AMPLIFY SLEEP AWAY AND DAY CAMP FAMILY HANDBOOK

1 WEEK SESSIONS

• June 18-24 (grades 3-8)
• Aug 7-12 (grades 3-8)

2 WEEK SESSIONS
(grades 6-12)

• June 25-July 8 
• July 9-22
• July 23-Aug 5

4 WEEK SESSIONS
(grades 6-12)

• June 25-July 22
• July 9-Aug 5

6 WEEK SESSIONS
(grades 6-12)

• June 25-Aug 5

DROP OFF AND PICK UP TIMES

• All sleep away camp sessions begin at 1pm on Sunday with the exception of the August 7-12 session which starts at 9am on MONDAY.
• All sleep away camp sessions end on Saturday at 11 am.

AMPLIFY EXPRESS SHUTTLE
($100 round trip)

Arrival Day

• Departs LAX on Sundays at 1 pm
• Picks up at Beverly Hills High School @ Spalding dr at 1:30 pm
• Arrives at Amplify at 3:30 pm

 Departure Day

• Departs Besant Hill School on Saturdays at 10:30 am
• Arrives at Beverly Hills High School at noon
• Arrives at LAX no later than 1pm

1 WEEK SESSIONS

• June 19-23 (grades 3-8)
• Aug 7-11 (grades 3-8)

2 WEEK SESSIONS
(grades 6-12)

• June 26 – 30 and July 3 – 7 
• July 10 – 14 and 17 – 21
• July 24 – 28 and July 31 – Aug 4

DROP OFF AND PICK UP TIMES

• All day camp sessions are Monday – Friday 9-5 (Lunch provided)
• Campers enrolled in 2-week sessions are invited to an optional after showcase sleep over on the second Friday. Pick up is Saturday 11 am. (Dinner and breakfast provided).
• Early (8 am drop off, breakfast included) and late care (7 pm pick up, dinner included) are available
• Weekend care available, 9-5 pm

FREE DAY CAMP SHUTTLE M-F
(not available for early/late care)

Pick up

• Manning Park in Montecito at 7:45 am
• Surfer’s Point Cafe in Ventura at 8:15

Drop off

• Surfer’s Point Cafe in Ventura at 5:35
• Manning Park in Montecito at 6:10

Campers are divided by grade into four cohorts with programming designed not only to help campers feel comfortable in their activities and classes, but also provide opportunities for stepping into brave space. Here, campers try out brand new, or expand existing, technical, social, and life skills. We value campers working together in a fun environment to share experiences of bravery, trust, leadership and friendship.

The following items should not come to camp and will be confiscated and returned to your parent or guardian upon departure.

• Anything with a digital screen, sim card or connect to Wi-Fi (except eReaders), such as cell phones, computers, tablets, iPods, games and game devices. We are a tech-free camp!
• Hair Dye
• Scissors/X-acto knives
• Age-inappropriate activities such as adult party games, piercing and/or tattoo kits

These and similar inappropriate items are grounds for immediate dismissal without a refund.

• Non-prescribed substances: vapes, drugs, cigarettes, alcohol, etc.
• Weapons: knives, guns, slingshots, etc.

DON’T FORGET YOUR MEDICAL, WAIVER AND GENERAL INFORMATION FORMS

Head over to your online account and fill out all of your forms ahead of time here. Once you log in, click on the Forms tab. If forms are not filled out before camp begins, campers cannot attend camp.

Required for all campers:
Camper Information

Medical Form

Waivers and Agreements

Required on as-needed basis:

Reserve a seat on the Amplify LAX, Beverly Hills High, or Day Camp Shuttle

Financial aid request

WE BELIEVE IN THE VALUE OF STAYING IN THE MOMENT

Amplify requires all campers to leave their phones at home or with us until their last day of camp. Check out our blog post on helping your family transition to the summer camp lifestyle and get camper buy in.

CAMP-APPROVED ITEMS

• Non-WiFi music and/or podcast player and headphones loaded with enough music and content to help your camper adjust, especially when going to sleep at night (Check out the Mighty Vibe or Campfire Player)
• Digital camera
• Musical instrument
• Traditional wrist watch/alarm clock/radio
• Books, magazines, basic eReader pre loaded with books
• Age appropriate games such as playing cards, board games, etc
• Sleep sound machine and/or twinkle lights to create a calm and restful sleeping environment
• Journal, pen, and tape for writing, drawing, and saving ephemera
• Crafts like knitting or paint by number

CAMPER HEALTH

The best way for campers to maintain healthy habits at camp is to set intentions and expectations ahead of time. Campers are expected to:
eat enough food to provide energy for an active day;
stay hydrated with at least 2 liters of liquid through food and drink;
keep up personal hygiene with regular showers, clean clothes every day, handwashing, and feeling prepared for their period (perhaps even their first!);
keep dorm rooms clean; and
communicate with a counselor if they are having any problems they need help addressing.

EXTRA HELP

Guardians are asked to be open with an Amplify director if their campers need a little extra help, for example with regard to disordered eating, bedwetting, neurodiversity, particularly intense periods, getting through their own bed time routine and similar side effects of being human. Knowing about things like these ahead of time will prepare us to take care of everyone as well as possible. The more we know about your camper’s needs, the better chance for success for all.

Pre camp

One of our health supervisors will contact parents/guardians to check in on health information if needed.
If any required forms/documents are missing

During camp

Camper has health issues such as illness, allergic reaction, not eating, extreme anxiety that is beyond general homesickness, injury that is beyond the scope of a band aid or ice pack, or at the recommendation of our health supervisors.
Camper has behavior issues such as intentionally violating or disregarding a major rule in our code of conduct, such as bringing prohibited items, or multiple general rules such as disrespecting other campers or not listening to staff.
Camper requests persistently they want to be picked up (beyond a general feeling that passes)

STAYING CONNECTED

With some necessary exceptions, we do not arrange phone calls home while campers are at Amplify as it tends to promote homesickness. Our staff work hard to ensure all campers are socializing, feel at home, and are having a blast. If you need to contact your camper, please call or text a director.

Amplify provides a private space to accommodate virtual therapy as needed. To request this, please contact a director and we will make arrangements.

What if my camper gets homesick?

Dealing with homesickness is a normal part of going away to camp. Our counselors ensure that campers are well taken care of and help to put them at ease. Our first course of action is to hear them out and connect them with a friend, camp buddy, or mentor. When the camper feels ready, we then redirect them to the scheduled activity.

Some guardians may experience anxiety, especially if it’s their camper’s first time at a sleep away. While it may be tempting to call campers, this can actually promote homesickness and may make it more difficult for them to transition back into camp life. Try to remember that an immersive summer camp experience is good for your child, and our staff is hired based on compassion, communication, and love of working with youth. If homesickness is a worry for you and your camper, the American Camp Association (ACA) suggests the following tips to help guardians prepare for camp:

• Encourage your child’s independence throughout the year. Practicing separations, such as sleepovers at a friend’s house, can simulate the camp environment.
• Involve your child in the process of choosing a camp. The more that the child owns the decision, the more comfortable the child will feel being at camp.
• Discuss what camp will be like before your child leaves. Consider role-playing anticipated situations, such as using a flashlight to find the bathroom or going without their phone.
• Reach an agreement ahead of time on calling each other. Amplify has a no-phone-calls policy. Unless it’s an emergency, we ask that everyone to honor it.
• If a “rescue call” comes from the child, offer calm reassurance and put the time frame into perspective. Avoid the temptation to take the child home early.
• Acknowledge, in a positive way, that you will miss your child. For example, you can say “I am going to miss you, but I know that you will have a good time at camp.”
• Talk candidly with the camp director to obtain their perspective on your child’s adjustment.
• Don’t feel guilty about encouraging your child to stay at camp. For many children, camp is a first step toward independence and plays an important role in their growth and development.
• Trust your instincts. While most incidents of homesickness will pass in a day or 2, research shows that approximately 7% of cases are severe. If your child is not eating or sleeping because of anxiety or depression, it is time to go home. However, don’t make your child feel like a failure if their stay at camp is cut short. Focus on the positive and encourage your child to try camp again next year.
• Don’t bribe. Linking a successful stay at camp to a material object sends the wrong message. The reward should be your child’s new found confidence and independence.
• Send a note or care package ahead of time to arrive the first day of camp, or bring care packages to drop off to be distributed on predetermined days. 
• Pack a personal item from home, such as a stuffed animal.

CAMP MAIL

Send along pre-addressed postcards, envelopes, blank paper, and pens addressed not only to you, but to your camper’s friends and loved ones. Make sure those same people have the correct mailing address for your camper, and make the return address where the camper usually lives:
Besant Hill School
Amplify
Camper First and Last Name
8585 Ojai Rd
Ojai, CA 93023

CARE PACKAGES!

Campers love them! We love when guardians send items that can be shared with friends, provide comfort, and are encouraging. Please do send items such as cards, games, temporary tattoos, glow sticks, pool floaties, favorite stuffy, clean t-shirt, silly hat, books, magazines, disposable cameras/Instax film, money, photographs, stamped and pre-addressed envelopes and postcards, a letter from the family pet, colored zinc, toiletries, a fresh change of sheets, new flip flops or swim goggles, etc. PLEASE REFRAIN FROM SENDING FOOD, DRINKS, OR CANDY.

Every session, Amplify offers OPTIONAL one-on-one private lessons at $80/45 minutes. Instructors teach lessons in multiple disciplines such as drums, guitar, vocals, music production/engineering, photo/film, journalism/podcasting, piano, and several other instruments. Private lessons are first come first served and must be purchased 2 weeks prior to session start date through your Family Login portal. Campers can sign up for any lesson regardless of their track at Amplify, allowing them to explore something new or get some extra support, especially if they really want to take their skills to the next level.

Staff will help campers keep track of their private lessons and will either remind them or deliver them to their scheduled lesson if needed.

Camp starts on the Amplify Express!

Flights arriving to LAX must land no later than noon.

Please send your camper with a cell phone to communicate with us when they land. Your camper can turn in her cell phone to the driver for the duration of camp and get it back upon departure. The shuttle driver will meet your camper outside their baggage claim and depart LAX by 1pm. Please call us as soon as you are aware that your camper’s flight is delayed. An Amplify staff member will meet her at LAX, but an added fee may be incurred if the delay requires us to hire a transportation service.

On your camper’s departure day, the shuttle will arrive at LAX no later than 1pm. Flights must be booked to depart no earlier than 2 pm. 

All Amplify sessions include at least one incredible off-campus day trip. Depending on when and how long they are staying, campers may find themselves spending the day at Santa Claus Lane, a beautiful beach in Carpinteria, CA, gliding along a lazy river, and/or sleeping under the stars after a day rafting down the Kern River. Some trips require a long drive or a trip on the ferry. Please provide motion sickness medicine or sea bands for your camper if this is a concern. All trips have a special packing list. Whether or not your camper thinks they will go swimming, a swimsuit is required, especially for intersession and camping trips. If any item is a hardship for your family, please let us know so we can make sure your camper is all situated!

Some trips have special waivers that must be signed beforehand. Failure to sign a waiver for intersession trip activities will result in an inability for your camper to go on the trip and require you to pick them up at the regular pick up time and drop them back off at camp the next day.

DAY TRIPS

Santa Claus Lane beach in Carpinteria with optional surf lessons: June 21, 28, July 12, 26

Put Your Name in the Hat for Ojai! (One of many activities to choose from during field day): July 5, 19, and Aug 2

Lake Casitas Water Park: Aug 9

INTERSESSION TRIPS

July 8-9 Catalina Camp Out and Zipline Adventure

July 22-23 Overnight Kern River Rafting Camp Out

You can choose to load up spending money for the camp store (we will refund any remaining balance), or send your camper with a debit card. Campers also will have the opportunity to buy snacks, treats and souvenirs at off-campus trips. During camp, all meals are provided.

Catalina trip-goes should bring money for 3 meals. Kern River adventurers should bring money for two meals.

Camper pick up 11am 8585 N Ojai Rd, Ojai Ca 93023
We cannot accommodate late pick up as staff are no longer scheduled to take care of campers after noon on pick up day.  Guardians are charged $1/minute between noon and 12:30, and $10/minute thereafter.

Campers are placed in groups where they are most likely to feel comfortable with pedagogy style, peers, and activities. Bands, electives, immersive lessons, and dorm rooms are sorted by group, with maturity and instrument skill level taken into consideration.

During camper orientation kids have the opportunity to get to know each other and ultimately choose 2–3 roomates within their grade/age group. LITs reside together in a bunk house or in rooms of 3 or more. Some campers have their heart set on rooming with their best camp friend and can request a specific roommate as part of the online registration process.

Yes! Staff are always in eyesight (or earshot) during waking hours. Overnight, staff reside in dorm rooms with clearly marked doors right alongside campers and are available 24/7.

Yes! Every day (and sometimes 3x a day!) campers get to spend several hours choosing what activities they want to do. Options include swimming, songwriting, karaoke, crafts, art, hiking, dancing and more. Campers also have multiple periods of free time every day where they can play games, write letters home, kick around a soccer ball, practice their instrument/photography, or jam out in an open practice space.

About 70 campers attend each Amplify session.

We stream and archive each showcase on our youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_RdelAMQJAlenNaP2YVp9A
Watch your camper’s showcase live from home and then plan a super fun welcome home activity of watching the recording of the showcase!

There are MANY things you can do now to help make the transition as smooth as possible. First, you can get them used to cohabitation by letting them sleep at a friend’s house or visit relatives for a few days. It’s helpful to simulate a situation in which they’re sharing a room. Second, encourage independence by having them partake in grocery shopping, make their own bed every day, even practice packing their camp bags. Feel free to get in touch with us if you’d like more suggestions.