Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks for the summer school suggestion. I looked into that and MCPS does accept non-residents (she lives on the west coast). But, class is over at 2pm and we couldn't get her til about 4. Do the schools allow kids to stay and study in the library or do you have to get them right away?

Does she need to be gotten? Can she get herself somewhere? I don't know where you live, where the school would be, or what her experience is in getting herself places.

OP here. Thanks for the summer school suggestion. I looked into that and MCPS does accept non-residents (she lives on the west coast). But, class is over at 2pm and we couldn't get her til about 4. Do the schools allow kids to stay and study in the library or do you have to get them right away?

I have a 15 year old. Combination of summer school, followed by marching band for him. I know in our FCPS neck of the woods, there are plenty of opportunities. Some I have seen in the past couple of weeks:

Take a class online or in person. Redo a class the kid struggled in or take an extra credit to free up time during the school year. In VA, the economics and personal finance (EPF) credit is a great one to knock out during the summer. But, In FCPS, She would have a lot of options. Certainly MCPS is the same.

15 year olds can lifeguard. Our neighborhood pool just sent out a notice that they need lifeguards and want to hire from within the neighborhood. 15 years and up, and the management company will train.

There are several inexpensive band opand strings Camps held in local schools, if she plays and instrument.

TJ Stembassadorsis still looking for kids from any HS to vounteer at Tech camps.

The Air and Space Museum (onthe mall or Dulles) accepts high kids on a rolling basis to volunteer as "explainers"

Etc.

Call whatever HS you are zoned for and ask. They should definately have a list but of inexpensive, school based classes and enrichment programs, and volunteer programs that want HS kids. Then see what your niece is interested in. I would leave a 15 year old alone for a week or two. Being left alone for the whole summer is a lot, unless you have easy access to public transportation.

You don't have to fill her entire day. A little structure goes a long way.

OP here. Thanks for all the feedback!

My 15 yo DD is just mostly hanging out this summer. She's doing some volunteering here and there but I have to provide transportation and it's not a regular gig. More regular volunteer opportunities (e.g. CIT/counselor) are already filled. Paid jobs aside from babysitting are hard to come by. Please don't make her work for you! But if she expresses an interest in babysitting, mention her availability to friends/neighbors. I suggest signing her up for a class that gets her out of the house a few hours a week based on her expressed interests (yoga, art, writing, tennis, etc). I'd also plan to take her on outings to see the city sights as your schedule allows. Aside from that, let her spend some time at the pool. If you know any neighborhood kids the same age, try to introduce them. Kids this age like to have lots of unstructured time so don't feel like you have to plan something every day.

Anonymous wrote:To be honest, I'd make her work. Help her find babysitting jobs or dog walking jobs, anything to keep her busy. She can also help you take care of your kids.

Be careful with this. Don't know the backstory as to why she can't stay at her own home, but don't want her to get the impression that her parents don't want her and her aunt and uncle just see her as free babysitting. Sounds like this kid may be having a very rough time.

If I were asked to take care of a 15 year old over the summer, presuming that he or she is trustworthy, I would allow them to stay up late and sleep late, thereby cutting down the awake hours at the house alone. I would ask for help preparing picnic dinners so we can all go to the pool and eat there. I would be sure they had books, access to internet and Netflix. If there were places to walk to for ice cream, the library, etc, I'd be sure they had the resources to do this.

You can't look at this like parenting your own kid because it is t. It's surviving and keeping her safe and loved or secure. PPs are right that camps are not a thing for 15 year olds. And volunteer work is nice but it's hard to find and it's a time suck for you. Real paying jobs for 15 year olds are few and far between and you'd be responsible for transportation.

Good luck.

To be honest, I'd make her work. Help her find babysitting jobs or dog walking jobs, anything to keep her busy. She can also help you take care of your kids.

Anonymous wrote:Yeah, the community college is a good idea.

There are some volunteer opportunities, too. What is she interested in?

Or send her to a life saving class, so she can get certified and maybe do that as a job next summer.

A cooking class.

An art class at a place like Vis Arts in Rockville.

An acting or dancing class at Imagination Stage. They go up through rising 10th graders.

Are you a member of a church or other religious center? They may have volunteer opportunities.

Red Wiggler Farm takes teen volunteers, but I don't know if it's too late for the summer.

I volunteered at the library when I was 13 and 14. Mending and shelving books mostly.

Here are some teen volunteer opportunities to check out.

http://www.montgomeryserves.org/volunteers/student-service-learning-ssl

Sorry about the link. I see a PP already included it.

Yeah, the community college is a good idea.

There are some volunteer opportunities, too. What is she interested in?

Or send her to a life saving class, so she can get certified and maybe do that as a job next summer.

A cooking class.

An art class at a place like Vis Arts in Rockville.

An acting or dancing class at Imagination Stage. They go up through rising 10th graders.

Are you a member of a church or other religious center? They may have volunteer opportunities.

Red Wiggler Farm takes teen volunteers, but I don't know if it's too late for the summer.

I volunteered at the library when I was 13 and 14. Mending and shelving books mostly.

Here are some teen volunteer opportunities to check out.

http://www.montgomeryserves.org/volunteers/student-service-learning-ssl

Community colleges might have inexpensive summer courses for high school kids. We live in CA and I've seen them out here. My 15 year old is taking some art classes this summer. If you live somewhere reasonably accessible by public transport, she should be able to get back and forth by herself (help her figure out the route), so she doesn't need full day, just something to keep her from getting bored.

Summer camp for 15-year-olds isn't really a thing, anyway. I mean, besides multi-week sleepaway camps.

What does your niece like to do? What is she interested in? What are her strengths? Do you live somewhere where she can get herself places?

Here is a good resource for volunteer opportunities for students in Montgomery County: http://www.montgomeryserves.org/volunteers/student-service-learning-ssl

Your library will be able to provide you with these resources.

We've been asked to care for our 15 year old niece this summer. It was an out of the blue request that came this morning. We have small children and aren't familiar with summer activities for teens. We work long hours and our kids are in child care and I'm not comfortable with the niece being home alone for 10+ hours per day. We also didn't budget in camp for another kid. Does anyone know any low cost activities or volunteer gigs in the MoCo area that are still available?