Why Art Camp Matters: A Joy-Filled, Screen-Free Creative Experience for Kids!

Art camps are more than just a fun way to fill a day—they are immersive creative experiences where children get to fully engage their hands, hearts, and minds for five hours or more. In a world where so much of childhood is spent rushing from one activity to the next or staring at screens, art camp offers something beautifully different: time to slow down, create, explore, and connect.

Do you feel like childhood used to be a time of playing outside in the dirt, drawing on the driveway with chalk, making crafts at the kitchen table, and just being a kid? 

T.V. was used mainly for entertainment on rainy days, when you didn't feel well, or when the family gathered to watch a movie together. 

At The Artful Gathering, our art camps are a return to a simpler childhood in many ways, while also including the enriching, educational and meaningful art experiences to make them an upgrade to the modern childhood. Our art camps are messy, inventive, playful, positive and screen-free! We even eat lunch outside, picnic style in our outdoor courtyard classroom! 

Our art camps have been thoughtfully developed through nearly 20 years of teaching and leading children in creative experiences. (Jessica Blankenship's first art camp was as an intern, teaching assistant at the Taft Museum of art in 2008!) Each camp since then has been designed to nurture joy, encourage hands-on learning, and give children the freedom to imagine, experiment, and make something meaningful. We believe childhood should be filled with wonder, creativity, and opportunities to grow through play and discovery.

At art camp, children step away from screens and into a world of real materials, real friendships, and real creative expression. They paint, build, draw, sculpt, and explore a variety of art processes that strengthen fine motor skills, problem-solving abilities, and confidence. More importantly, they experience the satisfaction of creating something with their own two hands.

Our art camps also provide a positive social environment where kids can make friends, practice kindness, and enjoy being part of a welcoming creative community. There is something powerful about learning alongside others, sharing ideas, and celebrating one another’s work. These experiences help children grow not only as artists, but as people.

Because camp lasts for five hours or more, children have the rare opportunity to go deeper into their creative process. They are not rushed. They have time to settle in, explore materials, develop ideas, and enjoy the full experience of making art. This kind of extended creative time allows for richer learning, greater confidence, and magical childhood memories that last far beyond camp week.

If you are looking for an enriching experience that combines creativity, joyful learning, hands-on exploration, and meaningful social connection, our art camps are a beautiful place for your child to grow. We are passionate about giving children the chance to get out of the mud, rediscover joy, and experience the wonder of art in a way that is memorable, healthy, and deeply life-giving.

Plus, we offer new ones all the time! Not only do we host some pretty fun summer camps, but we offer art camps on all school breaks, designed around our local school schedule, like Fall break, Christmas break, Spring break, and even Martin Luther King, Jr, DAY! Check them out!

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Meet Jessica Blankenship

I am an art teacher, a preacher's wife, a mom, an artist and a total nerd.   Since 2009, I have been teaching art full time and directing summer art camps for kids. 

My goal is to inspire, to speak LIFE.  

The Artful Gathering, in all its various facets, is a place for quality time. A place for gathering.  Inspiration through art, conversation and being together. Meaningfulness.  Togetherness in a beautiful space.  

I’m talking about quality of life: life that is enriched while being real and honest. 

Intentional memory-making.   
Intentional design. 
Intentional moments amid the fast-paced world in which we live.  

I believe quality of life means searching out old-time wisdom and applying it to life in the current day, even when it is hard to know how to do that. 

I want to see you experiencing life beyond modern hustle and full-speed survival mode. 

Sprinkled in all that, you'll find that I value simplicity, kids, art and creativity, living naturally, spirituality, and... calm. Calm is my superpower. Well, maybe my superpower is actually management of kids and messy art supplies! 

My Bachelor of Arts in Art Education is from the College of Mt. Saint Joseph, 2009. I have been teaching art and summer art camps ever since! My art camps were originally modeled after an internship at the Taft Museum of Art during college.  From there, I built a successful continuous summer art camp that has repeated every summer.  It now has a waitlist and is very popular! I used to have to rent a venue each summer to teach the camps but now I have a beautiful space called The Artful Gathering! 

My Master's degree is in Gifted Education from Northern Kentucky University, 2014.  

I have a love of learning that I generously pass on to my students in every project. You will see lots of cross-curricular lessons from me as well as mixed media! I believe art is incredibly therapeutic as well as educational and playful!  My newest training is art therapy! I am excited to implement all the wonderful facets of art for the community and beyond. 
 
Overall, I believe that education is a gift.  Learning ought to be a joyful endeavor and all lessons should be play-infused for maximum effects.  Yes, I have my research to back up the FUN! I wrote extensively about this "invitation to joy" through play and art in a book collaboration called "On Earth As In Heaven", available on Amazon.  

Not only that, but I finally finished my personal written and illustrated children's book called "Hippo's Invitation to Joy!" It is available as an ebook, soft cover and hard back book on Amazon! You can check it out here! 

I can't wait to share my love of all these things at The Artful Gathering, LLC at 120 E. Plane ST. Bethel, OH 45106!

Photo of Jessica Blankenship