Forteza Fitness

From the Blog

KnightCamp 2021: Tales of Robin Hood ~ And YOU!

A UNIQUE SUMMER PROGRAM DESIGNED TO ENGAGE YOUR CHILD’S MIND AND BODY, INSTILL SELF-CONFIDENCE, AND PROMOTE TEAMWORK.

Session I: July 12 to July 23
Session II: July 26 – August 6

Teen Session: Aug 9 – Aug 20

Welcome

To an authentic “knight school” for youth (ages 8 – 12) where medieval martial arts and chivalric virtues are taught in an engaging and safe environment by trained instructors. Camps take place at our beautiful 5,000 square foot facility in Chicago’s Ravenswood art district. We are within one block of the Brown Line and Montrose Ave exit for the Metra.

Program

Our unique, two-week camp combines physical fitness training and swordplay and authentic medieval games, lessons on heraldry, arms and armour and medieval life. This year our theme is “The Legend of Robin Hood” and will add archery and quarterstaff to the mix!

Campers will design their heraldry, paint a shield and have that and their own sword to keep!

Underlying all of those activities is a daily lesson on the knightly Code of Chivalry and how the virtues it espouses — Prowess, Courage, Humility, Courtesy, Largesse (Generosity), Mercy and Temperance (Balance) — are relevant to living life today!

Daily Schedule

09:00 – 9:30 AM CHIVALRIC CIRCLE
An introduction of one of the seven chivalric virtues and how the students can apply them in their lives today.

9:30 – 10:00 AM: WARM-UPs & EXERCISE
A unique physical fitness warm-up, taught through games played by medieval children centuries ago!

10:00 – 10:30 AM: SWORDPLAY
Students learn a variety of the martial skills that the knights of old had to know: sword & shield, two-handed sword, and quarterstaff.

11:00 – NOON: ARCHERY

NOON – 12:30 PM: LUNCH

12:30 – 1:30 PM: MEDIEVAL LIFE
A daily topic on one aspect Medieval life, accompanied with show and tell or some sort of hands-on project or medieval game.

1:30 -3:000 PM: SWORDPLAY, PART II
A second martial arts lesson, building on the first, combined with controlled sparring (using padded weapons and protective equipment).

3:00 – 3:30 PM: THE LESSON
Students review the day’s lesson, explain what they learned and nominate one of their number for who best exemplified that day’s virtue.

Before & After Care

To make things easier for parents, we offer before and after care services starting at 8:30am each morning and from 3:30 to 5:00pm each day. Kids are welcome to work on activities provided during the camp, play games we have on site, or bring their own activities from home. Although time is largely self-directed, there is full adult supervision, and we’ll make sure that after each day of camp, there is much to keep their minds occupied as there is their bodies!

COVID Preparedness

Everyone’s safety as the pandemic winds down is our first concern. We are devising the camp to combine outdoor and indoor activities, with masks and extensive cleaning protocols. We are happy to share our COVID Preparedness document with parents and answer any questions.

A key part of keeping camp safe is keeping it to small groups (no more than a dozen), so registration is limited.

Spaces are limited, so choose the options that work best for you and JOIN NOW!