Day Camps

• At YMCA Day Camps, value beads play an important role as a sign of character and personal achievement. As a form of recognition, beads at camp promote positive behaviour, and are worn as a constant reminder of what we value as a camp community. Throughout the week, beads are awarded to individuals for demonstrating our YMCA core values of responsibility, respect, inclusiveness, caring, health and honesty, and achieving success in specific program areas. Ask your camper how they achieved their beads!
• Find out more about our value beads. 

• This program is designed for campers that love the water! Campers receive a daily one-hour swimming lesson with a certified YMCA Aquatics Instructor and a one-hour recreation swim to play and practice their new swimming skills. To ensure quality instruction, campers are registered by YMCA swim level; Otter, Seal, Dolphin/Swimmer and Star 1-4. Campers will receive a report card and an award if the level is completed. Campers must be 6 years old by the start of the program.
• Click here to learn what swim level your camper belongs in.

• YMCA Camp Staff are a minimum of 17 years of age, and most are college and university students or recent graduates.
• All staff must have their current Standard First Aid and CPR “C” certification as well as a clear criminal reference check on file.
• All staff have a certification from High Five for the completion of the Healthy Childhood Development training.
• YMCA Camp Staff receive a minimum of one week of pre-camp training each spring, which works out to about 40 hours of training. Senior staff receive approximately 90 hours prior to each camp season!

In order to provide a safe environment for everyone, please read and understand our Camper Code of Conduct:

• The safety of each individual in the program is of the utmost importance to the YMCA. Each registrant must recognize a personal responsibility to learn and follow at all times the safety and other rules established by YMCA staff. I hereby agree that any behaviour of the registrant that places him/herself or others at risk may result in the registrant’s immediate dismissal from the program. Further, if dismissed from the program, I agree to cover any expense(s) arising from such dismissal. I hereby acknowledge and agree that no refund will be granted for dismissal or removal of the registrant at his/her request before the end of a program session. In order to ensure the safety and well-being of all individuals participating in the program, the YMCA reserves the right to alter the program at any time without notice or compensation to the Registrant.

To give our campers the opportunity for individual growth and development, we limit our Day Camp group sizes. This allows for campers to participate in group activity, while allowing for everyone to be supervised at all times. Our group sizes are as follows:

• 8 campers for the discovery age group (4-5 years old)
• 10 campers for the Jr. age group (6-8 year olds)
• 12 campers for the Sr. age group (9-12 year olds)
• 15 campers for the Youth age group (12-16 year olds)

*Group sizes may fluctuate slightly due to availability

In addition to a counselor in every group, every site will be supported by a number of Program Heads, Behaviour Support Staff, an on-site Director, Senior Directors, and the Day Camp Managment team!

YMCA Day Camps are commited to making our spaces safe for your campers. Here are a few measures we've put in place to ensure this is a reality:

• Child Protection Training
• Caring for your campers is our primary focus!
• Mandatory for all staff every year, this training delves into how to keep your campers safe from harm, both physically and emotionally. It is then re-visited and practiced throughout the summer.
• Training topics include, but are not limited to: identifying and reporting signs of abuse, camper supervision, transfer of care procedures (moving campers from one place to the next), managing group dynamics, and many more child-focused topics.
• YMCA Bracelet Program
• Your camper will receive a YMCA wristband at the beginning of each camp session. Please keep this on!
• We use this system to identify YMCA campers from other children when in our public spaces.
• We also mark these bracelets in a way that allows us to know if your camper is able to swim without a personal flotation device.
• If the bracelet does manage to come off, don’t worry, we’ll replace it when your camper arrives to camp!
• Sign In/Sign Out Policies and Automated Absence Calls
• All campers must be signed in and out by a parent, guardian, or anyone listed as an emergency contact by the primary account holder for that registration.
• You will be asked to provide proper identification when signing your camper out from camp, please have it with you when coming into the day camp office. We’ve put this in place to ensure that our campers get home safe.
• After everyone has been signed in for the day, we will send an automated absent call home to notify you that we have confirmed the absence.
• We aim to send this call out between 10:00 AM and 10:30 AM. Please keep in mind that if you drop your camper off around that time, the call may be on its way already. That being said, please never hesitate to contact the director for confirmation.
• Facility Standards
• Although the majority of our programs run in permitted spaces, we ensure that these locations provide a safe space for your campers to grow.
• For camps located in schools, all doors will be locked for the safety of our campers. Keep in mind that if you are visiting a camp, you will need to call the director so they may let you in! Not sure where to go? When arriving to any one of our day camp locations, keep an eye out for signs that will guide you to our camp office or the phone number to reach our camp director!
• Campers located in any one of our 9 centres of community are surrounded by YMCA staff of all levels. Campers at these sites will spend anywhere between 50-90% of their days in program areas located inside the facility!
• All sites, including our outdoor sites, receive daily site checks before the day begins to ensure that there aren’t any harmful objects in the areas your campers will be playing in.
• Certifications
• YMCA Day Camps are OCA Certified, meaning we have met, and in many cases exceed the standards set out by the Ontario Camping Association. Find out more.
• YMCA Day Camps are High Five certified participants, meaning we have met, and in many cases exceed the standards set out by the High Five organization. Find out more.
• YMCA Day Camps are Shape Up certified meaning we have made a commitment to achieving improved physical literacy, as well as being purposeful about including physical activity in every one of our programs. Find out more.

YMCA summer programs provide families with meaningful experiences. Here are a few examples:

• How Marcellus Learned and Grew at YMCA Day Camps 
• Winter Fun at Cedar Glen 
• Developing New Skills at Summer Camp 
• 4 Tips for preventing summer learning loss 
• Why Choose Y Day Camp? 

For more YMCA Day Camp stories, visit our YMCA Blog