Summer time means popsicles and bike rides. It means having fun, going to camp, staying up late and sleeping in. It also means that the sun is beaming down and it is hot outside! Children should take advantage of this time of year and spend their summer in the water. Summer also means time for camps, so the most logical way for your child to spend their summer in the water would be at a water camp.

A “water camp” can mean anything from surfing camp to swimming camp to water polo camp, anything that involves your child chilling off in an outdoor environment while having fun and getting great excercise.

Luckily the Bay Area is home to some beautiful beaches, which means some beautifully cool waves to host surfing camps on. Most camps like the YMCA  Camps or JCCSF Rabin Summer Camps offer surfing as part of their summer camp programs, but camps like Surf Camp Pacifica and Summer Sessions Surf Camp specialize in surfing and ensure that your child is comfortable, safe, and having fun in the waves.

The most obvious way to have your child spend his or her summer in the water is to send them to a swim camp. Swimming is fun and an essential part of summer, not to mention amazing excercise since swimming requires the use of almost every muscle in the body! Many country club camps and YMCA camps offer full day camps where children are swimming as part of the curriuculum. Nike Swim Camps also offers overnight programs for more competitive and experienced swimmers if your child is looking to enhance his or her skill in the sport of swimming.

Water polo camps are another way to have your child in the water, but in a competitive and active nature. If plain old swimming sounds boring and repetitive to your child, throw a ball and some goals in the mix and they’re sure to keep swimming to win. Nike Water Polo Camps are highly acclaimed and always a good option for all skill levels. In the South Bay, Stanford Water Polo also hosts camps for all skill levels, ages 8 and up, for both boys and girls. Sleep away and half day camps are available based on skill.

With so many options to get your child active, you should send them to a water camp to make sure they stay cool. Just make sure you pack on the sunscreen!