Thoreau-in-Vermont is a co-ed, inter-racial summer camp for 145 children, 8 to 15 years of age. The camp is located on a lovely wooded, 380 acre site, on the shore of a 64 acre lake in Thetford Center, Vermont.



Our overall program is not rigidly structured, allowing campers both a large voice in planning activities, and a wide range of choices during most activity periods. The element of choice brings about inter-aging, which is beneficial to both younger and older children. The older campers have the opportunity to exercise leadership and responsibility, and to teach skills to younger campers; the younger campers are provided with helpful "near-peer" role models. Our emphasis is on creating a non-competitive, caring, sharing community, in which each child learns and grows as an individual, as well as part of the group.



At Thoreau-in-Vermont, we offer a wide range of activities, supervised by mature, qualified staff: arts, crafts, wood shop, folk dance, drama, music, photography & darkroom, video-tape film making, tennis, soccer, softball, archery, basketball, volleyball, frisbee & other sports (taught in a non-competitive atmosphere to encourage participation & skill development), sailing, swimming, canoeing, and kayaking (both flat and white-water) all supervised by certified instructors and lifeguards, fishing, nature study, caring for our small farm animals and vegetable gardens, horseback riding (including trail rides), hiking & camping (on our own site & on the well marked trails of the Green Mtns. in VT and the White Mtns. in NH), high & low ropes course elements, and top-roped rock climbing -- ALL with an emphasis on bringing one's life closer to a respectful relationship with the environment and one's community.