Registration kicked off this week for Columbus Municipal School District’s summer camp, with slots filling on a first-come, first-served basis almost immediately.
The month-long camp, which is federally-funded, will be held throughout June at no cost to parents.
The camp will host 320 students and is offered to kindergartners through high school seniors. The camp will have a different theme each week and CMSD employees will teach the classes. Teachers and support staff, administrators, volunteers, college and community partners will provide adult supervision and facilitate camp activities to make summer learning safe and fun for children of all ages.
Younger students were able to choose classes ranging from arts and crafts to ballet, cheerleading and martial arts, while older students will take culinary arts, video production and photography.
The camps encourage children to explore their creativity and challenge them mentally, CMSD Superintendent Dr. Martha Liddell said.
“Columbus Schools wants to make summer learning fun for our students,” she said. “This summer, we have started new summer enrichment camps that combine academics with enrichment.”
Liddell added that since the camps last through 5:30 p.m. each day, parents don’t have to worry about how their children are spending their time.
“Enrichment camps will also provide peace of mind to working parents who worry about what their kids may be doing during summer breaks,” she said. “It is time for our community to work together to provide positive activities for kids of all ages and that’s what we’re doing with summer enrichment camps.”
In addition to the variety of classes offered, Liddell said the camps will also include the nationally-recognized Capstone Digital Reading summer reading program for students.
The camps will be hosted at Cook Elementary Fine Arts Magnet School, Columbus Middle School, Columbus High School, Brandon Central Services, Project 2020 e-centers and community partnerships.
The camps begin June 3 and run through June 28.
Sarah Fowler covered crime, education and community related events for The Dispatch.
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