Review – Mission:Explore Camping
We got very excited when the Geography Collective asked us to review their latest book. As if the first Mission:Explore book wasn’t fun enough, they have now released a whole new set of missions tailored specifically to our favourite pastime: Camping!
There are 50 all-new missions included in the book that are guaranteed to get kids both involved in, and intrigued by, their surroundings. From playing a challenging game of hide and seek in bright clothing to imagining the campsite 1000 years ago, young explorers will have to use every ounce of creativity and ingenuity they possess to complete their missions.
Camping and making camps have always been educational activities but this book gives campsite play a focus and promotes deeper thought and reflection on encounters with nature. The book even encourages the reader to turn it into a living record of their adventures – my kids love scribbling notes, sticking in leaves, and making it well and truly their own. I hope that when they look back through the book in years to come, they will recall the days spent doing their fun and memorable missions.
Safety is addressed as a very important issue but thankfully it is not presented in a ‘cotton wool brigade’ way. Instead it is Basic Training, with real reasons for following safety guidelines peppered with hilarious tips, making it relevant and understandable to young readers. My children were in fits of giggles about the importance of not sticking the book in your eye, or ‘weeing and farting’ in your tent!
I asked my children later what they thought of the book: “Brilliant!” piped up one, “It’s exciting!” chimed in the other before begging me to let her take it on our next camping trip. I think that means they like it.
And the best thing: the kids run off exploring and entertaining themselves for hours, leaving you to kick back and relax with a cheeky beer in the peaceful afternoon sun!
Mission:Explore Camping will be available at our festival stalls this summer, but if you can’t wait until then, you can get your copy at Amazon
The other new and equally brilliant book in the series is Mission Explore On the Road
