Summer camps everywhere for everyone

June has parents teetering on the edge of transition; school’s almost out and summer’s nearly here. It’s an edge that begs the question: what are the kids doing this summer?

Luckily for East Enders, there are plenty of options to keep the kids busy on the basis of nearly every budget and schedule consideration. There are full-day camps, half-day camps and workshops that will entertain for several hours. Some programs can be had for a song; others carry a more substantial price tag. In the end, the goal is to have both kids and their parents satisfied.

For those seeking the full-day traditional camp experience that can span the whole summer, there are plenty of options that fit the bill. The following camps offer a mix of sports, crafts, group celebrations and games mixed with a dose of learning. Most are geared for kids 3 to 12 years old.

Camps include Raynor Country Day School Camp in Speonk (288-4658), Sportime’s Summer Camps held in Quogue (653-6767) and Amagansett (267-3460). The East End Arts Council’s Renaissance Junior Camp in Riverhead (369-2171) still has some spaces available; the EEAC camp for children age 5 to 7 is already filled.

Heading east, there’s the Stony Brook Southampton Summer Camp (632-5022). The campus hosts an eight-week camp for kids 3 to 5 years old and four two-week sessions for kids 6 to 10 years old. Programs include a Cultural Camp, an Art Camp, a Drama Camp and a Science Camp. Also in Southampton, there’s the Sandy Hollow Day Camp (283-2296) and offerings from Southampton Youth Services (SYS) at the Southampton Town Recreation Center (287-1511).

Moving to Bridgehampton, there’s the Hayground Summer Camp (537-5188), the Art Farm (www.theartfarms.org) and Kidsummer Art Camp at the Children’s Museum of the East End (537-8250).

Each camp offers traditional camp activities and then goes a bit beyond. Hayground has go-cart races with options to enroll in specialty programs like NY Chess Kids, sailing and lacrosse camps. The Art Farm emphasizes interacting with farm animals and experiencing traditional rural life. The camp has plenty of live animals and is held at The Ross School’s Lower Campus in Bridgehampton. CMEE has an over-the-top lineup of one-week offerings that can literally put campers in the circus, in an airplane, or learning hip-hop from New York City experts.

More full-day programs can be found at Stella Maris Summer Camp in Sag Harbor (725-2525) and at The Ross School in East Hampton (907-5555). The Ross School program is for ages 6 to 14. Campers choose concentrations including Media Arts, Visual Arts, outdoors and athletics. The day is supplemented with activities like ceramics, cooking, mountain biking and traditional camp fun.

Other camps in East Hampton include Hampton Country Day Camp (537-1770) and the YMCA East Hampton REC Center in East Hampton (329-6884). The Hampton Country Day Camp has programs for kids 2½ through 15 years old. A special teen program for seventh- and eighth-graders combines activity electives with day trips and sports.

In Montauk, the Pathfinder Country Day Camp has an eight-week program for kids age 3½ to 14 (668-2080).

Then there are the specialty camps. Some run the entire day, others are held for mornings or afternoons.

Art lovers can look to the Parrish Art Museum for a full-day’s worth of fun (283-2118). Each week has a special highlight that could include field trips to area museums, puppet or comedy shows or creating a special art exhibition complete with reception. The Parrish also has art workshops for those who prefer a shorter day.

The Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center (288-2350) offers one-week immersion theater camps. Applications are being accepted now for aspiring thespians age 8 to 15 to take part in a Shakespeare’s Players Theatre Camp from July 14 to 18 that will culminate in a camp performance on Friday, July 18, at 7 p.m. at the PAC.

Amagansett has two camps for those interested in the visual arts. Applied Arts in Amagansett has summer programs for kids age 8 to 14. Classes run from July 7 to August 15, held from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Each week focuses on a different type of art (267-2787).

Artists’ Woods has half-day and full-day programs for children and teens at the 16-acre facility (267-7909). Children’s classes are held for ages 5 to 9. Classes for ’tweens and teens are offered in three sessions per day for ages 10 to 18.

Sports lovers can get their game on in Future Stars day camps. They’re held at the Aspatuck Tennis Club in Westhampton, the Greenhollow Tennis Club in East Hampton and in Southampton at the Southampton Town Recreation Center and the Sandy Hollow Tennis Club (914-273-8500). There’s a surf camp offered by Main Beach Surf & Sport in Wainscott (537-2716) and a sailing camp at Breakwater Yacht Club in Sag Harbor (725-5590). Other sailing and surfing camps can be found on the East End.

Southampton Town offers half-day camps of one-week duration for beach volleyball (10 to 17 years old); basketball (9 to 13), lacrosse (kindergarten through ninth grade), soccer (3 to 13), softball (7 to 15), multi-sports (3 to 14) and junior golf (8 to 16) (728-8585).

If horses (or ponies) are the thing, there are plenty of places to ride. A few stables that offer pony camps for kids are the Quogue Horse and Pony Farm in East Quogue (875-3042), Rosewood Farm in Southampton and the Amaryllis Farm Equine Rescue in Sagaponack (537-7335). Also, East End Stables in East Hampton (324-9802) and Stony Hill Stables in Amagansett (267-3203).

If cooking appeals, kids can enroll in camps and workshops held at Loaves and Fishes Cookshop in Bridgehampton (537-3586) or at the Summer Chefs program at the Suffolk County Community College’s new Culinary Arts and Hospitality Center in Riverhead (451-4114).

Camps can also focus on the technical. Guild Hall is offering a one-week Student Film workshop for ages 10 to 18. Offered in association with the Hamptons International Film Festival, the workshop lets students tackle the entire filmmaking process and wind up with a finished film (324-0806).

Kids can also learn how to make movies in Southampton Town’s Movie Acting Camp held June 30 to July 17 and from August 4 to 21. The Makin’ Movies camp is for kids 10 to 15 years old (728-8585).

Camp Invention combines science and fun for elementary school children in one-week camps that turn everyone into an inventor. Camps are held at Eastport Elementary School from July 7 to 11 and from June 30 to July 3 at the Hampton Bays Middle School and the Southampton Intermediate School (800-968-4332).

When kicking back and enjoying the summer is what’s called for, there’s a program for that, too. Southampton Town offers a Summer Fun Playground Program for free for elementary school kids living in Southampton Town. Programs are held in Remsenburg-Speonk, East Quogue, Sag Harbor, Flanders and Hampton Bays (728-8585).