intermediate program summer site : conversations : second session



	daniella from california (8/7) Daniella is a first year Intermediate Program student preparing to enter 8th grade. A residential student from California, she has found herself being especially extroverted at Explo and is really enjoying her "Mansion Makeover" class. She's also an avid reader who is fluent in sign language and loves to decorate cakes! So, how do you like your first year at Explo? I really like it. It’s definitely different than other summer programs and camps I’ve done before. I’ve never seen a program before that lets you do what you signed up for -- like classes in the morning and then different things in the afternoon, which is cool. What classes are you taking? I’m taking “Mansion Makeover” for first period and then debate for the second one. How do you like “Mansion Makeover”? It’s really cool. We're building models of our dream bedrooms right now. I already have the sample board and everything laid out, and now I just have to build it! What’s your bedroom going to be like? Well, I don’t know exactly, but I know there’s going to be a lot of green in it, ‘cuz I love green. And there’s also gonna be a lot of pillows, ‘cuz I like a soft, cozy room, and a lot of bookshelves because I love, love, love reading. That’s about it. What else have you done in that course? Well, we definitely went over color coordination and we went over the principles of design -- like dull and shiny and how those work in a room, how lines work in a room, and then feng shui. It was hard to think this color represents that. It was interesting to hear what people thought of that. What made you want to take that class? Well, I’m not very good at drawing, so fashion isn’t exactly what I want to do, even though I love putting colors together; I’m just not very good at drawing. It was another way for me to be artistic but not have to draw as much. And it's also a lot more hands-on with building -- moreso than drawing or sewing. And debate, how’s that going? It’s good. We get evaluation sheets after each debate, so that’s really good. What’s a typical debate class like? Well, first we’ll come in and we never have the same teams. We have notebooks and our teacher will randomly place them on a table in groups, so wherever your notebook is, that’s where you’ll be. And sometimes she’ll give us a prompt like, “The US government should. . .” and then we go to a computer lab and she’ll finish the question . . . and with our teams we’ll decide whether we’re for the debate topic or against it. They’re all really hard, like really challenging. Also, they’re real topics -- not like, “Should you be able to use cell phones at Explo?” but rather . . . well, yesterday was, “Should the US continue to provide Israel with support?” That was a really hard one. Another was, “Is the US solely responsible for global warming?” Those certainly sound like serious topics! What mini-course did you have this morning? Fashion (Re)Design. Yeah, I made a skirt. I didn’t get to finish it, but I'll finish at home. For the past two weeks we’ve been designing a lot. I designed this really cool black dress with flashes and cut-outs of color. Same as interior designing, we’ve been going over the principles of design, how a collection should flow together. And what’s your second mini-course? Circus skills. It's really hard! Juggling is so frustrating, so what I’ve decided to do is look at a sign and constantly look at the sign when juggling. I kind of overthink what I’m doing and keep dropping the balls, so when I just look at the sign and don't think of juggling, my hands just naturally do it for whatever reason. What have been some of your favorite activities? Well, I think on the first Tuesday I went to “Bad Jokes” during an activity period. That was so funny. It was stupid. The jokes were just horrible, and it was still so funny. It definitely lived up to the name [laughs]. We did a joke-generator where we picked out characters, sayings, and places, and they could be the most random things ever. At one point someone picked out a leprechaun and a sea monkey walk into Constantinople and the sea monkey asks the leprechaun where he can buy a soda and the leprechaun says, “Rubbish” [laughs]. It makes no sense, but it’s probably the weirdest joke ever. It's weird, but I like it [laughs]. What about main events? Obviously, I’m really looking forward to Cruise Night tonight, and then the talent show last night was really cool. And on Monday, staff improv was so -- oh, it was so funny. And the magic show was amazing, too, the first week! Have you been encouraged to try something new at Explo? Yesterday I went canoeing for the very first time. I was luckily able to do that as a double period, so I got to do it twice. And tomorrow I’m trying kayaking, which will be my first time in a closed kayak. Circus skills I’ve definitely never done. Pretty much all of my classes are firsts for me. I’ve been trying a lot. I’ve been very extroverted, where usually I’m very introverted. So I’ve been a lot crazier, singing with my friends as we walked down to check-in and things. Have you found it easy to meet people here? Yes, definitely. The thing is that the classes are so specific . . . they’re not so general, so they’re more suited to that person's interests. If you like it, obviously the person next to you should like it; otherwise they would be taking something else, so it’s really cool. What do you think you’ll miss most about Explo? Definitely that feeling of independence. You know, my parents aren’t here telling me when to eat breakfast. I’m doing that. They aren’t doing my laundry. I have to do that too, which is cool. And obviously I’ll miss all the staff and my friends, but we have email and phone. If Explo had a mascot, what would it be? If Explo had a mascot, it would probably have to be a big orange like . . . Maybe a Merper [Paddy O’Furniture’s enemy!]. I got to be a Merper in my living group’s film, so I’m excited to see all of the films Friday. I'm looking forward to bringing home the trophy! I like our movie, but I can’t tell you much about it. You’ll have to wait [laughs]. Well, thanks so much! I think that’s all the questions I have. . . What about the famous question from last year, "What does Explo make me want to do?" Okay, then. What does Explo make you want to do? Well, think, that’s for sure. It makes me want to try new things and think about them, but at the same time not think about them, you know? Don’t overthink it. It makes me have a new perspective, a new outlook, meeting all of these new people, especially the international kids. I love the diversity here. more conversations > first session \| second session