IFTA/E-IFTA Summer Camps

[Anonymous]

Does anyone have any experience with these? I have a middle schooler that doesn't want to do summer camps (and will be too old for most of them anyway) and I thought this might be a nice way to pass a couple weeks. Also, we don't live anywhere near Lake Braddock, but I heard they have bussing from other schools - has anyone done that?

[Anonymous]

We had a great experience one year and a mid experience the second year. One year was at Robinson and one Lake Braddock. My other child also did the STEM camp one year which used to run concurrently and he took the bus from Chantilly HS at least one direction (I think to Robinson but don't remember). That bus didn't run from Chantilly when my other kid did IFTA and it was a bit of a struggle to arrange our schedules for transport but we managed--I was better prepared the second year for that possibility. Her IFTA classes were great, she didn't make as many friends the second year which was her main complaint. It is a great value summer program, that's for sure!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We had a great experience one year and a mid experience the second year. One year was at Robinson and one Lake Braddock. My other child also did the STEM camp one year which used to run concurrently and he took the bus from Chantilly HS at least one direction (I think to Robinson but don't remember). That bus didn't run from Chantilly when my other kid did IFTA and it was a bit of a struggle to arrange our schedules for transport but we managed--I was better prepared the second year for that possibility. Her IFTA classes were great, she didn't make as many friends the second year which was her main complaint. It is a great value summer program, that's for sure!

Thank you! Do you recall when they released the bus schedule? We'd be coming from the Chantilly area, so that's a big concern for me!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We had a great experience one year and a mid experience the second year. One year was at Robinson and one Lake Braddock. My other child also did the STEM camp one year which used to run concurrently and he took the bus from Chantilly HS at least one direction (I think to Robinson but don't remember). That bus didn't run from Chantilly when my other kid did IFTA and it was a bit of a struggle to arrange our schedules for transport but we managed--I was better prepared the second year for that possibility. Her IFTA classes were great, she didn't make as many friends the second year which was her main complaint. It is a great value summer program, that's for sure!

Thank you! Do you recall when they released the bus schedule? We'd be coming from the Chantilly area, so that's a big concern for me!

It was a lot later than the sign up, that's all I remember. For IFTA you want to sign up for the classes on the day they open, bc sometimes they fill up. Also the second year my daughter had one class get cancelled due to low enrollment so then she got one she was less interested in. Funny tidbit--one of the IFTA teachers she had when she was in 7th grade is a teacher she got in 10th grade at an academy program, so it was nice to have that previous connection.

[Anonymous]

I teach high school. The students I've had who did IFTA have universally adored it. In high school they can weave in PE and drivers ed as some of the courses to knock that out too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I teach high school. The students I've had who did IFTA have universally adored it. In high school they can weave in PE and drivers ed as some of the courses to knock that out too.

Agreed. We have many friends who have loved it year after year. I can’t speak to the bus issue but it’s a great summer program.

[Anonymous]

The IFTA camps are fantastic. My daughter loved them every year and only stopped junior year because her summer job didn’t allow for it. We live relatively to Lake Braddock, so we drove, but there was bidding from every other HS I believe. We used the bus when it was at Robinson.

[Anonymous]

Did anyone have a kid do the IFTA production camp last year? Would it be good for a rising sophomore who is pretty serious about theatre?

[Anonymous]

HIGHLY recommend IFTA. I'm sorry I don't know about the production camp - all three of my kids adored IFTA for the many summers they attended.

Email a contact person there to ask about the buses. They should be able to give you some idea of what past summers' bus schedules looked like. We've done bussing from a school closer by - it's very easy/no big deal.

[Anonymous]

I can't add much on logistics but both my kids did IFTA and loved it!

One kid had her digital art teacher from IFTA as her teacher in high school and she's now pursuing art in college.