Interesting San Francisco Summer Day Camps for Kids

The most interesting summer day camps for San Francisco kids are those that stimulate their creativity, encourage them to develop their communication skills, and help them to discover what unique and wonderful people they are. There are many amazing summer camps for kids in San Francisco, but this is a list of a handful that my son has enjoyed in the past and which have worked out well for our family. I hope our experience will assist you in choosing a great day camp for your child.

If you have a young child (kindergarten to sixth grade), you really should look into the Crissy Field Center Summer Camp. In case you are not familiar with the Crissy Field Center, it is part of the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy and is dedicated to educating the public on urban environmental issues. It accomplishes this through a wide variety of teaching programs for people of every age and culture. Per the Crissy Field Center, it "has served over 400,000 people through school field trips, public workshops, after school programs, summer camps, and more," and their resources "include a media lab, resource library, arts workshop, science lab, gathering room and teaching kitchen in addition to a café and bookstore." The summer before my son entered the third grade, he attended an intriguing session called Raptor Camp, which he thoroughly enjoyed. Some of the activities included a visit to a raptor preserve, where the kids were able to observe large hawks at relatively close range, and dressing up like a raptor! My son learned so much from this camp, and he retained it, too. He astonished us recently by correctly answering a raptor question on the television show "Cash Cab!" And this was years after Raptor Camp! Two weeks cost approximately $749, although the prices vary slightly per session. They do offer financial aid -- Crissy Field proudly proclaims, "We provide the most summer camp financial aid in San Francisco!" I say, take them up on it ... By the way, if you have a teen looking for a summer gig, Crissy Field has an impressive CIT (Counselor in Training) program. For further information, call the Summer Camp Office at (415) 561‑7762.

Next on my list would be Zeum, which is a museum and teaching facility to introduce people of all ages to the wonders of technology as it pertains to the media. If you have never been to Zeum, you just absolutely have to go. Zeum is located at 221 Fourth Street in the South of Market section of San Francisco. This museum has many interactive exhibits where you can make music, produce digital artwork - you name it. It's a fascinating place, but I must warn you - you'll have a very difficult time getting your child out of there when it's time to leave. Zeum's Summer Camp is challenging and fun. My son spent several weeks there learning to make videos and create video games, and he loved every minute of it. Camp Zeum is for kids from ages 6-10. It's $400 a week for non-members and $350 for members (I recommend you join). Camp Zeum also offers financial aid (they call it a scholarship). If you work in San Francisco's Financial District, this camp is a real blessing - when my son was attending, I would drop him off before work, race to work, and then pick him up afterwards. For further information, call (415) 820-3565 or e-mail camps@zeum.org.

Here's another great camp for tech-savvy kids - TechKnowHow. This fascinating program offers sessions in Lego and K'Nex Robotics and Computer Game Design. The age range for these sessions is from 6-14. They are challenging and can really build your child's computer literacy. If your child is taking a computer game design session, at the end of the session your child will receive a CD of his or her newly-created game and a folder of instructions for producing other games. Students taking a robotics session will receive videos of themselves with their project and building instructions. Half-day classes are $215 per week, and all-day classes are $375 per week. There are discounts for early-bird and multiple-week signups. I did not see any financial aid offered, by the way. The San Francisco locations for TechKnowHow this year are the Brandeis Hillel School, Corpus Christi School and St. Philip School. For further information, call (650) 474-0400. Their fax number is (650) 292-2256 or send an e-mail to campinfo@techknowhowkids.com .

The last camp on my list is perhaps the most budget-friendly -- the YMCA. All of the San Francisco YMCA programs are good, but our personal favorite is the Stonestown YMCA, which is the biggest and thus has the largest budget for summer programs. It has programs for kids of all ages - from kids entering kindergarten to ninth grade. And beyond that, they have a CIT program for kids entering grades 10 and 11. They offer a wide range of topics - magic, cooking, science, engineering, lots of sports, to name just a few. If you're a facility or a program member, the camps are a lot less expensive. As a facility member, to give you an example, the price range is from approximately $175 to $239 a week, which is a real bargain for the Bay Area. For program members, it's about $20 more per week. The YMCA also offers financial aid to qualifying families. My son loved his summers at the Stonestown YMCA, as did all of his friends. If you are an overly-protective parent like me, the facility holds very reassuring pre-camp sessions for parents explaining every aspect of the camp in detail. For further information on the Stonestown YMCA Summer Camp, call Stacy Delfosse at (415) 242-7144 (sdelfosse@ymcasf.org). For the Y-Tykes/Summer Preschool call Emily Formosa at (415) 242-7145 (eformosa@ymcasf.org).

By the way, before you sign up for any of these camps, make sure the camp's hours span the time period you need for your child. For example, if camp ends at 2:00 or 3:00 p.m., and you'll be at work till 5:00 p.m., you might need extended care for your child. If so, that will be an additional expense, so you should factor that into the total cost of camp for your child.

For all of these camps, you can download their brochures and apply online, or fax in your application form.

I hope this list of the most interesting summer day camps for San Francisco kids helps you to find a great one for your child. Have fun and try to sneak in a little "summer camp" for yourself!

http://72.5.117.155/our_work/crissy/summer_camp.asp

http://www.zeum.org/education/summerCamp.html

http://www.techknowhowkids.com/

http://www.ymcasf.org/

http://www.ymcasf.org/Stonestown/camping.html