Northshore Day Camps- Summer 2021

As Chicago weather finally starts warming up, parents are looking ahead to summer. Usually the question of summer break child-care is answered with options like local or sleep-away camps, family help, or academic summer programs. The pandemic has led to the closure of many traditional camps, or movement to virtual options. So, for many parents, it’s become a challenge to find safe, in-person summer options for their kids. As COVID-19 vaccinations remain largely unavailable to children at this time, educators and child-care professionals are seeking ways to create safe environments for students to stay engaged during the summer.

After a successful in-person summer camp in 2020 with zero cases of COVID-19, Roycemore School, a Pre-K through 12th grade private school, is planning to expand their summer camp options this year.

So, how were zero cases of Covid-19 accomplished during the summer of 2020? By prioritizing the safety and well-being of students and staff, as well as the wider community -- through the planning and diligent work of Roycemore’s Health and Safety Task Force, including Dr. Mahalakshmi K. Halasyamani, M.D., Chief Medical Officer at NorthShore University Health System, and Dr. Anita Shah, DO, FCCP.

Roycemore has developed a plan to host this year’s summer camps following similar stringent health and safety guidelines to last summer’s camps. Safety procedures include: temperature checks, deep cleaning, social distancing, and PPE, along with a daily screener.

Using this safety plan, Roycemore has crafted three distinct, in-person day camp experiences for the upcoming summer: Camp Griffin, Inspiration Factory, and RoyceX.

At Camp Griffin, campers are led by experienced and inspirational staff and are divided into three age groups: Little Griffins, ages 3-5, Griffin Zone, ages 6-8, and Golden Griffins, ages 9-12. Families can choose a full-day option from 9am to 4pm, or a half-day option from 9am to 12pm. Extended day options for earlier or later pick-up are provided. Campers participate in fun activities such as: cooking, creative arts, dancing, drama, egg-drop experiments, human chess, music, shaving cream art, soap slip-n-slide, and a range of field trips designed to make the most of the school’s unique surroundings in Evanston and Chicago. Commitment to providing an enriching camp experience helps to build friendships and lasting memories without compromising safety or peace of mind.

Inspiration Factory, a camp for ages 4-10, builds enrichment for Early Childhood and Elementary School students around a wide variety of topics. With individualized attention, camps are led by Roycemore's expert faculty in spacious, well-equipped classrooms that allow for socially distancing. Topics include: Elephant & Piggie for ages 4-5, LEGO Robotics for ages 6-10, Little Chefs & Manners Class for ages 4-6, Orienteering for ages 6-10, Science and Art Exploration for ages 4-5, and Water Works, also for ages 4-5. Each camp is organized to facilitate explorative learning and inspire creative thinking with a unique set of activities and experiences for each topic. All camps are 9am-12pm or 1-4pm, with the option to combine half-day camps for a full-day experience, and extended day options for parental convenience.

For older students in grades 5-12, RoyceX encourages campers to explore the city of Chicago and the world with newly-designed academic courses. Students will learn theory and put it into practice, gaining real life experiences that can serve as tools in the future. The academic learning experience is reimagined with a wide selection of useful and compelling courses like Astronomy & Astrophysics: Dark Matter, Deep Space, and Beyond; Creative Writing: Mastering The Art of the Written Word; Criminology: From Fingerprints to Forensics; Engineering: Building the World Around Us; Medicine: Dive Into a Doctor's World; Psychology: Getting to Grips with the Human Mind; Studio Art: From Kiln to Canvas; When a City is Your Campus: A Grand End-of-Summer Celebration; as well as Xplore Courses, including: Sports Business, Sports Management, and Sports Psychology.

RoyceX is an opportunity for students to engage in transformative and personalized learning on campus and in the city, and to break down the walls between the classroom and the world through hands-on learning experiences.

RoyceX also offers Virtual Courses conducted via Zoom for students who prefer to stay at home. Each course is one hour per day for two weeks, from 9-10am. The abbreviated camp time takes into consideration the high number of hours students have been spending in front of screens while studying from home. These online courses are designed to give High School students in grades 9-12 a chance to interact with a wider range of subjects than they encounter during the regular school year. Students will be given small, fun independent assignments to complete about subjects like Adobe: Stop Motion Video; Creative Writing: Mastering the Art of the Written Word; Critical Thinking: Fresh Takes on the World Around Us; Politics: International Relations; and the Future of Democracy. Through debate, discussion, and interaction with both their peers and their teacher, students get to practice college-level thinking.

Roycemore’s camps are led by Both Long (Roycemore’s Athletic Director) and Dr. Luke Berryman (Roycemore’s specialist for gifted students). If you have any questions about camp activities or safety practices, the camp directors can be contacted at Summer@RoycemoreSchool.org. Or, you can visit RoycemoreSchool.org/Summer to learn more or register for the camps.