Welcome to STEM Camp! Below are answers to our most frequently asked questions, related to our 2024 summer camp season. When we launch summer camp 2025, we will update this information to reflect any new details. You will also find some location-specific FAQs on the webpage for each location. If you don’t find the answer here for your question, we’re here to help:
This answer is different depending on your province of residence.
ONTARIO: Campers between the ages of 5-13 are eligible to enroll. Based on the activities and overall structure of the camp, campers must be at least 5 years old by July 1, 2024. We are sorry, but there are no exceptions to the age restriction.
BRITISH COLUMBIA: Campers must be 5 years of age on or before December 31, 2023 and must have completed SK by the time camp begins on July 2, to be eligible to attend camp. If your camper does not meet these requirements, camp options will not be available for selection in the next step of the registration process. We are sorry, but there are no exceptions to the age restriction.
We try very hard to accommodate each camper where we can. STEM Camp is committed to ensuring a successful camp experience for all campers. Unfortunately, our staffing structure does not allow for 1:1 camper support. If your child has an Educational Assistant (EA) at school that assists with behaviour concerns, they are required to bring a qualified support person with them to camp. Please note, all campers are required to be self-sufficient in the washroom as camp staff are not authorized to assist your child. STEM Camp is unable to provide this support, parents/guardians are required to make these arrangements. Full disclosure on the camper Medical and Behavioural Form is required at the time of registration and failure to do so may result in participant removal, no refunds or credits will be issued should this occur.
Unfortunately, we do not offer half day enrollment or part time enrollment. While it is your choice to only send your child for half a day or a few times a week, there is no price discount. The full enrollment fee will apply.
All lost and found items will be kept at camp until the end of the last week of camp, at which time they will be donated to a local charity if unclaimed. They will not be shipped back to Head Office. STEM Camp strongly recommends that you label everything and check daily to ensure that your camper has returned home with their belongings. Campers who bring valuables of any kind to camp do so at their own risk, so please leave valuables at home. STEM Camp is not responsible for any damage, loss or theft of personal items brought to camp.
Typically we have 1 counsellor for every 7 children, though some variations apply. If volunteer CIT’s (Counsellors-In-Training) apply they are most welcome as well. Each camp location has a Camp Coordinator, an Activity Coordinator and regular counsellors.
The majority of our counsellors are university and college students looking for summer employment (and a few secondary school students are hired each year, as well). We also employ teachers who want to do something in the summer, and graduates of Teacher Colleges across Ontario. A recent Vulnerable Sector Police Check is a mandatory requirement for all counsellors. There will be at least one counsellor present at each camp location with their First Aid certification at all times.
For a list of all our locations, please go to https://stemcamp.ca/canada-camp-locations/
Not all facilities are air conditioned. Visit each location page for a specific city, in the FAQ section of that page (at the bottom) identifies whether each facility is air conditioned. We understand that some days get quite hot in the summer, so precautions and measures are taken to lessen the impact of the heat if a particular camp location does not have air conditioning. Fans are installed, frequent water breaks are taken, outdoor activity is limited during heat advisory days, freezies and popsicles (with parent consent) are provided to campers, water activities are planned, and more to help minimize the impact of the heat. The activities your children are involved in are of an academic nature and not considered strenuous. Please note, refunds will not be given due to hot days at camp.
Registration will open on January 3rd, 2024!
Absolutely! Campers love showing their STEM Camp spirit through merch. We have t-shirts for sale in childrens’ sizes Small, Medium and Large for $12 each. Just add them to your cart as you register your camper. If you’d like to purchase a t-shirt after you register, give us a ring at 519-475-6600 and we’d be pleased to process that for you!
Any camp merchandise you have purchased will be shipped to the first camp session you have purchased and will be provided to you on the first day of camp.
Camp merchandise is available for purchase through our online registration platform. A new T-shirt will have your child(ren) STEM Camp’n in style. If you have already completed your registration and would like to add camp merchandise to your account, please contact our Support Team at support@stemcamp.ca or by calling (519) 475-6600. Please note, camp merchandise sales close on June 1, 2024, in order to allow time for packing and shipping to camp locations across Ontario and BC.
Yes! Each year we continue to add more and more activities and options to ensure the campers are always busy learning and having fun! Many of our activities have extensions available if a camper needs a bit more of a challenge as well.
Sometimes special guests visit various locations to augment our programming, as health and safety allows (for example, during COVID, guests are not permitted in person). As guests are booked they will be announced on our website. For example, in summers of 2021 and 2022, campers during our Star Wars week got to speak virtually to an astronaut from the Canadian Space Agency!
Our camp program operates from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. each day.
We also offer early drop off starting at 8:00 a.m. and late pick up until 5:00 p.m. You can add this extended before care and/or extended after care to your cart at checkout when you register for camp, or purchase it later if you prefer. Before care for the whole week is $30, and after care for the whole week is $30. Please note, only entire weeks (not individual days) can be purchased.
Yes! Early drop off starts at 8:00 a.m. and late pick up is offered until 5:00 p.m. You can add this extended before care and/or extended after care to your cart when you register for camp, or purchase it later if you prefer. Before care for the whole week is $30, and after care for the whole week is $30. Please note, only entire weeks (not individual days) can be purchased.
A typical day will always begin with campers sanitizing their hands under the watchful eye of camp staff.
Campers are divided into cohorts and a sample camp day schedule will look something like this:
Many of our activities may take place outside, depending on the weather. Outside activities may take place onsite at the camp, or at a nearby green space or park/playground. Activities throughout the day are based on a variety of health and safety factors as well as weather.
It is important that all campers come prepared for a full day of great activities and fun. Check out this summer camp packing list for more information, and please be sure your camper has the following items every day:
Please do not bring toys to STEM Camp and please leave all electronic devices (including cellphones) at home. If you need to contact your child, call our Support team (519-475-6600) and we will contact the camp to relay messages or plan for your child to call you if it is urgent.
No, campers will not need to (and we request that they do not) bring any devices to camp. We are very pleased to provide a laptop for campers at all locations for use at camp, which ensures all campers have equal access to the high quality technology programming we offer at STEM Camp, and to devices which are ready to go for all camp activities that they are needed for. For a list of what to bring and not to bring to STEM Camp, check out our summer camp packing list.
Campers spend approximately 2 hours a day completing coding and robotics activities and participating in Minecraft builds.
To ensure their safety, campers must be signed in at the time of drop off and signed out at the time of pick up, by their guardian. Guardians must indicate the names of the authorized persons for pickup on their online registration form and everyone must show physical identification in order to sign out a camper. You are required to show physical identification every day, even if we know you. No camper will be permitted to leave camp without being signed out by an authorized adult. The same safety rules apply to all. Should a parent wish to add an authorized person(s) to the approved pick up and drop off list for their child, they may login to their account or call Head Office (519-475-6600).
STEM Camp staff will bring the camper(s) to the normal drop off/pick up location and the parent/guardian will be required to sign out their camper(s). For your child(ren) to be released from camp, the person signing them out must:
The same safety rules apply to all parents/guardians. Should a parent/guardian wish to add an authorized pick up person(s) to the approved pick up list for their child(ren), they may login to their account online or call our Support team (519-475-6600) and they will gladly assist you.
We take the care and safety of your child(ren) very seriously. Under no circumstance will a child be permitted to leave camp without being signed out by an authorized adult who has verified their identification by showing physical government issued photo ID.
We post this information on the location pages as soon as we have it. In the case where STEM Camp is located at a university or a college this information can take a while to be forwarded to us as they have internal procedures they must follow to make drop off and pick up as seamless as possible. An email is sent prior to the start of each STEM Camp week with this information.
As much as possible, yes. However, this depends on the camp location and the enrollment of any given week. As a not for profit organization, we do not have the means to employ extra staff to break down into smaller groups if we cannot group easily by age. We cannot guarantee the ages of the campers prior to the camp week, nor can we guarantee how they will be grouped.
So far, no. But please keep in mind that as rules change, they may or may not change for summer camps, as well. In other words, rules for summer camp may be slightly different than how they are affecting your day to day life. We are extremely proud to report that we did not have one case of COVID-19 spread throughout any of our sites in 2022. We are approaching 2024 with the same vigilance.
As the COVID-19 restrictions and protocols are fluid, the situation in January 2024 could look different than camp season in July and August, 2024. Please keep an eye on this page, call our office or email support@stemcamp.ca if you have any questions.
Please note that we will continue to follow the rules and regulations outlined by the Ontario Government and local Public Health Units for each camp location. Therefore, we reserve the right to update STEM Camp’s Health and Safety policy as necessary.
Yes! At least one staff member at every site has their First Aid and CPR certification.
In general, STEM Camp is nut aware, in that we ask parents to provide nut free food for their children, but there may be some nut food products present at the camp facilities, as we rent our camp facilities and do not have control over what may be in the building.
Specifically, some sites we use do have nut-free policies which we do respect. Nut-free sites (where absolutely no nut containing or ‘may contain’ nut foods are allowed) include:
For more information, please review the Allergy and Sensitivity Statement on page 5 of our 2024 Camp Guide using one of the links below:
Participants that have purchased camp sessions, services or merchandise products prior to June 1, 2024 may request a full refund (minus the 2.4% Credit Card Surcharge) for ANY reason, if such a request is made to Head Office on or before May 31, 2024. Please contact our Support team via email at support@stemcamp.ca or by calling (519) 475-6600. Please note, this applies to new purchases made for the 2024 camp season, NOT for camp sessions, services or merchandise products purchased in any previous season, for which credits were issued. Camp Session purchases made on or prior to May 31, 2024 are non-refundable as of June 1, 2024.
Camp Session purchases made on or after June 1, 2024, through to August 23, 2024, are considered FINAL SALE. No cash refunds will be granted, or credits issued, for ANY reason. Please be aware of this when purchasing camp sessions on or after June 1, 2024. If you are not agreeable to this condition, do not proceed in purchasing camp sessions. Camp Merchandise and Before and After Care services are refundable at any time, including throughout the camp season, provided the merchandise or service you purchased is cancelled a minimum of one full business day prior to the start of the camp session for which you purchased the merchandise or service. To cancel Camp Merchandise or Before or After Care, please contact our Support team via email at support@stemcamp.ca or by calling (519) 475-6600.
In the event that STEM Camp cancels a camp location, session, day, service or merchandise product, before or after June 1, 2024, a full refund will be issued to the Participant. Reasons for cancellation include, but are not limited to: funding availability, lack of enrolment, insufficient staffing, or supply chain issues. Decisions to cancel camp locations is done with consideration of families searching for summer care options for their child(ren) and best efforts are made to finalize these decisions by May 15, 2024, however this is not always possible.
In the unlikely event that STEM camp is forced to shut down due to a government order (ie. Pandemic related restrictions), the Participant will receive a credit for the full value of their purchase, to be used in the 2025 camp season.
Participants may switch their camp week(s), if notice is provided to Head Office by contacting our Support team. This must be done a minimum of 14 days in advance of the start date of the original purchased camp session, and is contingent on available spots for the requested week(s). There is no guarantee that sessions will be available for your requested date(s) and location(s). To contact our Support team, please email your request to support@stemcamp.ca or call (519) 475-6600 to speak with one of our Support team members.
STEM Camp reserves the right not to offer refunds or credits after June 1, 2024, under any circumstances, including, but not limited to:
Camp week(s) can be switched, if notice is provided to Head Office by contacting our Support team. This must be done a minimum of 14 days in advance of the start date of the original purchased camp session, and is contingent on available spots for the requested week(s). There is no guarantee that sessions will be available for your requested date(s) and location(s).
To contact our Support team, please email your request to support@stemcamp.ca or call (519) 475-6600 to speak with one of our Support team members.
No. We suggest that parents evaluate their situation closely prior to enrolling their child and that should a situation occur where the child indicates they are not “having fun” or “didn’t learn anything”, strongly encourage them to try their best the next day. Children often focus on one thing during the day they did not like but in actuality they had 10 other positive things happen. Another suggestion would be to discuss the situation with the Camp Coordinator on site as there is often more to the story.
As a not for profit, STEM Camp does not have a formal subsidy program as our fees are already at cost. However, we do accept funding from any organization that wishes to assist.
We suggest parents contact their local service clubs and agencies to enquire about existing summer camp subsidy programs. A call to your local MPP and MP offices could also provide some ideas as to funding.
There is a 2.4% Credit Card Surcharge added to all transactions to cover the fee that payment processors charge. This is a non-refundable fee.
Please note, credit card charges may appear on your statement as Bambora Internet PSP, the company that provides payment gateway services to STEM Camp.
NOTE: Bambora/Worldline is one of the most widely used payment gateways on the Internet. If you have found this page by searching online for a charge you found on your statement, but you have not signed up for camp, the charge you are seeing is most likely not from STEM Camp.
