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Camps

City of Pickering Summer Camps provide a quality experience for your child!

Our goal is for your child’s day to be filled with fun and excitement. Our camps foster an opportunity to develop new friendships and new skills in a safe and supportive environment. Our camp staff make the difference!

Our staff are certified with Standard First Aid & CPR-C. All staff have completed courses on the HIGH FIVE Principles of Healthy Child Development and have gone through Vulnerable Sector Screenings with Durham Regional Police Services. They are experienced, creative and enthusiastic, dedicated to giving your camper the... Best Summer Vacation Ever!!

2013 Summer Camps:
Choose a camp for your child

Parents/Guardians: Camp session letters will be available online one week prior to the start of each session. 

Please pack a lunch, snacks, and drinks daily. All of our camps are peanut-free.

If your child has special needs and requires additional support please register in person at the Pickering Recreation Complex by May 13, 2013.

Mini Pidaca (3 - 5 yrs)

This camp brings new activities to get your little camper moving, participating in arts, crafts, and dance activities. And now...  Mini Pidaca is offered in half-day or full day sessions!

Mini Magic Half day session.  Get swept away with Mini Magic. Enchanting dress up days, songs, crafts and games. Fly away with us and enter the wonderful world of mini!

Mini Inc. Half day session.  Get incredible!  Swim with the fishes and come play with the toys and monsters in your closet.  Come on board and catch the spirit of adventure!

Mini Treehouse  Half day session.  3-2-1 let's go! New and exciting dress up days, songs, crafts and games. Climb into our treehouse for a week of adventure and fun with all your friends.

101 Minis  NEW Full day Mini Pidaca!  Run, gallop, swim or fly into Mini's animal kingdom. Join us for a wild week of animal fun! Dress up days, songs, crafts and games. Come walk on the wild side with all your animal friends! Runs from 9:00 am to 3:15 pm.

Mini the Explorer  Half day session.  Fun awaits! Explore with your favourite characters. Just don't forget your trusty backpack!

Mini Goes to the Olympics  NEW Full day Mini Pidaca! Join us for a week of fun as Mini learns about different sports and how to play them. Campers will learn all about being healthy and staying fit!

Mini Pops  Half day session.  Fly first class to Hollywood! Rockstar dress up days, your favourite radio songs, crafts and games! Get ready to take the stage and be the star of the Mini Pops show!

Enchanted Mini   NEW Full day Mini Pidaca! Once upon a time at Enchanted Mini, campers entered the world of imagination and creativity as Mini explored the world of fairy tales. And those campers lived happily ever after.

Mini at the Movies   Half day session.  Spend a week with us enjoying the magic of Hollywood. Wild theme days, songs and crafts taken right out of the movies.

Arts Camp (5 - 12 yrs)

Sports Camp runs in one-week sessions, Monday to Friday, from 9:00 am to 3:15 pm daily.  Arts Camp offers a wide variety of crafts, games and activities designed to showcase your child's creativity.  Drama and dance classes will get children moving and interacting with new friends. Swimming Daily. Special theme days bring a fresh set of activities each session at Arts Camp.  Free Busing to and from camp!

Arts Camp 1   Dance, drama, art, games, and music every day, with swimming in the afternoons. Campers will have the chance to discover and sample all forms of art.

Arts Camp Glee  Gleek Out! Join us and sing and dance to all your favourite songs! Music inspired theme days, songs and games as well as creative crafts. Which team will win regionals and outperform the rest on Friday?

Arts Camp Hollywood   All your favourite songs and celebrities. Hollywood themed dress up days, songs, games and crafts. Come join us as Arts Camp jet sets to Hollywood!

Arts at the Gallery  Do you want to be the next Picasso? Build your drawing, painting and sculpting skills and learn what it truly takes to become a great artist. Beam with pride as all your art will be put on display by the end of the week in our Arts Camp Gallery!

Arts on the Silver Screen  Lights, Camera, Action! Learn what goes on behind the scenes by creating scripts, making props and sets as we prepare for our end of the week performance. Sign up and get your all-inclusive backstage pass to Arts Camp!

Arts Camp Food Frenzy  Do you like to cook or bake? Think you could be the next great chef? New and additional classes this week will include baking, cooking and decorating. Come join us in the kitchen for Arts Camp Food Frenzy!

Arts Camp 2  Dance, drama, art, games, and music every day, with swimming in the afternoons. Campers will have the chance to discover and sample all forms of art.

The Arts Camp Factor  Think you've got talent?! Come join us and show us what makes you stand out. Theme days, crafts, games and much more. The end of the week performance will showcase all our campers' fantastic talents!

Sports Camp (5 - 12 yrs)

Learn what it takes to be a superstar athlete!  Our sports camp offers a wide sampling of different sports each session. Sports Camp runs in one-week sessions, Monday to Friday, from 9:00 am to 3:15 pm daily.  Your child will learn the rules and develop new skills every session; basketball, soccer, baseball, hockey, tennis, football and more!  Special themes like Gladiator Day, Olympic Week, Superstar Day, and many others keep the whole summer new and exciting. Swimming Daily.  Free Busing to and from camp!

Great Outdoors Camp (5 - 12 yrs)

Aka GO Camp, is for the camper who loves the outdoors and seeks adventure. This camp runs Monday to Friday, from 9:00 am to 3:15 pm. Crafts, outdoors games, camping skills, archery, creek walks, swimming and more are included! Swimming on Monday, Wednesday and Friday every week. Special theme days bring a fresh set of activities each session at Great Outdoors Camp. Each session, special trips to Whitevale Park and Rouge Valley let your camper explore the outdoors in the city. Free Busing to and from camp!

Survivor Style!  Each week, campers will try to capture the immunity idol with their tribe, avoid exile and escape tribal council to be crowned GO Camp Survivors! Special theme days bring a fresh set of activities each session.  Sessions 1, 3, 5 & 7, Session 2: Pearl Islands, Session 4: Camp vs Wild, Session 6: Survivor All Stars and Session 8: Outback

Time Traveller Camp (5 - 12 yrs)

Set the dial on the Time Machine! This year, your camper is going back to the days of pirates and knights and castles. We'll find out how the West and the War of 1812 were won, and of course we always 'dig' those dinos (and cavemen, too)! Book now, because space is limited and this camp only runs for four weeks! All time periods will be visited each week, but the way we explore them and the activities we do will change. Please note: Camp activities are subject to change. Once registered, please email us at registration@pickering.ca for a 2013 Parent Handbook.  There are only 4 sessions available so book early!  Free busing to and from camp.

Camp Finale (5 - 12 yrs)

Join us for one final week of fun!  All the best from Arts, Sports, Time Traveller and GO Camp!  All you favourite classes including dance, soccer, archery, hockey, survival skills and arts and crafts!  Special trips to Whitevale and Pickering Museum Village will include hiking and creek walking.  Join us for a Mega Camp Mash-up and one final week of summer fun!  Swimming Daily!

Extend-a-Camp (5 - 12 yrs)

This program is offered before and after our full-day camps for those parents and guardians that need a little more time each day. New games and new crafts ensure no duplication of our full-day camps. Please drop off and pick up your child at the Creative Centre. Extend-a-camp is offered for Arts, Sports, Great Outdoors and Time Traveller Camps only.

Morning Hours: 7:00 am to 9:00 am

Afternoon Hours: 3:30 pm to 6:00 pm

Late pick-up fee ($20.00) applied to any child picked up after 6:00pm daily.

More Camps!

Mad Science Camp (5 - 12 yrs)

Machine Maniacs: July 22 - 26.  Join us for a week full of creations, chemistry and cameras! Work together with your fellow engineers to build the best bridge in our shake, rattle and roll challenge. Turn your daily newspaper into a four foot high Geodesic Dome that you can sit in with your friends. Explore the world of birds and beasts with bird house building and our super bug investigation. Mix, mash and brew concoctions to create cool sidewalk chalk and bath fizzers during a day in the chemistry lab. Discover the wonders of photography as you study cameras, light and colours.

Science Sleuths: August 12 - 16.   An awesome week of sleuthing, investigation and discovery awaits you! Send messages to your friends with your very own secret code wheels. Hunt down animal tracks and follow hidden scent trails during a day of nature discoveries. Explore the wonders of gravity, balance and the science behind the illusive sweet spot. Build the strongest helmet for our friend Eggbert in our 'safe egg challenge'. Renew your appreciation for the Earth and the role science can play in preserving our favourite planet. Build your own cool Kepler's Cubes and become a Mad Science junior astronomer. Camp Theme Days include: Mad Messages, Earth Awareness, The Science of Sport, Nature, Space.

Act One Drama Camp (5 - 14 yrs)

Let your imagination loose! Come spend an unforgettable 5 days being introduced to the world of Drama! A week full of theatre games and other indoor and outdoor activities will let every camper discover the 'actor' in each of us. Campers will learn basic theatre and acting techniques and have the opportunity to perform their own plays for family and friends.  Available for 2 sessions: July 15 - 19 and  August 19 - 23

Skateboarding Camp (7 - 14 yrs)

For youth that love skateboarding and want to brush up on their skills OR for the beginner who has been thinking about getting started! Participants will skateboard each day at the Pickering Skate Park with staff from SWITCH Skate & Snow, go swimming on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, plus enjoy all kinds of fun activities. The week will also consist of an offsite trip related to skateboarding. Participants are required to bring their own skateboard, and helmets are mandatory. Additional safety gear is recommended.

Fitness Camp (11 - 15 yrs)

This awesome camp  involves both active and classroom physical and health education. Campers will enjoy enhancing their muscular endurance, aerobic capacity, agility, flexibility, and other performance measures through activities such as kickboxing, yoga, and swimming. Campers will learn safe and effective techniques for working out in a health club and gain an understanding of the basic exercise science behind their bodies' actions. This camp is tailored to each group and fitness classes will be sampled based on availability. At the end of camp, participants 13 years plus can take the F.I.T. Club test - a successful grade means they are eligible to purchase a Youth Health membership.   Two sessions available, July 15 - 19 and August 19 - 23.

Leadership Program  (13 - 14 yrs)

Learn how to develop leadership skills that will enhance your confidence and outlook on life. The program will take place inside and out. Come join us for this fun and interactive program! A great program to take if  thinking of participating in our AC Program in the future.  Two sessions available from July 15 - 26 or August 12 - 23.

Assistant Counsellor Program (14 - 15 yrs)

Learn what it’s like to work in a Summer Camp! Participate in a minimum of 4 camp sessions.  Application deadline is May 31, 2013, for training purposes.

  • Must be 14 years of age by July 2, 2013 and have some experience working with children, 2 letters of reference and vulnerable sector screening. Pick up your letter of volunteering at the front desk of the Pickering Recreation Complex.

 Training Sessions: June 3 & 5 or June 4 & 6 from 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm at Pickering Recreation Complex