FAQS

Ramah Day Camp currently runs four edot (age groups). Campers entering kindergarten are in our Shorashim group. Campers entering 1st grade after camp make up our Anafim group. Campers entering 2nd or 3rd grade after camp make up our Garinim group. Nitzanim, our oldest edah, is for campers entering 4th or 5th grade after camp.

Ramah Day Camp is a 2-week minimum experience. Sessions begin every two weeks. Enroll campers during a Session Starter, and then stay with us as long as you’d like! To learn more, please go to the Dates & Rates page.

Yes! It is important to us that financial concerns not be a reason a child can’t enjoy a summer at Ramah. Please contact us to request a financial aid application.

At this time, Ramah Day Camp does not provide lunch; all campers and staff are asked to bring a dairy or pareve nut-free bagged lunch each day. Camp Ramah provides two kosher, healthy snacks each day. We hope to expand our food offerings as our camp continues to grow.

There are some daily programs which are fixtures in each child’s schedule: tefilot, swimming, and experiential Jewish learning. In addition to these Ramah staples, most days campers are offered three 30-minute elective activities, which run for 2 weeks at a time. This means campers will choose three electives at the start of each session and develop their skills or work on their projects for each two-week session. Campers can choose to spend their whole day in sports electives (what we call chuggim), their whole day in arts chuggim, or create a more well-rounded routine to sample all that Ramah has to offer.

Our bus schedule changes slightly from year to year depending on the number of children registered from various locations throughout the greater DC area.  For more information about our bus offerings as well as a list of stops offered during Kayitz 2019, please read our Transportation page.

If you would like to see a bus stop added to a location near you, please contact us! We would love to work with you on expanding our routes.

Aftercare offerings are dependent on sufficient interest, staffing, and COVID-specific health guidelines.  In the past, we have offered aftercare facilitated by Ramah Day Camp staff until 6 p.m. in Rockville, and in partnership with MoEd at Ohr Kodesh Congregation in Chevy Chase. Click here for more information.

We are always interested in partnering with communities to open new aftercare locations. Please be in touch if you would like to work with us.

Camp Ramah is serviced all summer by a uniformed security guard at its front gate. Our campus is private property and is closed to non-Ramah personnel during camp hours. All staff are clearly identified with a Camp Ramah uniform and name badge, and guests must be announced and cleared through our security guard.

Please see our Daily Backpack Checklist page for details on what to send with your child to camp on a daily basis.

All of our programming is divided into four edot (divisions). Edot are co-ed and leveled by grade. Campers will spend their day in programming with other campers their age. Our staff works hard to integrate your child into the group and facilitate new friendships between campers. If your child is coming to camp with a friend their age, they will have plenty of time to interact with them during the camp day.

Our overall staff to camper ratio never exceeds 1:5. Though state regulation require larger ratios, we maintain a 1:5 ratio or smaller during all camp activities, including swimming.

Our campers swim 4 out of 5 days per week, with three days devoted to swim instruction and one day reserved for free swim.

Our swim instructors, currently provided by Joe Flaherty’s Dolfins Swim School, test each camper individually on the first day of each session to determine their current comfort and skill level in the water. We group our campers into numerous different swim groups.

Our overall staff to camper ratio never exceeds 1:5. This includes our time in the pool. Between our counselors in the pool, swim instructors, and both lifeguards and supervisory staff on the pool deck, that ratio of pool supervision is often much smaller.

Rain is always a possibility. In the event of sporadic rain, we utilize our indoor facilities for adjusted rain programming. In the event of long-term rain or torrential storms, we will bus our whole camp to a nearby school for an adjusted indoor day.