This was my son's first year at Camp Edmo (he has attended camps at Oakland Rec Center and YMCA). So far Camp Edmo is his favorite! He says he LOVES it. PRICING $439 a week is extremely pricey compared to Rec Centers at $180 a week. You get discounts for registering early or enrolling more than 2+ weeks. LUNCH Lunch was included in the pricing and you get to customize the lunch in advance online/ on the app, which was very easy to use. The lunch options were extensive and for the most part he said he enjoyed his lunch! EXTENDED CARE THEME DAYS On Tuesdays, they wore their green Camp EDMO shirt. Some Thursday's were themed ie. July 4th theme, wacky tacky day, DIY duct tape day. COMMUNICATION All the camp counselors were very friendly and easy to talk to. It was nice to receive an email regarding what the kids did each day and reminders for what to wear the next day. But the communication wasn't received daily - perhaps it geared towards reminders for the next day. EDMO Vibe Game They give out these cute EDMO magnet cards for participation or kind acts: Smile, Banana, Stump etc. And once they reach a certain number of cards the kids get upgraded to different levels. He was so excited to tell me about the cards he received. When he made it to the first level, he got a button. But I think he made it to the 2nd level but didn't get his prize, which was a EDMO hat. Future suggestion: email or print out the guidelines for parents to get the kids more engaged! SAFETY For the most part, the camp counselors that didn't recognize me asked to check IDs for pickup. The facility (Redwood Day School) is in a safe neighborhood. Overall, I would highly recommend CAMP EDMO if you can afford it. But if you have to struggle to pay for it - there are alternatives. read more

Another successful week at Edmo. My 9 year old daughter came home and said, "I really like Edmo. I wish you'd send me more!" THAT'S what every parent wants to hear. Thank you so much, Edmo! read more

Our child is currently attending Camp Edmo this week. We discovered that he has been eating his snacks for lunch instead of the lunch we ordered for him. He is a new camp goer and having asked him multiple times whether he received lunch he said he had not and all they gave him was a banana and a bag of chips at snack time (because he ate his snacks at lunch). We spoke to another child's parent who echoed the same event occurring with their child. What made the situation worse is when we brought our concerns to the attention of Allyson (the new director of 1 year), instead of truly listening and trying to empathize, be collaborative, recognize a problem/breakdown with processes and communication at the camp, and an opportunity to DO BETTER, our concerns were met with arrogance, a deaf ear, and no acknowledgement that anything was wrong. Attitudes like this are how larger more critical failures occur, sometimes to the detriment of the safety and security of children. After two frustrating conversation with her, I moved up and spoke with Ryan, the district manager who was the prior camp director and mentioned below glowingly. His handling of our concerns was like night and day. Unfortunately, I don't believe we will be giving Camp Edmo another chance and from what I see, their own security policies surrounding drop-off's and pick-up's are not even followed. Given this, I wouldn't recommend this camp to others. read more

My eldest son has been in EDMO camp for the first couple of weeks this summer, and has really had tremendous fun. The counselors are friendly and engaging. In the mornings, they have team time, where the kids get to know each other and play games. As a 'maker', my son got to learn a number of engineering concepts. This included learning what makes an airplane goes faster and for longer distances, leaning how to make a boat float amongst other things. In the afternoon, there is plenty of play time outside. To keep the parents informed, an update email with pictures are sent to us each day. Now, my son has already asked to go back and join the tech camp next year. I think that in itself is the best review for this camp. read more

We have been doing Camp EDMO for the last 3 years, and my daughter loves it. She comes home tired and engaged, and singing songs that she learned from her awesome counselors. She's done the Oakland PARK camp and the location has been Dimond Park and Lake Temescal Park. This year we are trying the school based program at Redwood Day. I can't say enough about the quality of the programing and the teaching staff. I feel 100% confident that my daughter is learning, having fun, and enjoying and enriching experience that she can't get from me or in school. Camp EDMO is a great investment in the social and emotional learning for our kiddo! read more

My son came home and told me all about his favorite counselor (Jo Jo) and taught me the EDMO song. I asked what he liked about Jo Jo and he said, "he is loving, kind, and he let's me jump on him..." those were his exact words. Our family has been going through a hard time and the whole staff - including the director, was so tuned in and gave my son the support he needed. The support came with a requirement that he be accountable to his community when he was acting up if he felt bad, but it was done in the most educational and compassionate ways. My son has never loved camp - but he LOVES EDMO - and it is because of the leadership and staff in Oakland. The first day he was so nervous, and one of the counselors, Jazz, jumped in and made him feel safe and ushered him right in. He also told me his counselor Leiani was "so awesome!" I don't post reviews often, but it was such a good experience that to warrants it. This isn't just a camp - these are early childhood educators who train their staff and have a plan. read more

They found my sons special toy and called me the following week after he finished camp to return it. I thought that was great that the director went above and beyond to do that. read more

I would have to agree with Matt from the other EDMO review page that their style is very punitive and not conducive to any fun for the kids, and they do a lot of nothing, without well thought out structure. And my kids went to about 5 other camps this summer and ended with Camp EDMO, which gives us a pretty good basis of comparison. This is not a high quality camp at all. I have two young grade schoolers, one who just finished TK and one who just finished 1st grade. Between the two of them, this summer they went to Camp Galileo, two different church VBS's, East Bay Regional Park Camp, Monkey Business Camp, City of Oakland run Redwood Heights camp, and finally Camp EDMO. My little boy who raved about Monkey Business and found a friend in his CIT there, had no issues at that camp at all. The following week starting at Camp EDMO, we immediately got complaints from them about our boys all the time. Night and day. They got a brand new camp director Kadira. On the third day, my younger son, who is 5, got written up for fighting with another kid. She said they get written up 3 times they get kicked out. No explanation was given as to what led up to the situation, the dynamics between the kids, or engaging with the kids at their level to work things out. He was simply caught doing something and written up. We told Kadira you can't just punish kids and expect better behavior. That never works. She needed to figure out how to work with them. Kadira,like a brick wall, just says we have rules, blah blah blah. Absolutely refused to listen. Then my other kid was written up for patting a girl's butt. Again, no talk of what had occurred around this time frame and the dynamics going on between the kids. It just seemed like a lot of negative things were happening in a short time frame among the group, which indicates this camp has trouble keeping the kids engaged. I found it odd that during this entire time my kids were at all the other camps, there were no issues reported except for an argument between my boys. Normal since they are close in age and live together, they fight sometimes. But those issues were quickly resolved once we discussed what to do. At Camp EDMO however everything fell on deaf ears. My older son fell into the creek during a hike. He complained that they do a lot of hiking, it was boring, and one day they hiked for too long and he didn't want to keep doing it. As it turns out, that was a "test" to see if they can behave well enough to go on a field trip the next day. He didn't want to keep going, and didn't listen to the counselor ordering him what to do, so he wasn't allowed to go on the field trip. WTF? He's gone on plenty of walking field trips since preschool, but for some reason, these EDMO counselors thought they need to be tested, and of course, punished. I saw one project brought home, out of two weeks we were there. One time my son brought home dead mice bones and fur. Every time I went to pick them up, all of the kids were just sitting around on the picnic benches with nobody engaging them. The website description for after care specifically states that the kids will do additional activities and games that reinforces what they are learning that week. They weren't doing a single thing, every time I went to pick them up. The communications were all over the place or inadequate. None of the people I spoke to had their stories straight about what's happened on each occasion. All in all, they just seem unable to deal with things. Otherwise things would never have gotten out of hand so easily. The second week in, my younger son got into more physical altercations. Again, no explanation as to what was going on, what led up to it. The icing on the cake is that he said the N- word. He somehow picked it up at camp, had no idea what it means, repeated the word that he just heard, then got kicked out for it. They adamantly denied that he could've picked it up there and insists that it must've been heard somewhere else. Really? You mean he just heard it at home from his racist family? Or picked it up from school and two months later blurted it out? He had never heard the word or said it before that time, and he had been at EDMO for two weeks. Kadira said my son was being so rude and disrespectful. That is what I can't get over, that a grown adult is getting offended by a 5 year old instead of being able to see anything at a small child's level. My kids have no concept of racism, but in her depraved adult mind, she's assigning malicious intent to a small child. And this is someone who's job is to work with children. Everything we told her about how to work with our kids throughout this time, she just did not listen to and it was like talking to a brick wall. Thank you Camp EDMO for teaching my kid the N-word. Thank you for knowing only how to punish children instead of trying to talk to them and work with them. You guys need to better train your counselors or hire better quality staff. read more

My son is wrapping up his second week of EDMO summer camp and we've been extremely pleased with every aspect of the program. They have an engaging and intellectually stimulating curriculum with a strong emotional intelligence component. Even if your kid is doing a coding camp, they will get plenty of active outdoor time. Very well-organized; it's a tight ship. Best part is the SUPER-engaged staff. They greet my kid by name every morning with tons of enthusiasm. We'll do it again next year for sure! read more

This is our first year at EdMo (we are in Alameda) and we couldn't be happier with our experience so far. The counselors are so engaging, enthusiastic, and positive. Everything is incredibly well-organized and very thoughtfully managed. My 4.5 year old - who's normally clinging to my leg at pre-school drop off, jumps out of the car to get to camp, as he's greeted with music and high-fives. He gets tons of time doing outdoor activities and lots of great indoor exposure to arts and science-related projects. His new artwork - made of so many cool materials - is now covering our fridge. I am so confident he is safe and well taken-care of when he's at camp and am so excited we found this place so early on. We are officially EdMo for life-ers! read more

My kids had a good time at camp edmo. The teachers are very nice and funny. I signed my 9 year old up for two art camps at camp edmo. I signed my 11 year old up for an academics camp and it seemed to be very fun. They say that they loved meeting new people and counsalers. I think I will sign them up for another camp edmo camp this summer. read more

My partner and I decided to put her son in camp EDMO this summer. After doing some internet research we liked their themes (minecraft coding and animation) and the focus on fun -- integrated with science and art education! Well, we were not disappointed. Her son had an absolutely amazing time! He loved the themes, the team building activities and the am/pm care. In the beginning of summer, he was very wary about camp. By the last day, he said it went by in the blink of an eye and definitely wants to return as a big kid next year. There was a high staff/camper ratio, so lots of adults to care for the little ones. The Berkeley director Glo was great: so on top of it, so kind and so enthusiastic. We're so glad Camp EDMO came to Berkeley, and we plan on sending her son here next year. We highly recommend EDMO. Children will get a great mix of science and art learning, social skill building and physical activity all in a fun summer camp context supported by great staff. Thanks EDMO! Thanks Glo! read more

As a mother, former camper, counselor, and educator, Camp Edmo is top notch. The staff is warm, down to earth, and friendly. They communicate well. My 6 year old son came home each day raving about the activities. One morning he told me I should be eating more Special K because of the % of iron in the cereal. Two weeks later he is making drink menus and checking the Vitamin count for the drinks at stores. He is curious and Camp Edmo kept him engaged, interested, and SAFE. Every day he came home with a smile, an art project, a story, an increased imagination, and a handout of all of the activities he did that day. No doubt this camp knows what it's doing for our young children. THANK YOU!!! read more

Pretty disappointed in camp edmo. Enrolled my 8yr old daughter. They had no use of any of the indoor facilities at lake temescal which forced the kids to sit outside all day on a tarp or a park bench doing basic crafts. My daughter said the outdoor park bathroom was so disgusting that she choose to "hold it" rather than use the facilities. What they call nature hikes are really just repetitive walks. She also added that "it's very long and so boring, with a lot of strict "sit down, and don't move" kind of talk. She made a good case or I definitely would have sent her back. It's expensive for what is offered and I hate paying for a half baked camp that can't keep a child's interest. She's always loved every other summer camp program she's been in. From what I personally saw and after hearing her descriptions, I certainly won't make her return. What a waste of money. read more

My kids love Camp Edmo! We did several sessions in several locations last Summer and each week was a big hit. My kids tend to be a little sensitive to new experiences and the camp staff did a great job helping them feel included. Every day they came home with something they learned and the social emotional support was far superior to other camps. As well the programs were consistent week by week and at location to location so my kids were able to get in a groove where ever they landed. Highly recommend! read more

We have been doing Edmo for the past 3 years. My daughter loves it! She still talks about her counselors and in fact, I just found a drawing he made for her in her room! As you know, there is no shortage of camps to choose from. I'm currently planning our summer and I gave my daughter the choice of a few camps. Her answer? "Camp Edmo Mom, it's a no brainer!". Thank you Camp Edmo for the enthusiasm and energy you bring to your camps, as well as the variety of activities available each week! We'll see you this summer :) read more

Wow! I was bowled over by the quality of Camp Edmo (Moraga). We enrolled our daughter for 3 weeks this past summer--and SHE LOVED IT! Toward the end of the first week, she announced that she wanted to come back to EDMO next summer too. Every day she was eager to share all that she'd learned and try experiments again at home. Given the background of activities our daughter had had before Camp Edmo, I found that she was learning something new and different with the technology part of the curriculum more than with the arts & sciences part--nonetheless she enjoyed both parts equally. Drop off and pick-up were both very easy--and the staff was interactive (with parents and children alike) and very nice. As I dropped off my daughter each morning, I felt that she would have a fun, educational, good, and safe day. We will definitely consider Edmo a part of her Summer 2012~ read more

We've done the Montclair camp two years in a row and it's been my son's favorite. He's 8. It's is a good spirited, low key, fun camp. Good mix of tech/computer/science/LEGO with outdoor play and good natured fun. read more

I attended camp as an incoming 8th grader. This camp barely benefited me as I was surrounded with singing monsters, wasting time, and valued nothing for my future because of the love in the subject taught was not the greatest memory. This camp isn't worth it for people who only has an interest if they listened to the award they gotten as a great summer camp for tech or whatever. I overall personally don't recommend this camp as for middle schoolers because as middle schoolers wr change, and we will get tired of this and end up wasting a lot of money. read more

My son loves Camp Edmo Alameda!!! He thought this was the best camp ever!!! By far, his favorite camp in Alameda and we have tried them all. He thought it was fun and creative, he enjoyed going week after week. . Our family enjoyed the warm welcome at drop off and the incredible energy of the counselors! We are so excited for Camp Edmo next year! read more

My children just LOVE Camp Edmo! Every class excited them, the counselors are fabulous, and there's no better feeling for a parent when you know your kids are genuinely excited to go to camp as soon as they are dropped off. They learned a lot but most importantly - they just had a lot of fun! For our oldest, this was her fifth summer in a row of Edmo. Highly, highly recommend! read more

So far so great! First time sending my son to EdTech. My son is taking the 'maker' class, and LOVES it. His teacher, Chris, is great and my son is really connecting with him. The staff is very friendly and energetic. The ride home each day is nonstop story-telling. Happy summer! read more

My son is wrapping up his 3rd of 4 weeks at Camp Edmo Alameda and so far he's having a great time. He is excited to go each morning. The staff greet him with high energy at the morning drop off. I get an email at the end of their day with a recap of the activities and reminders for the next day. My son gets magnet badges for making friends and participating. At the end of each day, he has something new to share. Camp Edmo engaged my son with a terrific mix of activities and we will consider them for next summer. read more

I feel Camp Edmo provides my children with a love of learning. Due to large size, limited funding, and a mandated curriculum, school can sometimes be uninspired. Edmo reminds them how fun learning can be. During the school year, there are a surprising amount of references to Edmo. My daughter will say something like, "Oh yeah. We learned about that at camp." There is something about Edmo that harkens back to my idea of an old-fashioned summer camp. The individualized attention, the team building, the zany camp counselors all make my children feel like they are part of a community. I'm a bit of a nervous Nelly about safety for my kids. Made bold by a recent Stewards of Children seminar, I asked Edmo staffers tough questions about their screening policy, and their one-to-one policy. Edmo alleviated any fears I had with their 1:8 staff to camper ratio and buddy system. The money spent contributed positively to my children's overall sense of happiness, which is priceless. When I picked them up, they were bursting with excitement to tell me all about their day. Their mood was contagious! I couldn't ask for a better camp. read more

Best camp ever! This was our first year of doing camps and we tried many of them ( one or 2 weeks, each). Camp EDMO was by far THE BEST! My daughter loved it and we, the adults, did, too. Since the first moment we got there, I knew I would like it. They are so organized - I haven't seen this at any other camp. It's big - lots of kids but the organizing is amazing. Ryan is doing a great job. Not to mention, he knows all those kids by name! The counselors are very good, too. You wouldn't expect so much maturity from such young people but, I must say, I was impressed. They are very responsible and I felt my kid was totally safe there. The camp teaches them science concepts through play - they learn without even realizing they are learning. They make learning fun! They get outdoor time, too, so it's very balanced. My daughter was in love with this camp and she keeps asking us to go back there. It is a bit pricey but I think it's money well spent. We'll definitely do it again next year. read more

So this camp REALLY was not a good fit for my 7 year old daughter. To their credit, they were receptive when I called and expressed regret that my daughter did not have a good experience. And they refunded me for the days she did not attend. But that said it was a real letdown. This was their first year in Berkeley. They had a new director and a new instructor for the Minecraft portion that my daughter was enrolled in. My daughter was disappointed at the lack of instruction by the teacher who by her telling just told them what to do and to work with a buddy rather than walk them through things. Also, the teacher did walk around to many of the buddy groups but not all so she didn't even get any one on one. Socially it was not a fit at all. She estimated there were 12 boys and only 4 girls in her group. The four girls all had friends already so she felt left out. None of the counselors seemed to notice she was alone and wasn't connecting with anyone. That is a big disappointment for a camp that hypes their social-emotional offerings. As for my kid I can say she was extremely excited to go to this camp as she loves Minecraft. Socially she is a little shy at first but a fun girl who is an easy mixer with other kids. So while I can't say for sure what happened since I didn't see it with my own eyes I suspect the camp was really lacking. Also parents should know that the Minecraft portion is only two hours out of the day. I wish I would have paid closer attention to that detail. read more

We enrolled our son for two weeks at Edmo this summer and HE LOVED IT and more than that WE LOVED IT. The counselors were great with my son and knew him and me by name (without name tags!) Every day he came home with a cool art project that they did that was related to the theme of the week. He came some singing songs and telling me all the fun things that they did. He was happy! The camp is also just the right size (good staff to student ratio) and feels safe and well-organized - not like some of the other camps we have attended this summer which feel a bit more like a frat party. We will be definitely going back next year! read more

EDMO has provided our son and daughter a camp opportunity that is fun. That they learn some things along the way and create wonderful art projects, and make friends that they have kept outside of camp have contributed, but really the bottom line is FUN. Both of our kids have loved the experience. Our son loves it so much he returned as a Counselor in Training last year and is planning to be one again this summer. We love that the camp is on a school campus and while there are activities that include water play, shaving cream, whipped cream and competitions - we never worried that they weren't safe. When our daughter had a toe injury they were careful to find other things she could do to help instead of participating in the slip and slide. All of the counselors connect with the kids as individuals and we have found that because of this the kids are very well taken care of in every situation. It was convenient for us because it is held at a local elementary school - and there are a lot of pre- and post-childcare options for working parents. We highly recommend Camp Edmo for any family looking for a down to earth summer camp experience that includes some good strong cognitive activities and fun artistic endeavors. You will love to hear the stories each day when you pick them up - they'll thank you for sending them! read more

We had a great experience with Camp EDMO in Berkeley. Our son is 8 years old and he loved the science and technology themes they offer. He's usually nervous about going to camp but this year he was so excited because he was going to do Minecraft and Lego animation. In the Minecraft camp he learned how to do coding and was really proud of what he accomplished. The registration process was easy, streamlined and everything could be done online - which was great for me as a hectic working parent. The counselors were friendly and engaging and very attentive to the kids. Every day was clearly very organized, which I think works great for kids - they know what to expect and they like routine. I also liked how they paired the kids up each week so that they worked in teams - it helped my son develop social skills while also learning the technology pieces. I would send him back in a heartbeat! read more

Edmo is consistently my son's favorite summer camp. The staffers at Edmo seem highly trained and qualified, and the camper / staffer ratio is low. The staffers are always willing to listen and help. To wake up on an Edmo camp day and have my 6-year-old dressed and excited for camp definitely starts the day on the right note. I also love that I don't have to pack a lunch for him to eat something healthy. Although Edmo is not the most inexpensive summer camp we participate in, I find myself adding more weeks each year. It is very convenient in both hours and location, and my child is always engaged and learns a lot. Since science and art don't get top billing during the school year, I like that we can make up for it in such a fun way over the summer. The most important thing for me about Edmo is that my child just LOVES it, and he's not all that easy to please where summer camps are concerned. I don't know anyone who has tried it and not returned - our prized Edmo buttons are safe where they can remind us of this summer. read more