Challenge Island

Challenge Island offers afterschool classes, in-school field trips, camps, Girl Scout workshops, parties, family engagement programs, and virtual options. Its programs are described as screen free and hands-on, using low-tech supplies, treasure chests, and imagination. It also offers over 20 different weeklong camp adventures and standard-aligned, cross-curricular field trips that take students on a STEAM adventure without leaving school grounds.

Programs

• Challenge Island — K-12; camps and field trips are also described for kids · Award-winning STEM/STEAM program offering afterschool classes, in-school field trips, camps, Girl Scout workshops, parties, family engagement programs, and virtual options.
• Award-Winning STEM Camps — Kids · Immersive STEM camps; the page says Challenge Island offers over 20 different weeklong camp adventures.
• Award-Winning Onsite STEM Field Trips — K-12 · Standard-aligned, cross-curricular field trips that take students on a STEAM adventure without leaving school grounds.
• After School Enrichment — Kids · Weekly STEAM team visits with island destinations and challenges using materials in treasure chests and imagination.
• Family Engagement — Families · Multi-generational family engagement and parental involvement events.
• Challenge Island Book Series Programs — Kids · Book series field trips that bring Challenge Island stories to life in the classroom.
• Girl Scout Workshops — Daisies, Brownies, Juniors and Cadettes · Badge and journey workshops that come with a Challenge Island Fun Patch for every girl.
• Birthday Parties — Kids · STEAM-themed birthday parties.

At a glance

• Ages: 5–18 years old

About the provider

Challenge Island was born in Sharon Duke Estroff’s 2nd grade classroom in 2002, and the company timeline also says the first Challenge Island business launched in Marietta, GA in 2002. The about page says the program has grown to over 160 franchises in 36 states and 4 countries. The page describes Challenge Island as the World’s #1 STEM/STEAM Program, says it is award-winning, and notes that it has been found in 20,000 schools and organizations.

The page says there are no screens or digital devices in Challenge Island programs. It also says the program is screen free and hands-on.

What families say

“Thank you so much Challenge Island for making learning fun, challenging and engaging for our students year after year. Your onsite field trips are brilliant and a pleasure to watch! Please let me know if you have a Google review link, I would be more than happy to write a 5-star review! If there were more stars, I'd gladly give them to you!” — Happy Head of School

“One thing that makes Challenge Island stand out from the competition is what it lacks. You’ll find no screens or digital devices in a Challenge Island program. Instead, kids working together in STEAM Teams, are encouraged to use imagination, teamwork, and problem-solving skills to come up with creative solutions to challenges using a treasure-chest full of low-tech supplies.” — Entrepreneur Magazine

Last updated September 18, 2026.