Once summer comes around, mothers need to get creative. Filling the summer months with extracurricular, social, and educational activities to keep kids occupied can take months of planning (and hair pulling). When we decided to kick off the summer with a joint family RV trip (powered by 4 kids and 2 moms) I knew the only way I would survive was to register the kids for Camp Galileo the following week. I was adamant. I was determined. And it turns out, I was also right.

After six fun-filled days of marshmallow roasting togetherness, a week of camp offered an opportunity to rebalance and catch up.  Transitioning from a 29 foot RV to a Fun Machine full of streamers was a breeze. As they skipped off to meet their exuberant camp counselors on the first day of camp, I skipped off to enjoy a stretch of uninterrupted time. Housework, phone calls, exercise, meetings, work, errands and even some quiet time were all accomplished without anxiety or multi-tasking.

Greeted at the end of each day with smiles, hugs, body art, stories, cheers, and musings, the No-Brainer called “Camp Galileo” became my new best friend. Since camp took care of the ‘activity’ quota, we chose guilt-free relaxation with friends and family in the afternoons and evenings. Maybe those six magic hours of camp offer a sentiment similar to what a ‘neighborhood’ used to be (when kids were out on their skateboards all day).  They come home full of life, slightly exhausted, and happy. It’s a great formula for everyone. Thanks Camp Galileo! See you next summer!

This post was written by Camp Galileo parent Lorraine Akemann. She blogs at Keeps Me Smiling and Moms With Apps.

We are excited to announce that Galileo Learning is currently hiring for a marketing position based in our Oakland Home Office. The Regional Marketing Coordinator is a full-time, year-round position, and includes bonus potential and full benefits. Please pass along this brief description to anyone in your network who may be interested. We will be accepting  applications through July 2.

Galileo Learning was recently recognized as the #3 medium-sized company in the “Best Places to Work in the Bay Area” awards by the SF Business Times. How did we earn that distinction? As a company that brings educational summer camp programming to 26 Bay Area locations, we constantly bring reminders of the joys of summer camp into our Oakland headquarters, from lunchtime talent shows to games and songs kicking off our staff meetings. (The rubber chickens decorating the office help, too!)  At the same time, we are a rapidly growing, entrepreneurial company that strives to foster an environment of professional and personal growth, challenging each staff member to deliver excellence. Working in our Home Office team of 25 means joining a close-knit team of high achievers who are passionate about Galileo’s mission, which is to help young people discover and pursue their passions and to nurture the careers of current and aspiring educators.

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As the school year wraps up, there is no denying summer is right around the corner – even if the weather seems to disagree! There are only two short weeks before summer camps begin, but our handy tips for counting down to camp will prevent any savvy parent from being caught off guard. The tips from last week can be found here.

This week:

* Make sure your child’s lunch box and backpack (if your camper will be bringing one), survived the school year enough to last through camp. Sometimes those lunch bags just barely make it through the school year and hopefully it’s able to hold together for a few more weeks for use at camp. You may want to consider reusable containers for your child’s lunch to reduce trash as much as possible.

*Consider a reusable water bottle to pack along in your child’s lunch. When the days heat up (we’re optimistic summer weather will show up), plenty of water always helps.

* Make sure your child’s items are labeled with their name. Not only is it helpful to have your child’s lunch box and backpack labeled, but don’t overlook labeling sweatshirts, hats, water bottles or any other thing that maybe tagging along to camp with your child. A clear label always helps reunite a lost item and its owner.

Finally, remember that while spots are filling quickly, there’s still time to tack on an additional week of camp!

Like many of you, I’m a Galileo parent of two (a daughter, age seven, and a son, who is three and sadly still too young for camp). I first heard about Camp Galileo before my daughter was old enough to participate, when I was talking to another mom about summer plans and she mentioned her boys went to Camp Galileo every year.

I’d seen the name before on mom’s club e-mails and I knew that many people were big fans of the program, but I had a lingering question: was it really worth the money? As I talked to the mom who assured me that security at the camps was impressive – this was a big concern for me as I sent my first baby off to day camp – and she told me how much fun her boys had each year, her son interrupted. He couldn’t contain his enthusiasm as he jumped around trying to tell us all about camp. He was so excited! I only really made out the words “rubber chicken”, “crazy hair” and “Nebulas”. It didn’t make any sense, but I figured that if a first grade kid could get that excited about camp stories in January, this camp was at least worth a try.

We started small our first year, only signing up for one week, half day. My daughter was only four – she was a young kindergartener – and I used her age to justify my cautiousness. My somewhat shy daughter was mad when I picked her up that first day at noon. “WHY are you HERE?” she yelled as I practically dragged her to the car. “I want to stay! I want to stay!” That began a frenzied change of our other summer plans to sign her up for additional weeks, all at full time. My daughter is a few years older now, but she’s never wanted to leave Camp Galileo. She’s always the last kid out at pick up, the one trying to stall for time while working on a project or talking with a counselor. Camp Galileo is definitely worth every cent.

We’ve done other camps in addition to Camp Galileo. Although others have a different focus or style, there is one thing that I have never seen replicated: the absolute enthusiasm of the Galileo Learning staff. When dropping off in the morning, I’ve seen music, bubbles, kids forming a rocket ship and running into camp together. Everyone says hello and the counselors yell out the kids’ names when they see them. The energy is infectious, even for an over-tired mom who’s been up with the sun wrangling a toddler.

This energy continues throughout the day as the campers are encouraged to try new things, to develop a hypothesis and test it without concern for failure. Years ago I read a book that suggested kids learn foreign languages faster than adults because kids are much less worried about failure. They’re not embarrassed by mispronouncing a word until they get the sound right, where most adults are stifled by a fear of embarrassment if they get something wrong, which keeps them from trying new things at all. Kids are willing to take risks when learning, and to question assumptions or why things work the way they do. I love that Galileo Learning fosters this inquisitive nature, especially at a time when resources for creative exploration are drying up at many schools. Learning should be fun!

When we finished up our first summer with Camp Galileo, my husband remarked, “Too bad they don’t run a school.” We love our daughter’s school, but there is something about summer camp that’s magical.

In this blog, we’ll delve into some areas of interest to parents, including the hiring process for camp staffers, new themes, how the curriculum is developed and an exploration of the different Galileo Learning camps for different age groups. As we grow this community, we welcome any suggestions for other topics that you’d like covered or questions that need answers. We also welcome your participation!