2009 North Branch Nature Center
Summer Camps
Day Camps for Curious Kids
Ages 3 to 15

Woods and water explorations, games, hikes, live animals, nature study, crafts, friends and fun! The North Branch Nature Center has been offering fun, exciting and educational nature camps for children for more than 10 years. Catching frogs, watching hawks, following grasshoppers, making new friends - isn’t this just what a child’s summer should be?

Skip to Registration Infomation & Form

Polliwogs to Frogs (AM session full, PM available)
Dates: Monday to Friday, June 22nd to 26th
Hours: 9:00 am to 12:00 pm or 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm NEW! Longer hours!
For: Pre-school children ages 3 to 5 (entering Kindergarten)
Cost: $85 member, $95 nonmember

Kids change a lot as they grow but it's nothing like how a frog or a butterfly transform throughout their life. Join us for a week of games, activities and mini-hikes to explore the wonders of life cycles and nature.

Wonder Wildlife (Full, waitlist only)
Dates: Monday to Friday, June 29th to July 3rd (plus optional participation in the July 3 parade in Montpelier!)
Hours: 9:00 am to 3:00 pm
For: Children entering 1st to 3rd grade
Cost: $165 member, $180 nonmember

Spider's silk is as strong as steel and Peregrine Falcons can fly at 200 mph! We will explore these extraordinary adaptations along with many more. Create your own "Wonder Animal" costume and fly, hop, run or swim with NBNC in Montpelier's 3rd of July Parade (optional).

From Trees to Streams
Dates: Monday to Friday, July 6th to 10th
Hours: 9:00 am to 3:00 pm
For: Children entering 1st to 3rd grade
Cost: $165 member, $180 nonmember

People say that everything in nature is connected. By investigating several ecosystems we will look for how they are connected. Are the animals in a forest the same as those in a stream? How do they affect each other?  We will explore these questions through games, nature activities, and fun experiments. Hike, play and learn in the diverse habitat of the nature center and surrounding parks.

In the River (2 openings)
Dates: Monday to Friday, July 13th to 17th
Hours: 9:00 am to 3:00 pm
For: Children entering 1st to 3rd grade
Cost: $165 member, $180 nonmember

Cool down at the water’s edge and check out what is living there. Explore along the North Branch and the streams, ponds and wetlands that feed into it. We will investigate aquatic and terrestrial life that is dependent on these water bodies. Creating water-related art and conducting simple H2O experiments is cool…especially during hot and humid summer days. We might even get wet, too!

Avian Wonders NEW! Special Camp for Kids entering 4th - 7th
Dates: Monday to Friday, July 13th to 17th
Hours: 9:00 am to 4:00 pm NEW! Longer hours!
For: Children entering 4th to 7th grade
Cost: $215 member, $235 nonmember (includes van transportation)

Birds have captivated people for generations, and over 100 species can easily be found in Vermont. With field trips around central Vermont and led by experienced birders, we'll explore fields and forests, streams and swamps for the many types of birds that spend their summer months with us. You can also participate in a bird research project and start your own birdwatching journal. Whether you are a passionate 'birder' or just getting started, this camp is for you! Sign up soon – this camp is limited to just 10 kids.

Nature's Mysteries (AM session full, PM available)
Dates: Monday to Friday, July 20st to 24th
Hours: 9:00 am to 12:00 pm or 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm NEW! Longer hours!
For: Pre-school children ages 3 to 5 (entering Kindergarten)
Cost: $85 member, $95 nonmember

Put on your detective hat. We will search for the signs of Vermont’s animals. Let’s look for prints in the mud, burrows in the ground and other evidence of animals. Using these signs can you help us identify the animals of Vermont?

Young Women in the Woods NEW! Special Camp for Kids entering 7th - 9th
Dates: Monday to Friday, July 20th to 24th
Hours: 9:00 am to 4:00 pm (**overnight on Wednesday and Thursday**) NEW! Longer hours!
For: Girls entering 7th to 9th grade
Cost: $360 member, $380 nonmember (inquire about scholarships)

This is a camp for Vermont girls to explore nature and the natural sciences while honing leadership skills. On site activities, fieldtrips and camping excursions will heighten environmental awareness, while challenging young women to refine and develop new skills, explore opportunities in the natural sciences and take on leadership roles. We will work with women in the natural sciences, learn about Vermont natural history and develop naturalist skills. The first part of the week will be based out of NBNC while the second half will be camping offsite. We will have an adventurous and fun-filled week!

Buzzing Bugs (2 openings)
Dates: Monday to Friday, July 27th to 31st
Hours: 9:00 am to 3:00 pm
For: Children entering 1st to 3rd grade
Cost: $165 member, $180 nonmember

Darting in the sky or tunneling into the dark soil, the world of insects is exciting. Do you want to take a closer look at these flying, crawling, and back-swimming creatures? Learn how to gently catch insects and observe them up close to see their mind-bending adaptations. It will be a bug-bonanza with nature hikes, games, and crafts.

Earth Kids Can! NEW! Special Camp for Kids entering 4th - 7th
Dates: Monday to Friday, July 27th to 31st
Hours: 9:00 am to 3:00 pm
For: Children entering 4th to 7th grade
Cost: $195 member, $215 nonmember (includes van transportation)

The world is full of natural wonders and people that work to protect them. If you love the natural world, join us in discovering how to make it a better place. Fieldtrips will show us what people in our community are doing for the environment. The ethic of earth care will inspire recycled art, solar ovens, stewardship activities, and ecology games. Kids that care about the Earth can do wonders… and have lots of fun! Sign up soon – this camp is limited to just 10 kids.

Marvelous Water (AM session full, PM available)
Dates: Monday to Friday, August 3rd to 7th
Hours: 9:00 am to 12:00 pm or 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm NEW! Longer hours!
For: Pre-school children ages 3 to 5 (entering Kindergarten)
Cost: $85 member, $95 nonmember

Can’t resist getting wet on a hot summer day? Join us in water play and explorations. This week learn about and enjoy different types of water sources and the many animals that swim, hop, or sneak along the water’s edge. Each day we will learn about something wet, wild and wonderful.

Nature Theatre Presents...!
Dates: Monday to Friday, August 3rd to 7th
Hours: 9:00 am to 3:00 pm
For: Children entering 1st to 3rd grade
Cost: $165 member, $180 nonmember

Let nature inspire the artist and performer within us all. Using a nature-tale we will create an artistic rendition. It’s your turn to shine like the sun! Ham it up in a final performance for a proud audience. (Parents, relatives and friends are warmly welcome for this performance!)

Up, Up and Away (Full, waitlist only)
Dates: Monday to Friday, August 10th to 14th
Hours: 9:00 am to 3:00 pm
For: Children entering 1st to 3rd grade
Cost: $165 member, $180 nonmember

Have you ever wondered how animals fly? We will investigate this question and more as we focus on things with wings including: birds, bats, bugs… and seeds too! Look at the physics of flight, adaptations for flight, and the benefits for survival. Catch, observe, and explore these winged wonders. Make your own test airplane that defies gravity.

Green Mountain Trekkers (Full, waitlist only)
Dates: Monday to Friday, August 10th to 14th
Hours: 9:00 am to 4:00 pm NEW! Longer hours!
For: Children entering 4th to 7th grade
Cost: $215 member, $235 nonmember (includes van transportation)

For those who enjoy longer hikes, this camp will visit different sites each day to see new places and explore different natural communities.  We will also learn about geo-caching, a 21st century treasure hunt in which people around the world search for hidden containers and trade small trinkets such as toys, stickers, key chains, and more.  We'll even hide our own secret treasure! Sign up soon – this camp is limited to just 10 kids.

Colorful Creatures (AM session full, PM available)
Dates: Monday to Friday, August 17th to 21st
Hours: 9:00 am to 12:00 pm or 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm NEW! Longer hours!
For: Pre-school children ages 3 to 5 (entering Kindergarten)
Cost: $85 member, $95 nonmember

Can you find all of the colors of the rainbow in nature? Green leaves, red squirrels, orange newts, and many more await our discovery. Each day we will explore nature’s palate using our senses of sight, smell, touch, hearing, and even taste! Watch for the color and/or pattern for each day’s suggested dress.

How to Register
Registration can be submitted by mail or by telephone with a credit card. Please make checks payable to “North Branch Nature Center”. Full payment in advance is required, except by prior arrangement. You can download a registration form, or call to request one of our brochures. Send your registration form and payment to North Branch Nature Center, 713 Elm Street, Montpelier, VT 05602 or call (802) 229-6206. Upon receipt of registration and full payment, we will send you a confirmation letter with detailed camp information.

Pre- and Post-Camp Child Care
Day camp hours are 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., unless noted. Children may be dropped off after 8:45 a.m. Pre- and post-camp care is available during full-day camp sessions from 8:00am to 8:45am ($5/day) and until 5:00 pm ($10/day). After-hours care is an informal extension of camp activities; it is supervised free time including games, reading, art projects and other informal activities. We can accept only a limited number of children each week, so please be sure to register for this service.

Campership Fund
A week of nature center camp can be the real highlight of a child's summer, an opportunity to learn and explore in an environment very different from school. The Campership Fund allows families with limited financial means to send their children to summer camp, providing partial and full scholarships to children who otherwise could not participate in our camps. Although we receive some corporate donations (special thanks to Northfield Savings Bank), much of the Campership Fund comes from contributions from individuals like you. If you need financial support to send your child to a North Branch Nature Center camp, please contact us. If you can, please contribute to our Campership Fund. You can help make a child's summer special!

Send registration form and full payment to:
North Branch Nature Center
713 Elm Street
Montpelier, VT 05602
(802) 229-620