Most camps try to start Color War with a surprise to the whole camp. The captains choose the themes – we’ve had Blue Ice v. All campers – from our Busy Bee preschoolers to our CIT and Super CIT teenagers – are thoughtfully preassigned to one team or the other, with an eye to fairness, harmony and fun.Īt Briarwood, the teams are led by staff captains as well as Super CIT lieutenants. For five days, camp is split into the Blue Team and the Gold Team. Color War at Briarwood Day Camp – A Case StudyĬolor War is wildly popular at Briarwood Day Camp. Importantly, after Color War ends, usually with a big event (most camps end with Songfest – and even the most tone deaf and anti-performing arts campers look forward to Songfest), the camp consciously acts together with its staff to help campers put any remaining competitiveness aside and re-form as one, big, happy camp. As we said, Color War usually occurs over several days. Typical characteristics of Color War include all camp events such as a camp-wide relay race, a large swim meet, some goofy, entertaining events and a Songfest. However you slice it, if you’re dividing the whole camp into teams for a few days of in-house competition, we’re calling that Color War.Įach camp’s Color War will differ a bit from another camp’s. Some camps call Color War by a different name. Some camps put their staff on teams, too (other camps don’t). The key is that the camp has been divided and that special events will happen as part of a big overall competition. Really, though, you don’t need teams to be split into colors to have a Color War, nor do you need only two teams.
Generally, but not always, camps divide into colors (Blue / Gold, Maroon / Gray, Green / White) – hence the name Color War. So let’s explain! What Is Color WarĪ Color War is when a camp splits its campers into two or more teams for a few days of all-camp friendly but spirited competition. For those who didn’t go to camp, Color War can be a strange, abstract concept and it can be difficult to understand what all of the fuss is about.
#Blue team names for color war free#
At most summer camps, Color War is much a part of camp as sunny days, smiling faces and free swim.įor those who went to camp years ago, just hearing the words “Color War” bring a wistful smile and great memories. Newton championed indigo, along with orange, even though many other contemporary scientists believed the rainbow only had five colors.Color War! Campers can’t wait for it. This method, called “bio-indigo,” will likely play a big part in manufacturing environmentally friendly denim in the future.įun fact: Sir Isaac Newton-the inventor of the “color spectrum”-believed that the rainbow should consist of seven distinct colors to match the seven days of the week, the seven known planets, and the seven notes in the musical scale. However, over the last decade scientists have discovered that the bacteria Escherichia coli can be bio-engineered to produce the same chemical reaction that makes indigo in plants. This pigment is still used today to dye blue jeans. Natural indigo was replaced in 1880, when synthetic indigo was developed. The use of indigo for dyeing textiles was most popular in England, and was used to dye clothing worn by men and women of all social backgrounds. (Photo: Matt Flynn via Wikimedia Commons ) The color remained popular throughout the Roman Empire and was used until the end of the Greco-Roman period (332 BC–395 AD), when new methods of color production started to evolve. The Egyptians held the hue in very high regard and used it to paint ceramics, statues, and even to decorate the tombs of the pharaohs. The result was an opaque blue glass which then had to be crushed and combined with thickening agents such as egg whites to create a long-lasting paint or glaze. It was made from ground limestone mixed with sand and a copper-containing mineral, such as azurite or malachite, which was then heated between 14☏. Considered to be the first ever synthetically produced color pigment, Egyptian blue (also known as cuprorivaite) was created around 2,200 B.C. There’s a long list of things we can thank the ancient Egyptians for inventing, and one of them is the color blue. (Photo: Met Museum, Rogers Fund and Edward S.