Delaware Nature Society offers action-packed summer camps

Preschoolers can catch tadpoles and frogs in a stream. Grade schoolers can canoe, kayak and tube down local waterways. Tweens and teens can dig for fossils and minerals or spend a week camping at Hawk Mountain, where they’ll meet scientists who are world leaders in raptor research.

These are just some of the experiences awaiting youth at Delaware Nature Society camps this summer. Registration for camp began Feb. 1 for Household Plus members of Delaware Nature Society and opens Wednesday, Feb. 15, for all other DNS members and Thursday, March 1, for nonmembers.

“Each year we serve more than 1,000 children, and many of these campers return year after year,” says Helen Fischel, associate director of education for the Delaware Nature Society. “Parents tell us that what sets our camps apart is the high-quality educational experience. The programs are innovative, the student-teacher ratios are low and the staff is well trained. And the young people always tell us how much fun they have.”

Delaware Nature Society offers half-day, full-day and overnight summer camps for 3- to 15-year-olds at five locations statewide. Camps are offered at the DuPont Environmental Education Center on Wilmington’s waterfront; Ashland Nature Center in Hockessin; Cooch-Dayett Mill in Newark; Coverdale Farm Preserve in Greenville and Abbott’s Mill Nature Center in Milford. In addition, off-site adventure camps are offered, featuring overnights in the Laurel Highlands, Cape Henlopen State Park and other locales.

Camp prices start at $55. Extended care is available for an additional fee at Abbott’s Mill and Ashland nature centers and DuPont Environmental Education Center.

Go to www.delawarenaturesociety.org for a list of all camps or call 302-239-2334 to receive a print brochure. Delaware Nature Society members can register online; nonmembers can register by calling 302-239-2334.