It Was a Summer of Success at S.A.Y. Play

S.A.Y. Detroit Play Center‘s “Summer of Success” was an application-only summer camp devoted to promoting campers’ social and emotional learning and physical health. The morning health and wellness programming addressed the building of five core competencies —

• self-awareness
• social awareness
• self-direction
• decision-making
• relationship building

around S.A.Y. Play’s  4 core values: LOVING, HARD WORK, EXCELLENCE, RELATIONSHIPS. Each day we worked the soul and worked the body, and events included a family team olympics, mini robotics camp, writing workshops, large and small discussion groups, and field trips to community pools, activity centers, museums, and the Detroit Zoo.

Counselors were employed by Grow Detroit’s Young Talent (GDYT), a citywide summer jobs program that employs young adults between the ages of 14 and 24 across the city. Programming for our GDYT counselors and older Summer of Success campers included college prep sessions, visits to startup hubs in the heart of Detroit, and college tours in the state and a weekend trip to Washington, D.C. to visit Howard and Georgetown universities.

Check out the highlights at sayplay.org: Part 1 |  Part 2  |  Part 3  |  Part 4 | Part 5 | DC Tour

Our #summerofsuccess students are attending a 2 day writing workshop at @onwardrobots (a writing and tutoring program in Detroit’s eastern market). Here’s Day 1. They’ll be creating their own #zines about what they have the power to change about themselves, their city, and their country #sayplaydetroit #sayplay #writersoninstagram #writersworkshop #workshop #easternmarket #826michigan

A post shared by SAY Detroit Play Center (@sayplaydetroit) on Aug 1, 2017 at 1:42pm PDT

On a field trip to @thewrightmuseum, students made posters and signs for issues affecting their communities, locally and nationally #summerofsuccess #freedom #equality #sayplaydetroit #saydetroitandsaysomethingamazing #sayplay #SAYDetroit

A post shared by SAY Detroit Play Center (@sayplaydetroit) on Aug 4, 2017 at 9:17am PDT

It’s a regular old circus down here at #SAYPlay, so David Goldman is helping us start a unicycling club #greatestshowonearth #unicycle #circus #perseverance #balance #Detroit #SAYPlayDetroit #SAYDetroitPlay #saydetroit #saydetroitandsaysomethingamazing

A post shared by SAY Detroit Play Center (@sayplaydetroit) on Aug 21, 2017 at 7:53am PDT

Who do we get to host a #baseball clinic for #SAYDetroit? Why the @tigers of course! #summerofsuccess #Detroit #Tigers pic.twitter.com/PWsgnQMcNj

— SAY Detroit Play Ctr (@sayplaydetroit) August 15, 2017

 

#FlashbackFriday to the final family #olympics scoreboard. the Breadwinners brought home the bacon pic.twitter.com/jxQrDk2WbJ

— SAY Detroit Play Ctr (@sayplaydetroit) August 25, 2017