Parent Magazine St Johns April 2022 | Page 11

Summer Camps With Flair

By Jan Pierce , M . Ed

Most of us remember summer camp . It was great : Rustic cabins , swimming in the lake , arts and crafts , songs around a campfire and capture the flag in the evenings . It still sounds good to me .

But times have changed and lots of kids are more excited to plan a summer adventure around performance academies than attend a traditional summer camp . There are lots of options , and while they are not inexpensive , they do offer wonderful opportunities for your kids . They can be week-long overnight experiences or day camps only .
Here are some of the possibilities . Check your local area for availability .
Dance and Theater Camps : Dance and theater camps will focus every day on training classes and rehearsals with an eye to a final performance at the end of the camp . Theater offerings may include improvisation , comedy , costume and set design , prop building , sound mixing , filmmaking , musical theater or stage makeup . Many theater camps offer two- or three-week options to maximize the quality of the final performances . Dance camps may begin their day programs with children as young as two years and offer ballet , tap and jazz , hiphop and modern dance courses ranging in difficulty from beginners to advanced courses . Again , a performance at the end of the course of study is usually the highlight of the camp . available , from rock and roll to classical . Music camps are great for honing skills or trying something brand new .
Clown / Circus Camps : Get ready for some fun at circus or clown camps . Kids learn such skills as plate-spinning , balloon-twisting , stilt-walking , scarf juggling or riding a unicycle . Or they can learn to be a clown as they create costumes , learn to apply clown makeup and learn the gags and slapstick antics of being a clown . Final performances are the norm here as well .
Art Camps : There are lots of opportunities for kids to delve into art and art-related projects in summer art camps . Many of these are local and offer day courses for children aged five and up . Others are destination camps that integrate art activities with traditional summer camp experiences . Abrakadoodles camps offer process
Music Camps : For children interested in advancing their musical skills or for those who just love to sing , there are tons of music camp options . Children may take private lessons from skilled teachers or learn to sing or play in ensembles . They can study band instruments , orchestra instruments or focus on just piano or violin . There are classes in music theory , sight-reading , songwriting or voice . A wide variety of musical experiences are
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