Academic Camps - Summer Camps - McDonogh School

Academic Camps

McDonogh Chess Camp (Age 5-14)

Ages: Boys and Girls 5 to 14
Hours: 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (M-F)
Dates and Tuition:
Session 1:
June 23 to June 27 - $470
Session 2: June 30 to July 3 - (Week of July 4) - $375
Session 3: July 7 to July 11 - $470
Session 4: July 14 to July 18 - $470
Session 5: July 21 to July 25 - $470
*Optional Weekly Transportation Fee: $40 per camper

Kids will be constantly challenged as they learn to play chess with national chess masters. Chess is gymnastics for the brain, and studying the game is known to show significant improvement in school grades and academic activities.

Directed by National Chess Master Arkadiy Frenkel, young players will be taught strategies and tactics that will help them on the board and in life. Frenkel has more than 30 years of international experience and has taught at chess camps, schools, and programs in Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania. Several of his current students have won state and national tournaments, and the high school teams he coached in 2010 and 2017 placed second in the National Girls Team Championship.

Let's Debate Camp (Ages 8-14)

Ages: Boys and Girls 8 to 14
Hours: 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Dates and Tuition:

Session 1: June 23 to June 27 - $470
Session 2: June 30 to July 3 - (Week of July 4) - $375
Session 3: July 7 to July 11 - $470
*Optional Weekly Transportation Fee: $40 per camper

Debate is all around us! Whether it's arguing with a friend about the best basketball team, convincing a parent to let you go out with friends, or making an informed vote during an election, we all engage in it. Through fun activities and engaging topics, debaters at this camp will use evidence to substantiate their ideas, analyze and respond to other perspectives, and think critically about the ideas presented. Let's Debate! also provides practical strategies for critical reading, text analysis, questioning, and developing well-constructed responses. Through the practice of policy debate, students will become familiar with how to use debate in their real and academic lives.

Our staff will provide this camp experience utilizing knowledge from 20 years of providing debate-based education opportunities to elementary, middle, and high school students. We seek to help students find their voices and use them with power and purpose.

Writing Strategies (Rising Grades 6-9; McDonogh Students only)

For McDonogh Middle School students only!

Ages: Boys and Girls 11 to 14
Hours: 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
Dates and Tuition:
Session 1: 
July 7 to July 11 (For rising 6th & 7th graders only) - $335
Session 2: July 14 to July 18 (For rising 8th & 9th graders only) - $335
*Transportation and lunch are not available for this program.

McDonogh English teacher Cathy Schorreck will guide students through the elements of essay writing during this one-week course. Students will review and practice the stages of the writing process, including brainstorming, outlining, drafting, and revising.

Students will learn strategies that will help them improve the structure, organization, and flow of their writing. They will also receive individual feedback at each stage of the process, and they will be expected to revise their work. Understanding and using rubrics in the planning and revision process will promote stronger proofreading skills. Students will also learn about different genres of writing and the structures that accompany them. Anyone needing practice and support in writing will benefit from this class.  For more information, contact Cathy Schorreck at 443-544-7351.

CSI Camp (Ages 10-14)

Ages: Boys and Girls 10 to 14
Hours: 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. (M-F)
Dates and Tuition: 
Session 1: July 7 to July 11 - $525
Session 2: July 14 to July 18 - $525
Session 3: July 21 to July 25 - $525
Session 4: July 28 to August 1 - $525
*Optional Weekly Transportation Fee: $40 per camper

A minimum of 8 students and a maximum of 15 students will be admitted per session.

Unlock the secrets of forensic investigation at CSI Camp! Dive into a hands-on experience where campers will find clues, analyze evidence, and solve crimes. Participants will master crime scene interpretation, fingerprinting, handwriting analysis, and more. Inspired by famous cases, campers will design their own crime and present their findings in a thrilling trial. Join us for an immersive adventure and discover if you have what it takes to be a master scientist and investigator!

McDonogh Summer Camps