Summer is upon us and there are tons of “camps” around town for kids.
Here’s a sampling:
TCL
The Technical College of the Lowcountry Division of Continuing Education & Workforce Development is hosting a series of summer camps for children ages 8 to 17. Camps include aviation, art, cooking, coding and more and run from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. with lunch provided. Visit www.tcl.edu/camps or call Christina Welsch-Copeland at 843-525-8264.
Bible school
Riverview Baptist Church of Beaufort will hold Vacation Bible School for children of all ages. The school will be held from 5:45-8:45 p.m. Monday, July 24, and Tuesday, July 25. There will be fun, food, crafts and Bible study. For more information, contact Deb Solze at 843-524-6441 or Diane Grooms at dianegrooms@hotmail.com. Riverview Baptist Church is at 2209 Boundary St. in Beaufort.
YMCA
There is something for kids of all ages at the Beaufort YMCA this summer.
In addition to the offer day camps for kids age 3-15 at its facility in Port Royal and offsite day camps at several locations in Beaufort and Jasper counties.
Camps include:
• Kiddie Camp for campers age 3-4. Includes daily swim time, arts and crafts, story time, playtime, nature walks, preschool activities, etc.
• Traditional Camp for kids age 5-12, segmented into age appropriate groups. Youth participate in educational enrichment activities with an emphasis on reading and mathematics. Daily swimming, nature activities, crafts, music, gym activities, team activities, etc.
• Specialty Camps offer unique opportunities for learning and creativity offered by camp staff trained in specific activities. Camps can include adventure camp, gymnastics, Bricks 4 Kidz LEGO Amusement Park, basketball, soccer, Girls & Dolls Camp, tennis, Y Idol and more.
For a complete list of the many summer camps available, visit www.ymcabeaufortcounty.com/child-care/summer-camp.
Soccer camp
Beaufort Academy will offer late summer and fall soccer classes with Coach Steve Aldred. The classes are for players in grades 1-8 and open to the community. Aldred holds the UEFA “A” license and has coached soccer full time in England, China, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Malaysia and the United States. The Beaufort Academy soccer coach is offering soccer summer camp sessions from 8:30-11 a.m. for rising fourth- grade through eighth-grade students for the weeks of July 31-Aug. 4 and Aug. 7-11. The price for a Beaufort Academy student will be $100 each week, or $180 for both weeks. Non-Beaufort Academy students are also welcome to attend for $125 per week, or $220 for both weeks. The deadline to sign up for summer soccer is Friday, June 9.
The summer soccer form is available online.
For more information on the soccer classes, contact Aldred at 843-305-7871 grassroots.coaching@gmail.com.
Virtual Summer Academy
Hundreds of students are expected to register for the Beaufort County School District’s Virtual Summer Academy, which lets students go to class during the summer without actually entering a school.
This will be the eighth year for the eight-week program, which helps rising kindergarten through fifth-grade students maintain or accelerate their academic skills over summer vacation.
Students can participate using computers in their homes or using computers at various community partners around Beaufort County.
Chrissy Robinson, the district’s director of Educational Technology, said that reading and math results from Measures of Academic Progress (MAP) tests indicate that students who participate in Virtual Summer Academy retain more information than those who don’t take part.
Students will take part in fun interactive lessons and activities that focus on reading and math skills. Participants generally will spend 15-30 minutes on each day’s lessons.
Robinson said the summer program can adapt to what individual students need because the computer programs are customized.
In addition to students who participate from their homes, students can also participate through a partnership between the district and Neighborhood Outreach Connection, which has six locations throughout Beaufort County. NOC makes Virtual Summer Academy a part of its schedule, with students working on math and English language arts.
Interested students can also participate using computers at any public library in Beaufort County.
Throughout the eight-week program, virtual summer school teachers will monitor how students are doing and keep parents up to date on their progress. The district employs four teachers for the Virtual Summer Academy.
For more information on the program, an introductory video and a registration link, visit beaufortschools.net/cms/one.aspx?pageId=270914
Any community group interested in utilizing Virtual Summer Academy as part of its summer program is encouraged to get in touch with program coordinator Estee Williams at estee.williams@beaufort.k12.sc.us.
History camp
Looking for something fun and entertaining this summer for the kids? Let Historic Beaufort Foundation take them back in time.
Campers will explore a different slice of history each day through walks, crafts, hands-on activities and more. Each day will feature a different important milestone in Beaufort history. There are two sessions and they are geared to ages 8-11.
The sessions will be held Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. to noon July 10-14 and July 31-Aug. 4.
The cost is $75 a week for members and $85 a week for nonmembers.
Space is limited so early registration is advisable.
Camps are led by experienced educators dedicated to providing unique and engaging experiences campers won’t soon forget.
For registration and/or information, call the Historic Beaufort Foundation at 843-379-3331 or email sstanny@historicbeaufort.org
