Summer camps for preschoolers

[Anonymous]

Can anyone recommend a camp for a 4 yr old w/ actual early childhood teachers and not just teenage counselors? Maybe 1/2 day w/ swimming and outdoor/ nature activities? With small groups of 4 yr olds? My son's preschool offers a few weeks of camp in June but I would love to find something towards the end of the summer too. Any location is fine.

[Anonymous]

Congressional in VA
Burgundy Farm-VA

[Anonymous]

I'd be cautious about Congressional...check their violations in the Virginia Child Care inspection reports. They've been posted in other threads on DCUM. My child really didn't enjoy his time in their Great Adventures program several years ago when he was 4, although we haven't tried it since. That may be unique to my child, though, as I know other neighborhood kids have had a lot of fun there.

Burgundy is very good, and my child enjoyed it a lot at age 5; they sometimes have public school Kindergarten teachers as counselors for the younger kids, but most counselors appeared to be college kids, so I'm not sure if it meets OP's criteria. They also offer free Red Cross swimming instruction and daily swimming.

Another good option if you don't mind a slight religious bent is Corpus Christi summer camp, held at St. Philip's Church in Falls Church. My 4yo attended for a few weeks and really enjoyed the camp. The lead counselor in each room seemed to be an early childhood teacher from their preschool (mature women), and the assistant counselors were college students. They had lots of activities (Mad Science, storytellers, magicians, etc.) and walked to a nearby pool twice a week. We're not Catholic, but except for a simple prayer before eating lunch, we didn't notice any overt Catholic education. It's definitely more confined than Burgundy, with more time spent inside and less exploring the outdoors.