Keep the kids active and occupied during the sweltering Phoenix summer.
Unlike other parts of the country where summer is prime time and kids can play outside all day, Phoenix has a heat factor to contend with---temperatures often reach 110 degrees or higher. When the school year draws to a close in Phoenix, parents are asking, "How can I keep my kids from feeling cooped up all summer?" In Phoenix, summer camps are almost a necessity for getting the kids out of the house and keeping them active for at least part of the summer. Luckily, there are plenty of reasonably-priced summer camps around.
Deer Valley Rock Art Center
Kids can learn about the art of the valley's earliest residents.
For children ages 8 to 11, Arizona State University's Deer Valley Rock Art Center offers three sessions of its Petroglyph Pathfinders summer camp. This week-long full-day camp offers kids the opportunity for adventure at a real archaeological site, the Hedgpeth Hills Petroglyph Site, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The kids will learn about desert plants and animals, as well as archaeology and anthropology, with hands-on activities including crafts, hikes and games. The summer 2010 fee for this camp is $75 for members and $95 for nonmembers. The fee includes a morning snack.
Deer Valley Rock Art Center
3711 W. Deer Valley Road
Phoenix, AZ 85308
623-582-8007
dvrac.asu.edu
Arizona Science Center
Six-week-long, full-day science camp sessions are offered at the Arizona Science Center, with two of those sessions also offered in an East Valley location and two in a West Valley location. Campers explore science in age-appropriate groups as Investigators (ages 6 to 7), Junior Scientists (ages 8 to 9) or Researchers (ages 10 to 12). The East and West Valley campers will visit the Arizona Science Center on the last day of camp. In the summer of 2010, sessions are $120 per child for Arizona Science Center members and $135 for nonmembers. Early drop-off and late pick-up is also available for an additional $50.
Arizona Science Center
600 E. Washington Street
Phoenix, AZ 85004
602-716-2028
azScience.org
Challenger Space Center
Spend a week exploring space at the Challenger Space Center.
The Adventures in Space week-long, half-day and full-day camps at the Challenger Space Center are exciting and educational. Campers will learn about astronauts, space, rockets and the history of flight. Four programs alternate through the summer for kids in kindergarten through fifth grades, with different morning and afternoon sessions each week. Campers can attend either or both. Each week-long, half-day session is $110 per child in the summer of 2010. Campers entering sixth through eighth grades attend the Apollo program, which is a week-long, full-day camp, with two programs alternating through the summer; each session is $250.
Challenger Space Center
21170 N. 83rd Avenue
Peoria, AZ 85382
623-322-2001
azchallenger.org
Desert Botanical Garden
Arizona kids will enjoy learning about desert life.
The Desert Botanical Garden offers a variety of summer camps for kids from kindergarten to eighth grade; some of the week-long camps are half-day and some are full-day. Summer 2010 fees range from $120 to $240 for members and $150 to $300 for nonmembers. Depending on age, campers can learn about desert animals and plants, conservation and herpetology (studying desert reptiles and amphibians). An evening camp will let kids learn the sounds of the desert night. Aftercare is available for full-day campers for an additional fee.
Desert Botanical Garden
1201 N. Galvin Parkway
Phoenix, AZ 85008
480-941-1225
dbg.org
Arizona Animal Welfare League and SPCA
Find out what it takes to become a veterinarian.
The AAWL and the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals offer two summer camps. Ruffin' It campers (ages 4 to 14) will learn responsible pet care and training techniques. They will handle a variety of animals and learn from shelter veterinarians. Kids Club members will pay $157, in 2010, for a week-long, half-day session and $247 for a full-day session. Nonmembers will pay $175 and $275, respectively. Camp Vet, for 12- to 17-year-olds, is designed to give campers an idea of what it takes to become a veterinarian. The kids will observe surgeries, dissect organs and practice hands-on first aid for pets, among other activities. Members will pay $290 for the two-week, full-day session, and nonmembers will pay $325. The fee includes tee shirt, water bottle and morning and afternoon snacks.
Arizona Animal Welfare League and SPCA
30 North 40th Place
Phoenix, Arizona 85034
602-273-6852
aawl.org
Programs for Talented Youth
Offered by Arizona State University, the Programs for Talented Youth summer program runs for three weeks in June for kids in third through seventh grades. In the summer of 2010, there is also a week-long program for second graders. Sessions are either in the morning or afternoon. There is an application fee of $25, and the program fee of $425 includes all books and course supplies. Financial assistance is available, and children or grandchildren of full-time ASU students and employees receive a 10 percent discount. Early-riser and extended-day options are also available for an additional fee.
Programs for Talented Youth
P.O. Box 873811
Tempe, AZ 85287-3811
480-727-7450
oyp.asu.edu
Tags: Arizona Science, Arizona Science Center, Science Center, Challenger Space, Challenger Space Center