Summer Camps | Cleveland Museum of Natural History

Fantastically fun learning opportunities for all ages

Museum summer camps are the perfect place for your child to discover something new or continue exploring their passion for science and nature. From new, unique options to familiar favorites, our 2025 experiences promise an unforgettable summer for every camper.

General registration is now open!

Scholarships

Scholarships are available to any individuals attending schools in the Cleveland Metropolitan School District or the Cleveland Heights-University Heights School District, but applications must still be submitted. For those outside of these districts, camp scholarship eligibility is tied to financial need, as outlined in the form. Contact summercamps@cmnh.org with any specific questions or concerns. The scholarship submission deadline is March 10. Awardees will be notified by April 1.

Download summer camp scholarship application.

2025 Summer Experiences

CIRCLE SAMPLER CAMP

Campers will spend an exciting week exploring the scientific, artistic, musical, and cultural institutions around University Circle and beyond. Featured institutions include the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland History Center, Cleveland Botanical Garden, the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes, Lakeview Cemetery, and the Baseball Heritage Museum! Our University Circle partners will share their exclusive resources to enrich your child’s understanding of the world. Drop-off and pickup take place at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History. 

Audience: Rising 1st–2nd graders
Daily Schedule: 9am–4pm
Sessions: June 9–13; July 7–11; July 28–August 1
Price: $470; members receive a 10% discount

Collecting Curiosities  

Each day of this five-day camp will focus on a different theme related to the Museum’s collections, exhibits, and research. Gallery explorations, small informal lessons, and explorations of outdoor Museum spaces will provide context for the crafts campers complete each day in order to create a “collection” of their own. A significant part of each day will be devoted to creating or receiving a model, craft, and/or specimen that will allow campers to express their creativity and bring home their excitement about science.

Audience: Rising 2nd–3rd graders
Daily Schedule: 9am–4pm
Sessions: July 14–18; July 21–25
Price: $470; members receive a 10% discount.

Naturally Skilled  

Think like a naturalist! Each day of this five-day camp will be themed around the skills and tools of naturalists and field scientists. Through explorations of natural spaces, galleries, and our classrooms, campers will develop a basic understanding of how scientists communicate, collect data, and draw conclusions. At the end of the week, campers will take home a “naturalist toolkit” that will allow them to continue developing their skills.  

Audience: Rising 3rd–4th graders
Daily Schedule: 9am–4pm
Sessions: July 28–August 1; August 4–8
Price: $470; members receive a 10% discount.

Make Your Own Museum 1

During this five-day experience, campers will meet with the Museum’s Exhibits team, get up close to real Museum displays and artifacts, and even design and create museum displays of their own—keepsakes from a summer that promises to be unforgettable. Hands-on activities, such as creating a cast and mold of a real specimen, will push campers to use their academic and artistic talents to bring items from the Museum’s collection to life. In a culminating activity, families will be invited on a celebratory “field trip” to visit the many mini-museums crafted over the week, giving kids the opportunity to act as expert guides! Campers will also have the chance to return to the Museum in the fall to present their creations to our guests.

Audience: Rising 5th–6th graders
Daily Schedule: 9am–4pm
Sessions: June 9–13
Price: $470; members receive a 10% discount

Make Your Own Museum 2

This session of Make Your Own Museum (MYOM) approaches storytelling and the creative design process from a developmentally higher level. MYOM 2 is a perfect opportunity for older campers who do not need as much support and practice to gain hands-on skills; for MYOM 1 alums who are ready to dive deeper into their model exhibits; and for extra-passionate campers who would like to repeat this experience through their middle-school years. Campers will have the chance to return to the Museum in the fall to present their creations to our guests.

Audience: Rising 6th–8th graders
Daily Schedule: 9am–4pm
Sessions: July 28–August 1
Price: $470; members receive a 10% discount

The (You)niverse

How are all of us connected to space? During this three-day experience, campers will explore big ideas and topics in space science to deepen their understanding of the role of astronomy in their everyday lives. They will also enjoy games, crafts, and unique planetarium shows designed to spark their interest and get them excited to learn more. 

Audience: Rising 6th–8th graders
Daily Schedule: 9am–4pm
Sessions: July 8–10; July 22–24
Price: $350; members receive a 10% discount

Mentor Marsh Career Day  

Did you know that the Museum protects some of Ohio's rarest species? How about the fact that one in every five animals is a beetle? Or that Lake Erie is part of the largest system of fresh water on Earth? During this one-day, inquiry-driven outdoor experience, high school students will learn all about these topics as well as the Museum’s conservation efforts. They will spend the day working with members of our Science & Conservation staff to learn about job and career opportunities in related fields, how to be responsible observers, and how to interpret nature's signs to discover Ohio's amazing biodiversity.

Audience: Rising 9th–12th graders
Daily Schedule: 9am–4pm
Sessions: June 17 & 18
Price: $75; members receive a 10% discount

Drawn to Science: Zooarchaeology  

Natural history meets art! During this two-day camp, a portfolio-building experience will culminate in a mystery that the team must solve together. Campers will first create a small portfolio of technical sketches of different non-primate bones. They will then learn to use these drawings to glean information about an individual from the bones. On the final day, campers will collaborate to apply what they have learned to a model dig site and draw conclusions about what may have happened there.

Audience: Rising 9th–12th graders
Daily Schedule: 9am–4pm
Session: July 1–2
Price: $99; members receive a 10% discount