If your kiddo loves music, making art, dancing, or performing, these camps and classes are for them! Check them out here and watch the recording of our Facebook Live event, where we give you the lowdown on many of these awesome options! Be sure to also check out our lists of recreational camps and classes, sleepaway camps and family weekends, social skills camps and classes, visual and performing arts camps and classes, and education and STEM programs.
We've put together a guide for how to find the best camp for your child: questions to ask, funding options, and what camps legally have to provide.
And don’t forget that since Regional Center restored social and recreational funding, they can now help pay for summer programs (and support in accessing them). Our Public Benefits Specialist, Lisa Concoff Kronbeck, tells us, “Although funding was restored last summer for social recreation and camping, many regional centers are not adequately prepared to fulfill these funding requests, largely due to a lack of vendored providers. Every Regional Center should have a list of vendors on its website. If you know which program you want your child to attend and it’s not on the list, now is a good time to reach out and find out if they are willing to go through the vendorization process. Another option is to look at vendor lists for other nearby Regional Centers and see if anyone on their list is local to you.” You can read more in our article, Regional Center’s Social-Recreational Funding Is Back!
While we are here to help you navigate the system, save you time, bring you clarity and confidence, and connect you with the best available information and resources, please be aware that Undivided does not officially endorse or represent any of the resources, providers, services, schools, or clinics we reference or suggest. For more information, please refer to the disclaimer at the conclusion of this report.
6001 Chesebro Rd.
Agoura Hills, CA 91301
(917) 697-2227
Licensed Clinical Psychologist: Dr. Lesli Preuss
Type of Camp: Summer Day Camp
Buddy-Building Camp is a four-week summer day program developed by Dr. Lesli Preuss, a licensed child psychologist with nearly twenty years of experience. The camp is designed to help families who have young children who struggle in more mainstream camp programs. The philosophy of the program is “to use sports, arts, and nature to help children with social and emotional delays overcome some of their difficulties.” Buddy Camp shares how the participants learn the basic skills required to participate in typical sports (e.g., soccer, kickball, football) and learn team-building skills, sportsmanship, conflict resolution, and cooperative play. Camper activities include visiting many of the museums in the city, exploring the outdoors, enjoying nature, playing at the playgrounds, and exercising.
Camp and Dates:
Age: Ages eight to thirteen
Hours: 8:30a.m.—3:30p.m.
Cost: $1050 per week. While private insurance is not accepted, they can assist in completing the required paperwork to submit to your insurance.
Registration: Contact Dr. Lesli Preuss to register and get additional information. Call (917) 697-2227 or email Lpreuss33@gmail.com
1523 Wellesley Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90025
(424) 229-2570
Type of Camp: Summer Morning Camp with Extended Day Option
This summer, Camp Bloom is holding an in-person traditional camp with activities such as games, arts and crafts, and music that are set up with an occupational therapy twist. Join them at a unique and peaceful home-based setting to support your child’s sensory exploration, fine and gross motor development, social thinking abilities, communication skills, emotional regulation, and executive functioning using an OT approach. Carefully planned activities are interspersed with opportunities for free play within a structured setting. The daily rhythm “includes circle time, music, games, obstacle courses, arts and crafts, guided learning, snack time, and more.”
Camp and Dates:
Children are carefully matched considering their age, abilities, areas of strength, and areas of stretch.
Age range: Two to six years old (flexible)
Hours: Morning camp Monday to Friday 9:00 a.m.—12:00 p.m. Extended day Monday to Friday 9:00 a.m.—2:30 p.m.
Cost: $875 to $1,375 per week
Registration: You may register for camp and view current availability online.
California School for the Blind
(510) 936-5527
Type of Camp: In-Person and On-Campus at CSB
California School for the Blind’s Summer Academy programs offer students “the opportunity to have fun, address elements of the Expanded Core Curriculum, utilize technology, and build social skills.” Courses offered for June 2022 are now available! Students can attend only one course per week but frequently participate in more than one week. To express interest in any of the courses, please complete the brief Summer Academy Interest Form. CA School for the Blind shares that students attending their courses have varying degrees and types of visual impairments. All of the students are visually impaired, but they do not need to be legally blind to participate in their programs.
Camp and Dates:
Age: Nine and up (sessions divided by age)
Hours: Varies by course
Cost: Free
Registration: Contact Short-Term Programs Coordinator Scott Smith with questions about Summer Academy Programs and how to sign up.
Main Office
Momentum: Pediatric Therapy Network
1815 213th Street, Suite 100
Torrance, CA 90501
(310) 328-0276
Occupational Therapist: Karen Rodriguez, MS, OTR/L, (310) 328-0276 ext. 364
Type of Camp: Summer Day Camp in Palos Verdes
Camp Escapades, located in the Palos Verdes Peninsula, is an “innovative summer day camp” for children with disabilities and their siblings, which creates an opportunity for greater neurodiversity. Camp groups are run by occupational, physical, or speech therapists along with paraprofessional educators and 1:1 teen volunteers who are each child's "buddy" throughout the week. Campers will be invited to participate in sensory experiences, dance, sports, fine motor skill development, music, games, yoga, cooking, and special events. Camp Escapades looks forward to resuming in 2022 at Rolling Hills Country Day School, but since they have not held camp in two years and are currently unsure of how it will look this summer, they shared with us how camp looked prior to COVID restrictions.
Camps and Dates:
Age Range: Campers must be five to fourteen years of age.
Cost: The cost has been approximately $500 per week in the past. They are vendored with Harbor Regional Center. They also shared their understanding that Regional Center funding has been reinstated for camps and social skills programs, so they are expecting that the cost of camp this year (yet to be determined) may be covered.
Registration: Registration will open later than expected this year (it usually opens April 1). Camp will be one week instead of two this year, so they anticipate it going to wait-list very quickly. Keep checking the website for updates as to when registration will open.
1952 S. Robertson Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90034
(310) 280-0955
Program Director: Miriam Rav-Noy
Type of Camp: Summer Day Camp in Los Angeles
Friendship Circle of Los Angeles seeks to serve Jewish youth with disabilities by connecting them with their peers, under the supervision of Jewish teens from the community and the support of their parents, by providing workshops and social events. FCLA offers a number of events and programs throughout the year, including two-week winter and three-week summer day camps, headquartered at their Los Angeles office. They provide a range of social and recreational opportunities through daily local trips and activities.
Camp and Dates:
Each camper is partnered with a teen volunteer or buddy, but FCLA does not provide a 1:1 aide; however, campers are welcome to attend camp with their own aide present.
Age Range:
Hours:
Cost:
Registration: Registration is not yet available for summer camp as the schedule is still being determined. Prospective campers and their parents would have an intake meeting after registration, and the application process would begin after that. Registration will begin on their website’s registration page.
2108 Vail Avenue
Redondo Beach, CA 90278
(310) 214-6677
Type of Camp: Summer Day Camps and Year-Round Programs
The Friendship Foundation provides families who have children and young adults with disabilities a “safe, accepting, and inclusive environment where they can enjoy sports, art, music, and many other social programs with their peers.” Their staff and volunteers work to create a fun experience for all. It is their belief “that every person is precious and capable of love, connection, and friendship.” Friendship Foundation programs are typically aimed at specific age groups, but some programs include a broad range of all ages including parents. In every program, children with disabilities are matched with a student volunteer to create a day full of peer interaction. The Friendship Foundation “serves to augment our local educational systems and professional therapies by creating a natural setting for individuals with special needs to practice their learned skills amongst their peers.” In addition to offering a wide variety of social enrichment programs for children ages eight to twelve, social recreational programs for teens aged thirteen to seventeen, and programs for adults, they have summer programs!
Camps and Dates:
Age Range: Varies based on program
Cost:
They are not vendored with any Regional Centers, but they do provide financial support to families, especially for summer camp. If you are interested in financial aid, they can provide you with a financial assistance application.
Registration:
1137 S. Point View Street
Los Angeles, CA 90035
(323) 641-3662
Type of Camp: In-Person and Virtual Classes
Leah Hiller is a pediatric occupational therapist who specializes in working with children with autism and other sensory processing disorders. Hiller Therapy was designed to meet the needs of each individual child and family through play-based OT in a natural outdoor setting. Hiller Therapy offers a variety of programs for various ages, including Occupational Therapy, Handwriting Heros, Executive CHEFS, Making Meal Time Matter for picky eaters, Self-Regulating Strategies (a group for parents), and more. We have highlighted a few of these programs for your consideration.
Executive Chef Camp: Virtual via Zoom This camp is designed as a cooking game show where kids will “build executive functions, sensory strategies for self-regulation, and social skills.” From their own kitchens, kids will develop recipes to share with their families while solving brain teasers and working collaboratively. They will make edible recipes, kinetic sand, and glow-in-the-dark slime. Your child will learn to make your family dinner! Recipes are provided before the session begins in case items need to be purchased. There is a 2:1 student-to-OT ratio.
Dates: Each session meets on six consecutive Mondays and Wednesdays.
Age range: Seven to twelve
Cost: $480 for each six-session group
Registration: To register for this group, contact leah@hillertherapy.com or call (323) 641-3662.
Handwriting Heroes: In-Person The Handwriting Without Tears curriculum is developmentally appropriate and multisensory. Camp takes place at Hiller Therapy, an indoor/outdoor OT therapy studio, at 1137 S. Point View Street in Los Angeles. Activities will take place both indoors and outdoors. Children are encouraged to wear clothes that are okay to get dirty, closed-toed shoes, and socks. (Shoes may be removed inside.) Groups are limited to six to eight children. There is a 2:1 student-to-teacher ratio.
Dates:
Age range: Five to eight
Cost: Camp costs $595 for each seven-session group.
Registration: Register here.
Fountain Valley Sports Complex
16400 Brookhurst St.
Fountain Valley, CA 92708
Contact: Dr. Jodie Knott at (714) 490-3428 or jknott@questsolutionssocal.com
Type of Camp: Summer Day Camp
The Quest therapeutic model incorporates cognitive behavioral therapy, experimental learning theory, and social learning concepts. The skills learned at camp are transferable to everyday life. “Campers have opportunities to build skills through hands-on, interactive games and activities as well as conversation time and tailored therapeutic activities, including programming in areas like video games, Lego, arts and crafts, drama, mindfulness, movement-based activities, and more.”
Camps and Dates:
Age range: Six to eighteen
Hours: 9:00 a.m.—3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday
Cost:
Registration: Create an account to begin the registration process.
31641 La Novia Ave.
San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675
(949) 661-0108 ext. 1226
Executive Director: Lindsay Eres
Type of Camp: Summer Day Camp in Orange County
Special Camp provides week-long sessions consisting of daily activities and local field trips. Previous years have included visits to the San Diego Zoo, Adventure City, and regional beaches and pools. Each camper is provided with their own counselor in an effort to form personal relationships and serve campers with a wide range of abilities. Special Camp generally has a number of wheelchair users attending, so the staff is committed to wheelchair accessibility as much as possible.
Camps and Dates: Special Camp offers three summer sessions.
Age Range: Special Camp accepts campers aged six to twenty-one.
Hours: All sessions meet Monday to Wednesday, 9:00a.m.—3:00 p.m., Thursday, 8:30 a.m.—4:30 p.m., and Friday, 9:00 a.m.—3:00 p.m., ending with a family gathering and award ceremony.
Cost: $575, which includes a non-refundable $50 registration fee. Upon registration, a $120 deposit is required. Need-based financial assistance is available.
Registration: Registration begins by applying on the registration page of their website.
A word on possibilities and limitations: Undivided is here to help you navigate the system, save you time, bring you clarity and confidence, and connect you with the best available information and resources. We do not officially endorse or represent any of the resources, providers, services, schools, or clinics we reference or suggest. It is your family’s responsibility to investigate and ensure the safety, suitability, and best practices of any activity you undertake or any company or individual you choose to work with. Regarding COVID-19, Undivided encourages its members to monitor publicly available information and to always follow federal, state, and local health organization guidance and government mandates. We are not authorized to provide legal advice. Any information, documents, or communication provided or exchanged between Undivided and users of Undivided’s services does not constitute legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship, nor is it covered by attorney-client privilege or confidentiality. If you need legal advice, please consult with an attorney. Ultimately, all care decisions must be made by you in concert with your child’s school district and their healthcare, insurance, and other service providers.
