ESF Summer Camps at The Academy of the Holy Cross
Academy of the Holy Cross, 4920 Strathmore Ave, Kensington, MD 20895
About
ESF Summer Camps at The Academy of the Holy Cross offers a wide range of activities, including acting, drama and improv, dance and cheer, karaoke, movie making, photography, digital music production, and multi-media art. Campers take part in sports and games such as baseball, basketball, soccer, lacrosse, tennis, volleyball, flag football, street hockey, European team handball, pickleball, track and field, Frisbee golf, Nerf hockey, gaga, and ultimate games. The program also includes ceramics and clay sculptures, crafts, jewelry making, fashion design, Lego engineering, robotics, coding, Minecraft and Roblox, makerspace projects, marine biology, bubbleology, gardening, nature activities, movement, meditation and mindfulness, and slime, along with special events like camp carnivals, foam parties, inflatable obstacle courses, inflatable water slides, water play, a water festival, dance parties, a neon glow dance party, a tropical beach bash, a color fun run, an ice cream party, Taco Tuesday, and various award and “Movin’ Up” ceremonies.
• Ages: 3–16 years old
• Schedule: June 22 – August 7, 2026
ESF Summer Camps at The Academy of the Holy Cross includes instructional swimming and recreational swimming, with Free Swim Friday as part of the schedule. The program also offers activities such as Big Wheel Alley, Imagination Playground, an Alpine Tower, a rockwall, archery, martial arts, parachute games, street hockey, cupstacking with Speed Stacks, Lego Lobby, Littlebits, Micro:bit technology, Oracle Challenge, Spirit Stick Challenges, Morning Assembly, pep rallies, theme days, a World League Championship, a Sleep Under pajama party, a Late Night pizza party, a Tropical Beach Bash, and a Camp Carnival. Club OT extended day provides specialized activities including sports, games, crafts, book club, drama, and more, with afternoon snacks and refreshments provided.
ESF states that it is celebrating 19 years in the Bethesda community and has been located on the 28-acre campus of The Academy of the Holy Cross since 2021, with ESF operating since 1982. The program describes its offerings as award-winning and notes that Site Director Brianne Lanphear received the Master Teacher Award from ESF and previously taught in Montgomery County Public Schools for 9 years as a Special Education Paraprofessional. ESF Camps are run by a team of educators, with a full-time onsite camp nurse at every ESF Camp location and an on-call physician available at all times, and the swim program is under the guidance of American Red Cross-certified lifeguards and instructors. ESF describes its MAXJOY framework as its proprietary guiding philosophy and states that it provides a character-building curriculum and that an ESF summer will have a lasting impact on a camper’s growth and development.
The camp offers traditional day camps, sports camps, and specialty STEAM camps, including Junior Camp divisions (Mini Division for PreS and PreK and Intermediate Division for grades K–2), Senior Camp divisions (Lower Division for grades 3–5 and Upper Division for grades 6–8), Multi-Sports Camp divisions (Big East for grades 1–3, Big Ten for grades 4–5, and ACC for grades 6–9), Arts Camps for grades K–6, Science and Engineering Camps for grades K–6, Technology Camps for grades 1–7, a Young Leaders Program for grades 9–10, and Bold Summers for grades 9–12. Parent testimonials describe the campus as safe and secure, mention that the facilities are suited for all activities, and note that campers swim every day and that the staff is mature, professional, and enthusiastic. Additional testimonials state that ESF has been part of one counselor’s life for 13 years, that one camper’s fencing clinic in 2010 led to competing in the Fencing Junior Olympics, and that a former camper, Alexa Buckley, later became Founder and CEO of Margaux.
Last updated January 22, 2026.
• Ages: 3–16 years old
• Schedule: June 22 – August 7, 2026
ESF Summer Camps at The Academy of the Holy Cross includes instructional swimming and recreational swimming, with Free Swim Friday as part of the schedule. The program also offers activities such as Big Wheel Alley, Imagination Playground, an Alpine Tower, a rockwall, archery, martial arts, parachute games, street hockey, cupstacking with Speed Stacks, Lego Lobby, Littlebits, Micro:bit technology, Oracle Challenge, Spirit Stick Challenges, Morning Assembly, pep rallies, theme days, a World League Championship, a Sleep Under pajama party, a Late Night pizza party, a Tropical Beach Bash, and a Camp Carnival. Club OT extended day provides specialized activities including sports, games, crafts, book club, drama, and more, with afternoon snacks and refreshments provided.
ESF states that it is celebrating 19 years in the Bethesda community and has been located on the 28-acre campus of The Academy of the Holy Cross since 2021, with ESF operating since 1982. The program describes its offerings as award-winning and notes that Site Director Brianne Lanphear received the Master Teacher Award from ESF and previously taught in Montgomery County Public Schools for 9 years as a Special Education Paraprofessional. ESF Camps are run by a team of educators, with a full-time onsite camp nurse at every ESF Camp location and an on-call physician available at all times, and the swim program is under the guidance of American Red Cross-certified lifeguards and instructors. ESF describes its MAXJOY framework as its proprietary guiding philosophy and states that it provides a character-building curriculum and that an ESF summer will have a lasting impact on a camper’s growth and development.
The camp offers traditional day camps, sports camps, and specialty STEAM camps, including Junior Camp divisions (Mini Division for PreS and PreK and Intermediate Division for grades K–2), Senior Camp divisions (Lower Division for grades 3–5 and Upper Division for grades 6–8), Multi-Sports Camp divisions (Big East for grades 1–3, Big Ten for grades 4–5, and ACC for grades 6–9), Arts Camps for grades K–6, Science and Engineering Camps for grades K–6, Technology Camps for grades 1–7, a Young Leaders Program for grades 9–10, and Bold Summers for grades 9–12. Parent testimonials describe the campus as safe and secure, mention that the facilities are suited for all activities, and note that campers swim every day and that the staff is mature, professional, and enthusiastic. Additional testimonials state that ESF has been part of one counselor’s life for 13 years, that one camper’s fencing clinic in 2010 led to competing in the Fencing Junior Olympics, and that a former camper, Alexa Buckley, later became Founder and CEO of Margaux.
Last updated January 22, 2026.
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