La Mesa’s summer camps return with traditional to obscure themes

The city of La Mesa is again putting on summer day camps for local children, with a higher volume of registrations already than past years.

Last year’s camps had 1,254 attendees.

While many will enjoy the typical summer camp experience with sports, games, crafts, and field trips, the city also offers dozens of themed camps — from jump rope and dodgeball to LEGO engineering and a cooking competition. 

The summer camps have grown year over year, with this year debuting more specialized camps than ever before. The new themes were picked based on surveys and past interest.

Some of them are put on by parks and recreation staff, while others are through contractors, such as Sticky Fingers for cooking camps, ClicBitz for sewing camps, and SD SkateLife for skateboarding camps. 

City staff said that unlike a traditional extracurricular class where a child might spend an hour on a new skill once a week then need to review it a week later, these day camps are immersive— allowing students to learn deeply over a short period of time. 

“Our summer programs provide a unique and functional way for children to learn new skills they can later translate into their regular school work and lives,” city staff said in a statement. “Our camps also encourage children to explore hobbies like art, sports, fitness and more, which can spark lifelong passions.”

In addition to staying active outside the school year, building skills, or finding a lifelong hobby, the camps are ideal for socialization. 

With the isolation of COVID-19 revealing how important social interactions are to child development, in-person interaction can rebuild rusty social skills lost to screens. Lasting friendships can be formed as students from across schools and ages spend time on shared activities.  

“The pandemic underscored the importance of youth programming, not just for continued learning during school breaks, but also for maintaining social connections…. Our programs give La Mesa’s youth the opportunity to learn, connect, and grow into confident, well-rounded individuals,” the city said. 

For city staff, one of the highlights is starting each week greeting new children and directing them to the location of the camp. “Seeing kids excited and ready to start, sometimes even dressed in themed outfits, serves a reminder of why we do this work,” they said. 

Registration opened on April 1, with 56% more enrollments already than this time last year. 

A catalog of summer offerings and instructions how to register can be found here.

Weekly costs start as low as $132; scholarships are available for qualifying families thanks to a donation from the Ripples4Ever Fund. Anyone can also choose a payment plan. 

With questions, call (619) 667-1300 or email recreation@cityoflamesa.us. 

Online registration is typically allowed through the second class date. If a class is full, there will be a wait list.