Summer Camp 2026: June-Aug. 2026

Ecology Outdoors Lab

  • Led by Kimberly Chacón, Ph.D UC Davis
  • Grades 1-2

Good to Know

  • $690 $735

    Early bird special ends March 30th

  • 9:00am - 4:00pm

    All camps hours
    9:00am - 4:00pm

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Use the outdoors as your living laboratory as we venture to a new field site each day with Dr. Kim Chacon. From the forests and meadows of Golden Gate Park to the dynamic coastal ecosystems of Baker Beach, and from the California Academy of Sciences to the Randall Museum, you will observe real environments up close and investigate the organisms that shape them.

Throughout the week, you will uncover how plants, animals, insects, and marine life are connected through food webs, energy flow, and ecological interactions. Our explorations will span pollinators and urban ecosystems, coastal and intertidal communities, rainforest adaptations, and the native wildlife that thrives across San Francisco’s diverse habitats.

Through hands-on investigations, nature journaling, ecological field projects, microscope and binocular work, and creative scientific art, you will begin to think like an ecologist. You will pose questions, gather evidence, analyze patterns, and interpret how ecosystems function.

Join us for an immersive journey into the natural world and discover how every organism, from the smallest insect to the tallest tree, is part of a larger, interconnected system.

Ecology Outdoors Lab
Kimberly Chacón, Ph.D

Kimberly Chacón, Ph.DUC Davis

Led byKimberly Chacón, Ph.D UC Davis

Kim has spent many years teaching ecology, environmental systems, and sustainability through hands on, place based learning. She is deeply motivated to help students develop curiosity and wonder about the natural world and to empower them to see science as something they can actively explore. Her teaching emphasizes observation, questioning, creativity, and a strong connection to place. She loves working with children who are eager to ask questions and think deeply, and she strives to create learning environments that are joyful, inclusive, and intellectually stimulating.
Kim is currently a garden and environmental educator at Growing Healthy Kids. She also teaches as an instructor and lecturer at Cal Poly, Merritt College, and Foothill College.
She earned her M.A. in Geography and her Ph.D. in Geography (Ecology & Landscape Design) from the University of California, Davis.

Fees and Policies

$735 per session
$575 June 29-July 2

  • Materials fee:
    • Surgery, Genetics and Metalsmith: $50

 

  • Your spot is not reserved until payment in full is made.  Please email us directly if you need to make payment arrangements.

Discount

  • Multiple Session Discount – Also applicable to siblings
    • Sign up for 2 sessions: receive a total of $50 off
    • Sign up for 3 sessions: receive a total of $120 off
    • Sign up for 4 sessions or more: $200 off or more ($50 per additional session)

    The discount is calculated automatically by the system, regardless of when you make each camp reservation.

  • Refer a family who has never attended any Celsius camp before, and receive either a $100 credit toward a future camp or a $35 refund for each referral who signs up and pays for a 2026 Summer Camp. Email us with your referrals once they are committed to sign up. No cross-family referrals will be accepted.

Extended Care

  • Early morning extended care from 8 am to 9 am
  • Afternoon extended care is from 4 pm to 5:30 pm.
  • Advanced payments (prior to the start of camp) for early care: $100 per week. Aftercare: $150 per week.
  • Ad Hoc during the week of camp is billed at $25 per morning and $40 per afternoon.
  • Pick up after 5:30 pm will be charged at a rate of $2.00 per minute (no grace period after 5:30 pm)

Cancellation Policy

-Any changes (other than cancellation) to previously confirmed sessions shall be assessed a $45 fee. Transferring sessions is subject to availability.

– The $300 deposit per camp reservation is non-refundable if you need/choose to cancel after three days of your reservation.

–  If you need to cancel more than four full weeks prior to the start of a camp, for whatever reason whatsoever, you have the choice of receiving a refund less the $300 deposit per camp OR receive a credit on your account less a $75 cancellation charge per camp

– No refunds will be issued for cancellations made by you for any reason less than four weeks prior to the start of a camp session, however, partial credits on your Celsius account are available as follows:

– More than 3 weeks’ notice prior to the start date of the session, a credit for 80% of the total price paid less the $300 deposit per camp.

– Between 8 days and 21 days notice prior to the start of the session = 50% credit of the total price paid less the $300 deposit per camp.

– Less than 8 days notice 20% credit less the $300 deposit per camp.

Please Note: We are sorry, but there are no refunds or reductions in fees for days missed due to illness, absence, last-minute vacations/trips, change in family circumstances during camp sessions, suspension or dismissal

Minimize fees: You may reschedule sessions to a different week for a $45 change session fee, plus any difference in the new camp price, subject to camp availability.

-Can’t make it all? Turn a lemon into lemonade by donating your unused session to enable a child from the Rafael House family homeless shelter to attend a camp.

We accept cash, check, e-check, and Zelle payments. For Zelle payments, please use our email address (Hello at CelsiusandBeyond dot com).

Reservations are not confirmed without payment in full received. Online registration and payment ensure immediate confirmation. Payments by check should be sent in within 3 days of making an online reservation or the spot will be released.

Schedule

8-9 am Early Care
8:45-9:10 Drop off
9:10-11:30 Activities
11:30-12 pm Lunch
12-1 pm Recess at blacktop or Rossi Park
1-3:45 Activities
3:45-4:15 pm Pick up
4-5:30 pm Aftercare