East valley day camps have range of activities in store

When the school year ends, children may find they miss the social interaction and challenges it provides. Also, children trapped at home, hiding from triple-digit heat, may get cabin fever. The east valley offers various summer day camps for children wishing to stay active.

COMMUNITY CENTERS

City of Las Vegas and Clark County community centers are set to offer weekly day camps from June 9 through Aug. 15 at the Doolittle Community Center, 1950 J. St. and the East Las Vegas Community Center, 250 N. Eastern Ave.

Trained staff members are set to engage children in activities including sports, games, arts and crafts and optional field trips. Camps are split into two age groups: 6-11 and 12-15. Sessions are scheduled from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and cost $100 per week per child. Registration can be conducted on site or for those with a Rec Trac account, online.

For more information, call the Doolittle Community Center at 702-229-6374 or the East Las Vegas Community Center at 702-229-1515 or visit lasvegasnevada.gov/summercamps.

The county camps are for children 6-12 and 5-year-olds who have completed kindergarten. The county offers a similar program to the city, with the addition of some optional swim activities. Camps cost $15 per day or $70 per week. If a third child from the same family is enrolling during the same week, he receives a 50 percent discount.

Camps are scheduled at the Robert E. “Bob” Price Recreation Center, 2050 Bonnie Lane, (702-455-7600); the Cambridge Recreation Center, 3930 S. Cambridge St., (702-455-7169); the Hollywood Recreation and Community Services Center, 1650 S. Hollywood Blvd., (702-455-0566); the Paradise Recreation Center, 4775 McLeod Drive, (702-455-7513); the Parkdale Recreation Center, 3200 Ferndale St. (702-455-7517); and the Walnut Recreation Center, 3075 N. Walnut Road, (702-455-8402).

Registration can be conducted on site or by mail.

For more information, visit clarkcountynv.gov.

DISCOVERY CHILDREN’S MUSEUM

For the scientifically minded student, the Discovery Children’s Museum, 360 Promenade Place, has summer day camps that focus on arts and STEM, science, technology, engineering and math. There are camps for ages 6-9 and 10-12. Campers can go for a half day during mornings or afternoons or for full days. The cost is $180 per child per week for half days and $360 per child per week for full days.

The museum is set offer themed camps, including ones titled Living and Working in Space, Science Detectives and “Grossology.” Descriptions and schedules are available at discoverykidslv.org/programs/camps, where kids can register. Registration can also be conducted at 702-382-5437.

THE SMITH CENTER

For the third year, Camp Broadway is scheduled at the The Smith Center for the Performing Arts, 361 Symphony Park Ave. The camp is open to children ages 6-9 and 10-17. Organizers said the musical theater camp is unique in the country because Broadway artists and the center’s performing arts partners teach participants. This year’s instructors have worked in Broadway shows, including, “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat,” “The Full Monty,” “Meet Me in St. Louis,” “Singin’ in the Rain” and “Guys and Dolls.”

“The instructions take place primarily on the main stage in Reynolds Hall, with smaller groups broken off to side rooms for one-on-one instruction,” said Sara Gorgon, Smith Center spokeswoman. “The feedback from the parents and kids has been great.”

At the end of the program, a showcase performance by the students is scheduled for parents.

Shining Stars Camp for kids ages 6-9 is scheduled from July 7-11. There are two half-day sessions available: 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1:30 to 5:30 p.m. The sessions cost $450.

Classic Camp for kids ages 10-17 is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. from July 21-25. The cost is $695.

For more information, visit thesmithcenter.com or call 702-749-2012.

WEST LAS VEGAS ARTS CENTER

Another camp that features a performing arts curriculum is about 2 miles up the road from The Smith Center.

“We’ve been here 18 years,” said Marcia Robinson, cultural supervisor for the West Las Vegas Arts Center. “We’ve got great programs, but not enough people know about it.”

The 18th annual Performing and Visual Arts Summer Camp for Kids is scheduled from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. June 16 through Aug. 9 at the center, 947 W. Lake Mead Blvd.

“Once we opened the center, we realized that a lot of our young people didn’t have much to do,” said Robinson. “That’s when we came up with the concept of our summer program. We thought, ‘This is what we do here, so why not really intensify youth development for the summer?’ It’s a conservatory with all kinds of music, dance and theater.”

The program includes visual art and videography. At the end of the camp, artwork is displayed, often at the West Las Vegas Library, next to the center. Live performances are scheduled at that library, the Clark County Library, 1401 E. Flamingo Road, and at Mandalay Bay, 3950 Las Vegas Blvd. South.

The program for ages 10-15 is open to kids from across the valley, but most of the 50 to 80 youths who attend the camp each year are from the neighborhood. Applications for the program are available at the center, and among the requirements are two letters of reference and a 300-word essay.

The cost for the eight-week program is $400.

“We give our young people the best on a shoestring budget,” Robinson said.

For more information, visit artslasvegas.org or call 702-229-4800.

Contact East Valley View reporter F. Andrew Taylor at ataylor@viewnews.com or 702-380-4532.