Nature Explorers “at Home” Summer Camp

These camps are designed for kids to do at home this summer at their own pace and with the support of Outdoor U Education Staff. The target audience is rising 3rd through 6th graders. Younger kids are welcome, but may require additional help from adults at home.

Registration deadline: 1 week before the start of each camp.

• July 27-31: Junior Naturalist or Nature Art
• Aug 3-7: Junior Naturalist or Nature Art

Materials are available to anyone for free, but register your child – $20 per child per camp – and you get:

• daily personal interaction with Outdoor U naturalists via Flipgrid online platform
• a thoughtful balance between screen time and “green” time
• all camp materials printed and mailed to your home
• special surprises for your camper to celebrate the completion of camp!

Junior Naturalist Camp Nature Art Camp 

About the camps

All camps aim to help campers view nature in their own neighborhood in a new way while cultivating respect, observations, and wonder about the natural world. The camp materials and activities are age-appropriate activities developed by Outdoor U education staff to encourage safe exploration of camper’s immediate environment.

Each camp day is centered around a topic that connects to the camp theme and will include a variety of hands on activities such as outdoor exploration, journaling, arts and crafts, online materials, and educational resources. Camp days are intended to be self paced and flexible with the length of time spent on activities dependent upon the interest of the camper.

• Junior Naturalist Camp: This camp will help campers learn to think and explore like a naturalist. Campers will practice using their senses to explore the world around them and use a nature journal to record their observations and questions.
• Nature Art: This camp will help campers learn about the basics of art and how they apply to nature. Campers will g ain an appreciation for the colors, shapes,  patterns, and textures of nature while thinking creatively about items from nature near their home.

Registering for Camp

In order to get the most out of camp, we recommend your camper has access to the items below. If you are interested in registering but have concerns about any of these items, please contact Sarah Gainey to discuss options. 

• Outdoor area (such as a backyard) they can safely be in and use natural materials from
• Writing, drawing, and art materials (pencils, pens, colored pencils, markers, paper, glue)
• Daily support from a grownup or older sibling to answer questions and give permissions
• With adult assistance, internet access for Flipgrid and other curated resources
• Household materials such as toilet paper tubes, egg cartons, buckets or jars, paper plates, etc..
• Able to read independently at a 3rd grade reading level or above or have a grown up to assist with reading

Camp Policies

Please review camp policies below. If you have concerns about any of these items, please contact Sarah Gainey. 

• Refunds will only be given if we have not yet mailed the camp materials to you (generally the Tuesday before camp is scheduled to start)
• Requests for refunds after that will be evaluated on a case by case basis.