Preparing For Your Visit
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Please watch our Principal Video to get an idea of what to expect from your visit to Camp Green Meadows Outdoor School! This video is designed to answer all of the most common questions that parents/guardians and students have before coming to Camp Green Meadows. It will allow you to familiarize yourself with how our program works and how to best prepare for your week of outdoor school.
What to Bring
Bringing the correct things to outdoor school can make a world of difference in a student’s experience.
It is very important that all daytime outfits follow our dress code include long pants and close toed shoes. Furthermore, it is extremely important to check the weather forecast (make this into a link) for the dates that your student will be at Camp Green Meadows. We frequently get much more rain than students may be used to back home, and in the winter we can get quite a bit of snow! Since our classes run rain or shine, it is important for students to pack a raincoat and warm clothing in accordance with the forecasted temperatures. At Camp Green Meadows, we also have ponchos and rubber boots that students can borrow for the duration of their stay if they do not have their own raincoat or waterproof shoes. In addition, it’s always a good idea to pack many extra pairs of socks in case your feet get wet from rain or snow or from exploring in the creek!
Special Needs
If your student has special needs of the medical, physical, emotional, or dietary nature we encourage you to discuss your concerns with your child’s teacher. Please also feel free to contact Camp Green Meadows in regards to any needs. Email Principal Bob Bassett at bbassett@mcoe.org
All medical concerns should be recorded on your student’s health history forms. Each week we have a registered nurse or EMT on campus to provide medical assistance as needed and administer all medications. If your student will be taking any medication during their stay at Camp Green Meadows, they must have a doctor’s note accompanying the medication. Any and all medications must be turned in to the nurse or your student’s teacher when you arrive at school to depart for Camp Green Meadows. Upon arrival, the nurse will review the medical forms of all students and communicate to the staff any specific concerns that the staff needs to be aware of.
Dietary needs should be recorded on all health forms as well as communicated directly with the Camp Green Meadows kitchen. Our meals are nutritious, “kid friendly,” and adhere to the state requirements for Free and Reduced Lunch. As a part of this program, children are required to have a certain combination of vegetables/fruits, grains, and protein on their plate. We can, however, provide non-meat protein alternatives for most meals, and we always offer additional fresh fruit for all students. If your student does have specific dietary issues, notifying us well in advance of your student’s visit will allow us to develop a plan for accommodating their special needs. For students with severe allergies or complex dietary concerns, we encourage parents to send alternative food to substitute out for our standard meals. Please contact the kitchen by calling (559) 642-0123.
Homesickness & Sending Mail
For many students visiting Camp Green Meadows, this is their first time away from home. Our Naturalist staff are very sensitive to these issues, and our Cabin Leaders are trained with strategies for helping homesick students. Overall, our program is very active and students rarely have time let homesickness set in.
Some parents and guardians choose to send mail to their student during their trip. Please make sure that all mail is sent a few days before your student departs for outdoor school or very early on in the week they are attending Camp Green Meadows. Another option, is to email a letter to your student, and we will print it out and deliver it to them. When writing letters to your student, please keep things short, upbeat, and positive. Writing about how much you miss your student often makes them feel quite homesick. Instead, we advise writing about how proud you are of them for going away from home and that you hope they are having fun and learning new things.
Mailing Address:
Attn: Your Child's Name, School Name
Camp Green Meadows Outdoor School
PO Box 69
Fish Camp, CA 93623
Emailed Letters:
Subject: Letter to your child's name, school name
Email to Bob Bassett, bbassett@mcoe.org