Summer Camps
Summer Camp Information
Summer Camp Information
Registration opens February 10 for McHenry County residents and February 20 for non-residents. Children must be within three months of turning the appropriate age in order to enroll. Age exceptions greater than three months are not considered until May 1, 2023 and final decisions are at the discretion of the camp directors. Call (815) 338-6223 for additional information. To ensure you receive communications from us regarding your child’s summer camp, please add Education@MCCDistrict.org to your email contact list.
Register Online for Camp
Prefer to pay with cash or check? Register using this form:
Summer Camp Paper Registration Form
Already registered? Download the Parent Packet here. Camp packets and schedules are below under each specific camp.
Download parent packet
ePACT
We have coordinated with ePACT to replace our paper emergency information forms. Once registration is processed, parents receive an email notification directly from ePACT to complete their children’s emergency information. Visit the ePACT website for additional information. https://www.epactnetwork.com/
Financial Assistance
Scholarships for McHenry County families are made available through the generous contribution of the McHenry County Conservation Foundation. Applications for the 2023 summer camp season will be available online. We will accept applications beginning February 1, 2023. Applications are processed first come, first served, and applicants are notified of eligibility within 5 business days. Financial assistance is not guaranteed and funds are limited.
Financial Assistance Application (English)
Financial Assistance Application (Spanish)
Cancellation
Need to cancel your child’s enrollment in camp? Contact the Prairieview Education Center at (815) 338-6223 or at Education@MCCDistrict.org. A cancellation notice of at least 10 business days is required in order to receive a refund. No refunds are issued after the 10 business days notification deadline has passed or if a camper is withdrawn during a camp session.
Summer Camp Packets and Schedules
In this five day, noncompetitive program, campers canoe the Nippersink Creek and hike Glacial Park’s trails, exploring prairie, woodland, and wetland. They also play popular camp games such as Predator-Prey, an off-trail game about food chains, and Restoration Tag, a camp favorite. Campers get to decorate their own t-shirts to take home and take part in a Friday cookout and graduation.
Aspiring young hunters, this camp is for you! In this 5-day non-competitive day camp, we teach all the requirements of the Illinois hunter safety course, including hunter responsibility and ethics, firearms and ammunition, firearm safety in the home, state regulations, and more. We also offer you the chance to go out into the park off-trail to practice blood trailing and tracking, setting up a tree stand, first aid scenarios, and transporting your deer. As a summer camp opportunity, we also include games and activities regarding wildlife management and conservation as well as an archery class and a wild game cookout! At the end of the week, you can take the test for Illinois hunter safety certification at no charge. This camp includes instruction from certified hunter safety instructors as well as camp counselors.
Artistic adventurers wanted! Campers get to sample a wide variety of creative arts and explore nature on a daily basis. These investigations of their natural surroundings provide campers with inspiration and possibly even the supplies for their artistic endeavors. Will it be weaving, painting, photography, music, poetry or pottery? Every day offers opportunities for some hands-on fun along with traditional day camp activities.
Fishing, canoeing, campfire building, outdoor challenges, hiking adventures, camp crafts and t-shirts make this day camp exciting and fun! Outdoor Adventure Camp is a five-day program that promotes fun and learning in a noncompetitive environment.
10-8, Code 4! Have you ever wondered what a conservation police officer does? Conservation officers not only protect people, they also protect our conservation areas and the plants and animals that call the conservation area their home. Throughout the week, we'll get to visit with McHenry County Conservation District police officers and check out the equipment they use, practice emergency scenario training and code enforcement, as well as learn basic first aid and learn what it takes to be safe while recreating outside!
Campers explore STEEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) topics, using the natural Environment as the organizing theme. Along with all the traditional day camp activities such as games, crafts, hikes and a cook-out, campers spend time with hands-on activities that build skills, foster critical thinking and pique their curiosity about how the natural world works. These activities will vary, but campers may use scientific tools to investigate native habitats, check out the engineering abilities of local wildlife, learn about the technologies used by today’s ecologists, use math to find their way around outdoors, and much more! Camp activities are primarily outdoors and include lots of hiking.
Campers experience a different era of history each day. From early Native American life through French exploration, pioneer life and farm life, we explore all facets of our heritage through games, activities, hikes, crafts, and visits to historical sites. As early explorers, campers canoe the wilds of Glacial Park and participate in a fur trade. As early farmers they conduct their daily chores, enjoy a harvest lunch, and more! This camp is primarily outdoors and includes extensive hiking.
This camp is filled with fun and adventure, including an overnight campout! Over the course of 24 hours we will participate in survival skills: fire building, shelter building, tomahawk throwing, wayfinding, and outdoor preparedness! We'll have plenty of food for energy and still find time for sleeping in tents and sitting by the campfire. Plus there are 2 other days filled with exploration, outdoor activity, paddling and fun.
