An array of options available for youth

PHOTOS BY JOE HU/TOWN CRIER Los Altos resident Peter Wang gets some programming instruction from “Plotz,” iD Tech Camp at Stanford instructor.

The children are getting restless. Their parents are losing patience. What’s a family to do with all these long, lazy days of summer left?

Summer camp may be the solution. With so many camps, clinics and classes offered in and around Los Altos, there’s bound to be at least one that fits - and still has an opening.

Here’s a sampling of what’s available:

Music and arts

Even as schools phase out music and arts programs, an array of short courses are available this summer for children in search of that extra dose of creative stimulation.

Mountain View’s Community School of Music and Arts, a nationally recognized program, opened its new home in 2004 at Finn Center, a concrete structure in keeping with Silicon Valley’s technologically savvy look.

Art and music classes are in full swing, with such appealing and eclectic offerings as “Imagination Installation,” where grade-school children combine oil, pastels, paint and wire techniques to create their own exhibits worthy of modern art museums. From the Japanese comic-drawing class to learning about set design for a Broadway-bound musical, the school’s teachers, all professional artists, are just as excited as their students.

Classes remain small, and age requirements - depending on the type of class - range from kindergarten to eighth grade.

Two relatively new digital arts classes expose children 9 and older to computer animation and digital music making. Musicians can experiment with DJ spinning, sequencing and professional recording software such as Sibelius and Cubase, and the class introduces children to those crafts. The final project culminates in a musical performance. The computer arts camp combines animation, Web design and digital photography.

Electronic music and arts instructor Roddy Schrock, insists that the students, whose final project is making their own movie, don’t need a technical background to get started and enjoy the process.

“It’s encouraging for the students to see they can use technology to make whatever they want,” he said. “They learn they are in complete control and that they are not dictated by (technology).”

Of course, precocious children, many of whose parents are high-tech engineers and entrepreneurs themselves, often surprise Schrock with their innovative skills.

“It’s pretty amazing to me,” he said. “A lot of the kids’ parents work in the tech sector, so it’s second nature to them.”

Ian Vernon, 13, designed a Web page featuring his hobbies and profile in three days of the two-week computer course.

“I’m pretty adept - not to be immodest,” he said, pointing to a short movie clip that flashed across his computer screen.

The school, which commits nearly half its funds to scholarships, offers morning and afternoon classes that run 2-1/2 hours each. Children who take more than one class have an hour lunch in the play area, where they can continue working on their projects.

There are three sessions still open this summer in the arts and music programs. After each two-week session, visual arts students display their artwork and music students perform for family and friends in Tateuchi Hall.

For more information or to sign up for a course, call 917-6800 or visit www.arts4all.org.

Technology

In a world filled with technology, it’s not enough for children to learn the basic three R’s in school. This summer at Stanford there is a camp to help children gain the technological skills needed in the 21st century.

Internal Drive Technology camps (iD Tech) provide students, 7-17, with skills in problem solving, technology, effective communication and teamwork. The technology camp offers students a variety of classes that teach how to create 2D and 3D video games, produce and edit digital movies, learn programming and robotics and design Web sites.

“This is one of my favorite summer camps that I go to every year,” said Eric Theis, 12. Theis, from Los Altos, is a student at Woodside Priory School and is enrolled in the programming and robotics course.

This camp isn’t only about sitting in front of the computer. The staff makes an effort to break up the day by having lunch and free time in the field across the street from the houses. iD Tech Camp also offers a Sports and Tech program where students can fence, golf or play tennis while the other half-day they design a video game or a Web site.

The camp is housed in three of the dorms on the Stanford campus. The flexible program allows some students to participate in the overnight camp during the week, some to go to the day camp, some to go to the weekend programs (trips to Raging Waters or the mall) and some to go for the extended-day program.

Stanford iD Tech Camp Director Lydia Luxama said the Stanford camp is one of the largest programs out of 40 locations in 19 states. She said that students come from all over the country. This year the Stanford campus will host students from Saudi Arabia for a few weeks.

Each class has an average of six students and no more than eight. There are 34 counselors who specialize in technology and three directors (one per house).

“I love it so much,” Luxama said. “This is my fourth season with the company. They are really all about the kids having a good time.”

Camp runs through Aug. 25, and there are a few slots open. Prices vary for each program but start at $699 for the day camp for a week and $1,099 for the overnight week.

For more information, visit www.internaldrive.com or call (888) 709-8324.

Horseback riding

Los Altos Hills’ horse camp began last week, and the two upcoming sessions have a waiting list. Youngsters in the 7-10-year-old range learn English-style riding and horse management, led by director Jenny Whitworth and teen volunteers from the Pacific Ridge Pony Club.

The students headed - on horseback - down a steep hill toward a trail through Byrne Preserve, practicing leaning back and balancing at the odd angle. The students also experience the aromatic pleasures of scooping manure from the ponies’ paddocks.

The town-owned barn offers year-round riding lessons on horses leased by the town. To register or for more information, call 941-7222, ext. 241, or visit www.losaltoshills.ca.gov/recreation.

Sports

From hoops to headers, spiking to hiking and forward passes to backstrokes - it seems there’s a camp to suit even the most discerning sports enthusiast.

The granddaddy of local sports camps takes over Los Altos High School from mid-June to late July each year. The Golden Eagle All-Sports Camp is in its 22nd summer under founder Monica Lodge, retiring Los Altos High athletic director.

Open to ages 5-14, it offers a smorgasbord of sports: badminton, basketball, field hockey, football, golf, gymnastics, soccer, softball, swimming, tennis, water polo and wrestling. There’s also dance, chess and schoolyard games such as dodgeball and capture the flag.

Lodge said swimming is among the most popular activities - mandatory lessons are provided to those in the lower grades - and parents love the dance recitals the younger children perform on Fridays.

Lodge has a simple explanation for Golden Eagle’s success: “It’s fun, instructional and safe.”

Having so many familiar faces doesn’t hurt, either. Not only is Lodge on site every day, but so is her son, Stefaan Lodge, the camp director. All the counselors are former campers. “We never have people walk in from the street,” Monica Lodge said. “These are people we’ve known forever, and it’s like a family.”

Golden Eagle offers half-day (10 a.m. to 1 p.m. or 1-4 p.m.) full-day (10 a.m. to 4 p.m.) and extended sessions (7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.) weekly, through July 28 at Los Altos High. Cost is $100-$330 per week. For more information, call 947-9618 or visit www.goldeneaglecamp.org.

For those seeking sport-specific camps, here’s a rundown of what’s ahead this summer:

• Los Altos High School Boys Basketball Camp. Varsity coach James Reilly conducts the camp for players entering grades 7-9. Expect to work on all the fundamentals, from shooting to dribbling to defense. The camp runs 6-8:30 p.m. July 17-20 in the school gym. Cost is $150. Information: 804-0888 or e-mail barkerreilly@sbcglobal.net.

• Los Altos High School All-Skills Volleyball Clinic. New varsity coach Christine Matteucci operates the camp, offering two sessions. The first, running Thursday through Saturday, is for girls entering grades 6-8. The second, July 27-29, is for girls entering grades 9-12. Each clinic runs 6-8:30 p.m. the initial two days and 9 a.m. to noon the final day in the school gym. Cost is $110 per clinic. Information: (209) 406-4606 or cmatooch@comcast.net.

• Foothill College’s Coed Water Polo Camp. For youths of all ages, the annual camp divides players by ability level - from novice to advanced. There are drills on passing, shooting and ball handling, plus instruction on game strategies, conditioning and fundamentals. Video analysis is offered as well. Space is limited to 100 participants. The camp runs 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Aug. 14-18 at the Los Altos Hills campus. Cost is $175. Information: 949-7663 or www.foothill.fhda.edu/ath/waterpolowclinic.html.

• Matt Ogelsby’s All-West Lacrosse Camp. For boys and girls 6-12, the camp teaches fundamentals, including catching, throwing, cradling, picking up grounders and shooting. Founder Ogelsby is a former All-American player at Duke University. The camp runs 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. July 24-27 at Purissima Little League Fields in Los Altos Hills. Cost is $175 for Hills residents, $185 for nonresidents. Information: 941-7222, ext. 241, or www.losaltoshills.ca.gov/recreation.

• Flag Football Summer Camp. Conducted by After School Athletics, which started a flag football league for Los Altos grade-school children last year, the inaugural camp is for boys and girls 7-12. The focus is on fundamentals and skill building. Instructors include Foothill head coach Marshall Sperbeck and former college head coaches John Ralston (Stanford, San Jose State) and Roger Theder (Cal). The camp runs 9 a.m. to noon July 24-28 at Foothill College. Information: www.afterschoolathletics.com.

• Foothill College Youth Basketball Camp. Jody Craig, longtime women’s coach at Foothill, conducts the annual camp with help from some of her players. Running July 17-19, morning and afternoon sessions are available. Cost is $75 in advance, $85 at the door. Information: 949-7356 or www.foothill.fhda.edu/ath/basketballwyouth.html.

• Camp Shoreline. This established camp offers activities in and around Shoreline Lake in Mountain View. The campers, ages 6-12, typically spend their mornings kayaking, rowing, canoeing or pedalboating. The afternoons involve playing games, doing crafts, taking a sailboat ride and hiking. Weeklong camps run 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. through Aug. 18. Information: 965-7474 or www.shorelinelake.com.

• AYSO Soccer Camps. Led by professional coaches, the camps for youth stress individual and team skills. Full- or half-day sessions are available Monday through July 14 and Aug. 7-11 at Stevenson Park in Mountain View, plus July 31 through Aug. 4 and Aug. 14-18 at Almond School in Los Altos. Cost is $99-$150. Information: (888) 857-6222 or info@aysosoccercamps.org.

- Megan Ma, Traci Newell, Eliza Ridgeway and Pete Borello contributed to this story.