Trailblazers’ Summer of Fun

Are you still recovering from a summer of trying to piece together various camps, grandparent visits, and other care for your elementary school student while already worrying about what you are going to do for the next long school break? Or maybe you’re currently looking for a safe, engaging, and fun program for before and after school?

At Lionheart, we’re parents too, and we understand the stress of navigating these scheduling challenges. In fact, our Trailblazers program was designed with you in mind. Our program is for children ages kindergarten through 12 years and offers a wide variety of opportunities for them to learn new things, make friends, and learn about how they are important and loved by God. Oh, and we have a ton of fun in the process!

This is my first year as the Trailblazers’ Director, so I might be biased, but I think this past summer was our best Trailblazers Summer Club yet. With more than 400 students participating, we enjoyed an abundance of fun, engaging activities, chapel time, acts of service and field trips.

One of those experiences was a trip to the Institute of Creation Research (ICR) in Dallas. Every student and staff member on the trip got to experience a planetarium show, fossil talk, and a walking tour through the discovery center.

In the discovery center, the children got to walk through the creation story, into the ice age and finish with the life and death of Jesus. As the kids walked in, their eyes lit up with amazement that didn’t fade during the entire 3-hour stay. They walked out asking how their families could bring them back.

Other awesome field trips included visits to the local libraries. One of our academies connected their trip with an act of service. Each student wrote some encouragement on a notecard, which they placed in the books as they walked through the rows of shelves. Another academy got a behind-the-scenes tour of their local library. Students got to see how the books get sorted and redistributed onto the shelves with a conveyor belt system. They also got to meet the library pet, a boa constrictor. No one wanted to leave when the tour came to an end. Who knew a library could be that much fun?!

Other highlights from the summer included a trip to NASA (for our Houston-area academy), the Ark Encounter (for our Ohio friends), local splash pads and parks, trampoline parks, zoo trips, and more.

Days in the academy were filled with science talks, bubble trucks, shaved ice, music guys, and so much more. Our goal is to bring the fun through engaging staff, fun trips/experiences, and most importantly the truth of God’s Word. Every day kids sang songs and had opportunities to encourage and be encouraged by others. They ended the day reflecting on what went well and discussing what to expect for the next day.

We were sad to see summer come to an end, but each academy had a fun time celebrating and remembering all the fun we had. One academy even hosted a talent show and awards ceremony, celebrating not only each child’s special skills, but also the character qualities of every child and teacher. Another academy helped students set goals for the school year while encouraging them through character quality awards.

While our Trailblazers summer club is over, you don’t have to wait until next summer to get in on the fun. our safe and engaging environment is open for children in kindergarten through 12 years all year round! Most academies offer before and after school care, partnering with families to drop off and pick up children from local elementary schools. We also provide care during Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Spring breaks.

Please contact the Lionheart Children’s Academy closest to you for more information about their Trailblazers program. Our leadership teams would love to give you a tour and answer any questions you may have!

–Jared P, Director of Trailblazers