Hobbits are coming to the Lincoln County Public Library

Published 8:52 pm Tuesday, June 13, 2017

Next month, area middle schoolers will have the opportunity to take part in an exciting, free summer camp experience — The Hobbit Immersion Camp.

Kids will spend two weeks on a guided, in-depth exploration of J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic fantasy story “The Hobbit.” Camp participants will read through the book in two weeks, taking part in live daily large-group online class sessions alongside hundreds of other kids throughout the country and even the world.

Local participants will gather at Lincoln-Lawrence-Franklin Regional Library in Brookhaven for discussion, crafts and interactive reading fun. The camp will run from July 10 – 21.

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Organized by Signum University, the camp is open to libraries and groups around the world.

Signum runs a wide array of public education programs through its Mythgard Institute, which has specialized in innovative online teaching on the works of Tolkien for six years. Signum and Mythgard were founded by Corey Olsen, author of “Exploring J.R.R. Tolkien’s ‘The Hobbit’” and host of “Tolkien Professor” podcast, which has engaged a growing worldwide audience of Tolkien enthusiasts for almost a decade.

During the two weeks of the camp, Signum will broadcast daily a one-hour online class session which all students in the program are welcome to attend live. These large-group sessions will be taught by DMae Binkley, an Alaskan middle school teacher whose highly popular classes on Tolkien’s literature in her own school inspired the formation of this camp. Students attending these sessions live will have the chance to get their own questions answered during the sessions, as they watch and listen to Binkley’s presentation. Students unable to attend the sessions live will have access to audio and video recordings, so they don’t miss anything.

In addition to the online class sessions, the Hobbit Immersion Camp will also feature local chapters where students can get together with their peers. They will have the opportunity to talk about the book and their reactions and experiences, as they take part in supervised craft projects and Tolkien-themed fun.

For more information contact the library at 601-833-3369.

For general questions about the Hobbit camp, email Signum’s camp organizers at camp@signumu.org.