100 Summer Camp Themes

by Curt "Moose" Jackson

Mon, Jan 19, 2009

Themes

100 Summer Camp Themes

This is the ultimate list of summer camp themes. You might want to bookmark this page.

Revised 1/10/10

  1. Adventureland
  2. Alice in Wonderland (Down the Rabbit Hole)
  3. All Ball
  4. Amazing Race
  5. Ancient Egypt
  6. Animal Planet
  7. Anything Goes
  8. Around the World in 80 Days
  9. Artful Antics
  10. Atlantis
  11. Barnyard Palooza
  12. Best of the Best – collection of the best activities of the summer
  13. Buggin’ Out or A Bug’s Life
  14. “Camp ______’s Got Talent”
  15. Celebration of Nations
  16. Challenge Week
  17. Construction
  18. Creative Campers
  19. Cruise Ship
  20. CSI
  21. Desert Oasis
  22. Dinosaurs
  23. Disco Dayz
  24. Disney
  25. Emergency Services (firefighters, police, search and rescue)
  26. Exploration
  27. Fairytales
  28. Famous Artists
  29. Fear Factor
  30. Fiesta
  31. Fun and Fitness
  32. Futuristic Fun
  33. Game Show Mania
  34. Gettin’ Dirty
  35. Girl Power
  36. Goin’ Green
  37. Gold Rush
  38. Greek Greatness
  39. Hawaiian Hullabaloo
  40. Holidays
  41. Hollywood
  42. I Love the 80’s
  43. Imaginarium
  44. Inventors’ Workshop
  45. Island Explorer
  46. Knights and Princesses
  47. Leadership
  48. MACH 1 (Multi-Adventure CHallenge)
  49. Mad Science
  50. Mission Impossible
  51. Moovin’ and Groovin’
  52. Music Makers
  53. Myths and Legends
  54. Nickelodeon Days
  55. Olympics
  56. Ooey Gooey
  57. Outback!
  58. Outside the Box
  59. Party in the USA
  60. Penguins and Polar Bears
  61. Performing Arts
  62. Pirates
  63. Raiders of the Lost Artifact
  64. Rainforest Adventure
  65. Renaissance
  66. Reptiles
  67. Rockstars
  68. Safari
  69. Spa and Relaxation
  70. Space is the Place
  71. Splish Splash
  72. Sports Extravaganza
  73. Stars and Stripes
  74. Storytellers
  75. Superheroes
  76. Surf Safari
  77. Survivor
  78. Symphony of the 5 Senses
  79. Teddy Bear Adventures
  80. The “Magic” of Camp
  81. The 60’s
  82. The Mighty Jungle
  83. The No-Theme Week
  84. Time Travelers
  85. To the Extreme
  86. Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn
  87. Treasure Hunters
  88. Tropical Paradise
  89. Under the Big Top
  90. Under the Sea
  91. Urban Adventures
  92. Vikings
  93. Wacky and Wonderful
  94. We Are Family (Teamwork)
  95. Where the Wild Things Are
  96. Wild West
  97. Wind and Sea
  98. Wizards
  99. (Your State) Adventures
  100. ????? (Mystery Week)

28 Responses to “100 Summer Camp Themes”

  1. Kim Wilhide Says:
    12. June 2009 at 5:22 am

    Do you have any of the themes developed into curriculums? I would be interested in buying them from you, I am in a real pickle for summer camp right now. My coordinator walked off the job and took her summer camp curriculum with her.

  2. Curt Says:
    12. June 2009 at 10:19 pm

    Hi Kim,
    I’m sorry to hear about your predicament. I do not have any themes developed into curriculum per se. However, if you have specific themes that you have already advertised for camp then I might be able to help you out with some activities and games.

    You should also think about going to the ACA message boards and posting your situation and needs. People there are very helpful.

    I don’t know if you are at a resident or day camp, but either way it sounds as though it’s a general camp – not a specialty camp. Cover the basics – games, crafts, camp songs, etc.

    I have found some great theme ideas, including ideas for decorations, food, games and activities at http://www.birthdaypartyideas.com/. Most recently I found some perfect games for our Survivor week.

  3. Camp Judaea Says:
    3. December 2009 at 8:36 am

    Hi, found you while doing research. Would you be willing to add a Jewish Summer Camp theme to your list ( http://www.campjudaea.org )? Regardless, thanks for the list, very thoughtful.

  4. Diane Schormans Says:
    15. January 2010 at 12:19 pm

    I was wondering if you could give me some games and craft idea’s for a space odessay camp
    Thanks Diane

  5. Curt Says:
    18. January 2010 at 5:49 pm

    Diane, thanks for visiting. With a quick search I found a couple of websites that had some neat craft ideas for a space odyssey camp. Try http://spaceplace.jpl.nasa.gov/en/kids/projects.shtml and http://familycrafts.about.com/od/outerspace/Outer_Space_Craft_Projects.htm.

    As for games, I like to take traditional camp games and give them space names. For example, I’ll rename Dodgeball, Star Wars. Instead of having medics I’ll call them Jedis. Now I know that Star Wars is not exactly staying with the “space odyssey” theme, but you get the idea. Giants, Wizards and Elves can be renamed Astronauts, Aliens and Robots.

  6. Curt Says:
    18. January 2010 at 5:54 pm

    Hi Joel, I tried not to mix any kind of religion in my list of themes. I made the list hoping that camp and rec pros would get some ideas from it and that it would trigger their own creative juices to come up with themes that would fit their camp situation. I also hoped that people would add to the list here in the comments section. So if you have any other ideas for themes, please share. Thanks.

  7. Jenny Says:
    20. January 2010 at 10:48 am

    Hey Guys,

    I really want to do a pirate themed week for camp this year, but would love some help on some pirated themes games etc…

    Thanks,

    Jenny

  8. Curt Says:
    20. January 2010 at 5:01 pm

    Jenny, that’s the second request for Pirate ideas that I’ve gotten in 2 days. So I’ll make tomorrows Theme of the Day – Pirates.

  9. HHopkins Says:
    28. January 2010 at 7:11 am

    Love that you’ve made this list. I was wondering what you had relating to a traveling theme. We want this years camp to have a vacation theme, with different places the kids would “travel” to. Thanks!

  10. Curt Says:
    28. January 2010 at 8:51 am

    Hi Heather, on my list are three themes that fit what you’re looking for – Amazing Race, Around the World in 80 days and Celebration of Nations. Amazing Race combines challenges with traveling around the world. Celebration of Nations is a theme where you can travel the world but with an emphasize on learning about other people and cultures in different parts of the world. I see Around the World in 80 Days (today’s post, in fact) as more general.

  11. Ranjani Says:
    29. January 2010 at 8:04 am

    hi,
    very thoughtful of u to have listed the themes here. curriculum along with these would be great. I can give ideas for craft but am looking for a theme which can be done at home and not to do with crafts for I did 2 summer camps with art and crafts. this time want to try something different.

  12. Robert Ingram Says:
    29. January 2010 at 2:47 pm

    Im a martial arts instructor and have been teaching for 9 years and taking for 13. I have developed a camp curriculum that has made the company a good bit of money over the years. How would i go about getting the curriculum published and sold?

  13. Curt Says:
    29. January 2010 at 11:38 pm

    Hi Robert, I think that’s a great idea. I started to type my answer to your question but there is so much good info that I can give you that I’ve decided to write a post on it. If I had a quick answer I would just leave it here, but I don’t want to just gloss over it. Check back in a couple of days for that post.

  14. Curt Says:
    29. January 2010 at 11:48 pm

    Hi Ranjani, thanks for visiting. I agree, curriculum for the different themes would be great, but that would be a lot of work and something that I would love to do in the future as a series of e-books, or e-reports.

    As for a theme that can be done at home, I’m not sure exactly what your looking for. Are you running a camp at home, or is this just for your family, or maybe a daycare center? You can take any of these themes and use it as a framework for activities, games, costumes, scavenger hunts, etc. – not just crafts. In fact most of the ideas that I give on each Theme of the Day are not craft related. To be honest I’m not really crafty. I’m more the ropes course, horseback and campfire skits type of guy. :) I hope you find some new ideas and inspiration on this site.

  15. Ranjani Says:
    1. February 2010 at 7:52 am

    hi curt,
    thanks for replying. I am from India (Bangalore). at home I cant afford to do most of the things u mentioned since its an apartment that I live in though I just loved all that u said u like to do. I wish I figure out someway to do a campfire at least.

  16. Curt Says:
    1. February 2010 at 1:37 pm

    Ranjani, I understand your dilemma. Running programs for kids doesn’t have to be expensive. With some imagination you can do many things.

    Most games cost nothing, or you may just need a ball or two.

    One of the best craft type of activities I like to do is Art in Nature. Take the kids to a place where there are leaves and rocks and such. Have them pair up and create their own work of art using natural materials. Kids love it.

    Campfires are probably my favorite part of camp, however, there were times when the weather would not allow us to be outside and we would have to do our campfire program inside (where we did not have a fireplace). We still did our normal skits and songs. You can do that anywhere. Again, having kids learn and perform skits and songs cost nothing. In a future post I will write up some of my favorite skits and songs. Make sure you subscribe to the site to get updates on that. I hope this helps.

  17. Pria Says:
    12. February 2010 at 12:59 am

    Hi,
    Kriyative Kidz has been conducting theme based summer camps, and let me tell you, it was an instant success. Children loved the themes, parents enjoyed the program as it was integrated with curriculum, yet was being extremely fun filled. We have published it into a manual for other educators to try and see. If anyone is interested, i can send samples.

    Thanks

  18. RachelB Says:
    17. February 2010 at 11:44 am

    Hello. Thanks for the great information. I worked as a program director for several summers and one of my favorite units to do was M.A.D. (Music Art and Drama) or even just a Theatre unit. There are so many activities you can do from skits, costume play, make-up, props…to putting on a whole production – depending on how long your camp runs.

  19. Curt Says:
    1. March 2010 at 8:29 pm

    I’m a drama guy myself and I agree, Rachel, that there are a lot of activities you can do that campers really get into. I’m not sure about the MAD acronym though. :) Sounds a little intense. It also makes me think of MADD. But I guess it’s better then DAM.

  20. kalp Says:
    13. March 2010 at 11:24 pm

    As Ranjani suggests,I agree, curriculum for diff themes would be really great. I want my summercamp to be uniqur since many schools nearby are offering almost the same activites, which i don’t want to go for it. why don’t you do something about this? I am interested to have look at the Kriyative Kidz sample manual.

  21. TRacy Says:
    11. April 2010 at 11:55 am

    I love your 100 ideas for summer camp but only some are highlighted and decribed in more detail. Is there any way I can get more information on some of the camps that aren’t highlighted?
    Thanks!

  22. Curt Says:
    11. April 2010 at 9:55 pm

    Hi Tracy, I have certainly been lax on posting ideas for a theme each day. Sorry about that. The linked themes are the ones that are done. I plan on getting some ideas posted for each theme I just need to sit down and write. I should have about 10 more done this week. What themes specifically are you curious about?

  23. Pria Says:
    15. May 2010 at 5:20 pm

    Hi,
    Please visit our website for more details about kriyativekidz summer camp curriculum. This can help get some idea about our camp. Please place a request specifically there to get the sample manual and other details.

  24. Pria Says:
    15. May 2010 at 5:21 pm

    Hi,
    I guess the website was not listed last time. Its here, http://www.kriyativekidz.com

  25. Magic Man Says:
    9. June 2010 at 6:04 am

    Hi there!
    I am a magician and I’ve always wanted to do a magic week in one of the camps I run. Is there any way you could recommend some games or activities to go along with this theme? Specifically for older kids in a day camp setting? Thanks,

  26. Curt "Moose" Jackson Says:
    9. June 2010 at 8:49 am

    For games I would check out UltimateCampresource.com. As for activities, are you looking for activities that would go along with a magic theme? Some of the things I do in my magic class (besides teaching magic) are challenges. I keep a tally of points during the week. The kids get points for how well they perform their tricks, how well they do on challenges and overall behavior. The kid(s) that earn the most points gets a special magic trick prop. The challenges are things like an Ace of Spades hunt, finding the Queen in Three Card Monte, bringing in their own trick from home and presenting it, playing card throw into a bucket or hula hoop, etc.

    What tricks are you planning on teaching?

  27. leah Says:
    20. June 2010 at 5:11 pm

    Any ideas for mystery week?

  28. Curt "Moose" Jackson Says:
    26. June 2010 at 9:14 am

    Leah, when I was a kid I would go to the county fair and my favorite thing was not the rides or games or food, it was the grab bags that you bought for $1. The excitement of not knowing what was in the bags was what compelled me to spend my allowance money on them. It was the mystery of it all. Have sheets of paper with games written on them. Then have a camper pull out a sheet and that’s the game you play. Have the cooks come up with mystery meals. Put together a mystery activity like The Case of the Missing Forks. Play Black Magic and other “mind-reading” activities. If you have a dance let campers pull out sheets of paper with songs on them. That’s what the DJ will play. Have grab bags at your camp store.

Leave a Reply