Come to BEEC to explore, discover, imagine, and play!
Nature Explorers Summer Camp is for the young person who enjoys the natural world. Our goal is to foster children’s love of nature in a fun, safe, supportive, welcoming and inclusive environment. Children spend each day outdoors exploring the forests, meadows, and waters of BEEC’s 60 acres. Children return year after year, excited to visit special places such as Grandmother Tree, Mossy Rocks, and Frog Pond.
Each week is dynamic as activities are guided by the theme of the week, interests of the group, and offerings from nature. All camps include nature exploration and discovery, games inspired by the world around us, naturalist skills including sensory observation and inquiry, hands-on activities, free play, journaling, stories, craft projects, and song.
2025 Nature Explorers Summer Camp
For children ages 4 to 11.
Registration – opening Feb 5. (Members receive an early-bird registration link.)
Hours:
- Camp ~ Monday to Friday: Drop off 8:45 – 9:00 am, Pick up 3:00 – 3:15 pm
- Aftercare ~ Monday to Thursday: until 4:00 pm
Payment info:
- Camp fee = $375 / week
- Aftercare fee = $45 / week
- Please make your Nature Explorers Camp payment/s here.
- BEEC is completing state licensing and will be accepting CCFAP subsidies available for children up to age 12. Learn more about CCFAP here.
- BEEC is dedicated to making our programs accessible to all. Families can apply for a scholarship with their registration. If you would like to contribute to the scholarship fund, you can donate online here, or when you make a payment. Thank you!
Summer Camp info:
- Registration is by the week. See the Summer Schedule below. A camp group is for the ages listed, and other ages can join with permission.
- Each week has a theme guiding activities. See the Session Descriptions below.
- Camp is mostly outdoors, with the support of outdoor shelters and indoor classrooms.
- Each week there will be two groups of children. Each group will have 2 camp staff, with up to 10 children in the younger groups and 12 children in the older groups.
- Aftercare is offered each week (Mon-Thu) for one group of 12, mixed aged children.
- Wondering what to bring to camp? View the Summer Camp Welcome Letter here – coming soon.
- Meet the Nature Explorers Summer Camp staff team here.
Program Policy info:
- View the Nature Explorers Family Handbook here – 2025 updates coming soon.
- For each child attending camp, please complete an online Medical Form and Waiver here.
- So that camp can be as safe as possible for all participants, we continue to follow evolving COVID-19 protocols. We request that children and staff do a daily health screening at home prior to arrival. Please follow current CDC guidelines on keeping each other safe and healthy.
Summer Schedule:
- June 30 – July 4
- Magical World of Nature ~ ages 4 – 5
- Magical World of Nature ~ ages 6 – 9
- July 7 – 11
- Creep, Crawl, Leap ~ ages 4 – 5
- Amazing Animals ~ ages 6 – 9
- July 14 – 18
- Flit, Flutter, Fly ~ ages 4 – 6
- Wild Wanderings ~ ages 7 – 11
- July 21 – 25
- Creative by Nature ~ ages 4 – 6
- Creative by Nature ~ ages 7 – 11
- July 28 – August 1
- Nature Heroes ~ ages 5 – 7
- Nature Heroes ~ ages 8 – 11
- August 4 – 8
- Adventures of Poppy ~ ages 5 – 7
- Bonnyvale Detectives ~ ages 8 – 11
Session Descriptions from past years:
- Creep, Crawl, and Leap: Blending imagination and discovery, we will discover and become creatures that creep, crawl and leap, including arthropods, amphibians, reptiles, mammals, centaurs, unicorns and more.
- Flit, Flutter, and Fly: Blending imagination and discovery, we will discover and become creatures that flit, flutter and fly, including, insects, birds, bats, fairies, dragons and more.
- Amazing Animals: Each day we will learn about a new facet of the natural world, phenomenal plants, incredible insects, beautiful birds, amazing amphibians, and mysterious mammals.
- Wild Wanderings: Each day we will visit a different habitat of Heifer Hill, to discover life in a pond, a vernal pool, the meadows, the forest, and the relationships within our local ecosystems.
- Magical World of Nature: Venturing through fields and woodlands in search of nature’s mysteries, magical places, and mystical creatures, together we will find and create the magical world around us.
- Creative by Nature: Come explore nature with art, music, and theater. The forests and fields will be our canvas as we look to the landscape and its inhabitants for inspiration to be wildly creative together.
- Adventures of Poppy: Come discover the world of mice, porcupines and owls. Find mouse homes and build our own, dissect owl pellets, taste porcupines’ favorite foods, play predator-prey games… This camp will be inspired by the book Poppy, by Avi, as we bring the story to life on whimsical adventures.
- Nature Heroes: Become a Nature Hero by exploring the fascinating connections between plants and animals and learning how to take care of their habitats. Through activities, nature crafts, community science, and an onsite conservation project, we will discover how we can make a difference and help nature thrive.
- Bonnyvale Detectives: Join us on a journey to find the hidden stories of life at BEEC from past to present. Those who came before us will provide inspiration for our activities and saunterings. We will discover the ancient bedrock that feeds our wild edibles of today, find clues from dwellers past, practice fire skills and build shelters, and add our own stories to the land.
Questions? Contact , 802-257-5785
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Looking back at Nature Explorers…
What fun filled summers exploring the fields, woods, pond and vernal pool of BEEC, finding the magic in nature, developing our naturalist and wilderness skills, and much more! Learn more about BEEC’s Nature Explorers Day Camps here. Find photos from the various years of summer camps here.
Nature Explorers Video