Big Idea (previously known as "eCamp") is an English speaking international Jewish

summer camp A summer camp or sleepaway camp is a supervised program for children conducted during the summer months in some countries. Children and adolescents who attend summer camp are known as ''campers''. Summer school is usually a part of the academ ...

located in

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, focusing on STEM, media arts and gaming. The campers, aged 7 to 18, attend workshops in subjects such as Music, Photography, Design, Gaming, and more. Big Idea's main program blends the technological workshops with a traditional American-style summer camp experience, held in three 2-week sessions each summer. The staff includes Israeli and international counselors who speak

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

and

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

. The counselors are graduates and college students, some of whom did their military service in technology units of the

Israel Defense Forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...

. Big Idea's current main location is

Meir Shfeya Meir Shfeya ( he, מֵאִיר שְׁפֵיָה) is a youth village and agricultural boarding school in northern Israel. Located near Zikhron Ya'akov, it falls under the jurisdiction of Hof HaCarmel Regional Council. In it had a population of . ...

, a residential youth village near

Zichron Yaacov Zikhron Ya'akov ( he, זִכְרוֹן יַעֲקֹב, ''lit.'' "Jacob's Memorial"; often shortened to just ''Zikhron'') is a town in Israel, south of Haifa, and part of the Haifa District. It is located at the southern end of the Carmel mounta ...

. Until the summer of 2011 it took place at the

Alonei Yitzhak Alonei Yitzhak ( he, אַלּוֹנֵי יִצְחָק, ''lit.'' Yitzhak Oaks) is a youth village in northern Israel. Located near Binyamina, it falls under the jurisdiction of Menashe Regional Council. In it had a population of . History The vi ...

youth village.

History

Big Idea was founded in 2007 and under the name "eCamp" as a division of Oranim Educational Initiatives Ltd. (Known today as Israel Way Educational Tourism), by Dotan Tamir and Oranim's president Shlomo (Momo) Lifshitz. The vision was to create a place for Jewish kids and teenagers from Israel and around the world where they can connect and strengthen their Jewish identity while gaining skills in the field of hi-tech. eCamp's first session took place In summer 2008, with part of the campers coming from cities on the outskirts of the

Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip (;The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p.761 "Gaza Strip /'gɑːzə/ a strip of territory under the control of the Palestinian National Authority and Hamas, on the SE Mediterranean coast including the town of Gaza.. ...

. Those campers were sponsored by Jewish organizations in the United States such as the

American Jewish Committee The American Jewish Committee (AJC) is a Jewish advocacy group established on November 11, 1906. It is one of the oldest Jewish advocacy organizations and, according to ''The New York Times'', is "widely regarded as the dean of American Jewish org ...

and the Jewish Federation of the Metropolitan of Detroit. In the summer of 2009, the number of participants in the camp increased, and also included a group of teens from the Jewish Agency Partnership 2000 project, from

Netivot Netivot ( he, נְתִיבוֹת, "''paths''", ar, نتيڤوت) is a city in the Southern District of Israel located between Beersheba and Gaza. In , it had a population of . History Netivot was founded in 1956 and named after the bible: " ...

, Israel and

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

, Pennsylvania partner cities in the Jewish Agency Partnership 2000 project. Every year since the first, eCamp saw a growth in the number of participants and variety of countries of origin. After the summer of 2013, the name switched to "Big Idea", as a division of "Big Idea Educational Projects Ltd." (founded by Dotan Tamir and Erez Roll). Since then the camp kept growing and established other programs such as the Cyber Camp, You Camp, One World and a summer day-camp named Funzone.

Camp program

Each summer there are three 2-week sessions of the camp. Between which the campers can join organized trips around

held by the camp's staff.
The camp presents different workshops, most of which are within the context of

STEM Stem or STEM may refer to: Plant structures * Plant stem, a plant's aboveground axis, made of vascular tissue, off which leaves and flowers hang * Stipe (botany), a stalk to support some other structure * Stipe (mycology), the stem of a mushro ...

while some are non-technological workshops such as

surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suitabl ...

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

. Campers in Big Idea choose 3 different workshops they want to participate in during the camp, and by the end of the session complete their own personal project in each of the different workshops. Each camper attends a daily unplugged workshops which focuses on Arts & Crafts or Sports. Moreover, the camp program includes daily outdoor activities and different social activities such as a

bonfire A bonfire is a large and controlled outdoor fire, used either for informal disposal of burnable waste material or as part of a celebration. Etymology The earliest recorded uses of the word date back to the late 15th century, with the Catho ...

and a pool party. Campers are segmented into 4 age groups, named Nanos Kilos Megas and Gigas which determine the campers' educational program, group activities and counselors.

Other programs

In addition to the Big Idea Summer Camp, Big Idea Educational Projects established three other educational programs in Israel, all established in 2014. The first, Cyber Camp, is a camp held during the Hanukkah and passover vacations and teaches the campers about proactive cyber defense, and includes both theoretical study and practice of cyber defense in the CyberGym facility. During the same time a camp oriented about YouTube called YouCamp is also held. The third program, FunZone, is a summer day-camp held in Israel, focusing on STEM and other arts. In 2015 Big Idea Educational Projects founded the "One World" Summer Camp in cooperation with

WIZO The Women's International Zionist Organization (WIZO; he, ויצו ') is a volunteer organization dedicated to social welfare in all sectors of Israeli society, the advancement of the status of women, and Jewish education in Israel and the Diasp ...

. One World is a summer camp focusing on outdoor activities and programs such as natural

art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

photography Photography is the art, application, and practice of creating durable images by recording light, either electronically by means of an image sensor, or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film. It is employed ...

horseback riding Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding (Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, driving, and vaulting. This broad description includes the ...

and survival skills. The camp takes place at Wizo Nir Ha'emek

Youth Village A youth village ( he, כפר נוער, ''Kfar No'ar'') is a boarding school model first developed in Mandatory Palestine in the 1930s to care for groups of children and teenagers fleeing the Nazis. Henrietta Szold and Recha Freier were the pionee ...

. Big Idea Educational Projects also holds technological courses for children in hi-tech workplaces such as Microsoft, Intel and AlphaTeam. In addition, it also conducts a gap year program. In 2018 it started a program to integrate special needs teens.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ecamp Jewish summer camps Educational organizations based in Israel Science and technology in Israel Summer camps for children with special needs Disability organizations based in Israel