Spring Break Literary Workshops
Full Day Literature & Art Programs
children and youth, ages 5 to 14
March 17th to 29th, 2025
Our spring break camps are warm and welcoming spaces where storytelling and art merge into dream spaces. At the Lyceum, a "staycation" inVancouver becomes an opportunity for literary travel to destinations near and far.
Maybe you found the map in a mysterious-looking trunk in your great aunt’s attic. Maybe a wizard knocked on your door one evening and gave it to you. Maybe you inherited it from an elderly uncle you always suspected was a pirate. However you got it, it’s yellow and faded. You squint in the dim light, trying to read its markings. The words that reveal themselves are familiar - The Kingdom of Dor, The Emerald City, Exit 8 Big Top Mall, and beside each a large black X. You also received instructions to pick up a passport to which you can affix limited edition badges for each destination you visit, Collect one or collect them all!
Treasure awaits!
At the Lyceum, we believe that every book contains treasure. Whether it’s an unforgettable character who feels like a new friend, or an idea you never would have thought of on your own, stories glitter with riches.
During our Spring Break programs, we’ll be treating classic works of literature as the exciting locations of this buried treasure, adventuring into them to find jumping off points for exciting artistic creations. Children don’t need to have read these books before attending the Lyceum. Each camp is designed to work both as an introduction for newcomers, and a celebration for those who know the book well.
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Our program schedule is customizable. Your child can come for a day or two of our programming, join us for a week, or adventure with us for the entire two weeks. Each day stands alone, but also links thematically to all the other days. This makes it easy to drop in for a day of Oz magic, or DiCamillo escapism, but it also means that those joining us for longer benefit from a rich and layered experience.
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Each camper will receive a passport to affix limited edition pins. Each program yields an exclusive pin, collect one or collect all eleven!
Programs
Ages: 5 to 14
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Time: 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM
Early drop-off and late pick up can be arranged for $10 + GST per half hour.
Cost:
One day: $150 + GST (some classes may include a $5 extra material fee - marked with an *)
Sleepover: $175 + GST
Early Bird Rate: Register by February 15th to receive 10% discount and in addition GST will not be charged for registration before February 15th.
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Any 5 days: 50% Off one day of camp or sleepover
All 10 days: 100% Off one day of camp or sleepover
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TO REGISTER or for more information, please email us at lyceum@christiannehayward.com, give us a call at 604 733 1356, or visit us at 4433 West 10th Avenue!
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Novel: The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
MONDAY, MARCH 17th
9:00 AM TO 4:30 PM
AGES 5 TO 14
$150 + GST
Lia’s (Poppy’s) Camp
Destination: Misselthwaite Manor
Book: Gnomes by Huygen and Poortvliet
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 19th
9:00 AM TO 4:30 PM
AGES 5 TO 14
$150 + GST
Destination: The Lyceum Faerie Garden
Novel: The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick
FRIDAY, MARCH 21st
9:00 AM TO 4:30 PM
AGES 5 TO 14
*$155 + GST
Destination: Paris
Novel: Ollie’s Odyssey by William Joyce
TUESDAY, MARCH 25th
9:00 AM TO 4:30 PM
AGES 5 TO 14
$150 + GST
Destination: The Secret Realm of Toys
Novel: The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate
THURSDAY, MARCH 27th
9:00 AM TO 4:30 PM
AGES 5 TO 14
$150 + GST
Destination: Exit 8 Big Top Mall
Novel & Movie: The Hobbit by J R R Tolkein
FRIDAY, MARCH 28th TO SATURDAY, MARCH 29th
5:30 PM TO 11:30 AM
AGES 9 TO 14
$175 + GST
Destination: Middle-Earth
Novel: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by Frank Baum
TUESDAY, MARCH 18th
9:00 AM TO 4:30 PM
AGES 5 TO 14
$150 + GST
Destination: The Emerald City/Kansas
Play: Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare
THURSDAY, MARCH 20st
9:00 AM TO 4:30 PM
AGES 5 TO 14
$150 + GST
Destination: Messina/Sicilly
Novel: The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
MONDAY, MARCH 24th
9:00 AM TO 4:30 PM
AGES 5 TO 14
$150 + GST
Destination: The Kingdom of Dor
Novel: Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 26th
9:00 AM TO 4:30 PM
AGES 5 TO 14
*$155 + GST
Destination: Forest Fox Den
Novel: The Wild Robot by Peter Brown
FRIDAY, MARCH 28th
9:00 AM TO 4:30 PM
AGES 5 TO 14
*$155 + GST
Destination: An Uncharted Island
Program Details
Monday, March 17th
Destination: Misselthwaite Manor
Novel: The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
Each year as part of our scholarship fundraising gala, we offer one lucky winner the chance to design their very own Spring Break camp. This time around it was Lia or Poppy as she is known to some! To celebrate, Christianne invited her for tea at the Lyceum, to dream, construct and plan, but we needn’t have worried…she came bounding through the door with ideas and creative juices flowing.
Choosing Frances Hodgson Burnett’s classic novel, The Secret Garden, Lia has constructed the most exciting day of crafting. Each student will make a floral booklet, a compendium of spring flowers curated by Lia, to carefully embellish with colour as they listen to Lia’s favourite part of the story where Mary, Colin and Dickon heal themselves as they bring a feral garden back to glory.
Each camper will plant a miniature spring garden of primroses, daffodils and narcissus in a garden pot. We can guarantee that this will be a stunning accent for any doorstep, balcony or backyard garden that will flourish over time with the careful tending from your camper.
Not forgetting that we must fuel our creative escapades, the group will break to snack on homemade scones with Devonshire cream (of course) and jam.
The Secret Garden is as enchanting as it is timeless, and whether your child is a long-time fan, or has no prior knowledge of the story, we know they’ll leave with enough magic to fill even the grandest of English manors.
Tuesday, March 18th
Destination: The Emerald City
Novel: The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by Frank Baum
This year, it’s safe to say that the Emerald City has captured the hearts, minds and imagination of audiences on an international scale. Going back to the story’s humble beginnings, we’ll spend the day together exploring the incredibly rich world created by L. Frank Baum just over a hundred years ago. Reading from this original text, Christianne will guide the group through Dorothy’s quest to find the Wizard in the Emerald City so that she may make her way home. The characters she meets on her journey all have lessons to share and lessons to learn from journeying with Dorothy.
We’ll then move on to start our craft, a 2D and 3D paint and collage representation of the Emerald City with generous lashings of Emerald glitz.
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While we stop to refuel over lunch, Christianne will talk about the witch lore in the story and the classical good versus evil conflict that is played out between the Good Witch of the North and the Wicked Witch of the West. We’ll then view snippets of the very popular “Wicked” film before crafting small figurines to add to our Emerald City canvas board.
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Wednesday, March 19th
Destination: Faerie/Gnome camp
Book: Gnomes by Huygen and Poortvliet
Some of you may have helped us get ready for the Winter solstice, but believe it or not, now it’s time for us to enter the next season. The Spring equinox signals that renewal and rejuvenation are imminent as well as the hope that the winter darkness is behind us. On this day, we’ll celebrate along with another group who welcome back the light just as much as we do…the Lyceum Fae and gnome population.
Christianne will regale the group with post-Christmas updates from the Lyceum faerie garden being sure to pause at regular intervals to welcome the many questions we’re sure will come our way. She has so many stories to tell that your child will want to cosy up in one of our nooks, and listen long into the night.
Once we’re up to date with the comings and goings, we’ll launch into creating a captivating craft. We’ll start by felting our own gnome friend, before settling him or her inside a conical glass terrarium. We’ll make sure it’s abundant in greenery, with a lush mossy carpet and tiny watercress garden, before gifting Mr or Mrs Gnome with a miniature watering can to ensure the lifespan of their flora.
Thursday, March 20th
Destination: Messina/Sicilly
Play: Much Ado About Nothing by William Shakespeare
A true Shakespearean classic, Much Ado About Nothing showcases an age old unrequited love story…with plenty of humour thrown in for good measure.
Christianne will start the morning by guiding the group through an accessible version of the original text, drawing parallels between these classic characters and ones we may know from the present day. We’ll explore the captivating characteristics of strong, sassy and smart Beatrice and her equally intelligent and witty nemesis, Benedick. After reading iconic scenes where Beatrice and Benedick volley insults back and forth, we’ll examine how the most irritating of habits can be attractive if we look at them in the right light.
Diving into our craft, we’ll learn to harness an exciting new skill…glass painting. Using special paints, each student will have the opportunity to make 2 glass coasters.
After sketching out initial scenes from the play, we’ll get to work with the finest of leading before filling shapes with colour. Finally, we will gild our edges with gold. Students will be encouraged to include their favourite quotes in whatever way is meaningful to them.
We’ll then add flattened marble feet to (literally) round out the finished look, making any office, lounge, or bedroom feel instantly more literary.
Friday, March 21st
Destination: Paris
Novel: The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick
If you haven’t explored this popular novel before, then take this as a sign that it’s finally time to dive in. The Invention of Hugo Cabret is a unique and unusual blend of graphic film and literary text. Text is interspliced with charcoal drawings depicting transitive scenes in the narrative and the work as a whole translates like a film.
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Christianne will start the day with an overview of the story, ensuring it’s accessible for all ages, with plenty of time to nurture any discussions that arise. She will then guide the group step by step through the techniques of coal sketching, to produce charcoal images in the spirit of the original illustrations.
We’ll use the lunch break not only as a chance to refuel, but as time to digest some key scenes from the 2011 movie before getting creative with our craft. For those who like to tinker with treasures, design and construct, this book provides the perfect foil for a craft of epic proportions. We’ll be affixing beautiful glass tiles to a 7 inch wooden clock base (complete with working motor) in order to successfully warp time. Students will not include numbers, alluding to the ambiguity of each moment that passes. We’ll also be sure to include hardware so that you’re able to hang your mosaic clock anywhere your heart desires.
Monday, March 24th
Destination: The Kingdom of Dor
Novel: The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo
Despereaux Tilling, an adventurous and uber-mighty mouse, will undoubtedly capture your child’s heart. Waking up with the ability to see, unlike most mice who are born blind, Despereux quickly realizes that the world around him is wide, wonderful, dangerous and ripe for exploration.
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After reading excerpts from the novel, students will start to sketch a few two dimensional scenes and choose one to “paint.” With Sculpey clay as our medium (rather than paint), students will experiment mixing colours and shade matching; techniques that will really bring the tableau background to life. Of course, we’ll include a real needle (sword) for Desperaux to battle evil forces.
The final and most crucial step will be to send these works of art off to the oven for baking, before coating them with a fine mist of sealant to ensure their lifespan for many years to come. As their work bakes students will decorate upcycled frames from the film industry.
Once you collect your child and hear the enthusiasm with which they talk about their day, we think you’ll agree that this story is a classic in the making.
Tuesday, March 25th
Destination: The Secret Realm of Toys
Novel: Ollie’s Odyssey by William Joyce
Perhaps a lesser known tale, Ollie’s Odyssey is certainly no less endearing. A crusade among toys to make sure the sentimentality and value of friendship is saved forever, this story won’t just tug at your child’s heartstrings, but at yours as well when they retell the day to you at home.
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Across the day we’ll intersperse passages from the text with snippets from the animated series Lost Ollie!. We’ll discuss as a group what, if any, elements are missing from the screen adaptation, and explore the reasoning behind these choices.
Once fueled by lunch, and some favourite treats from the toy world, we’ll get started on our craft for the day.
Villains hold necessary places in all stories and in Ollie’s world, Zozo the clown king, is the most feared and his minions, The Creeps, are devilishly ‘creepy-cute’. Students will use pine cones and multi-media bits and bobs to create their own set of ‘creeps’. With Sculpey clay they’ll carve the creepiest little faces to embed into the pinecone scales of their ‘creeps’ before baking in the oven to ensure they last a lifetime.
Wednesday, March 26th
Destination: Forest Fox Den
Novel: Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl
The legacy of Roald Dahl will possibly continue until the end of time. The worlds he created and the characters within them are mesmerizing no matter your age.
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For this Spring Break exploration, we’ll recapture the magic of Fantastic Mr. Fox over 40 years after it was first published . Christianne will captivate upon entry with readings from the original text, as we get to know Boggis, Bunce and Bean on their quest to catch the most wanted agricultural thief.
Our day will be spent on a grand scale crusade, as we make a miniature representation of Mr. Fox’s den inside a shadow box. Each student will have the Lyceum’s catalogue of materials at their disposal, with everything from clay, to fabric swatches, to jewelled embellishments and beyond. We’ll make sure it has a background as unique as its creator so that every aspect of the scene is centre stage. Using textual excerpts from the book as wallpaper, each student will sculpt a tiny fox family around a steaming chicken pot, before enclosing it and deciding where exactly in our homes the art piece will live.
Thursday, March 27th
Destination: Exit 8 Big Top Mall
Novel: The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate
Katherine Applegate captures the story of Ivan the gorilla separated from his natural habitat. While tugging at your heartstrings, the tale makes you think deeply about the value of ‘human’ connection. Having spent 27 years of his life being ogled by people who stop at Big Top Mall, Ivan lives out the same routine every day separated from his natural habitat to That is, until he meets Ruby the elephant.
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Christianne will start the day by sharing segments of the story, and opening discussion about relationships between animals with the group. While we break for lunch we will watch snippets from the movie before plunging into our project for the day.
Each student will have the chance to carve their own rubber stamps using specialized knives (easier than lino-cutting). First they will be given a technique masterclass from Christianne including all safety tips needed. For designs, we’ll divide and conquer, with some of the group etching gorillas, some elephants and some dogs. We’ll then come together as a collective, mixing and matching the designs before rolling on colour. Pressing them onto canvas is an art form in itself, but campers will be guided through the process by Lyceum staff and volunteers.
Once dry, we’ll take inspiration from Ivan, and encourage students to sign their work with a thumbprint; a truly one-of-a-kind inscription.
Friday, March 28th
Destination: An Uncharted Island
Novel: The Wild Robot by Peter Brown
Adapted for the big screen last year, this story of a robot named Roz, who finds herself shipwrecked on a long forgotten island is heartwarming no matter your age. Before the metamorphosis of his novel to charming animation, Peter Brown captivated millions with a tale of resilience and survival. Both film and book emphasize the importance of strong friendships in guiding us through rough storms.
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We’ll start our day by reading stand out passages from the book and discussing the elements that Brown pulls together to make this a truly timeless novel before moving on to a craft that we know you’ll fall head over heels for.
Using miniature motors each student will get the chance to build their own Brushbot, a super cute homemade moving robot. Christianne will guide the group through making a circuit with a small motor and battery pack before attaching it to the body of a brush. Then we give you free rein to give your ‘bot’ a personality with eyes, ears, and any other adornments you see fit. We’ll make sure to leave time at the end for an exhilarating robot race rich with encouragement and great sportsmanship.
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Though you may be dropping your children off at the door, once they tell you about Roz and her triumph over adversity (and you meet the new addition to your household) you’ll wish you had joined in too.
Friday, March 28th to Saturday, March 29th (sleepover)
5:30 PM to 11:30 AM
Destination: Middle-Earth
Novel & Movie: The Hobbit by J R R Tolkien
As epochal as its successor, Tolkien’s The Hobbit is spellbinding in its own right. With the intricacies of a world created completely from scratch, the series will keep collecting fans for decades to come.
Spend a fantastical evening at the Lyceum ‘after hours’ where we’ll wax lyrical about the comings and goings of Hobbiton, exactly what path you would’ve taken with the ring, and the morally complicated headspace Gollum inhabits.
We’ll plant ourselves firmly in The Shire, before getting to work on a tiled wooden keepsake box. Cutting the mosaics themselves, students will be able to create something truly unique. While our glue is drying, we’ll spend a portion of the evening embarking on a treasure hunt for things that might nestle perfectly inside our boxes.
With a pizza pitstop, there’ll be plenty of time for diving into the movie trilogy and as long as eyes stay open, we’ll let the adventures unfold. Midnight sparklers will pay homage to Gandalf's wizard-firework display in the beginning of the novel.
In the morning, we have a first breakfast of waffles, berries and cream and leave second breakfasts to be consumed at home with campers sharing highlights of the evening.
Ages: 5 to 14
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Time: 9:00 AM to 4:30 PM
Early drop-off and late pick up can be arranged for $10 + GST per half hour.
Cost:
One day: $150 + GST (some classes may include a $5 extra material fee - marked with an *)
Sleepover: $175 + GST
Early Bird Rate: Register by February 14th to receive 10% discount
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Any 5 days: (50% Off the highest priced day of registration)
All 10 days: (100% Off the highest priced day of registration)
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* GST will not be charged for registration before February 14th.
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TO REGISTER or for more information, please email us at lyceum@christiannehayward.com, give us a call at 604 733 1356, or visit us at 4433 West 10th Avenue!
