Vancouver Summer Camps: Keeping it Cool at the Richmond Oval
Article by Lisa Schwartz, sharing the scoop on some great Vancouver summer camps.
Summer Camps to the Rescue!
Ten months of the year, I work part time outside the home. I am fortunate that my job affords me the balance of working and being home with my kids. During those ten months, we get into a nice rhythm on those days that I am at home of visiting local parks and heading to fun places like Science World. Then summer hits and all of the sudden I am home full time with the kids and I find the transition hard. For the past two summers, I have looked for summer camps and programs for the kids to make the transition easier. Day camps are a great option in the summer. The kids love an opportunity to do something they love or try something new. Enter the Richmond Oval.
The Richmond Oval offers a variety of camps for children and youth from four to eighteen years. The camps give children the opportunities to try a new sport or work on one they already know, all the while promoting positive attitudes towards physical activity.
Summer Fun at the Richmond Oval
Last week, two little boys that I adore participated in the Richmond Oval’s Activate Get Skills half-day camp. Each day started out with minor games such as tag. From there the kids were able to try many different sports such as badminton, basketball, ping-pong and soccer. They were also able to spend some time on the gymnastics equipment from Panther Cheer that is also located at the Oval.
This was a co-ed class of about twelve kids with two instructors. The instructors, Punky and Ryan had the perfect balance of pushing the kids to reach new heights combined with an encouraging nature that helped the boys develop self-esteem with fun and energetic activities that were age appropriate.
What the Kids Said
I had the opportunity to speak to both boys about their experience at the camp. Here is what Jamie (six years old) had to say about his experience at the camp and his instructors:
“The best … when I was rock climbing, Ryan kept saying keep going up, you are almost there.”
Did you like that?
“Yup, because it is the way that I liked it … I would have stopped earlier, but I kept going. I was proud of myself because I tried things that I never did before. I never thought that I could go that high.”
Josh (eight years old) also loved the rock climbing part of the camp:
“I have never gone rock climbing before at the oval so I was nervous because the walls looked so high as I looked up. The first few times, I didn’t climb to the top because when I looked down it looked so high. On my third try, I wanted to stop, but I kept going because Ryan was telling me to keep going and that I could do it. When I reached the top .. I felt really good because I have never climbed to the top. When one of the kids wanted to go on the hard ones, I wanted to go as well because I wanted to try something new.”
Register for Summer Camps
Registration for summer camps at the Richmond Oval is ongoing. There are three ways to register:
- Call 778-296-1400
- In person at 6111 River Road, Richmond
- Online at www.ovalwebreg.com/Activities/ActivitiesAdvSearch.asp
Disclosure: The Richmond Oval kindly offered me day camps for both my kids. Due to scheduling conflicts, my kids were unable to attend and Josh and Jamie went in their place. The opinions are my own and those of Josh, Jamie and their dad, Rick.
Lisa writes the Schwartz Chronicles recording the highlights, lowlights and everything in between about life as a mom to Sarah and Jack. She was recently a finalist in the Fabulous Vancouver Mom Top 30 Bloggers.
