Camp Galileo- San Francisco North

Sent both kids to Galileo Camp this Summer. Score! Happy kids, happy Mom. I actually looked forward to morning drop off — the smiles, the music, the way they greet each kid by name. It was an overall positive experience for the 5 yr old (4 wks) and the 13 ye old (1 wk).

If you ask my children (ages 9 and 7) to describe Camp Galileo they would say, «It’s AWESOME!» And I definitely agree. This was our third year doing CG and our experience has been the most positive. The camp provides excellent content on whatever the topic of the week is, a balanced series of activities during the day (science/​art/​outdoors), and a wonderful, enthusiastic and fun-​loving — and responsible — staff. They certainly live up to their mission of creating innovators who love to learn!

My son *loved* Camp Galileo in 2012. He came home excited about concepts like friction and aerodynamics. After a week, he announced, «I love science!»
Any parent would expect that enthusiasm to fade as summer ended, but 7 months later it still hasn’t. In fact, my son wanted to be certain that I sign him up for summer 2013 – all seven weeks of camp. Sure he wants to go to sports camp… after Galileo. That’s big praise from a little guy for the Galileo team and the creative program.
But dont let the rubber chicken mascot fool you! As a parent, I was grateful that the procedures for checking my child in for the day and out in the afternoon were well thought-​out and very organized. The camp director was available for questions, and his supervisor was onsite a few times a week. The Almaden team was terrific, and we were sorry to say good-​bye on the last day.
We can’t wait for summer and Camp Galileo!

Now that Camp G includes an organic lunch and snack option (for a small fee) for campers, I’m that much more thrilled with the overall camp experience. The lunch was largely a success. There were a few kinks (one day they delivered the wrong item, another it was partially incorrect… a hamburger vs. a cheeseburger) but overall, my daughter said she loved the food. My daughter had an even better time this year than last year. They’ve changed camp directors and the new fellow really seemed to be in better control of the show, especially the Friday experience when parents came to watch campers cheer and get awards. We’ll most definitely be back again next summer, with Maia’s little sister in tow!

This is a great program. Our daughter will be returning for yet another summer. She likes the different topics each year — Camp Galileo does a good job of keeping it fresh. As a working parent, I appreciate the easy drop offs and pick ups and the extended care hours.

Camp Galileo is the best camp my kids have been. You know it’s a good camp when your kids ask after 3 weeks of the camp when they can return to it again. The kids come home and just can’t stop talking about what a great time they had and what they learned that day.
I like the fact that the few years we have been there, they always come up with new camp themes to keep the camps updated and interesting for the returning campers. I like how they actually take into account parental feedback each week and adjust accordingly. For instance, this summer, they took into requests for lunch options and will now provide an lunch option to its campers for just a little extra per day.
I also can’t say enough about the counselors they hire! They are all energetic and engaging and they really try to get to know your child. I’m impressed when the counselors know my kids names and who they are siblings with. The camp director in the almaden location was also great too! I can’t believe how energetic he was as well as everyone at worked there. It is also great to see many of the counselors return to work there’re from college. I really like the fact that they have experienced counselors too.
I also like the fact that the camp provides a good balance of activities. They learn science, art and have outdoor klutz crafts as well as one day of water play.
I highly recommend this camp! It is not a drop off camp and have the kids run around and find things to do. It is well thought out and good structured with a balance of learning and creativity.

As a parent of three elementary school children living in Almaden, Camp Galileo has become a summer tradition for our family. With so many school budget cuts, our schools aren’t able to teach as much art and science as I would like them to. This is were Camp Galileo comes in. Camp Galileo picks up where the schools leave off.
My kids look forward to that first day of camp; going through the fun machine, meeting their counselors (many of which return, year after year) and finding out what they will be learning about during that week. There are several different theme weeks throughout the summer such as Ocean Expeditions, Detective in Paris, etc… All of the science, art and outdoor activities center around that particular theme. The campers often work together in pairs or groups to design a project, build it, test it and redesign it again if necessary. The camp teaches them to think outside the box, to be innovators and explore any and all possibilities. At the end of the week, parents get to see what their kids have created. And let me tell you, they are SO proud to show off what they learned and accomplished.
The staff is amazing. They keep the kids excited about what they are learning. There are also theme days throughout the week; crazy hair or hat day, pajama day, superhero day… and the best day is water day, always on Friday. The camp has a rubber chicken as a mascot. With a mascot as a rubber chicken, you know it’s has to be fun.