Sports & DanceBlast! Summer Camp @ Sports and Wellness, May 31-Aug. 12Whippersnappers get to enjoy sport-specific training, two hours of swimming every day, arts and crafts, music and will also get the opportunity to make friends outside of school. Parents do not have to be members of the club for their progeny to participate. This program is for ages 3-15, and before and after extended care are available.Summer Climbing Camp @ Stone Age Climbing Gym, June 6-Aug. 5Turn your offspring into a spider monkey (age 7-11) or wall crawler (age 11-13) at Stone Age’s 23,000 square foot facility. They will get to exercise in a cool environment and, most important, have lots of fun learning the how to to be boulder-ninjas. The staff is extremely friendly and takes safety seriously. Sign up for morning or afternoon camps in four different sessions. Prices range from $200-$220.Flip for Fun Summer Camp @ G-Force Gymnastics Academy, May 31- Aug. 5If your youngsters (ages 6+) are constantly showing you how insanely flexible they are, perhaps a summer of gymnastics would be just the thing to kick-start their summer fun. The program includes games, field trips, arts and crafts, outdoor activities and weekly themes like ninja warrior, Disney, around the world, circus and more. Prices range from $1,377-$1,300 depending on how many or your children enroll together.Children’s Campus Summer Camp @ UNM, June 6-Aug. 5 in 4 sessionsElementary urchins (age 5-10, must have finished Kindergarten) and middle school tweens (age 11-14) can pick any or all of four sessions at the University. Activities include everything from glassblowing and parkour to horseback riding and crossfit. The possibilities are endless. Plus breakfast, lunch and an afternoon snack are included in this five-star rated facility accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children.2016 Summer Dance Camps @ Keshet, June 6-Aug. 5Humans of all abilities, age 4-18, can sign up for summer camps in a variety of dance genres like jazz and hip-hop, musical theater, adaptive dance and more. Prices at this inclusive dance company range from $50-$220. Sign up early for a discount on any of the nine summer camps.Riding Camp @ Valencia Farms, Jun 10-July 15What better way for minors (age 5-15) to spend their summer than with horses? It’s every kid’s dream. This camp is for both beginning and experienced riders and includes arts and crafts, fun activities and lots of time with horses, focusing on learning to ride and improving skills. Campers will learn about important equine topics like grooming, horsemanship, jumping, barn management and more. Parents can choose from five different one-day camps, $85 each. AcademicExplora 2016 @ Explora!, June 6-Aug. 5Anklebiters to almost-adults (age pre-K to 18) are invited to Explora! to have fun and fuel their brains at the same time. Choose from a bevy of topics like water, paper, dirt, crash test dummies, robotics, mirrors, electricity, nanoscience, eco-art and computer game development with Sandia Labs engineers. Prices range from $130-$300.Summer Camps @ Engineering for Kids, May 31-Aug. 10How insanely cool is this place? Your little geniuses can learn about engineering! In a variety of classes, they’ll (grade 3-8) learn the building blocks of engineering through themes like architecture, gaming, go-karts, robotics and even pirates! Each camp is about $140-$175 each. Don’t let your child’s brain matter shrivel during the summer.Young Explorers Summer Science @ New Mexico Museum of Natural History & Science, June 13-Aug 5Everyone knows that the dinosaur museum is the coolest. Where else can you walk on lava? Amateur naturalists (grades K-8) can sign up for camps like Base to Summit, Nature Detectives, Shark Detectives, Galactic Engineers, Museum Quest and more. Aftercare is available, and each camp is $290 with a 10 percent discount for museum members.Nature Discovery for Kids @ Rio Grande Nature Center, June 6-Aug. 5 in 9 sessionsNature walks, games, activities, oh my! Tadpoles (age 5-12) will learn to observe, identify and collect data on birds, insects, predators, amphibians, reptiles, bats and more. Each evening session is $20, and week-long day camps are $65 each with discounts for Friends of the Nature Center. Anthropology Kids’ Camp @ Maxwell Museum, June 15-18There’s only one session left that hasn’t sold out for this exciting camp on the University campus. Young archeologist (age 8-12) will get to get their hands dirty with fossil investigations, instrument-making, archeological digs, bread baking, geocaching and more. Tuition is $195 through UNM Continuing Education.Robots & Rocketry @ Balloon Museum, June 6- July 22 in 2 sessionsParents, want your lil’ nerd to take care of you in your old age? The Balloon Museum has teamed up with RoboRAVE, whose motto is, “Today’s play. Tomorrow’s pay.” So get your sprout a-learnin’ so they can invent the next robot that gets sent to Jupiter. Costs run from $150-$275 with discounts for siblings and buddies.Camp BioPark @ BioPark, June 6-July 29 in 7 sessionsDitch your sprogs (grade pre-K-9) at the BioPark and let ’em discover the ins and outs of farming, gardens, bugs, aquatic critters, the secret lives of zoo animals and much more. Pay $125-$230 per camp, but really, can you put a price tag on education?Art & MusicSummer Art Camp @ Harwood Art Center, June 6-July 29 in 4 sessionsGot a creative cookie (grade 1-9)? Sign ’em up for a summer of fun with activities in music, theater, ceramics, painting and more, all in a positive environment. The molding of your little artiste will cost you $265-$465, with discounts for those with a Harwood family membership.Rock Star Summer Camp @ Inspire Rock Academy, June 27-Aug. 5 in 2 sessionsIn your heart, your wee, little baby (grade 1-6) will always be a rock star, but how about making them an actual rock star by enrolling them in a summer camp that will teach them the basics of singing, dancing, guitar, piano and drums? Before and aftercare are available, and camp tickets are $185-$340. Forget Queen, your kid will rock you.Let’s Put on a Play @ ABQ Little Theatre, June 6-July 29 in 3 sessionsGot a drama queen or king (age 4-17) in your house? Let them exhaust all their emotions, costumes and monologues with the Little Theatre. Each session includes games, activities and stories to act out. Dole out $60 per week and get ready to give a standing ovation.Summer Jazz Intensive by NM Jazz Workshop @ ABQ Academy, June 6-July 15Music is life. If your juvenile (age 12-18) agrees, reserve them a spot at this six-week jazz camp for musicians of all levels. $460 will cover lessons in techniques like soloing, jazz theory, arranging, ensemble performance, improvisation and more. Summer Art Camp 2016 @ ABQ Museum, June 3-July 28Picasso once said, “The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls.” Striplings (age 3-12) can wash off the dust with classes focusing on design, tribal art, clay, mosaics, animals and more. Prices vary from $60-$175 for full- or half-days.2016 Summer Camps @ NM School of Music, June 6-July 29 in 7 sessionsMoppets (age 3-18) can give parent a little peace and quiet by channeling their noisiness at music camp. Classes cover Broadway singing, choir, violin, beginning guitar, music reading, keyboard and more. The bill will be around $85-$330.AllThink Summer @ABQ Academy, June 6-July 15Send your bairn to Academy and watch them blossom over a six-week period. They’ll have full days of fun with Spanish, storytelling, plyometrics, ballet, juggling, guitar, math, Homer (the poet not Simpson), water polo, sewing, painting, basics of babysitting, book-binding, tap dance and so much more. Each class on your kid’s schedule will be about $230-$655.Summer Programs @ Bosque School, June 6- July 29 in 8 sessionsAdolescents (grade 1-12) can become well-rounded with lessons in volleyball, martial arts, hip-hop dancing, music, ceramics, archeology, yoga, robotics and more. Classes are about $150-$295 and cover a combination of fitness, creativity and discovery.Summer Camp @ Jewish Community Center of ABQ, May 31 -Aug. 5Small fries (age 5-16) of all faiths can hang out at the JCC for a summer of fun and friendships. Electives include rocketry, soccer, magic, golf, cheerleading, origami, I-Pad stop motion, horseback riding, outdoor adventures and more. Classes run from about $100-$525 with discounts for members. Before and aftercare are available.
Summer Guide: Happy Campers
A Compendium Of Rockin’ Summer Camps For The Sprogs
7 min read
