Summer Camps

Summer break often leads to a loss of academic gains made during the school year. To keep students engaged in learning in a safe setting, EducationWorks sponsors full-day summer camps, Monday through Friday, for more than 2,000 children and youth from kindergarten through high school, in Philadelphia neighborhoods with the fewest opportunities.

Campers engage in educationally-rich, hands-on activities that are fun and appropriate to their developmental needs and circumstances. Camp activities focus on one theme each summer. Past themes include “The World of Water," “Growing Peaceful Communities,” “Be the Change You Want To See,” and “Ancient Egypt.” All campers develop their reading and writing skills, participate in visual and performing arts, have a chance to go swimming, and take weekly educational trips.

EducationWorks camps have a number of unique partnerships that successfully bring enriched experiences. For more than five years we have partnered with groups such as the Philadelphia Eagles Youth Partnership Eye Mobile that provides free eye exams, prescription eyeglasses, and follow-up care; the Philadelphia Ethical Society provides outdoor recreation and swimming instruction; Philadelphia READS places teachers in our camps; plus the Free Library of Philadelphia, the Girl Scouts, and the National Constitution Center.

Programs at EducationWorks camps engage every age and interest:

• Elementary school campers
  Enjoy a daily schedule of age-appropriate literacy enhancement, arts activities, recreation, and weekly educational trips. Teachers from Philadelphia READS provide intensive interdisciplinary literacy instruction for grades K-3. Students are engaged 20 hours a week with the SWARM curriculum (Science, Writing, Art, Reading, Music). Campers welcome additional support from the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, Academy of Community Music, PhilaDanco, and Delta Science. Upper elementary students are enriched with language arts, math games, and conflict resolution activities.
• Middle school students
  Explore acting, puppetry, play writing, dance, creative movement, and improvisation in our performing arts camp. They write and prepare original productions, which are performed at other summer camps. To complement these activities, campers last summer took trips to the Bristol Riverside Theater, Enchantment Theater, and Mann Music Center.
• Middle and high school students
  Attend media camps where they learn multi-media skills, film and music production, creative writing and how to develop a business plan. After field trips to the Independence Seaport Museum and Philadelphia’s Water Works, they produce Public Service Announcements to promote water conservation and environmentally-friendly water preservation practices.
• Other high school students
  Participate in a job-readiness/professionalism program that couples practical hands-on experience with training and personal development workshops. They serve as Junior Camp Counselors for six weeks, where they train to build the literacy skills of younger campers. They lead reading activities in small groups, followed by art activities that reinforce what children learn from the stories. A select group of high school students trains elementary school students in the Risk Watch program, which teaches accident prevention. One day each week, campers gain and reinforce new skills: communicating with co-workers, reflecting on their impact, and exploring career options and life skills.