Frequently Asked Questions

When you go to register for Green Acres Camp, you are actually submitting an APPLICATION. This means that your camp spot is not confirmed until your preferred payment method has been charged. 

Please allow our team 24-48 business hours to review your application. We will be sure to contact you if you we have any questions for your family. 

When you are filling out your application, you can make up to two friend/group requests. If more that two are listed, then our team will do our best to accommodate the first two names listed.

Please note that these friend/group requests need to be mutual! Both campers must list each other in order for the request to be considered.

If you need to update your friend requests at any point, please email us at camp@greenacres.org with the change. 

We love to show off our incredible campus and facilities! We cannot accommodate in-person tours but hope that you will take a virtual tour of our classrooms and outdoor spaces. Please reach out to our camp fffice at camp@greenacres.org with any questions. We'd love to get to know you!

For summer 2024, priority registration will include the following groups: current Green Acres School families, summer 2023 families,  and summer 2023 waitlisted families. 

If you fill out a camper application and we have no spots remaining, our team will reach out to you and ask if you would like to be placed on the waitlist. 

In order to secure your spot on the waitlist, you pay a small fee ($65). If any spot opens up, we will reach out to you via email and phone to see if you would like to accept. 

If no spot becomes available, you can either opt to have your waitlist fee refunded or leave it with Green Acres Camp to receive priority registration in 2025.

 

Once your application has been approved and processed, your $65 application fee and the $250 deposit are not refundable for any reason. 

Any cancellations/changes to fewer weeks/withdrawals after April 1st will be responsible for 50% of the entire tuition. 

Any cancellations/changes to fewer weeks/withdrawals after May 1st will be responsible for the entire tuition.

During the application process, you are able to specify if you would like to be charged in full for your camp tuition or if you would like to be charged in 4 equal installments. These installments will occur on the last business day of January, February, March, and April.

We do not prorate tuition for any reason. You are certainly free to miss any days at camp, and we will work with you as much as possible to choose activities and communicate to the staff that your camper will begin camp late or be absent for a designated period of time.

If you have any planned absences, please feel free to email our camp team!

We charge a 2% fees for any credit card payments.

Payment via echeck or debit card do NOT have processing fees.

See the list below for suggestions on what to bring each day! Please make sure all the items are labeled with your campers first and last names. 

• Lunch (no refrigeration available; no gum, candy, or soda)
• An extra snack (if necessary)
• Ice pack for lunch bag (We do not refrigerate lunches.)
• Backpack
• Wet bag (or other bag) for wet items like bathing suits
• Reusable water bottle
• Swimsuit, towel, goggles
• Sunscreen (spray sunscreen recommended for body, lotion recommended for face)
• Bug repellant NO DEET (optional)
• Comfortable clothing
• Hat, raingear, etc. (weather dependent)
• Closed toe shoes or sandals are best—no flip flops

Safety is our first priority at Green Acres Camp. Our administrative team is constantly checking local weather updates and following any guidance provided by the local/state government. 

We are so very lucky to have many indoor spaces that can be used in the event of inclement weather. Our staff come prepared each summer with many “rainy-day” activities so that the fun never has to end. 
 

Please see our 2023 COVID Policies below. COVID Policies are reviewed and updated just prior to the start of each summer. Due to the constantly evolving COVID-19 landscape, programs may expand or change to ensure the health and safety of our camp community and meet new requirements.

Summer 2023 Policies:

• All staff are required to be vaccinated and receive their booster shot.
• Senior Campers will be in mixed aged groups based on their activity choices. Therefore, all Senior Campers (rising 3rd - 7th graders) will be required to be vaccinated and provide proof of vaccination.
• Junior Campers (rising kindergarteners - 2nd graders) are strongly encouraged to receive the vaccination.
• Masking is optional for all staff and campers; if a camper is considered a close contact of a COVID positive person, masking is strongly recommended but not required. • Staff and campers will stay home when sick. Parents will test at home should symptoms present.
• If a camper tests positive at home, the parent will inform the camp nurse so contact tracing can commence
• If a camper or staff member arrives at camp displaying two or more symptoms of COVID, a rapid antigen test will be administered.
• If a camper tests positive for COVID while at camp, they will be masked and must be picked up from camp within one hour of positive result.
• Persons testing positive for COVID19 - Follow current Green Acre/MCO/CDC guidelines.
• Campers may return to camp after 5 full days AND if symptoms are no longer present. They will mask for the remaining 5 days of their 10-day cycle.
• It is up to parents and staff to keep the community COVID free. Stay home and test should your camper feel ill and report at-home-positive results to the camp team.  

At a minimum, Green Acres Day Camp's COVID-related protocols will comply with applicable State of Maryland mandates and align with Montgomery Country Health Division. As we progress through the pandemic and towards the summer season, we may alter, cancel, or replace certain aspects of camp. If we do, this web page will be updated and registrants will be notified by email. Depending on the severity of a change, we may offer registrants a full refund. Otherwise, our regular cancellation policy remains in effect.

Throughout each summer, our snacks each day remain rather consistent! This is because we are ordering 300+ snacks for campers every single day while also remaining nut-friendly. The snacks we offered in 2023 included Goldfish, popcorn, Animal Crackers, kettle chips, and Teddy Grahams. 

If your camper is a bit more selective when it comes to snacks, we would recommend packing them an extra to enjoy each day! 
 

We are so lucky to have a pool on our campus and a part of our campers daily programming. The pool starts with a beach entrance/shallow teaching area that gradually gets deeper and deeper. 

All Junior Campers have a 25-minute swim block each day (as long as the weather allows). During this block, campers will take part in group swim instruction that allows them to become more comfortable in the pool and practice basic water skills. 

Senior Campers have the option each day to come to the pool for a 45-minute free-swim during their Workshop time. 

If you are looking for individualized or small group lessons, we suggest that you sign up for our swim lessons that are offered before camp from 9:10-9:35 or after camp from 3-3:30 or 3:30-4. These lessons allow for your camper to work closely with one of our swim instructors and improve on specific skills.  

At Green Acres Camp,  parents can either drop off/pickup via car OR put their campers on the bus. 

With over 300 campers, we do highly recommend using one of our many bus stops as this helps alleviate traffic on our campus.  Our camp is situated in the middle of a neighborhood so in order to be respectful to the homes around us and keep our campers safe each day, we have many policies/procedures in place. You can view 2023 Carpool Policies here.

In an effort to reduce the number of cars coming through the neighborhood and in our carpool line, we have locations very close to camp that serve as satellite bus stops. There is a small additional charge to use the satellite bus.  We will also continue to offer our regular extended bus service.

If you want to grab your camper quickly each day, a satellite stop might be the answer for you! 
 

Carpooling is a very popular option for afternoon transportation for many of our families. To help reduce afternoon traffic and help get you pick up your campers sooner, we urge camp families to form a carpool of at least three campers, to ride the bus, or to stay in the afternoon care program, which is offered from 3 – 6 pm.

By signing up for a bus, families are agreeing to the following policies:

EACH MORNING: Families should ensure that their children are ready to board the bus at least ten minutes before its scheduled arrival time each morning. Drivers may arrive during this ten-minute span and can reasonably expect children to be ready. The bus driver will wait only two minutes for a child who is not present. 

EACH AFTERNOON: Drivers will wait 2-3 minutes past the expected arrival time. Bus Counselor(s) will contact any absent parents to get an estimated arrival time. The bus will wait a reasonable length of time for late families but if we cannot reach you and/or you are too far away, your child will be brought back to Green Acres Camp for you to pick up after the rest of the route has been completed. 

**IF YOU WOULD LIKE YOUR CAMPER TO BE ABLE TO GET OFF THE BUS WITHOUT A PARENT/GUARDIAN PRESENT AT THE STOP, please email camp@greenacres.org so we can update your transportation information***

I understand that bus services will be provided through Coughlin Transportation Company. A bus counselor will be present on the bus. 

I acknowledge the following: 
- I will support the camper with appropriate safety precautions for bus transportation.
- I will support the camper with appropriate behavior guidelines while traveling, including by reviewing the camper expectations set form in this form and those in the Green Acres Parent Handbook (pages 2, 3 and 4)
- Participation in camp-provided transportation is voluntary
- If I opt to not use the camp-provided transportation, I understand that I am responsibility for providing transportation for the camper to travel to and/or from camp. 

I understand and acknowledge that while traveling to and from campus, the camper is expected to follow all camp rules and policies, including, but not limited to those in the Green Acres Parent Hand Book, and to uphold Green Acres Camp standards of conduct. 

I understand and agree that the students failure to follow these expectations may server as the basis for disciplinary action from the camp, including termination of the camp bus-riding privileges.