Crooked Tail Science & Songwriting Camp

group of kids at crooked tails summer camp

Crooked Tail Science & Songwriting Camp | 2018, 2019

Location: The Cabin at Shotpouch Creek

In the summers of 2018 and 2019, the Spring Creek Project hosted Crooked Tail Science & Songwriting Camp at the Cabin at Shotpouch Creek. The program was presented in partnership with The Arts Center located in Corvallis, Oregon.

This week-long educational experience was open to children ages 10-14, with an enrollment cap of 15 campers. Students spent mornings learning about the Shotpouch landscape and watershed with environmental scientists, and then used their notes and observations in afternoon songwriting workshops.

The program encouraged campers to develop a personal connection to the environment through exploration, interactive science lessons, songwriting and a live performance.

writings on a white board
kid holding a newt
kids playing in the creek
kids writing at shotpouch cabin
kids learning how to wade in a creek
kids studying findings pulled from a creek
kids smiling for the camera
kids sitting around the campfire

Camp Schedule

Each day of camp, students met at The Arts Center in the morning, took a bus to Shotpouch Cabin, explored the land with a scientist, took a break for lunch, participated in songwriting workshops in the afternoon, and then took the bus back to Corvallis. The camp concluded with a live performance for families at The Arts Center. The performance featured students' songs that were inspired by the Shotpouch land and stories about our habitat told by local storytellers. Here’s an example of the daily camp schedule, this one from summer 2019.

Monday

  • Morning science session: Karen Fleck-Harding, introduction to the land
  • Afternoon song inspiration: "What the World Needs" by Jan Michael Looking Wolf and "Love" by Yasiin Bey

Tuesday

  • Morning science session: David DuBose, water
  • Afternoon song inspiration: "Water Come Down" (on vinyl) by Holly Near and "Goodbye to a River" by Rattlesnake Annie

Wednesday

  • Morning science session: Liz Riley, geology
  • Afternoon song inspiration: "Almost Like Praying" by Lin-Manuel Miranda and "M Libertad" by Monsieur Periné

Thursday

  • Morning science session: Gerald Page, thermodynamics
  • Afternoon song inspiration: "We Didn’t Start the Fire" by Billy Joel and "Talking ‘Bout A Revolution" by Tracy Chapman

Friday

  • Morning cultural and science session: Greg Archuleta, Kalapuya culture, and Dick Powell, ecology
  • Afternoon song inspiration: "Live as One" by Jan Michael Looking Wolf and "What a Wonderful World" by Louis Armstrong

Sunday

  • Students share their Crooked Tail presentations at The Arts Center in downtown Corvallis