Summer Camp
2023 Registration is now open!
With questions about camp, please e-mail our Camp Director, Marcela Perez, at mperez@waldorfct.org.
HVWS Summer Camp is a day camp for children ages 3-14. Offering two groups—Explorers, for PreK-1st grade students—and Artists, for 1st-8th graders—HVWS Day Summer Camp is the perfect place for natural and exciting summer fun! Led by caring and talented educators, HVWS Summer Camp invites children to enjoy the summer through participating in a variety of activities. Our day summer camp is proud to welcome campers throughout Connecticut, including the communities of Newtown, Bethel, Danbury, CT, and the surrounding areas.
Enroll Your Child in Our Day Summer Camp
The Summer Camp day runs from 9 AM to 3 PM. The fee for each camp session is $340; the week of July 4 is $272. (Register before June 1 and receive a $10/child/week discount).
Our Explorers play with water and mud; participate in group games; enjoy organic gardening; and make arts and crafts related to the theme of the week using natural materials such as wool, beeswax, silk, wood, etc. We follow a simple daily rhythm that provides the campers with a sense of trust and ease while they explore nature, make new friends, and learn new skills.
Our Artists are more capable of challenging themselves physically and socially. The goal of our day summer camp is to provide opportunities that meet our older campers developmentally in a safe, natural environment.
With questions about our day summer camp, please e-mail Camp Director, Marcela Perez, at camp@waldorfct.org. We look forward to seeing you at camp!
Explorers, Prek-1st Grade
There is no better time than the summer to enjoy water play. Sand, mud and water are great companions in the summertime. Throughout our summer we have plenty of outdoor time and fun building, creating, and relaxing in the warm weather. The sprinkler showers playtime and turns sand into a building material! Please note: Explorers must be toilet trained before the start of camp.
WEEK 1: June 19-23 (Waitlisted)
LIFE IN THE WOODS
Deer, squirrels, foxes, turkeys, owls and many more animals will show us this week how they live in the woods! We will use different materials to make them tiny and see what they look like when we have them in our hands. We may also explore the places where they hide through stories, drawings, watercolor and beeswax modeling. We may even turn into one of these forest creatures to play with our friends!
WEEK 2: June 26-30 (Waitlisted)
BOATS, RIVERS & OCEANS
Adventures are the theme of this week! We may use our imagination to transform our play structures into boats to travel along the course of a river or ships to sail with our friends and explore the oceans. We may also draw and paint sea creatures and the wonderful lands we may visit!
WEEK 3: July 3-7
SHELTERS & TUNNELS
How fun it is to build different size shelters and tunnels! We will use a variety of materials–including sand, mud, and water–to build tiny structures to use in our imaginative play and larger structures to shelter ourselves and our friends. We may also paint, draw, and even make a little town together!
WEEK 4: July 10-14 (Waitlisted)
BUTTERFLIES, BUGS & BEES
Summertime is the perfect time to observe and run alongside our winged and multi-legged friends. We will build bug houses to safely keep an eye on our friends before we release them back into their habitats. Watercolor painting, beeswax modeling, and more are ways for us to bring our friends home with us without taking them from the garden!
WEEK 5: July 17-21 (Waitlisted)
FAIRIES, KNIGHTS & DRAGONS
The woodland creatures need protecting! Together we will build houses to keep our fairy friends safe, ride on “horses” into the sunset, and build castles in the sandbox, all the while keeping an eye out for the dragon we will attempt to tame.
WEEK 6: July 24-28 (Waitlisted)
GROWING & GIVING
“Oh what abundance the summer doth give…” Spend the week with friends, flora, and fauna as we cultivate our summer garden! You will enjoy planting seeds that you’ll bring home to watch grow in the summer sun. Working together to grow the land is mighty fun with friends by your side!
WEEK 7: July 31 – August 4 (Waitlisted)
MUSIC & MERRIMENT
While summer can be a time to relax, it is still fun to add a little music and merriment to your days! Join us as we create simple percussion instruments, colorful hats, and wave our batons to the melody of the summer sounds around us. We will lead a musical parade as we serenade the birds, bees and butterflies!
WEEK 8: August 7-11 (Waitlisted)
CIRCUS & CLOWNS
Tumbling, juggling, and “walking the tightrope,” are all activities our inner clown enjoys! Have fun this week making your own juggling balls, playing with circus toys, and clowning around with friends.
Artists, 1st-8th Grade
WEEK 1: June 19-23 (Waitlisted)
MUSIC & MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS
We are opening our camp this year with a week dedicated to the creation of traditional musical instruments from the Andes mountain region in South America. The marvelous musicians from ANDES MANTA will come at the end of the week and provide an opportunity for the campers to make their own traditional instrument under their guidance. They will also work with the campers to explore the sounds of nature using the different instruments they would have created during the week with the help of the camp teacher and counselors and offer a concert to the parents on Friday before pick up time. For more information about ANDES MANTA please visit their website: https://www.andesmanta.com
WEEK 2: June 26-30 (Waitlisted)
TREASURE HUNT GAMES AND STORIES
Throughout the week the campers will follow clues and solve riddles that may lead them to the discovery of hidden treasures. They will also create outdoor treasure hunt games, maps and arts & craft projects related to real and fictional stories and adventures of hidden treasures around the world.
WEEK 3: July 3-7
OBSTACLE COURSES & SUMMER GAMES
This week the campers will be challenged by outdoor obstacle courses spread throughout the campus and created by our experienced, energetic, acrobatic and outdoor camp teacher. The campers will also be invited to participate in different water games. Like all the other weeks, there will be opportunities for those who enjoy the arts and crafts to create their own projects.
WEEK 4: July 10-14
SHELTERS AND TUNNELS
Summer after summer, our campers are excited to have an opportunity to build their own outdoor and life size shelters and tunnels using sticks and fabric provided by the camp teacher and counselors. These shelters provide them with a set to develop endless games and stories. They also enjoy listening to real and fictional tales about ancient shelters that inspire them to use different arts and craft materials to create shelter projects at a smaller scale.
WEEK 5: July 17-21
LIFE IN THE FOREST
Under the camp teacher’s guidance, the campers will explore throughout the week real and fictional stories, games and arts and craft projects related to the life in the forest. With their parents’ permission they will also have an opportunity to explore and play in the neighboring forest that belongs to the school.
WEEK 6: July 24-28 (Waitlisted for rising 3rd Graders and up)
ARCHERY & ARTS AND CRAFTS
Campers will explore the fundamentals of archery including safety and proper target techniques.
Archery is available for rising Third graders and up; Arts and Crafts is available for rising First and Second graders.
WEEK 7: July 31 – August 4 (Waitlisted for rising 3rd Graders and up)
ARCHERY & ARTS AND CRAFTS
Campers will explore the fundamentals of archery including safety and proper target techniques.
Archery is available for rising Third graders and up; Arts and Crafts is available for rising First and Second graders.
WEEK 8: August 8-12 (Waitlisted)
CIRCUS ARTS
Campers will learn and practice skills such as unicycle riding, stilt walking, advanced tumbling, and juggling with everything except fire!
WEEK 9: August 14-18 (Waitlisted)
CIRCUS ARTS
Campers will refine their skills and end the week with a performance.
Extended Care
Extended Care will be available daily from 8-9 AM and 3-6 PM. Pre-registration is requested. The rate is $10/hour, payable each week. Please register by emailing our Summer Camp Director, Marcela Perez, at mperez@waldorfct.org in advance of the day in question, to confirm space.
camp scholarships
We are thrilled to share that we have been awarded a Summer Enrichment Grant from Connecticut State Department of Education. The purpose of the grant is “to provide equitable, high-quality, and accessible summer enrichment opportunities for Connecticut children.” The grant will enable HVWS to offer free summer camp to families with children aged 5-14. Priority will be given to families who could otherwise not afford camp.
Please email Marcela Perez, Camp Director, at mperez@waldorfct.org if you would like to apply for a scholarship before May 26th, 2023. A committee will evaluate all requests and notify the recipient as soon as possible. We would need camp medical forms and other registration documentation in place prior to attending the camp.
becas para el campo de verano
Estamos muy contentos de poder informarles que hemos recibido la beca otorgada por el Departamento de Educación del Estado de Connecticut para ofrecer acceso gratis a nuestro campo de vacaciones. El propósito de esta beca es “proveer oportunidades equitativas para que los niños de Connecticut puedan participar en campos de Verano de alta cualidad que enriquezcan su experiencia.”
Esta beca permite a nuestra escuela HVWS ofrecer a los niños de 5 a 14 años la oportunidad de participar sin costo alguno en nuestros programas de verano. Daremos prioridad a familias que normalmente no prodrian participar en el campo por razones financieras.
Si desean aplicar a esta becas, por favor envien un correo electrónico a Marcela Pérez, Directora del campo, a mperez@waldorfct.org antes del 26 de mayo, 2023. Un comité evaluará todas las aplicaciones y notificará a aquellos que cualifiquen para recibir una beca. Tengan en cuenta que neccesitamos formularios de salud de los niños y la documentación necesaria para registrarlos antes de poder asistir al campo.
