Frequently Asked Questions About Our Sports Camp

Drop-off and pick-up for your child is at West 104th Street and Riverside Drive on the street level at the entrance to the park if your child is in a full day Kids of Summer program. If doing a multi sport camp, depending on which sport they are doing in AM or PM location could be with COSA soccer camp, RCTA tennis camp or HOT Volleyball. An email orientation letter will be sent the Thursday before your child's start date confirming all info

Our multi-sport camps allow campers to play two sports each day. Please note this means they will play one sport with the drills and skills in the AM and the other with games in the PM. On Fridays we generally play games in the AM and PM in all Kids of Summer sport programs.  If campers are going more than one week of camp we recommend weeks of single sports to get both the drills and games each day and experience the full camp program in that sport!

We have nearby indoor school locations that we hold camp in in case of inclement weather so we don't ever plan on cancelling camp! Parents would call our camp phone number in the AM of poor weather days to confirm if we will meet indoors or outdoors.  Because our fields are turf, only prolonged and steady rain or thunderstorms will generally cause camp to be held indoors. We have tents, the Ellington in the Park restaurant and the Riverside Park field house at camp for safe cover so we can stay at the fields for shorter periods of rain. For hot days, we plan on taking extra water breaks, using the shade, as well as ending afternoon play early to use our misting tents and slip and slides, but do not plan to cancel on hot days. In addition, occasionally our basketball camp may use the air conditioned gym nearby for drills. 

Each Monday morning coaches have an “evaluation day.” That helps us place campers in groups by ability first and age second. Our aim is to ensure your child plays with campers similar in experience for maximum improvement.  In most sports, especially when camp is busiest in July and August, we have a minimum of two age groups but sometimes 3 or 4 divisions.

BASEBALL: Glove, Bat, Helmet, athletic clothing and sneakers or turf shoes, water bottle. Baseball cap is recommended. Please note we have extra bats and helmets. No metal cleats!

BASKETBALL: High top basketball sneakers are recommended.  Athletic clothing, water bottle.
FLAG FOOTBALL: Athletic clothing, sneakers or turf shoes, water bottle

ROOKIE CAMP: Athletic clothing, sneakers or turf shoes, water bottle. Small towel. Change of clothes recommended

We are very selective with our coaching staff and offer some of the best instructors in the area. All groups are led by a senior coach. Our senior coaches have extensive playing experience, some at the professional level, and/or prior high level youth coaching experience. Some have teaching experience as well. We also have several excellent junior coaches who currently attend or play at the college level and attract CITs (Coaches in Training) who attend and play at some of the best NYC High Schools including: Bronx Science, Stuyvesant, Hunter, Fieldston, Riverdale, LaGuardia, American Studies, Trinity, Beacon, Eleanor Roosevelt, Horace Mann, Dalton and more.  Many coaches are former campers who have come through our program for several years.

At Kids of Summer, we take pride in offering personal attention to all of our campers. Camper to coach ratio will never exceed 8:1 and is often less. For Rookie sports (ages 4-6) it is 6:1.

Kids of Summer is great for beginners as well as advanced players. We will find the right fit for your child’s ability and divide the campers into several groups ranging from beginners all the way to experienced travel team players. Each Monday we have evaluation days and will place campers in the correct group by ability first and age second.  We want to challenge campers to improve and compete at a level similar to their own.

We are flexible with our scheduling. You may sign up for one week or for the whole summer, and weeks do not have to be consecutive. Signing up for more weeks offers discounted multi-week rates starting at 4 total weeks.

The safety of our campers is our highest priority.  All our coaches 18 years of age and older are background checked and many are former campers who grew up in the program. Our senior coaching staff is also trained in CPR and in operating an AED. In addition, we have a full-time certified athletic trainer on site every day to deal with any injuries. While injuries can happen due to the nature of sports, they are rare in our program and almost always minor.

Full-price registrations may be cancelled with three weeks written notice to sports@riversideparknyc.org prior to campers start date (the $100/week deposit is non-refundable).

Please note that refunds will not be issued without written confirmation from parent or guardian, stating that the camper's parent/guardian is aware of RPC Summer Sports Camp's cancellation policy and they understand that the processing/holding fee amount is non-refundable. (The processing/holding fee amount for the camp is $100 per camp per camper.)

Cancellation notification may be emailed. To cancel via email, send your notification to sports@riversideparknyc.org. Note in the subject line "Camp Cancellation" and make sure to include camper name, camp name, and camp dates.

In addition, no refunds will be issued for early withdrawal due to absences (for any reason including sickness), behavioral dismissals, power failures, unforeseeable events not within the control of the RPC Summer Sports Camp or other acts of nature. If students leave camp early for ANY reason, the tuition is NOT prorated and no refund will be issued.

If Camp is Canceled due to severe weather related reasons a credit will be issued for the cost of that day of camp good towards any program we run.