Planning a Summer Camp Part 2: Putting Together a Plan

This year I will be offering my third summer camp at my studio. The past two years, my camps have been small. I’ve only opened camp up to current students already taking from my studio — more as an encouragement to keep them learning during the summer months. I would see six students at a time in my group studio at my house, offering 1.5 hour camps throughout the day for students.

This year, I’m going full throttle, offering a half day camp for the entire community. I’m renting a venue, hiring helpers and advertising. I’m nervous, but I’m also super excited. Here are some things I’ve had to spend the last few months thinking through in order to plan my summer camp:

• Age range: Before I could plan activities and shop for curricula, I had to figure out what age groups I would be working with.
• Number of students: In order to effectively plan activities and know what type of venue I would need, I needed to know the maximum number of kids I would be having in my groups. I also had to call insurance and research state laws about how many adults must be present for the number of children that will be taking part in camp.
• Activities: I set goals for the various ages and abilities that will be present during the week, and researched appropriate crafts, movies and playtime activities for each group so that I could plan a schedule. (Be sure to check out last month’s post for a roundup of music-themed crafts and activities!)
• Pricing: I researched what other camps in our area were offering for similar length and schedule of camp
• Venue: Once I realized the scale of the camp I wanted to offer, I searched for an appropriate venue that could accommodate the number of keyboards I needed for the lesson portion of camp along with smaller rooms for crafts, and outdoor space for snacks and playtime.

This is definitely a big undertaking for my small studio! I decided to hire two music students and education majors from our local university for the week to help oversee the activities. I’m dividing campers into four groups based on age and whether or not they’ve had previous lessons. During the half-day camp, students will receive a 30-45 minute group lesson, spend time doing a musical craft, watch a movie about a composer or musical piece, compose a simple piece and put together a musical journal.

Wish me luck!

How do you go about planning your studio’s summer camp?