Sage Educators’ owners Jaime and William Heaps.
“We definitely understood the educational side of the business when we started,” Jaime Heaps says. “But we were new to the business side of things, and we definitely rolled the dice a bit.”
The result has undoubtedly been a success, but like every business in Mill Valley and, frankly, around the world, the Heaps are rolling the proverbial dice once again as they look to respond to the demand from local parents for educational camps this summer while managing the social distancing requirements of the COVID-19 crisis.
They’ve just unveiled a pair of in-person, mostly outdoor camps this summer for stable groups of up to 12 students each. The camps mix grade-level standards with good old fashioned summer camp fun. Sage Academic Summer Camp is an in-person, grade level appropriate summer day camp beginning June 15 for rising 2nd through 8th graders. Jaime Heaps says the camp combines the best parts of school (learning) and camp (fun). Sage is reopening its doors (but staying mostly outside!) for small, stable groups of up to 12 students in each office. Academic Summer Camp will run 9am-3pm (with optional early and after care options) and will have plenty of games, art projects, and movement, while creatively covering California standards from the four core subjects (math, language arts, social studies, and science).
What: 3 weeks, 4 core classes, plus art, movement, games and more to keep your kid busy learning all summer long.
Who: Rising 2nd-8th graders, separated by grade level
When: M-F 9am-3pm; Section 1 June 15-July 3, Section 2 July 6-July 24, Section 3 July 27-August 14. Early care 8am; After care 3-5:30pm.
Where: Larkspur (Rising 2nd-5th graders); Mill Valley (Rising 6th-8th graders)
Sage is also launching Nature Navigators Day Camp, a hands-on, outdoor science exploration camp with plenty of movement, hiking, and games. In this three week camp, students will become nature scientists while moving through three distinct themes. In week one, they’ll hone their naturalists skills by studying various watersheds through water quality testing and different aquatic macro-invertebrates investigations. In week two, they’ll focus on California Geography and Natural History through the study and practice of Mapping & GIS, animal tracking, and the life and influence of famous conservationist, John Muir. In week three, students will focus on Art and Language Arts, exploring the art and poetry of Mt Tam enthusiasts Gary Snyder and Tom Killion, practicing their own Andy Goldsworthy style outdoor art, and learning that bird language contains lessons for us all.
What: Three week-long, outdoor, science exploration camp for elementary and middle school students
When: M-F 9am-2pm, ; Section 1 June 15-July 3, Section 2 July 6-July 24, Section 3 July 27-August 14.
Where: Madrone Canyon, Larkspur
In addition to these new summer camps, Sage will offer its regular summer academic workshops, for-credit classes, test preparation, and one-on-one tutoring online all summer long. “Rest assured that Sage is following every health and safety regulation to keep your families and our staff as safe as possible,” Heaps says.