FAQS

At Ramah, campers enjoy a well-rounded program that includes sports, arts, and outdoor education, along with opportunities to pursue individual interests. Two daily chugim (elective) periods let campers choose from activities such as sports, archery, climbing, nature, cooking, art, STEM, games, theater, dance, music, and farming. Because chugim rotate weekly, campers in a two-week session participate in four different electives. In addition, all campers receive swim instruction, learn Jewish and Israeli songs and dances, and engage in informal Jewish education as our experienced yahadut educators weave Jewish values and texts into everyday camp activities. 

BIG IDEA campers choose two sadna’ot (workshops) which they will participate in daily for the entire 2-week session.  Tech workshops may include Graphic Design, Animation, You Tube Show, Gaming Lab, Web Design, Mobile Apps Development, Lego Robotics, DJ Mixing, 3D Modeling, or Minecraft.  Workshop options will vary by session and will partially depend on how many campers are signed up per session, but campers will have some choice.

To learn more about a typical day in our Classic & Sha’ar programs, please click here. To learn more about a typical day in BIG IDEA, click here.

Even though our new location is school based, the Ramah Day Camp experience remains rooted in the outdoors!  We start each day with Aseifat Boker, our all-camp morning assembly, where we gather on our migrash (outdoor field) to sing and dance together. 

Outdoor activities include sports, archery, climbing tower, farming, and nature/gardening. Our campus also has two playgrounds for campers to enjoy. Popular activities such as art, STEM, and cooking will take place both indoors and outdoors, giving campers opportunities to explore and create in a variety of settings. Campers will eat lunch in the cafeteria. 

We recognize that some campers prefer indoor activities, and our new location allows campers to choose activities that best match their interests and preferences. When selecting chugim (electives), we will indicate which activities take place indoors and outdoors to provide greater transparency and help families understand the options available.

Our school-based location also offers expanded storage space, allowing every camper to have a designated place for their belongings, as well as the opportunity to keep extra clothes at camp.

In our Classic Camp and Sha’ar Hebrew enrichment tracks, the edot (divisions — the Hebrew word literally means “tribes”) are co-ed and age-specific. Shorashim, our youngest edah, is for campers entering kindergarten after camp. Anafim, our second edah, is for campers entering 1st grade after camp. Garinim is the edah for campers entering 2nd grade, Etzim is the edah for campers entering 3rd grade, and Nitzanim, our oldest edah, is for campers entering grades 4 and 5 after camp.

In 2027, we will once again offer three two-week sessions and a final add-on week.  Campers may register for a single session or any combination of sessions. Of course, we love when families take advantage of our full summer discount and enroll their child(ren) for all 7 weeks!  For specific session dates or general Dates & Rates information, please click here.

Our bus schedule changes slightly from year to year depending on the number of children registered from various locations throughout Montgomery County, Northern Virginia, and Washington, DC.  For more information about our bus offerings as well as a list of stops offered during Kayitz (Summer) 2026, please read our Transportation page. 

For those wishing to drive their camper, drop-off will run from 8:40 – 8:50 a.m.  Camper pick–up will take place from 4:10 – 4:20 p.m.   

Swimming remains a core part of the Ramah Day Camp experience. We have secured a local pool for the summer and are finalizing the details, similar to our arrangements when camp was located in Germantown.  At this time, our plan is that all Classic Camp and Sha’ar campers will have daily swim and BIG IDEA campers will have free swim on Fridays.  

We look forward to sharing more details about our pool arrangements as soon as everything is finalized.

On the first day of a child’s session, swim instructors evaluate our campers to find their appropriate swim class for their level. In addition, after you register for camp, we will ask you to share relevant information about your child’s swim experience on one of our pre-camp forms.

We are currently exploring hot lunch options.  We provide two dairy or pareve nut-free snacks a day (with alternatives for allergies as needed).  More details about a pay-per–meal option will be shared in the spring, if the option becomes available. 

We know that many of our families have two working parents, and an extended day program is a critical factor in choosing a camp. 

We will once again be partnering with MoEd to offer aftercare at Ohr Kodesh Congregation in Chevy Chase to provide coverage until 6 pm. MoEd will not be open the final week of camp, August 2-6.  Click here for more information. 

We are exploring aftercare at our Rockville location. If interested, please select this option on your application. Availability will depend on interest.

If you are aware of another partner agency in the Greater DC area who might be interested in working with Ramah to offer an additional aftercare option, please be in touch with us.

With safety and security as our top priorities, we work alongside our partners at our site to ensure that the latest safety measures are employed. Our location is a closed campus, protected by security at all times.

All guests, including parents, must be announced. Ramah staff wear camp shirts and visible ID cards at all times to identify our staff.

Financial aid is available. Applications for financial aid will be accessible in your online camp account by early December, after you complete your camper application. The deadline for financial aid applications is Friday, February 12, 2027.  (Applications received after that time will be considered on a rolling basis IF funds remain.) We do all that we can to make it possible for everyone to experience a summer at Ramah.  If you have questions about the financial aid process, please contact us.

We know that the cost of camp can be more difficult with more campers in one family. We want to help make camp affordable to everyone through scholarships. Financial aid is available and the deadline for applications is Friday, February 12, 2027.  If you have questions or would like to learn more about the process, please contact Sharon, Director.

Check out our extensive daily backpack checklist!

Yes, campers in our Classic Camp track may complete a Friend Request form and ask to be with another child in their same grade.  Campers in our Sha’ar Hebrew enrichment program and the BIG IDEA are grouped together with other children their age registered for these specialty tracks.

All campers spend their day in programming with other campers their age. Whether or not your child comes to camp knowing lots of other children or no one, our staff works hard to integrate each individual into the group and facilitate new friendships between campers.

We operate on a staff to camper ratio of approximately 1:5.

We are excited that with our new location, inclement weather will pose minimal interruption to our daily activities.   

In the event of heavy rain, thunder and/or lightning, our camp programs will move inside the building.  We will utilize spaces such as the gym, cafeteria, pods and classrooms to continue offering our regular programming when possible.  

In the event of extreme heat, we have several shaded spots on campus in addition to our indoor, air-conditioned space. We always encourage campers to drink water and will adjust our activities as needed to keep the kids safe and cool.