John Ruskin Would Be Proud!

I believe it is apropos that the basic philosophy of John Ruskin, father of the Arts and Crafts movement, is being taught here in a community that boasts some of the finest artifacts and architecture from this period of history. Ruskin was an anti-industrialist who deeply valued an individual laborer's craftmanship of items made to last for generations.

My vision to plant inventive, creative, seeds in the minds of children and adults is rooted in the writings of thinkers such as Henry David Thoreau, John Ruskin and William Morris. All of them believed in a purposeful life of creating and preserving beauty. At The Little Bits Workshop, coupled with developing fine skills is an appreciation for our environment and wild spaces. Art, craft and nature are inseparable.

Last week, our campers built foot stool treasure boxes out of repurposed materials. Each child was immensely proud to take home a small piece of furniture that they themselves created. Then we got outside and explored Thatcher Woods, cleaning up the trails as we learned about the plants and animals that surrounded us.

Deep in the woods we found an area where destructive individuals had gathered, scrawled negative messages on dead trees and scattered trash everywhere. So we cleaned it up. Our campers erased the graffiti by painting the logs a natural brown and they hauled 10 bags of trash out of the woods.

Restoring, reusing and becoming good stewards builds strong bonds with the earth that was given to us to protect. Kids get this and become our best activists!

For more information about our upcoming camps, go to: thelittlebitsworkshop.com