Steve and Kate’s Camp – Montclair

My daughter attend this camp last year, she was 6 at the time. I’ll explain what kind of child she is, so you’ll understand my two stars a little better. She is a positive, very creative, smart, and easy going child, loves anything from art to sports, music to cooking, and so on. I thought this would be a perfect camp because it had a lot of things she likes and some new activities, plus they got to make their own schedule. After the 4^th-​5^th week she was bored and kept coming home with unfinished projects. The reasons for the unfinished projects were: not enough time, not enough supplies, line was to long for the next step and lost interest. There is absolutely no structure or guidance for kids who want more to do or want to learn new things. The dance room is just a room with a radio. The stop animation creation, was just legos, not clay. The jewelry making was just tied yarn. No team sports, yoga, or anything that brings kids together. Everyday is the same, except on their special days, which is once or a few times a week, depending on the event/​activity. Then the kids had to wait on a long line to do the special, because of the long line they only got to go once. Checking-​in and out want slow and the machines were always giving the staff problems. However, there were a few positives: the staff was nice, the food was good, the game at the end of the day was exciting, the bread she made was always delicious, she meet a new friend and we got our money back from the unused days. I’ll keep looking for a camp that is a better fit for my daughter.

It is never too early to start thinking of summer camp! My girls (7 and 9 years old) had the best time at Steve & Kate’s Camp​last summer in NYC! We did it for 8 weeks straight. It was so much fun we cancelled all other camps they had registered for. This organization has been doing the camp for 36 years all over the country and they just get it, and have it down as a science. It is good for kids and it is good for parents. It is easy, it is fun, it is flexible, it is cheaper than tons of camps in town (the more days you do, the cheaper it gets, but we ended up paying less than $ 70 per day including breakfast, lunch and snacks), and best of all they refund you any day you do not use. You drop-​off and pick-​up your kids anytime between 7:30AM and 6PM (so everyday it can be different, and you don’t need to tell them in advance, just show up). Their activities range from baking, to animation, to outdoor water activities, to rock-​climbing, to inflatables, to dancing, to tons of sports, you name it, they have it, and your kid can pick and choose any activity any day any time. In 2016 they will have four locations in NYC (plus the myriad they have all over the country). You register for one place, and can attend any location anytime… in NYC or elsewhere (yes, you can register in NYC and if you go on vacation to Fan Francisco you can just show up with your kid at that location). It’s genius. It’s the end of summer camp as you know it. I highly recommend it and so do both of my daughters. Check it out:

This is my second review of this camp. We were excited to return for a second year and my son (8 years old) loved it just as much this year as he did last. The autonomy to learn, grow and discover was perfect for him. We will absolutely return for a third year!

This ‘new’ camp in Montclair was a big hit this summer with my kids and many of their friends. They absolutely loved being there and was surprised at the many things they were free to try each day. They learned to sew, make stop animation lego movies, voice recording. They learned how to bake bread, try new international flavors of food and be their own scheduler. They loved the warm, funny, kind staff. It felt like a summer home.
The flexibility for us was fantastic! Day to day camp, not week to week. Flex schedule during the day, any time drop-​off, any time pick-​up. Lunch included! That was a big bonus for those of us who detest making packed lunches every day!
They already can’t wait for next year!