At their best, summer camps are about fun, pure and simple. While some kids might jump at the chance to roast s’mores in a faraway setting and others would eagerly dive into sport-specific drills, others are happiest playing with their favorite toys and games in a group of like-minded peers. Luckily for them, they have options.
Wizards and Dolls
Photo courtesy St. Michael's Episcopal School
Parents might not want their little campers to know, but STEAM concepts — science, technology, engineering, art and math — are embedded in several of St. Michael’s Episcopal School’s Summer Spectacular camps. These programs connect kids with their favorite imaginary play. Lovers of American Girl dolls are invited to bring their pint-sized friends along for STEAM Girls & Dolls Original. Harry Potter’s world is front and center in Wizards, Dragons & Fairies Oh My! and the STEAM-Warts Camp of Wizards, Spells and Potions.
“These camps appeal to parents and students both,” says Ashley Buffey, St. Michael’s director of extended programs. “We allow [participants] to connect with whatever they are interested in but add a brain component with math, science or art.”
The school’s offerings are instantly relatable, says Andrea Amore, St. Michael’s director of communications.
“We’ve had a great deal of success with these camps. Whether it be Harry Potter-inspired or gaming-inspired, these are the pop-culture [icons] that kids love,” she says. “Through a camp, they can connect in a different way.”
Ages: 4-rising ninth graders
Camp Dates: Girls & Dolls and Wizards, Dragons & Fairies: July 27-31; STEAM-Warts: June 29-July 3; Monday-Friday, three hours per day
Cost: $175 to $250 per camp
Contact: 804-272-3514 or stmschool.net
Photo by Sarah Der
Gotta Pinch ’Em All
Kids can bring their favorite Pokemon characters to life in the Visual Arts Center of Richmond’s Pinch Pot Pokemon class, where instructors help participants create established and new creatures. Students will explore animal characteristics, both real and imagined, and fashion their own characters using hand-building techniques such as pinching and coiling.
Numerous other art-inspired camps are available at VisArts, but this particular session is always a hit, says VisArts Education Manager Tesni Stephen.
“People just love all of our clay classes, because you get messy and can build from your imagination, it’s so open-ended,” she says. “And people love Pokemon!”
Students finish the week with two or three sculpted creatures to take home.
Ages: 7-8
Camp Dates: Two sessions, July 20-24 and Aug. 10-14; Monday-Friday, three hours per day
Cost: $145 members, $155 nonmembers
Contact: 804-353-0094 or visarts.org
Lego My Camp
Photo courtesy Bricks 4 Kidz
For kids enthralled with Lego building bricks, local franchises of the national company Bricks 4 Kidz offer a variety of options built around different themes. Camps include Brick City, Super Hero Academy, Jurassic Brick Land, Mining and Crafting, Brick Critters, Galaxy Far Away Space Camp, and Bricks 4 Girlz. Each camp includes elements of engineering, architecture and physics, and they are held at various locations.
“It’s a toy that’s never gone out of style,” says Marsha Tolbert, owner of the Midlothian B4K. “This isn’t kids just coming in and playing with Lego bricks. They learn new skills and work with new technologies.”
Jason DeHaven, the Henrico B4K owner, says building with Lego bricks appeals both to those who enjoy creating something according to a plan and those who want to freestyle.
“Our camps are accessible to any level builder,” he says. “These builds go beyond the typical Lego model, and the kids love them!”
Ages: 5-12
Camp Dates: June-early September; Monday-Friday, three hours per day
Cost: $165 to $200 per camp
Contact: Henrico: 804-938-9713 or bricks4kidz.com/virginia-richmond-henrico; Midlothian: 804-833-3170 or bricks4kidz.com/virginia-midlothian-richmond
Photo courtesy Collegiate School
Game On!
Collegiate School’s Summer Quest programs thrive because, as Program Director Collin McConaghy says, “For 48 years, we [have offered] well-designed camps that allow our campers to have fun and learn at the same time. This is a win-win for parent and child.”
Camps may be oriented around different activities, but they are all educational, McConaghy says.
In Introduction to Coding Principles and Game Design, Racing Edition, students develop computer coding ability as they create their own video games. By the end of the week, the finished games can be taken home on a flash drive.
In Mancala, Connect 4 and More, younger students learn the rules and techniques underpinning classic board games. Kids play Blokus, Sorry, Trouble, checkers and chess without realizing they’re working on number sense and logic. Championship Chess is structured to bolster chess skills through instruction and game play, helping kids see the strategy behind the moves.
“In Introduction to Coding Principles and Game Design, our kids get to learn unbelievably useful skills such as coding, teamwork and problem-solving,” McConaghy says. Playing “a huge variety” of board games in Mancala, Connect 4 and More, “our kids are learning valuable skills such as math, strategy, critical thinking and problem-solving.
“At Collegiate, we know that play is at the heart of learning no matter one’s age.”
Ages: Coding: second-fourth grade; board games: K-second grade; chess: second-fifth grade
Camp Dates: Coding and board games: June 22-26; chess: June 29-July 2 (no camp July 3); Monday-Friday, three hours per day
Cost: Coding and board games: $215 per camp; chess: $175
Contact: 804-741-9714 or collegiate-va.org/programs/summer-quest
Photo courtesy YMCA of Greater Richmond
Mischief Managed
Die-hard fans of J.K. Rowling’s magical environments can explore and practice their skills at camps where creativity is at the fore.
Steve Sgritta, sports and specialty camp director at the Tuckahoe Family YMCA, says the camps strengthen the connection to much-loved characters and stories.
“[They] spark the imagination,” he says. “Lots of people have read the books and seen the movies.”
In Harry Potter Camp, students are sorted into their houses, receive their wands and meet owls who deliver the daily mail. Students also learn about the house point system from camp Headmistress Meg Billett, a former Tuckahoe Y teen director who now runs wizarding camps at both Tuckahoe and Shady Grove Family YMCAs. “We don’t use the Unforgiveable Curses in our camp,” Billett says. “That will lose you points.”
Shady Grove Y hosts Camp Hogwarts and American Wizarding Camp, the latter of which is based on the Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, created by Rowling and located in Massachusetts.
“The goal is to make it feel like [campers] are going to wizarding school, but obviously in a very fun way,” Billett says. “It’s about immersing them in [a] fantasy world.”
Ages: Tuckahoe: 7-13; Shady Grove: 7-14
Camp Dates: Tuckahoe: July 13-17; Shady Grove Camp Hogwarts: June 15-19, American Wizarding: June 22-26; Monday-Friday, three hours per day
Cost: Tuckahoe: $95 to $155 per camp; Shady Grove: $160 to $185 per camp
Contact: Tuckahoe: 804-740-9622 or ymcarichmond.org/camps/location/tuckahoe-camps; Shady Grove: 804-270-3866 or ymcarichmond.org/camps/location/shady-grove-camps
