San Francisco Zoo Camp

It’s our first time to spend spring break at the zoo camp. Our daughter loves it so much that she didn’t want to leave each time I picked her up! Staff are nice and responsible. Drop-​offs and pick-​ups are easy. Different activities everyday. And she learnt about different animals everyday! We certainly would love to come back in the future. The only problem for us is that it’s too far from our home. Highly recommend it to any kid who loves animals!

My daughter loved SF Zoo Camp. Given the choice which camp to attend, she would pick either JCCSF or SF Zoo.
Kids are outside all day, every day of the week different activities, Great new playground. Great security.
My daughter has been to SF zoo since she was 1. And yet, she managed to discover new places that she’s never been to. Camp is fun and educational.

SF Zoo Camp: Best day camp in the city. They break the kids up into the appropriate grade levels; with animal group names like Lemurs & Rhinos. My daughter has gone for the past 2 summers and I absolutely love her counselors. This year Georgia and Ian were fantastic; patient, kind, and just a lot of fun. They worked with my daughters shyness and also channeled her excess energy once she got comfortable. My daughter came home each day so excited about what the next day would hold.
One of the most important aspects of this camp is the security provided to the kids. They are put in small groups and upon drop off they are constantly together (with a counselor), never out of sight, and wear distinctive shirts and camp badges. When dropping off your child you can’t go past the counselor at the check in line and each and every day they specifically asking who is picking up your child. From the first Monday on they know parents by name and create a sense of community.
Make sure you sign up a couple of months ahead of time because the camp fills up. This is a SF must for SF kids!

My daughter attended sf zoo camp three times so far and has loved every one. There is a full education department and the staff is well trained. The curriculum is relevant, expertly presented and the children seem happy and excited about learning. For weeks, I hear facts and results of the learning that took place during the camp.
The staff keeps a close eye on the children, they schedule activities in a well paced manner which creates a balance of fun and learning.
One excellent aspect is that each group is organized by grade/​age level. This way relevant material and management is designed to fit the needs of the children.

Yup, this gets 5 Stars. I’d give it six if I could. What a great summer camp! Great teachers, great attitude, great content and topics, kids are still talking about three weeks later. After experiencing this camp its hard to compare with others around the bay. I only wish I had signed up earlier so I could get my kids in a couple more weeks.
Sign up your little people!

My daughter participated in spring camp…
my child’s enthusiasm for the camp started out great, then dampened over the course of the week. It depends on the child, but my daughter felt like there was not enough animal contact. There was a lot of coloring and hand-​outs, too much like school for a first grader, but this mom thought the results were cute, even so.
She also had a problem with an older child in her group that was bothering her the second day, which continued to the point of my daughter not wanting to go back the last day of camp. She is not a shrinking violet and is vocal about her needs (very loud), so I suspect that she was not taken seriously when she told the adults she was being bothered. I saw the «bothering» child in action as I was checkiing my daughter out of camp on the last day she attended. He was very annoying. I wouldn’t want to put up with it all day, either. The adults in charge in the room didn’t seem to notice, or if they did, didn’t address the issue at all.
It’s too bad because my daughter loves animals. I don’t think she will want to go back again.
In all fairness, however, I do have to add pluses to the experience:
The staff was efficient in the check in/​out process. The premesis looked very clean. The itinerary handed out the first day showed a well-​thought out curriculum…

My daughter attended the San Francisco Zoo Summer Camp and loved it. She enjoyed learning about the different animals — they covered one continent per day. Lots of arts and craft animal-​related activities.
Each session runs five days and is from 9am — 4pm, but you can pay extra for extended care which runs from 8am — 9am and 4pm — 5pm. Pre-​K sessions are only half-​days. Sessions have themes such as «Around the World in 5 Days». The sessions are offered all summer long and you get a discount if you’re a zoo member.
Your child is assigned to groups based on their grade levels. Maximum number of students is 20 per group with a lead instructor, assistant and high school staff supervising the children.
This program is not well-​known but they do a great job. The only thing is if your child doesn’t like to walk, they might not like this. However, for the active little ones, this is perfect for burning some of that energy and they manage to learn something too.
Registration is online only which you would think is convenient but unfortunately the pages take a long time to load. However, they do make it convenient for you to drop-​off/​pick up by validating parking so you can drive into the paid lot (normally $ 8/​day).
Overall, both parents and child loved the program. We highly recommend the SF Zoo Camp and would enroll again next year!