Summer Progams
Summer Programs
We offer a variety of enriching opportunities in the summer both inside and outside the classroom. Our goal is to provide a Christian, educational, challenging, and fun-filled summer experience to our students.
Summer Camps 2022
Arma Dei Academy is pleased to offer the following camps and clubs for the summer of 2022! See below for details and registration information. Most camp fees are billed through FACTS soon after registration closes and are non-refundable.
Instructor: Ashley Wright
When: June 13 - June 17 | 9:30 AM - 2:00 PM
Where: 345 Music Room
Cost: $260 per student
REGISTER by: June 12 (maximum 12 students)
Immerse yourself for 5 days in the Elizabethan world of William Shakespeare, and discover what makes his plays timeless and universal! Each day will be met with thoughtful discussion questions as we tease out the point, themes, comedy, and ideas in the Bard’s work: What does it mean for a story to be timeless and universal? Why do we still read Shakespeare? Learn how to engage with Shakespeare’s language, and understand the context of his stories by preparing an abridged version of “Pericles,” which will be performed in costumes for friends and family on Friday afternoon at 12 pm.
Instructor: Caleb Brasher
When: July 18 - July 22 | 9:00am-12:00 PM
Cost: $250 per student (sibling discounts apply)
REGISTER by July 17 (minimum of 8 students)
The Knight School is thrilled to offer Summer Chess Camp to the Arma Dei Academy students this Summer! Our super-fun Chess Camp is the perfect way to pack your summer full of devastating chess tactics, hilarious zany videos, high-energy chess tournaments, and so much more! Each day of camp, we party our way towards chess excellency with our dizzying array of activities--like our signature Toast Games, "Tracker", and everyone's favorite "Chessmaster Says!" Students of all ages and skill levels are invited to join. Camp fees even cover an official TKS Chess Set, Summer Camp T-Shirt, our colorful tactics bands, and free replacement pieces for life! We can't wait to see you at this spectacular chess-travaganza!
Instructor: Caleb Knedlik, Arma Dei Rhetoric Teacher
When: June 6 - 10 | 1 - 3:30 PM
Cost: $100
REGISTER by: May 30
In this weeklong course for beginner and intermediate players, students will learn the major chess openings in the hopes that they will be able to consistently establish playable positions against even experienced players. In addition to main openings, students will learn strategies and tools for further development on their own once the course is completed. The openings to be studied include the Sicilian, the French, the Spanish, the Nimzo-Indian, the King’s Gambit, and the Queen’s Gambit. Students are expected to know the basic rules of chess before the course begins. This is a fantastic way for kids to engage in intellectually stimulating activity and healthy competition during the summer.
(Minimum of 5 students, maximum of 20 students)
Instructor: Leah Ross, Arma Dei Grammar Music Teacher
When: Week 1: June 13-16 | 9:30 AM - 1 PM
Week 2: July 11-14 | 9:30 AM– 1 PM
Cost: $250 per student (please email Mrs. Ross regarding financial assistance questions)
REGISTER by: June 6
Come join us as we compose music together using the Psalms and our original poetry. Students will explore various instruments and will learn the fundamentals of music composition. Students will leave the camp with one or more original pieces of music that they have composed and will create an Art and Music Journal for a beautiful keepsake of our time together.
(minimum of 10 students, maximum of 24 students)
Instructor: Leah Ross, Arma Dei Grammar Music Teacher & Pam Van Steyn, Arma Dei Grammar Art Teacher
When: June 20-23 | 9:30 AM – 1 PM
Cost: $275 per student (includes $25 food and materials fee. Please email Mrs. Ross with financial assistance questions)
REGISTER by: June 13
Join us as we explore the basics of cooking, bake bread from scratch, and try new foods and flavors from around the world. Students will select and even create their own recipes!
(minimum of 10 students, maximum of 24 students)
Instructor: Cindy Holden, Arma Dei Grammar Teacher
When:
1st Session: June 14 - June 24 (T/W/TH) - 1st - 3rd grade students | 10 - 11 AM
2nd Session: July 12 - July 21 (T/ W/TH) - Mixed aged students going up to 5th grade | 10 - 11 AM
Cost: $175 per student (for each session)
REGISTER by: June 7
Arma Dei Academy's goal is to lead students to seek the good, the true, and the beautiful. A natural result of this desire is producing work that is pleasing to the eye and that shows attention to beauty and careful work. Cursive handwriting is a key component of Classical education and it is an expected method for Arma Dei students to utilize on written assignments. Led by Mrs. Cindy Holden, Cursive camp helps equip students to work toward this end. They are introduced to correct cursive strokes and penmanship and practice the lower case and capital letter formation. Students will produce beautiful handwriting, enabling them to begin the school year with confidence. For questions, please contact Mrs. Cindy Holden.
(minimum of 2 students, maximum of 10 students)
Instructors: Samantha Waltz & Kaitlin Buletti, Arma Dei Grammar School Teachers
When: June 28 - 30 and/or July 12 - 14 | 10 AM - 12 PM
Cost: $150 for the 3 days
REGISTER by: June 21
Phonogram Bootcamp is a two-hour, three-day camp that will walk students through all 75 phonograms used in the Logic of English program. We will work with each of these phonograms through games and activities, reading, and writing. We will be reviewing each individual phonogram and practicing the application of each in reading, spelling, and writing. Join us for three days of hands-on activities that will provide students with a better understanding of and fluency with the 75 phonograms taught through K-2. We can't wait to see your students' smiling faces this summer for Phonogram Bootcamp!
(minimum of 8 students, maximum of 20 students)
Instructor: Bethany DeVries, Arma Dei Rhetoric Art Teacher
When: July 18 - 22 | 9 AM - 12 PM
Cost: $200 per student
REGISTER by: July 11
Great art starts with a pencil and paper! In this camp, we will explore and use the classical techniques of historic master artists to help us draw realistically. In the model of a traditional art studio, we will use a step by step process to understand how to see and recreate the world around us, improving our drawing accuracy and consistency. Campers will acquire tools for independent drawing practice to continue honing their artistic skills, setting a strong foundation for art creation in the future. For questions, please contact Mrs. Bethany DeVries.
Minimum of 5 students, maximum of 10 students
Instructor: Evan Kim, Arma Dei Logic Teacher
When:
Beginner: July 18 - 22 | 9: 00 AM - 9:55 AM
Intermediate: July 18 - 22 | 10: 00 AM - 10:55 AM
Cost: $100
REGISTER by: July 11
It’s been said that music is a handmaiden to theology. This is certainly the case at Arma Dei, where beautiful truths accompanied by music emanate from classrooms daily. We love to cultivate an appreciation for music and mastery of skill, which in turn allow our students to glorify God and enjoy Him! This weeklong course will introduce basic guitar-playing principles to beginners, or nudge those familiar with guitar to take their skills to the next level.
The beginner course (open to rising 3rd graders and up, including adults) will focus on the basics of guitar, including anatomy/terminology, tuning, technique, plucking, strumming, scales and chords.
The intermediate course (open to rising 5th graders and up, including adults) will focus on intermediate skills, including complex chords, plucking and finger style, scales, music styles and improvisation.
It is preferred that you bring your own personal guitar. There are classical guitars at Arma Dei, but the neck is thicker making playing a bit more challenging for beginners/intermediates.
Music played will be drawn from music that is regularly sung at Arma Dei, which can be found on DWELL.
(Minimum of 4 students, maximum of 10 students)
Instructor: Evan Kim, Arma Dei Logic Teacher
When: July 11-15 | 9 AM - 12 PM
Cost: $350 (includes all supplies and STEM Solar Robot)
REGISTER by: July 3
In the beginning, God created all things. The pinnacle of His creation was man, made after His own image and likeness. And just as God is Creator, He has imbued in man a creative nature. We will celebrate and explore our creative natures via science, engineering and technology in this fun week of learning, growing and building. Join us for STEM camp as we experiment with basic principles of machines, and end the week with an introductory dive into robotics culminating in building our own robots to take home!
(minimum 5 students, maximum of 12 students)
Instructor: Evan Kuzava (720-415-9922)
When: June - July (Dates TBD)
Beginner: Monday - Thursday | 9 AM - 12 PM
Experienced/Intermediate: Monday - Thursday | 1 - 4 PM
Cost: $60/day
Register via text: 720-415-9922
Join Coach Evan, “Shred Sensai”, for an exciting outdoor skateboarding camp! Activities include safety and balance practice, skateboarding tricks, and skate demos as well as virtue lessons and character building. There are both Beginner and Intermediate levels to accommodate all skill levels. Space is limited! For more information, contact Coach Evan or find his program, Rocky Mountain Shred School, on Facebook.
(minimum of 5 students)
Instructor: Rachel Gaspar
When: June 6 - July 14, Monday-Thursday | 8 - 10 AM or 10:30 AM-12:30 PM
Cost: $60/hour, 40 hours required
REGISTER via email (levelupliteracyprogram@gmail.com) by May 13
The Level Up Literacy Program exists to develop students’ confidence and love of reading by building the following literacy skills: decoding & phonemic awareness, sight words & vocabulary, fluency, and comprehension.
We do this through individual, leveled tutoring. We use a systematic approach to directly teach phonemic awareness and develop students' orthographic processing skills. We guide students' practice of these skills as they read in context. For questions, please contact Ms. Rachel Gaspar.
(maximum is 16 students)
Instructor: Danielle Saba, Arma Dei Humanities Teacher
When: T/W/TH, July 12-14 & July 19-21 | 10 AM - 12 PM
Cost: $200 (contact Ms. Saba with any financial assistance questions)
REGISTER by: July 5
Have you ever wondered why stories are so powerful? What makes a character compelling? Why are we drawn to worlds that are so different than our own? Come explore the answers to these questions (and more!) as we let C.S. Lewis and his incredible world of Narnia guide us through a fantasy literature and creative writing intensive club!
(minimum of 6 students, maximum of 18 students)
Instructors: Catherine Kochie and Leah Ross, Arma Dei Music Teachers
When: June 27-29 | 9:30 AM - 1 PM (lunch will be provided)
Cost: $180
REGISTER by June 20
Saddle up, cowboys and cowgirls! In the Wild Wild West Camp, we will sing and dance to western songs, “camp out on the trail,” make (and eat!) our own bread, griddle cakes and biscuits, churn butter, keep a travel diary of the westward trail, create western-themed art projects, and learn all about the early settlers of the Wild West! Please email Mrs. Kochie and Mrs. Ross with any questions.
(minimum of 12, maximum of 24 students)
Summer Reading, Math, & Latin
A child’s summer should be filled with adventure, learning, growth, and wonder. What better way to start the adventure than by diving into a great book?
What is required?
Students entering grades 3-10 will have one required book to read (see the list below). Each teacher will have a graded activity based on the book during the first week of school. Students should be ready to discuss the characters, setting, main idea, themes, key details, and overall plot of the book.
- 3rd: The Cricket in Times Square (Seldon)
- 4th: Door in the Wall (de Angeli)
- 5th: From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (Konigsburg)
- 6th: The Magician’s Nephew (Lewis)
- 7th: The Hobbit (Tolkien)
- 8th: Treasure Island (Stevenson)
- 9th: Out of the Silent Planet and Perelandra (Lewis)
- 10th: In Defense of Elitism (Henry)
Tolle Lege: Take up and read!
All students K-8 are encouraged to compete against one another in our annual Tolle Lege reading contest. Students who read at least 1000 minutes over the summer will be able to participate in an ice cream party during the first week of school. Awards will be presented for the students who read the most minutes in their grade, as well as the top three readers in the school overall. Here are a few guidelines:
- Reading minutes must be entered through the parent portal between June 1-5, July 1-5, August 1-5, and on August 14 in order to count for the contest.
- Students entering grades 3-8 should only keep track of the minutes they personally read.
- Students entering grades K-2 may also include minutes someone else reads to them.
- While audiobooks are wonderful, students may only count audiobook minutes if they are reading along at the same time.
- Students are not required to read from a certain list of books, but rather are free to read what interests them and fosters a love for reading and learning. Parents are encouraged to guide their children toward literature that points them to the True, Good, and Beautiful. If you’d like ideas for what to read, please refer to the Banquet of Books list.
- An optional form for tracking your reading minutes is attached for your convenience.
Enjoy the adventure!
Each school year, students work hard memorizing math facts and strengthening problem-solving skills. This math ability can be compared to a muscle; the more you use it, the stronger it gets. The opposite is also true; the less it is used, the weaker it gets. Studies have found that students who do not practice math over the summer lose 2 to 3 months of ability. Working on math over the summer, even 5 to 10 minutes a day, helps prepare your child to start the next school year well!
Each grade-level teacher has put together a review packet that covers the math content from this past year to help students retain their abilities over the summer. In addition, if you have specific materials you would like to use (e.g., a workbook, app, or website) that strengthens your child’s skills, please feel free to use them as well. There are countless resources for math practice online: IXL.com, khanacademy.com, weareteachers.com/math-card-games, etc.
While reviewing math content and practicing skills is optional over the summer, we strongly encourage students to spend 10 to 20 minutes a day, four days a week, engaging with math materials. Students benefit most from a little practice most days throughout the break. It is not beneficial for students to wait until the second week of August to spend multiple hours completing the summer packet all at once. Those students who complete the summer review packet and turn it in to their new grade level teacher on the first day of school will be treated to a donut party during the first week of school.
Albert Einstein once said, “It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer.” Practice and dedication help one grow in his or her proficiency in math, and we are grateful for your help in continuing this over the summer.
Math Packets:
- Incoming 1st
- Incoming 2nd
- Incoming 3rd
- Incoming 4th
- Incoming 5th
- Incoming 6th
- Incoming 7th or Algebra 1
- Incoming Geometry or Algebra 2
New students entering grades 5-8 are asked to attend two days of intensive Latin instruction in August. Registration details to come!