stakes week to get right: it's the first week of camp ever for new families, and it's when every routine you'll use for ten weeks gets born. Plan it light — especially for our youngest. The sand is pure sensory joy; the real curriculum is the room, the routines, and feeling safe.
Week Snapshot
The Week Builds Toward Friday
Five gentle days that build on each other — meet the sand, learn to move it, make a little castle, decorate it, then show it. A soft arc, which is exactly right for our youngest in their first week.
The Daily Rhythm
Every day runs the identical clock — and each day plan below carries it in full, block by block. Four blocks are fixed by the clock — the two snacks, lunch, and the nap. Everything else is flex: that's the curriculum.
Five Days, Fully Planned
Each day is the full run-sheet — every block of the Littles schedule, in order, so you can print a day and run it from the page. Transition and fixed blocks are kept brief; the flex blocks carry the detail.
Combined arrival care. All classrooms together — quiet free play and a soft welcome until the Littles room opens.
Outdoor Play · Meeting the Sand (anchor)
The Littles' day starts outside — and on the very first morning of camp, that's a gift: the sandbox is a low-pressure, hands-busy place to land. Sunscreen and hats on first, made cheerful. Then just sand: dig, pat, pour, sit in it. No project, no product. Your real job is to stay close, learn names, narrate gently, and be a calm, available body for whoever needs one.
Materials — sandbox, buckets, scoops, cups, sun hats, sunscreen. The sand is the whole plan today.
Handwash / bathroom. In from the sandbox. First morning — walk the handwash routine slowly, step by step, with the youngest ones.
Fixed
Morning Snack
Calm and social — a settling moment after the sandbox. Treat it gently; you're building a routine that runs all summer.
Circle Time — Short and Sweet
Ten minutes, and that's plenty for this age — end early if the wiggles win. Goals: every child hears their name, and the group sings a song or two together. Introduce the visual schedule with a quick point-and-name, and reflect the morning back: "We played in the SAND this morning!"
Craft / Tables — A Gentle First Project
Keep Day 1 tiny. A "My Sunshine" craft — each child presses a handprint or sticks pre-cut rays onto a paper sun, with as much help as they need. Keep table toys out alongside it, so a child who isn't ready to craft still has a happy place to be. The point isn't the sun; it's learning that the table is a calm, good place.
Handwash / bathroom. Wash up, then gather for music.
Music & Movement
Ten minutes: one or two summer songs with big motions. Teach the cleanup song here — sing it, model it, make it a game. The repetition is the point.
Centers / Free Choice
The longest play block of the day. Set out a kinetic-sand table to keep the theme indoors, plus the room's cozy centers. Walk the room with the children — "this is where the books live, this is the cozy corner." Mostly, you observe, narrate, and connect.
Handwash / bathroom. Tidy the centers, wash up before lunch.
Fixed
Lunch
Calm and unhurried. Teachers sit low with the children. Day 1, narrate the lunch routine gently — where cups go, how we clear our spot.
Handwash / bathroom. After lunch, settling toward the wind-down.
Free Choice & Closing Circle
The midday wind-down. Quiet toys, then a short, soft closing circle that settles bodies for sleep. Lower your voice now — you're walking the room toward nap.
Fixed
Nap / Quiet Time
Teach the quiet-down ritual today: dim lights, soft music, the same two or three songs you'll use all summer. The first nap is the hardest one of the year. Today's goal is "bodies are resting and the room is calm" — real sleep comes as trust grows over the week. Keep a consistent adult near the children who struggle most.
Wake-up · handwash / bathroom. Lights up slowly, cots away, bathroom and handwash — a gentle thirty minutes, no rush.
Fixed
Afternoon Snack
Gentle wake-up, snack — calm and low-key as bodies come back awake.
Outdoor Activity / Play
A second outdoor block, but it's the warm part of the day, so keep it shaded and light: a water table, shade play, a short and easy sand visit. Watch the children and head in early if anyone's overheating.
Handwash / bathroom. In from the yard, wash up.
Cleanup & room reset. The children help — cleanup song. Reset the room for tomorrow.
Closing Circle
One song and a simple recall: "We played in the sand today!" Something for each child to carry to their grown-up.
Combined Active Engagement — Departure
The classrooms combine for departure. The first pickup matters enormously to a Littles parent — give every grown-up a warm, specific handoff. Not "she had a good day" but "Mia spent ages filling and dumping a bucket — she loved it." A specific handoff tells a nervous parent you truly saw their little one.
Combined arrival care. All classrooms together — quiet free play and a soft welcome until the Littles room opens.
Outdoor Play · Scoop, Pour, Fill, Dump (anchor)
Smoother than Monday — they've done one morning. Sunscreen and hats, then into the sand with scoops, cups, buckets, and funnels. The whole delight today is moving sand from here to there: fill it up, dump it out, do it again. That repetition is real learning — cause and effect, fine motor, a growing sense of "I can do this."
Materials — sandbox, scoops, cups, buckets, funnels, a couple of sieves, sun protection.
Handwash / bathroom. In from the sandbox, wash up for snack.
Fixed
Morning Snack
Calm and social. A little chat: "You filled SO many buckets out there!"
Circle Time — Short and Sweet
Ten minutes. Names, a song or two. Let children help point at the visual schedule. Reflect the morning: "We scooped and poured so much sand!" A finger-play about digging is perfect here.
Craft / Tables — Sand Sprinkle
Sand sprinkle art — children dab glue on paper (a pre-drawn sun or a simple shape) and sprinkle sand over it, then shake off the extra. Sensory, forgiving, theme-true — there's no wrong way to do it. Table toys alongside for anyone not ready to glue.
Handwash / bathroom. Wash up, then gather for music.
Music & Movement
Summer songs plus a simple movement: "dig, dig, dig" with big arm motions.
Centers / Free Choice
Kinetic sand at a table — scooping and pouring indoors too, where it's cool — plus the cozy centers. Calm, warm, unhurried.
Handwash / bathroom. Tidy the centers, wash up before lunch.
Fixed
Lunch
Calm, social, unhurried. Teachers sit low with the children.
Handwash / bathroom. After lunch, settling toward the wind-down.
Free Choice & Closing Circle
Quiet toys, then a short, soft closing circle — one calm song, lights lowering. A gentle bridge into nap.
Fixed
Nap / Quiet Time
The same ritual as Monday — dim lights, soft music, the same songs. That sameness is exactly why today goes a little easier.
Wake-up · handwash / bathroom. Lights up slowly, cots away, bathroom and handwash.
Fixed
Afternoon Snack
Gentle wake-up, snack — calm and low-key.
Outdoor Activity / Play
A short, shaded second outdoor block — keep it light in the heat. A water table or shade play. Move indoors on a hot day.
Handwash / bathroom. In from the yard, wash up.
Cleanup & room reset. The children help — cleanup song. Reset the room for tomorrow.
Closing Circle
A tiny end-of-day moment: one song and a simple recall of the scooping and pouring.
Combined Active Engagement — Departure
The classrooms combine for departure. Specific handoffs: "Ask Noah about pouring sand through the funnel — he did it over and over."
Combined arrival care. All classrooms together — quiet free play and a soft welcome until the Littles room opens.
Outdoor Play · Bucket Castles (anchor)
Today the sand makes something. Children fill a bucket with damp sand, pat it down, and — with help — flip it over to reveal a little castle. Some will hold; many will crumble; both are wonderful. Each child works on their own castle (this age plays side by side, not as a team), and that's exactly right. These bucket castles are what Friday's showcase celebrates, so simple is perfect.
Teacher's role — help with the flip, cheer the reveal, and when it crumbles, stay light. Materials — sandbox, buckets, a water source for damp sand, scoops, sun protection.
A flipped bucket will crumble — often. For a two-year-old, that crumble is the whole lesson. When it happens, don't fix it for them and don't make it a big sad deal. Stay warm and easy: "Oh! It fell down. Should we try again?"
For our youngest children, cognitive flexibility is simply this: trying again after something flops, and being open to a new way — packing the sand down harder, adding a little water, letting a teacher help. The willingness to have another go is the skill. Cheer the second try far more than the finished castle. Watch for: a child who has another go instead of melting down.
Handwash / bathroom. In from the sandbox, wash up for snack.
Fixed
Morning Snack
Calm and social. "You made a little castle today!"
Circle Time — Short and Sweet
Ten minutes. Names, songs. Show a picture of a sandcastle: "On Friday we'll show ALL our little castles together!" That plants Friday gently — no planning needed, just a happy idea to look forward to.
Craft / Tables — Castle Flags
Children decorate little paper flags on craft sticks — scribble, sticker, dot-marker, whatever they can do. These go on their sandcastles later in the week. Real props for Friday's showcase. Table toys alongside.
Handwash / bathroom. Wash up, then gather for music.
Music & Movement
Summer songs; "pat, pat, pat the sand" motions.
Centers / Free Choice
Kinetic sand with small buckets and molds, so children can practice the fill-and-flip indoors too, where it's cool. Cozy centers as always.
Handwash / bathroom. Tidy the centers, wash up before lunch.
Fixed
Lunch
Calm, social, unhurried. Teachers sit low with the children.
Handwash / bathroom. After lunch, settling toward the wind-down.
Free Choice & Closing Circle
Quiet toys, then a short, soft closing circle — one calm song, lights lowering.
Fixed
Nap / Quiet Time
The same ritual. By midweek it should be settling in nicely.
Wake-up · handwash / bathroom. Lights up slowly, cots away, bathroom and handwash.
Fixed
Afternoon Snack
Gentle wake-up, snack — calm and low-key.
Outdoor Activity / Play
A short, shaded second block — light in the heat. Move indoors on a hot day.
Handwash / bathroom. In from the yard, wash up.
Cleanup & room reset. The children help — cleanup song. Reset the room for tomorrow.
Closing Circle
A tiny moment: one song, a simple recall of the little castles.
Combined Active Engagement — Departure
The classrooms combine for departure. Specific handoffs: "Ask Ava about flipping her bucket — she made a little castle!"
Combined arrival care. All classrooms together — quiet free play and a soft welcome until the Littles room opens.
Outdoor Play · Decorate the Castles (anchor)
Each child makes a bucket castle or two and decorates it — pressing in shells, poking in the flags from Wednesday's craft, patting on extra sand. It's their castle, their way. Some children will mostly want to squish it and start over, and that's fine — the joy is in the doing.
Materials — sandbox, buckets, water, shells, the paper flags, sun protection.
Handwash / bathroom. In from the sandbox, wash up for snack.
Fixed
Morning Snack
Calm and social. "You decorated your castle with shells!"
Circle Time — Short and Sweet
Ten minutes. Names, songs. Build a little happy anticipation: "Tomorrow we'll show all our sandcastles — our families might get to see them!"
Craft / Tables — Beach Collage
A simple beach collage — gluing sand, paper shells, and bits of blue paper onto a card. Or finishing any flags. Keep it loose and sensory; table toys alongside.
Handwash / bathroom. Wash up, then gather for music.
Music & Movement
The week's favorite summer songs.
Centers / Free Choice
A little beach dramatic-play corner (sun hats, a towel, toy sea creatures) plus kinetic sand. Warm and easy.
Handwash / bathroom. Tidy the centers, wash up before lunch.
Fixed
Lunch
Calm, social, unhurried. Teachers sit low with the children.
Handwash / bathroom. After lunch, settling toward the wind-down.
Free Choice & Closing Circle
Quiet toys, then a short, soft closing circle — one calm song, lights lowering.
Fixed
Nap / Quiet Time
The same ritual — same songs, same loveys, the same comforting predictability.
Wake-up · handwash / bathroom. Lights up slowly, cots away, bathroom and handwash.
Fixed
Afternoon Snack
Gentle wake-up, snack — calm and low-key.
Outdoor Activity / Play
A short, shaded second block — light in the heat. Move indoors on a hot day.
Handwash / bathroom. In from the yard, wash up.
Cleanup & room reset. The children help — cleanup song. Reset the room for tomorrow.
Closing Circle
A tiny moment, and a gentle seed: "Tomorrow we show all our little castles!"
Combined Active Engagement — Departure
The classrooms combine for departure. Specific handoffs: "Ask Leo about the shells he pressed into his castle."
Combined arrival care. All classrooms together — quiet free play and a soft welcome until the Littles room opens.
Outdoor Play · The Sandcastle Showcase (anchor)
Sunscreen and hats, out to the sand. Each child makes and decorates one more little castle — last shells, last flags. Then the showcase: gather all the little sandcastles together in one spot, and the whole class admires them. "Look at ALL our castles!" Take the group photo here — children with their castles, big smiles. This is the week's payoff; let it feel like a happy event.
Materials — sandbox, buckets, water, shells, flags, the camera staged and ready, sun protection.
Handwash / bathroom. In from the sandbox, wash up for snack.
Fixed
Morning Snack
Calm and social — a celebratory snack feel. They earned it.
Circle Time — Short and Sweet
Ten minutes. Names, songs. Celebrate together: "We had so much fun in the sun this week!" Show a couple of photos if you can.
Craft / Tables — A Summer Keepsake
Each child makes a small thing to take home — a sun craft, a sandy picture, a handprint. A little proud artifact of their first week of camp. Table toys alongside.
Handwash / bathroom. Wash up, then gather for music.
Music & Movement
The favorite summer songs of the week — a gentle, celebratory sing-along.
Centers / Free Choice — Beach Party
A low-key beach party to close the week — beach music, sand-themed free play, kinetic sand. Five days in, the class earned it.
Handwash / bathroom. Tidy the centers, wash up before lunch.
Fixed
Lunch
Calm, social, unhurried — a warm last lunch of the week. Teachers sit low with the children.
Handwash / bathroom. After lunch, settling toward the wind-down.
Free Choice & Closing Circle
Quiet toys, then a short, soft closing circle — one calm song, lights lowering.
Fixed
Nap / Quiet Time
Five days in, the ritual should be settling in nicely now — same songs, same loveys.
Wake-up · handwash / bathroom. Lights up slowly, cots away, bathroom and handwash.
Fixed
Afternoon Snack
Gentle wake-up, snack — calm and low-key.
Outdoor Activity / Play
A short, shaded final outdoor block — light in the heat, to end the week gently. Move indoors on a hot day.
Handwash / bathroom. In from the yard, wash up.
Cleanup & room reset. The children help — cleanup song. Reset the room for the week ahead.
Closing Circle
One last gentle moment of the week: "What did you love about the sand?" A warm, happy close.
Combined Active Engagement — Departure
The biggest handoff moment of the week. Show parents the showcase photos; invite them to peek at the castles. Warm, specific, proud handoffs: "Sofia made three little castles today — ask her about the shells." A Littles parent who drives home Friday feeling their child was seen, safe, and happy is a parent leaning toward staying.
This Week's EF Lens — Cognitive Flexibility
One executive-function skill to notice this week — held very lightly, because these are our youngest children. (The full EF primer is in the General Planning Guide.)
Why flexibility, and why sand
Cognitive flexibility is the skill of trying another way when the first one doesn't work. In a two- or three-year-old it looks very small and very simple: a child whose sandcastle crumbles and who has another go; a child who lets a teacher help in a new way; a child who accepts that the blue cup is gone and reaches for the red one. You are not teaching this skill as a lesson — for this age, that would be far too much. You are simply noticing it, smiling at it, and letting children have the small struggles that grow it.
Fun in the Sun is a lovely home for this, because sand flops constantly — it pours away, it won't pack, the bucket crumbles. Every flop is a tiny, low-stakes invitation to try again. Your job is to not rush in and fix things, and to keep the mood light when sand does what sand does. A cheerful "Oops — let's try again" is the entire curriculum.
What flexibility looks like in the children this week
- A child whose bucket castle crumbles and who fills the bucket up again
- A child who accepts help, or a new tool, when their own way isn't working
- A child who rolls with a small change — a different cup, a turn to wait — without falling apart
- A child who tries patting the sand harder after it wouldn't hold
Brightwheel This Week
One intentional post a day — a photo and a sentence or two. That's it. One good moment beats six scattered ones; a firehose makes parents tune out. Grab the photo, adapt the caption.
What to Have Ready Before the Week Starts
Week 1 has its own prep — beyond supplies. Have all of this staged the Friday before camp begins.