Here’s a list of virtual summer camps and activities that will engage, educate and entertain your children across the summer months.
In any given summer, the question of how to fill the long, hot days with useful and fun activities for your child is a vexing one, but with the current pandemic this becomes even more of a challenge. With the opportunity to travel, see family, go on summer camps increasingly out of the question, the challenge is how to create a structure and routine whilst finding productive and engaging activities to keep everyone happy over the summer.
Below is a list of virtual summer camps and activities that will engage, educate and entertain your children across the summer months curated by the Carfax team.
Fun for all the family
After months of lockdown it is great to find things that all the family can do together, learning new skills and sharing new experiences.
Happy Camper Live
This amazing site has hundreds of short videos themed around activities such as learning a series of magic tricks, or how to do Hip Hop, or Film Camp. There are sports and crafts, outdoor adventure and cooking, with short videos teaching the activities in much the same way they would learn if they were on a summer camp. It is a great way of learning something different and giving children an opportunity to find a new passion. There are courses available for all ages and stages and there are engaging camp counsellors who will help children get involved. There is a seven day free trial and then it there is a very affordable monthly subscription fee of $4.99
For the Little Ones…
For younger children who are already bored of sitting in front of a computer all day doing distance learning, we have found some camps and activities that will get them up and about, and also give parents some fresh ideas about how to keep this age group entertained once school is over.
Camp PBS Kids
www.pbs.org/parents/page/summer
This website features a variety of activities, resources, and read-along sessions which you can filter according to the child’s age and their interests. There are craft activities, games and puzzles to solve in areas that develop social skills, emotional and self awareness as well as literacy, maths and science. A great feature of this camp is the wide variety of children’s shows available on the website, such as Curious George and Arthur, all of which come with related educational activities to get the most out of the story.
Sophia X
www.sophia.app/sophiax/sophia-x-camps
Sophia camps offer Performing Arts, Computer Programming, and Creative Writing in real time with qualified teachers delivering live, online courses and encouraging social interaction between the children.
For the Techie ones
With the pressure on to use this unusual time productively, now could be the time to learn a new and useful skill that will open a window into a new area.
Smart Buddies
smartbuddies.com/pages/camp-in-a-box
Smart Buddies is aimed at 7-11 years olds and is an engaging virtual STEM camp which you can do at home. Over a 2 week period, children will learn the basics of coding and robotics working with other children from around the world via zoom. A great introduction and a qualification as a ‘Junior Coder’ to aim for.
For the Creative ones
Young Film Academy
www.youngfilmacademy.co.uk/courses/virtual-summer-camp
If you love films, whether making them or acting in them, then this programme will give you a chance to experience practical film creation with students from around the globe, using technology that will enable students to collaborate remotely to create high quality movies at home.
Or, do ‘The Lion King’ at home. This is an immersive theatre programme which teaches children performance art through ‘The Lion King’, broken up into 45 minute sections, it’s ideal for anyone from 8-18.
For those looking to get ahead with their Academic Studies
Many students are concerned that with distance learning from school they have not made the progress they may have done in the classroom. So this summer is an ideal time to bridge this gap and start the next academic year with a head start.
Step Up courses
www.carfax-education.ae/step-up
Carfax are running a series of online courses for Year 11 students moving into Year 12 to introduce them to the core topics in their chosen A Level or Higher Level IB subjects. A range of Carfax specialist tutors will cover the main foundations of each subject over a 2 week period. All of our courses are supported by our college in Oxford.
Preparing for University and the World of Work
Although some students will see this summer as a lost opportunity, others are proactively seeking out online internships and work experience programmes and looking for ways to gain additional skills that they will support them in the futures and give them something to talk about in their personal statement.
InvestIn Education:
InvestIn Education is an online work experience programme for 12-18 year olds. It offers introductory work experience courses to a variety of professions; from marketing to veterinary science, there is something for everyone. This is great for students who are about to venture into their GCSEs or A-Levels/IB, as they can often have a career in mind when selecting their subjects, without knowing if they will enjoy their chosen career. Programmes such as these create an opportunity for students to try their ambitions before committing to them.
InsideSherpa:
InsideSherpa offers a series of virtual work experience programmes. The programmes give an insight into the different spheres of the world of work across a range of industries and they can all be completed in your own time. The programme assigns an online boss who sets tasks to complete and by the end of the course, you should have some of the hireable skills required for that specific sector. This is great for older students who are beginning to look at their career choices.
Coursera:
This is well known platform which offers a huge variety of online courses provided by a host of well known University names. There are courses designed to help you learn new skills, whether that is for career, subjects at school, or personal gain.
Test Prep for University Entrance
This is a crucial summer for prepping for any additional exams required for university and post grad entry, many of these tests benefit from some expert guidance in a one to one setting.
Test Prep Courses
Carfax College will be running a series university entrance test prep courses for those hoping to go on to study Law, Medicine with LNAT, UCAT and GMAT. For more information, please email [email protected]
About Carfax Education
Carfax Education is a leading global education group. We provide expert consultancy, bespoke training and operational support across all areas of education. We work with families, schools, investors, governments and NGOs to secure exceptional opportunities. Carfax Education group offers specialist support through Carfax Consultants, Carfax Tutors, Carfax Projects and Carfax College.
For more information visit www.carfax-education.com
