Summer Plans at Oasis Day Camp

It’s at the point in the school year when you’ll find parents starting to chat about summer camps, or even looking as far forward to fall classes. While the weather may still feel like winter, we’ll all be singing “School’s Out For Summer,” in just a few short months, so it’s time to start planning. This year, Ryder has been quite vocal that he does not want to return to sleep away camp. Siella’s pendulum swings the other way, and she can’t wait to start up sewing camp again. Gemma hasn’t expressed much interest in camps or clubs, so we are still researching options.

We’ve heard tons of chatter about Oasis Day Camp, so I looked further into what they have to offer. Oasis runs several day camps in the NY, NJ and surrounding areas, but their Central Park location is what caught my eye.

They use the BASIS Independent School, at 795 Columbus Ave as a home base, because it offers indoor air conditioned facilities including classrooms, gym, lunch room, theater, and art and music rooms. The facility even has a rooftop playground and terrace complete with a vegetable garden, Koi pond and even a chicken coop! As a result of its partnership with the Central Park Conservancy, Oasis provides children with a fantastic opportunity to play and learn right in the Park without ever leaving Manhattan.

Oasis Children’s Services is dedicated to a community-oriented, holistic approach to youth development. They provide customized, engaging programs for children and families by transforming local school and public spaces into fun, vibrant communities. Oasis programs create safe and inclusive environments where children develop life skills through quality experiences in the arts, athletics, and enrichment activities.

Oasis Day Camp is for campers ages 3-15. Campers are split into Lower Camp and Upper Camp, with two specialty programs for their youngest (Early Start) and oldest campers (Teen Travel). For Gemma, I’m particularly interested in their Early Start Imagination Camp (ESIC) Program. Those kids are ages 3 to 5, fully potty trained, but have not yet started Kindergarten. For most children, camp means a set of “firsts,” and this is especially true for youngest campers. It may be their first time playing with others, the first time learning to swim, or the first time riding a bus.

One thing I learned with Ryder’s camp experiences is o learn more about the counselor to children ratio. The Early Start Imagination Camp Highlights has reduced staff-to-camper ratios, so you can rest assured that your little ones are in good hands. A flexible schedule can be modified to meet the needs and skill level of our youngest campers. For this age group, Oasis participates in “Ready For September,” a patented school-year readiness program that helps campers prepare for the social elements and routines associated with being in a large-group enrichment settings like Kindergarten!

To see a sample of what a typical day at an Oasis camp entails click here! For a more comprehensive look into what they have to offer, visit of these two open houses: this evening April 10th at 6:30pm, and Tuesday May 8th at the same time. Tons of info on their website too!