4.8 (140 reviews)
A fun, exciting and unique opportunity to build and be the mayor of an entire LEGO city! Kidizens inspires students to become good citizens and future…
This was our daughter's second time doing Kidizens (age 9) and she loved it even more than her previous year (age 8)! Kidizens challenges all of the kids to think creatively out of the box through play. I was constantly impressed with what she came home talking about - from transportation to shelter to plumbing, Kidizens is an urban planning class in disguise. The staff are supportive and challenging in the best ways.
I enrolled my two children in this camp at the last minute after seeing positive reviews on ActivityHero. Unfortunately, our experience didn't match expectations. Both kids cried every day before going and consistently asked not to return, saying they were bored with limited activities available.
The camp appears to be held in a small room with primarily Lego as the main activity. Over the course of their attendance, they mentioned only one trip to a nearby park. The lack of variety in programming meant my children weren't engaged, and I ultimately withdrew them a day early.
This camp might work well for children who are passionate about Lego and can stay engaged with building activities for extended periods. However, for kids seeking more diverse activities and outdoor time, I would recommend looking elsewhere.
The camp appears to be held in a small room with primarily Lego as the main activity. Over the course of their attendance, they mentioned only one trip to a nearby park. The lack of variety in programming meant my children weren't engaged, and I ultimately withdrew them a day early.
This camp might work well for children who are passionate about Lego and can stay engaged with building activities for extended periods. However, for kids seeking more diverse activities and outdoor time, I would recommend looking elsewhere.
Kidizens
July 3, 2025
Thank you for sharing your feedback. We’re truly sorry to hear that your children didn’t enjoy their time with us, and we respect your decision to withdraw them early.
At Kidizens, we pride ourselves on creating a deeply engaging, small-group learning environment -- our camps typically have fewer than 22-24 campers with a high counselor-to-child ratio, allowing us to closely monitor and support each child’s experience very closely. (This camp had 21 kids with 3 counselors).
In this case, our counselors did notice your daughters were slower to warm up initially and as such took extra care to help them settle in -- encouraging them to build, and participate at their own pace, while letting them pursue other activities of their interests (reading, drawing and more). While one of them wasn’t as drawn to the LEGO-building aspect of our program initially -- which is core to our hands-on, civics-based curriculum -- she got engaged with even the LEGO building (constructing several projects) and found ways to engage through other activities and playtime. One of the counselors paid constant attention to their group to make this happen.
We were genuinely surprised to learn, after the fact, that the overall experience felt difficult for them, as they had started to participate more actively after the first day and even started working with and sharing their creations with others. We wish we had heard from you during the first couple of days if this was the case -- with real-time feedback, we could have tried to better adapt and support your daughters.
Our program is thoughtfully designed around leadership, creativity, and collaborative city-building. While the LEGO-centered approach resonates strongly with most of our campers for an experiential and fun learning experience, we understand it may not be the best fit for every child -- especially those looking for a broader/ different mix of activities.
We appreciate you taking the time to share your experience, and we sincerely wish your family all the best in finding the right environment that brings your children joy and inspiration.
Warm regards,
The Kidizens Team
At Kidizens, we pride ourselves on creating a deeply engaging, small-group learning environment -- our camps typically have fewer than 22-24 campers with a high counselor-to-child ratio, allowing us to closely monitor and support each child’s experience very closely. (This camp had 21 kids with 3 counselors).
In this case, our counselors did notice your daughters were slower to warm up initially and as such took extra care to help them settle in -- encouraging them to build, and participate at their own pace, while letting them pursue other activities of their interests (reading, drawing and more). While one of them wasn’t as drawn to the LEGO-building aspect of our program initially -- which is core to our hands-on, civics-based curriculum -- she got engaged with even the LEGO building (constructing several projects) and found ways to engage through other activities and playtime. One of the counselors paid constant attention to their group to make this happen.
We were genuinely surprised to learn, after the fact, that the overall experience felt difficult for them, as they had started to participate more actively after the first day and even started working with and sharing their creations with others. We wish we had heard from you during the first couple of days if this was the case -- with real-time feedback, we could have tried to better adapt and support your daughters.
Our program is thoughtfully designed around leadership, creativity, and collaborative city-building. While the LEGO-centered approach resonates strongly with most of our campers for an experiential and fun learning experience, we understand it may not be the best fit for every child -- especially those looking for a broader/ different mix of activities.
We appreciate you taking the time to share your experience, and we sincerely wish your family all the best in finding the right environment that brings your children joy and inspiration.
Warm regards,
The Kidizens Team
My 7yo just tried their school holiday LEGO camp and had such a fantastic time. This is the first camp she's told us is GREAT and that she wants to go back to next year. We also love the civics education she's getting there. What a win for all of us!
My kids had a great time and learned about operation, logistics, and seem to have a greater appreciation of the work that goes into building their living space after attending Build-a-City Lego camp. There was a good amount of outdoor time during lunch and the location was convenient. The timing of the camp could be better- a 9a start time is late and disruptive to the workday. It would be nice to have an early drop off option (at least 8:30A).
Kidizens
May 2, 2025
Hello Da L, we are so glad to hear that your kids had a great time at camp! I want to reach out and say that we appreciate your feedback about our camp start time. Our start time is meant to mimic a typical school day, but we understand there are some families that would appreciate the extra time! We are definitely thinking about opening an early care option for families who need that extra time.
Josh, Janessa, and Jack at the Belmont location were great! They had wonderful energy to keep our group of 6-7 year olds engaged and we loved the presentation they had at the end. I would highly recommended for kids who love LEGOS.
Kidizens
May 2, 2025
Hello Lily Pan! Thank you for leaving this review- we let the team at Belmont know how much you appreciated the camp counselors! We are so lucky to have had rockstar staff, year after year. We hope to see you at camp again for 2025!
Highly recommend! This is my daughters favorite camp, she has been going there for 4th year and counting! She has so much fun and learns a lot every single time.
Every single supervisors I interacted with is amazing. They are just so good with kids.
Every single supervisors I interacted with is amazing. They are just so good with kids.
Kidizens
May 2, 2025
Hello Mick Hakobyan, thank you for your continued support of Kidizens! We are always so happy to see returning campers year after year, which is why we do our best to update our curriculum so there is always something new to discover at Kidizens! We hope to see your daughter join us again for summer 2025, and cannot wait to see what else she creates!
March 11, 2024
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Emily Moore
My kid left this program understanding connecting how city planning and voting impacts our day-to-day lives, and loved the daily challenges and adventure of it. Fantastic program, my kid has participated for three sessions and keeps wanting to go back!
March 8, 2024
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Dana Liu
This program has been a huge hit with both my stem kids! Donald is the absolute best. kids learn so much about history and civics, much more than school. we are truly grateful!
March 8, 2024
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Marla Hochman
Kidizens has brought out the best in my shy 10 year old boy! The program is just structured enough so kids have something to work toward, yet is flexible enough to allow for their own creative flair. Kidizens is inclusive, well-run, and fun! They make everyone feel welcome and all voices are heard in this collaborative program.
February 23, 2024
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Mahesh Balakrishnan
Kidizens is an amazing program. Children build cities using Legos and learn how society functions. It is one of the few programs that our children want to do over and over again.
Kidizens is an amazing program. Children build cities using Legos and learn how society functions. It is one of the few programs that our children want to do over and over again.
Our 7-year-old absolutely loved the Lego holiday camp. It gave him a chance to build and be around new friends for a week, and he loved the balance of guided themes, activities, lego play, and fun in the park. The teachers were enthusiastic and caring, too. We will be back!
My kids attended a summer camp a few years ago, and it's the only camp they've ever begged me to sign. them up for again. I finally did despite the only location available being an hours' drive each way. They loved it again. It's the best camp.
My daughter loved Kids Night Out! She wants me to sign her up for every event.
Program was good. My child enjoyed it. Place needs air conditioning or additional fans.
My kid loves it. So much fun to build with friends.
We loved our 2-week summer camp at Kidizens. The atmosphere is super positive and Donald with the help of his counselors does an excellent job running the show! BRAVO!
My kid really enjoys their after school class. Donald engages them and sends out weekly updates on what the kids worked on. The kids learn about civics as each week there is a theme (e.g., services needed for the lego city, etc.).
My son has gone to Kidizens several times now over the last year or so, because he enjoys it so much. It kindled a love of Lego for him, and he made new friends there. We signed him up again this summer, at his request.
Our son attended this two week camp and it was his favorite camp all summer! I love how thoughtful the camp is, how detailed the intricate the city planning is, how it is appropriate for all age levels and how much the kids learn while having fun. The camp counselors when above and beyond when they couldn't get a hold of us and just worked to make our son comfortable during an uncomfortable experience. I highly recommend sending your children here because who doesn't love legos? Camp counselors are engaged and energetic and the "curriculum" is well thought out. We have more fun playing with Legos as a family now, too!
My 6-year-old really enjoyed attending this camp for the first time. He said he definitely wants to go again next year. Thanks for creating a fun, safe environment for him to be creative (and learn about civics without even realizing it)!
My 6 year old really enjoyed Kidizens, especially the enthusiasm of Donald (whom he called Duck), in leading them through the simulations. My son's mind was blown by the sheer number of lego pieces, and liked free build time as well. He was matched with two other 6 year olds to be co-mayors. Unfortunately, we were not able to stay the whole time due a covid exposure in our household, so we had to withdraw after the 3rd day, but Kidizens was very kind to offer us credit for future use. Overall, I think this is a great way for kids to be start to learn how cities/towns are run, and how we adapt to citizen needs.
July 17, 2021
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Lauren Fowler
Verified Purchase
We booked this camp somewhat last minute and primarily because my daughter broke her wrist and we needed a camp that wasn't super active. I didn't know if this would be her thing, but she loved it! I really liked that there was some structure and goals behind what they were building and I think they helped keep the kids engaged. I would definitely sign up for this camp again.
These classes were so well done! They have been a highlight in my son’s week. He had so much fun all while learning a great deal. So impressed with how Kidizens has taken their program online so seemlessly. Highly recommend for any little Lego lovers!
My 8-year old loved the Young Mayors Online camp, he likes to build LEGOs and got a lot of good ideas from the camp instructors.
This is our second year back. Last year was in person and this year was virtual. This is one of the rare camps my son kept asking to come back to. I had doubts whether the virtual camp could be as engaging as in-person camp was, but I was pleasantly surprised. It was fun, kept his attention, and he still talks about how it was fun. The virtual camp kept to spirit of the in-person camp in that it was till about building a community and a city together. Lastly, I think I (along with other parents) must have sent dozens of emails to the camp as the pandemic was causing all kinds of uncertainty. My email was always answered promptly and Kidizens came up with a solid virtual camp plan very quickly. It was a good camp!
My 9 yr old son had a blast and learned a lot in the Young Mayors course! I will def. be signing up for more classes!
My girl attended the summer young mayors lego camp, she absolutely love it. The camp is full of creativity and fun. She built a city with all facilities with the support and instruction from staff. I was very impressed by all the photos the staff shared every day. She was so excited that she would like to come back for another camp.
What a wonderful virtual camp that I would highly recommend. My daughter's camp counselor (and helper) were so patient, enthusiastic and fun! My daughter loved her experience and I was so impressed! Great work and would definitely sign up again for in person or online!
Highly recommended! My son has been coming here for 4 years for summer camps, school breaks, etc. and still enjoys this camp at 10. He always said it was his favorite each summer! For an avid Lego fan, Kidizens is a really fun way to build Legos, work on problem solving and learn about operating a city.
Would highly recommend! My daughter had a wonderful time at this Lego camp. She came home everyday with a new structure she built in her "tiny" town with a plot line that was worthy of a Netflix comedy special. My daughter loves to build and this really sparked her imagination.
We really liked the use of Legos to practice solving real life problems of a mayor running a city. Very cute projects with lots of deeper questions to explore.
This camp was a BIG HIT! My son very much enjoyed a week of planning, buidling and putting together a city with different materials like Lego, Magna Tiles, and Minecraft. He learned how to criticly reflect his building ideas, explain them to his fellow campers and deal with their feedback. His teacher, Mr. Donald was so energetic, upbeat, helpful and motivating. This camp inspired my son to continue playing with Lego even after 2:30pm when the camp finished for the day. We are definitely signing up for another week.
This is an amazing program! My son learned so much about cities and how they are run. The moderator Donald Woodson is brilliant and keeps the kids thinking. We were very lucky to have this offered during the school shut down.
We LOVED Kidizens Young Mayors Lego Camp. At first I wondered if a week of Lego camp would really be fun for my son, but this was hands down his favorite camp of the summer! The curriculum was engaging, and the instructor (Ms Fiona) was fantastic!! Can't wait to do it again.
Would highly recommend. I was a little unsure how my 6 year old daughter would do in this camp. She was the youngest camper in her ski week camp In Belmont and had never been to Kidizens. This camp far exceeded both of our expectations. She came home every day talking about the day’s theme and was so sad when camp ended. She wants to go back for summer camp. I was most impressed by her new understanding of the basics of how a city runs. The instructor/camp leader is amazing.
My son was originally signed up with the Belmont location, but we were asked to change to Los Altos. This was a one day camp. H was just 6 and on the young side, but still had fun.
We decided to try signing up at the Belmont location again this year, but AGAIN they canceled on us and asked us if we would go to Los Altos AGAIN.
Unreliable and be prepared to find another camp.
We decided to try signing up at the Belmont location again this year, but AGAIN they canceled on us and asked us if we would go to Los Altos AGAIN.
Unreliable and be prepared to find another camp.
Kidizens
January 22, 2020
Karen, Our sincere apologies that this happened to you twice. We do not cancel our camps last min, unless we get last-min changes/cancellations from parents which forces the camp to dip below our minimum enrollment threshold. We always strive towards providing a socially-rich and high energy experience, which gets marginalized if there aren't enough kids in a session. Sorry, we cancelled the Belmont camp as we were left with only 4 kids and offered to combine the camps at Los Altos location with free extended care, so that we could offer an optimal, high quality camp experience.
My 7 years old son loved it. He was so excited talking about the projects he build at the camp, how he had meeting with city council, and was proud everyone loved his naming idea for his team's airport. It's also funny that when he talked about the experience, he tended to use big words such as creating job opportunity for the city, and he sat up straight like he is really a major. I can see how these activities built confidence for him!
One star took off for moving camp location from Belmont to Los Altos. It's definitely longer drive for us. But still, we don't regret at all!
One star took off for moving camp location from Belmont to Los Altos. It's definitely longer drive for us. But still, we don't regret at all!
Kidizens
February 1, 2020
Xuebin, Thank you so much for your positive feedback! So glad, your son got exposure to confidence building and leadership opportunities at the camp.
Again, apologies for moving the camp location - it typically happens for camps right around the Christmas/New Year holiday breaks, when we get many last min registrations or cancellations. For our summer and other holiday camps, for which there's a strong demand and parents plan in advance, we don't have to cancel a camp or move a location.
Again, apologies for moving the camp location - it typically happens for camps right around the Christmas/New Year holiday breaks, when we get many last min registrations or cancellations. For our summer and other holiday camps, for which there's a strong demand and parents plan in advance, we don't have to cancel a camp or move a location.
This is a great program, many thanks to Kidizens!!
My 7 year old son loves going to Kidizens for his weekly homeschool class. The teacher, Donald, is amazing and is so nice and patient with the kids. My son has made some good friends and has learned to work well as a team. The ideas that each student brings to the table are priceless. Thanks for offering this class!
My son has been coming to Kidizens camps (one day ones and Thanksgiving one) for over a year now and has really liked them all. He can't wait to go back. He is the shy one but the environment and activities the Kidizens staff provides give him confidence and make him feel comfortable. At the end of the day, he always shows me what he built and is very proud. The camp supports his creativity and passion for building things but also promotes teamwork and human connection as children work together to build a city or something that connects all their individual pieces.
This was my daughters first time at this camp. She loved it! She did not want to leave. We signed her up for a Thanksgiving break and Christmas break too.
This is the only day camp that my daughter requests every summer. We've been attending the Belmont site for the past three years and she loves it. Not only is there a plethora of Legos (!!) but the program is unique in how to have the kids plan the build. I like that the teachers are engaging and it's a place where the kids are encouraged to direct their own creations and "towns." A unique summer day camp that is different from the other ones (sports, STEM, art, etc...).
This is such a wonderful camp. Two of our children attended Kidizens, twice and begged to go back a third time! In a day of so many camps trying to add more "flare," and create bigger, better, faster - this camp takes the science of creative play seriously. They get some direction from the counselors who do keep an eye on what they're doing but mostly leave the children to develop creativity & build their own negotiating and project management skills. They could not wait to show me their work and explain the workings of their city each day. We were thrilled with this camp.
To be honest my 8 yr old son absolutely loves LEGOs and we have tens of thousands. He’s quite creative and advanced at building for his age. I figured he would love this class and we wanted to enjoy it also. Overall, to me it just wasn’t worth what we payed for it. Also my son felt it was “too simple”. Seemed very young for him and we just felt it was not quite stimulating end enriching enough. We were expecting more.
No take home items at all. For the high weekly fee, there could have been some sort of take home souvenir to remember the week by. For example, we did another week long science camp he left daily with a take home and on the last day had quite a bit of interesting things related to his week. This was awesome.
There was a nice slideshow video the instructor made and played on the last day of the week. This was really nice, however, when I asked if I could have the video emailed to us just for ourselves and memories, I was denied by the managers. That was definitely very disappointing.
There were only 4 boys total in the class. That is not enough for a exciting week. Especially at the price we are paying. Have a little larger groups for more interaction. Making matters worse, one of the four boys had a behavior problem and was breaking some of the other kids buildings. This could of been handled more fairly.
We paid $475 for this week and I would not recommend to others, nor would I sign up again.
No take home items at all. For the high weekly fee, there could have been some sort of take home souvenir to remember the week by. For example, we did another week long science camp he left daily with a take home and on the last day had quite a bit of interesting things related to his week. This was awesome.
There was a nice slideshow video the instructor made and played on the last day of the week. This was really nice, however, when I asked if I could have the video emailed to us just for ourselves and memories, I was denied by the managers. That was definitely very disappointing.
There were only 4 boys total in the class. That is not enough for a exciting week. Especially at the price we are paying. Have a little larger groups for more interaction. Making matters worse, one of the four boys had a behavior problem and was breaking some of the other kids buildings. This could of been handled more fairly.
We paid $475 for this week and I would not recommend to others, nor would I sign up again.
My daughter enjoyed using her imagination and partnering with others to collaborate on ideas and solutions for their town.
Kidizens is awesome! The staff is caring and creative, and they led my kiddos on an exciting adventure. My children learned civics, how challenging it is to run a city and a lot of great social skills needed for collaboration. They were both so bummed I had to miss the final presentation because they were so proud of what they'd learned and built! Sometimes camps can stress out my kids, and they really felt comfortable in the cozy, structured but creative environment at Kidizens!
This was by far the best camp of the summer. We tried out science camps, basketball camps, SF Giants camp, and bike camp and this was by far the BEST. Our son was so excited about this camp, engaged, happy and couldn't stop talking about it when he came home each day. And with all the other camps, it was hard to get out one word. We will definitely be signing up for this again next summer! Thanks for the great week!
My son loved this camp. I wish I signed up for more than one week! The kids work together to build a city, and every day they get feedback on how to improve (places to live, eat, etc). There are also natural disasters that happen (flooding, earthquake, power outages, snow) so kids come in the next morning they don't know what to expect! I loved that they had healthy snacks, a free lunch on Wednesdays and walks to the park for exercise. Great camp!
Yes, Donald was awesome. Thank you for your energy and attitude.
My son loves this camp. He has gone here for several years in a row . Now one of the older ones he really grasps the concept they are teaching. Teacher Alex is very calm and organized.
My son loves it! Kids loves LEGOs right? The teachers are generally responsible. But is it a bit crowded for 25 kids and the bathroom needs some walking. And no nearby space for outdoor recess.
My daughter loves this program. She is 8 years old, has been elected animal manager and is starting a "Breed and Feed" business. The instructors are thorough and kind.
My 6 year old son had lots of fun. The space itself is a bit depressing. It's literally just a store front on El Camino with no outside play area. It had a weird smell as well. While he enjoyed the camp, he did mention that he liked the robotic ones more. This one only has the regular lego blocks and their "building a town" seems to just be making a whole bunch of squares on the green base. Again, my son did say that he had fun though. So I guess there's something to be said about that.
Kidizens
February 27, 2019
Hi Kathy, Thanks for your feedback. Yes, your son did enjoy himself and had lots of fun contributing to the city – as he wanted to willingly stay for after-care everyday. Sorry, due to the weather, we couldn’t take the kids out to play at the Twin Pines Park, which is what we do on all camp days. But they had lots of fun, creatively tinkering, role-playing, etc. The value of the program lies in this highly immersive, social experience that stays with the kids (and they can always have the thrills with the robotic elements as well), and that’s why they want to come back for the 2nd and the 3rd and even the 4th time! The end result, what you see at the end of the day, may not be necessarily reflective of what they may have ‘experienced’ throughout the day, and the emphasis is never on following instructions and create something to showcase, but to think, solve problems and have fun while doing so, throughout the day….Sometimes the young 6-yr olds may not get into problem-solving as much, may build something and break it down the next moment, but it’s all part of their discovery and experiential journey at Kidizens. Otherwise, a bunch of green plates and few basic LEGO blocks won’t keep them so highly engaged for 3 days from 9-3! Thanks.
That's a really great program which includes fun and education! My 10 year old son loves it!
We are new to the Kidizen class, so far my 6 daughter enjoys building while learning different social subjects. The teacher is great in guiding and developing ideas for the class. She recently built and opened a Mermaid store for the city and we are very proud of her.
This was our 3rd or 4th time back at Kidizens. My 3 kids (ages 7, 8 and 9) LOVE it. They learn how to collaborate on projects and problem solve. Its such a fun way to learn important life lessons!
Our son is six and a half years old and did a three day camp over winter break. He absolutely loved it and we plan to send him back in the summer.
Tressa loves the program and asks to sign up every session for the last 2 years. Very educational and fun at the same time. Kids learn how to be productive and cooperative citizens while using creativity with Legos.
Kidizens has been great for my child. My only reason for not giving 5 stars is because I would really like kidizens to take this feedback very seriously. Whenever I have returned to pick up my child, the doors are not kept locked from the inside. With so many kids inside a see-through room, sometimes the kidizens location is right on the Main Street, I would really like kidizens to keep the doors locked at all times from the inside. This is for the safety of the kids, the teachers, everyone. Given the current events happening around the US, I would really like kidizens to make this change ASAP. I am hesitant now to enroll my child because of how laid back the entrance/exit policy is. Safety should always be first for everyone. I would really appreciate if I could hear from someone from kidizens on this safety aspect. Thank you again.
Kidizens
November 16, 2018
Thanks Vidhi for raising this point. The Kidizens staff is extremely cautious and super vigilant about the 'openness' of the space. At any point someone enters the space, there's a beep from the alarm system that raises additional awareness for everyone supervising the kids inside. We leave the door unlocked as the fire department (OSHA) requires the 'exit' door to be left unlocked in case of fire, earthquake or any other emergency - but based on your comment we can certainly explore an outside keypad entry into the space or a manual bar option, and try to come up with a solution that will still enable the door to stay unlocked from inside in case of any emergency exit required.
My kid had a blast at this camp - it helps that he adores Legos! I especially LOVED that this camp actually had the kids deal with real life issues and skills - problem solving given real rules, regulations, ordinances, physical constraints (like weather), and dealing with citizen requests, city needs, and externalities and consequences of actions. Building a city and dealing with things like economy, industry, pollution, services, is such a valuable thing to teach even young children. We're definitely doing this again next year!!
My child always has a great time at this camp. They learn so much about collaboration and how to take care of citizens in their cities.
My 8 year old loved the week. Definitely peaked her interests in civics and why our community is planned and built the way it is. It was a fun and encouraging week for her!!
MY 8 year old daughter LOVED this camp and she was previously very ho hum about legos in general. At weeks end she wanted to sign up for another one and quickly dusted off her own legos and started to build her own creations. This camp really fired her imagination. Thank you so much!!
My kids had a terrific time during the camp. I was impressed how well the camp is organized. The kids learnt a lot about city planning, utilities and services, running the city and took their jobs very seriously as mayors. They learnt the importance of team work and had a wonderful time building with LEGO’s, were very proud of their achievements. ‘ Young Mayors’ is one of the best camps they have been to. Thank You Kidizens!
My 7 year old really enjoyed Kidizens. He's been part of the class for one session last year, and this is the first year of doing a week long summer camp. Alex does a great job in facilitating the kids, and quietly taking ones aside that need a little extra attention. The kids work in small groups of 2-3 during the week creating their separate cities, though sometimes there is further collaborations and interactions between cities, including debates where the older kids present their points, offer rebuttals, and all kids vote.
The kids at the end of camp do a presentation that grown ups are welcome to attend. It's great to see the wide range of public speaking skills. The counselors put together a video montage of the children speaking about their work, and other highlights of the week. My child plans to come back!
The kids at the end of camp do a presentation that grown ups are welcome to attend. It's great to see the wide range of public speaking skills. The counselors put together a video montage of the children speaking about their work, and other highlights of the week. My child plans to come back!
Nice environment for kids. Staff seem to care for a lot about the kids and their learning style. We highly recommend!
Highly recommended!! Teaches kids about the responsibility of running a city. Enables them to be creative, use their imaginations - without screens! My 10 year old has been to the camp for several years, and it is his absolute favorite. He cannot wait to go in the mornings.
Leila loved to express her own creativity! She was excited to see how her decisions influenced her City as Mayor!
Glad for my son to participate in this camp. He appreciated learning how to be mayor of a city, and to grow in his conception of what it means to be a citizen and leader.
Our son loved participating in the Young Mayors summer camp. This was his first real summer camp experience. I was really pleased to see how the director and other camp leads were consistently engaging the children to think of ways to expand/improve their cities. They covered it all, from getting power to their citizens, to dealing with a pack of gorillas getting loose and finding solutions that made sense. It was well run and I always felt like my son was safe, even for the brief walk to the park. My little one already asked if he could have a repeat for next year! I highly recommend this camp, giving it a 10 all the way.
Kidizens is an amazingly engaging camp. My kids are learned about civic engagement and leadership while building with Legos. My son and his friends have been so engaged and invested in their community outcomes that he discussed their city's issues/goals and their potential solutions at bedtime and when he was getting ready in the morning. My daughter, who is younger, really enjoyed the interaction during the day and grew in her ability to work productively with others. Who would have thought that working together building a Lego city would achieve such a high level of intellectual stimulation and engagement.
Also, my kids loved playing freeze tag at lunch in the park! I'm sure that it was a very welcome break after all the high stakes discussions and building activity.
Also, my kids loved playing freeze tag at lunch in the park! I'm sure that it was a very welcome break after all the high stakes discussions and building activity.
Both my boys enjoyed it very much, they were discussing strategies at home and couldn't wait to get there in the morning. Very well run by Fiona, which makes sure to accommodate as much as possible.
Much more than a "lego camp" - this camp was about thinking forward and planning out a city, planning for traffic, weather, floods etc. Both my boys loved it.
What a great camp! I was skeptical that my boys would like it (both are 9) given the very simple setup with nothing but a room full of legos, but they both LOVED it and can't wait to go back next year. Each night they would come home excited about what they did and would plan out how they would meet the challenges the next day in their lego city. Plus, as a bonus they got to walk to a local park and run around outside at lunchtime - something you can't always do at indoor camps. We will definitely be coming back next year!!
The counselor was very nice, but the space was smelly and there were only 7 kids...
Nice teachers, committed to their work. Friendly atmosphere. Great idea with building cities and great to get reports about own kid how he/she was doing.
Kidizens had a great setup. It's essentially Sim City, "acted out" with Legos (facilitated by a camp counselor). (If you aren't familiar with Sim City, read up on it -- it's a very direct translation of it, complete with "natural disasters", paying to build things, collecting tax revenue, etc. There is also collaboration across cities, where you can build shared resources like fire houses and police stations.)
If you can sign up with a friend, I recommend that. From what I understand, it was basically that all day + recess at the playground + snack + lunch. So they should really love legos. My kid was on the very young side and loved it -- but I think it helped a lot that his friend/partner was much older (his older friend also loved it).
If you can sign up with a friend, I recommend that. From what I understand, it was basically that all day + recess at the playground + snack + lunch. So they should really love legos. My kid was on the very young side and loved it -- but I think it helped a lot that his friend/partner was much older (his older friend also loved it).
Really liked the theme and what the camp taught; especially being a leader and making choices that affects others. Campers seem really engaged and my son was eager to explain and show his accomplishments on a daily basis. I thought it was a good idea to get them outside and walk to the nearby park during lunch.
Things that could improve would be adding air/ AC to the facility. Each day at pick up, it was walking into a sauna with lingering smells from lunch or sweaty children. I was fully anticipating some type of presentation on the last day by the kids, but there wasn't. Overall, my son enjoyed and I would definitely consider doing it again.
Things that could improve would be adding air/ AC to the facility. Each day at pick up, it was walking into a sauna with lingering smells from lunch or sweaty children. I was fully anticipating some type of presentation on the last day by the kids, but there wasn't. Overall, my son enjoyed and I would definitely consider doing it again.
Our son had a wonderful week at Kidizens lego camp! He was excited to return each day and learned about the complexity of building and running a city. Now he wants to be a mayor when he grows up!
I highly recommend it! My 8 and 10 year old daughters both loved this camp! Every day I picked them up, they were so excited to show me all the things they had built. They seemed to really enjoy the civics nature of the building and telling me about why they had built particular structures to help their town. I was quite impressed by this camp that it turned out to be a great learning experience.
I was a bit concerned when I signed up that this would be a mostly boy camp -- my daughters had some girl friends there with them and I noticed a few other girls there who we did not know. It seems like at 30-40% girls that week, in case you are wondering. Though it didn't really make a difference as they work in small teams anyway.
I was a bit concerned when I signed up that this would be a mostly boy camp -- my daughters had some girl friends there with them and I noticed a few other girls there who we did not know. It seems like at 30-40% girls that week, in case you are wondering. Though it didn't really make a difference as they work in small teams anyway.
This one week camp was very well planned and well run. What differentiates this from other Lego camps is that it combines creativity with collaboration, social studies, and to some extent financial responsibility, all involved in building and managing a city. My 7 year old loved it!
Kidizens was excellent this year, because the counselor really connected with our son. In general, I think this is a good camp but not a great one. This is the third year our son has done this camp, and as he gets older, the concept of being a "citizen" definitely is easier and he is getting more out of it than just building lego. Overall a friendly and fun place to be.
My daughter loved it. She learned about government, courts, and civic leadership. She also learned about compromise and teamwork. I asked her to grade it A to F and she gave it an A+. Thinking we’ll be back next summer!
Great camp and friendly staff! My son really enjoyed it! And it was also nice they incorporated outside play time for the kids.
I'm so thankful for an engaging program like Kidizens that blends the best of learning and fun. It's a great place for students to use their imaginations, work together, and develop confidence. My son has been completed two years and is looking forward to a third.
Would highly recommend!! my two children who went through the program even now as older teens remember many of the lessons that they learned during their years with Kidizens. The staff was caring and well trained. The program is designed be intellectually stimulating while still being loads of fun.
A wonderful and creative place to engage kids in play and learning about civic responsibility, urban planning and the importance of teamwork.
Did Young Kidizens. It was awesome!! Well structured and warm.
May 15, 2018
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Bridget Mercay
My child has loved going to classes at Kidizens for the interaction with the instructors, to the activities they do during their time there, and of course, the Legos! The ideas he brings home and builds are amazing. The staff is kind, thoughtful, and does an amazing job at handling conflict with kindness and understanding and patience. I can't recommend them enough for kids who are happy to work in a group and have fun running with ideas.
May 15, 2018
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Sandra Tena
My son has been going to Kidizens for a while now and he loves it! He loves building legos and at Kidizens he gets to build legos, learn about how a city is built and instituted, about the leadership needed to be established in a city, how to be a good citizen and much more. And all of this is done while having fun with his peers in a fun educational environment. Fiona his instructor is very knowledgeable and great with kids!
We highly recommend Kidizens!
We highly recommend Kidizens!
May 14, 2018
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Eileen Zubiria
My 10 year-old son enjoyed Kidizens because he wasn't into sports and I needed an after school activity for him to attend because of my after-school p/t work schedule. He really loves playing with Legos and I'd heard good things about Kidizens from a friend. My son is on the shy side, so the small class size worked well for him, and I also really appreciated that the class was longer than most after-school offerings, 2 1/2 hours, so it covered almost all of the time where I needed him to be occupied with a stimulating activity while I worked. Kidizens is meant to engage the kids in learning about how to work together to build a Lego city and with all the infrastructure that that requires. My son got into that aspect of it, although it can be challenging when the kids don't agree on how things should be done. The instructor, Alex, was a good mediator. My son would have liked to just do free Lego play as well, but the aspect of working and planning to build a city with a team is a pretty cool learning experience for young kids.
May 12, 2018
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Liz Price
Verified Purchase
Kidizens is a fantastic way for kids to experience what it means to live in society and develop a community based on the group's common experiences, goals, interests, and varying needs.
May 12, 2018
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Keva Dine
Kids building towns, building buildings, building dreams AND building community - all in one - BRILLIANT!
May 10, 2018
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Kai Tse
Verified Purchase
Our kids love this program - its the best for teaching real practical skills and knowledge. Our older child has some anxiety issues and this program due to the people and his love for lego's has helped him break out of his shell. Kuddos to the team.
May 8, 2018
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Paul Vinger
Fiona and Alex took in my reluctant 9-year-old son mid-course, and turned him into an engaged and excited participant. They run a great program!
May 7, 2018
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vaibhav kasar
Its amazing and easy to operate.. I have booked camps for my child and booked easily and payment submitted in one time.. I loved with kidizens team.. Good job..
May 1, 2018
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Kelly Lawrence
Verified Purchase
My kids love this program! They use their imaginations to build amazing cities, and then they adapt them as various crises occur. It’s a little like Sim City with LEGO.
April 27, 2018
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Bronwyn O
Verified Purchase
A+! My children have attended Kidizens during the summer and the school year as well. Kidizens has this creative, fun, engaging, sneaky, incredibly effective way of channeling kids' love of LEGOs into a wonderful experienced loaded with lessons in leadership, teamwork, civics, responsibility and problem-solving. My sons and quite a few of their friends have taken to this amazing program. The teachers are dedicated and enjoy what they are presenting or guiding the children through.
April 27, 2018
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Candy Sarna
This program is well laid out and fun. My child was engaged and learned a lot while also playing and making friends. I especially appreciated her teacher, Alex. He is so good with kids. He's calm, thoughtful, encouraging and knows how to take a child's question or interest and turn it into a fun lesson. My child attended Kidizens for a year and I was very impressed and satisfied the entire time.
April 27, 2018
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Vania Dias mendonca
My younger son was invited for a Kidizens birthday party once and when it was time to chose an after school activity the first thing he said was "I want to go to the Lego place. Do you think they have something?" I must confess that I was surprised that he had already something in mind. The second best surprise was to find out that Kidizens has an after-school program, once a week, that engaged my son so much that he keeps going back. Contacting them was also easy and the enrolment went super smoothly.
I am also amazed how Kidizens opened up his mind to things that he would not be usually interested. I highly recommend it.
I am also amazed how Kidizens opened up his mind to things that he would not be usually interested. I highly recommend it.
April 26, 2018
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Stefi Ganesan
My son started when he was 5 with kidizens and is now 10 and still loves coming to kidizens at least once per year. This is a wonderful place for kids to not just purposeful and creative builders, but also understand what good citizens are and learn and develop leadership skills early on in their lives.
I am also very impressed by how the instructors pay attention to the social dynamics and behaviors each kid brings with them and constructively help and teach them how to work with other kids and in teams.
I am also very impressed by how the instructors pay attention to the social dynamics and behaviors each kid brings with them and constructively help and teach them how to work with other kids and in teams.
April 26, 2018
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Jose Moreira
Verified Purchase
My 3 kids loved it! They took a week long camp on Mountain View location building an entire city with all the real needs that such a project requires. Playing and learning. And also they were very happy with the staff, very nice and responsible.
April 26, 2018
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Allison Shotwell
Verified Purchase
We LOVE Kidizens! My son asks me all week if it's a Kidizens day. I love how much he is learning, how cities work, how voting works, how to work together to come up with solutions...it's been a fabulous experience,.
April 26, 2018
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Keith O'Donnell
My son has been taking the Young Kidizens class for 2 sessions now. He absolutely loves it and always looks forward to his "Lego Day". Our experience has been wonderful!!
April 25, 2018
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Kathleen S.
Creating responsible citizens! My kids LOVE Kidizens, and we love the life lessons they are learning -- civics and government, obviously, but also the value of coming together as a community; the importance of respecting and valuing their peers; the vital skill of conflict resolution and negotiation; and critical thinking. My wee citizens have planned out their own tiny businesses (complete with business plans and debt structures!), come together with their class as a group to tackle and solve problems ranging from enormous natural disasters to discrete but complex matters of public safety and law enforcement, and made great friendships while lego-ing away to their hearts' content. My daughter was elected Mayor during her first Kidizens summer camp session, and she firmly believes that it's next stop, Madame President, for her!
April 25, 2018
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Eric Law-Hing
My 6 year old loves lego and this was the perfect camp for her. Everyday she was so excited to tell me about her city and what happened to it. One thing of a slight concern was the size of the room and being in there all day. It was nice one day they went to the park.
April 25, 2018
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Carly Loeb
Verified Purchase
My 8yr old daughter has been attending Kidizens for well over a year and loves it! She has done their week-long summer program, their winter break camps and day long holiday camps, and we also held her most recent birthday party there. Kidizens isn’t your standard Lego program- the program teaches urban planning, civics, teamwork and problem solving, and they make it fun for all ages! I highly recommend them and am confident they would use your grant effectively!
April 25, 2018
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Joan Galdamez
Verified Purchase
My son loves Kidizens! He is very picky--a hard sell--when it comes to camps. He told me that he felt inspired at this camp and has already told me he wants to go this summer, which is very unusual for him to request to go to a camp! He really enjoyed learning about managing a city with Lego buildings no less!!!
April 25, 2018
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Ami Jampolis
Verified Purchase
We LOVE this camp. My son tends to gravitate towards a smaller camp environment that feels more personal. This camp is a great balance of creativity, teamwork, critical thinking & fun! I highly recommend it!
April 25, 2018
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Mindy Ju
Verified Purchase
Our son loves Kidizens, and we love the lessons he's learning: how to be a responsible citizen and leader. We highly recommend this experience!
April 25, 2018
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Max Sung
Verified Purchase
Kidizens runs a terrific program that teaches kids how to solve problems and work collaboratively while learning about community and civics, all through playing with LEGO! The instructors have been terrific; they are super engaged and genuine, they bring a lot of enthusiasm and imagination to the activities, and they are incredibly supportive of the kids and their families. A great resource for our community!
April 25, 2018
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Joy Silver
Verified Purchase
My son does Kidizens after school program. It is his favorite day of the week. Knowing he gets to go to Kidizens right after school makes him so happy. He has learned a lot of comprising skills, social skills, and leadership skills all while building cool stuff.
April 25, 2018
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Lisa Mehta
My son loved learning about what goes into making a City and a small business work and be successful. I love the support he has received during the two years he has done the class. I highly recommend for your child. They get experience and knowledge I can’t replicate at home.
April 24, 2018
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Jyothi Robertson
Kidizens has been a fabulous program for my homeschooling children, ages 7 and 11. Not only is in engaging because of the Lego's aspect, it is incredibly educational! The teachers are phenomenal and really take the learning experience to a new level. By incorporating business and civics into a familiar environment (legos and creative building), the kids learn how to be leaders. Additionally, the higher courses have them actually creating products that they market - so they take the concepts beyond Legos to real life.
April 24, 2018
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Sarah Mitchell
Verified Purchase
Excellent experience with Alex and Kidizens. He's great with our 7 year old boy. The program is excellent to promote learning, working in groups and cooperation. My son doesn't like sports and hasn't found his "thing", but this is it. He asks me why we can't go every day.
April 24, 2018
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Agnes Le
Verified Purchase
My son has been going for Kidizens after school for 2 years and it's his favorite activity. I like that Kidizens incorporate civic and lessons and other business concepts into lego building. Examples of some cool concepts he has been learning: building your own business, marketing it with a logo and commercial, learning about different countries, different types of buildings, etc.
April 24, 2018
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Jennifer Thunstrom
Verified Purchase
Fiona and Alex have inspired my middle school age son with their innovative approach to education. My son is considering further pursuits into civics, city planning, and entrepreneurship as a result of their classes. I can't recommend highly enough!
April 24, 2018
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Mark Sierra
Verified Purchase
Kidizens is fantastic! My son Nicholas is a big fan and it's his favorite part of the week. It's a very fun and creative way for young boys and girls to learn to collaborate and create along with "real life" skills such as budgets and thinking about what it takes to really run a business. Alex is very patient and really does a good job of keeping the kids focused and engaged for almost 2 hours - which is not easy to do at that age!
August 19, 2017
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Merritt Maduke
Verified Purchase
We absolutely love Kidizens! It is the best of fun and educational.
My son loved this camp. He loved being "Mayor" of his city, solving problems, sailing to "Lego Island" and writing the town constitution. I feel like the space could be spruced up a bit, but that didn't bother my son at all.
July 29, 2017
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William Coffman
Verified Purchase
Kidizens was about building legos, and showing off the kid-citizens skills to one another, but it's also about the construction of a city, or cluster of cities. The students need to problem solve and cooperate with one-anther. My kid loved, and a presentation showed that all the kidizens were crazy about it. Only negative was it's ending.
July 25, 2017
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Anna Rubalcava
Verified Purchase
This was the first year that my children age 9 female and age 6 male attended this camp. After the first day, my daughter was already asking me if she could return the next year. They both had great fun and learned how to collaborate with others and build a spectacular city!
July 9, 2017
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Geoffroy Raby
Verified Purchase
Great camp. Our twin boys were delighted about the camp and it was really interesting for them.
July 3, 2017
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Isabelle Dumans
Verified Purchase
Fun since it's Legos but also teaches kids cooperation, work in groups, handle feedback, perseverance since they need to improve on their city every day.
June 24, 2017
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Jamie Glanville
Verified Purchase
My son had a terrific time at Kidizen Lego Camp! The instructor, Scott, did an awesome job helping kids navigate the decisions and logistics of building a working community. My son loved the teamwork aspect, and came home each day excited about the creativity and the real-life things they needed to incorporate/consider. Overall, the camp was outstanding, and we would definitely recommend it to friends!
June 24, 2017
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April Buchheit
Verified Purchase
My son loved this camp and wanted me to sign him up for additional weeks this summer.
December 22, 2016
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Lorraine M. easter
Both my daughters, 9 & 12, had a great time at Kidizens this Winter Break. They learned so much more than just the physical "building of a LEGO city" - it was more like "building a complex civilization". They learned to think about all aspects of city development from police and fire departments, to solar energy and water purification, to governance and education. They defined roles within their group and formed alliances with other cities to share resources. Their favorite part was trying to figure out how to save their citizens when "calamities" befell their citizens overnight. (The teachers would put notes next to people or buildings describing a fire or snowfall or flood.) Thinking about what could happen and how they might deal with it kept them really excited about going back the next day. Why didn't they have things like this for us to do when we were kids?
July 16, 2016
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Prachi Shah
Verified Purchase
Kidizens is a great camp. We (parents) loved how they integrated lots of real life concepts and skills with Lego as a medium. And, my son had the most fabulous time. We will be sure to sign up again every summer.
June 25, 2016
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Christine Larson
Verified Purchase
This is my kids' favorite camp. They're 10. They attended last year in June and asked if they could do another session later in summer. This year they asked to do it again for a two week session. It's really fun and educational too!
April 11, 2016
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Michelle Mello
Verified Purchase
My sons (ages 5.5 and 7.5) attending a 2-day Kidizens spring break camp and LOVED it. Usually reticent about sharing details of their day, they couldn't stop talking about everything they did at Kidizens. Even the 5-year-old, who I suspect didn't absorb too much of the civics lessons, reveled in being the "Vice Mayor" and was fully engaged helping out his brother, the Mayor. The 7-year-old came home talking about the benefits of all-hazards insurance and paying for a well-functioning sewer line -- so hilarious. My only critique is that I wish the camp had gone all the way to 5pm. But we'll be back!
April 2, 2016
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Mary Logan
Verified Purchase
This was my sons' first time with Kidizen and they loved it! On the ride home, they talked nonstop about what they did in class. They asked if they could go again.
November 13, 2015
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Ursula Vitt
Verified Purchase
Our son greatly enjoyed a one day camp at Kidizens even though he did not know anyone nor the place. The whole process of dropoff and pickup was really easy. We watched one of the videos the night before so he had an idea what it was about and walked right in. The teacher had no difficulties handling nearly 20 young children buzzing around in the room who were all enjoying themselves when I came for pickup.
August 10, 2015
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Joy Ku
Verified Purchase
My daughter attended the Kidizens summer camp at Belmont this summer and really enjoyed it! I think she has a much better understanding of the different elements involved in running a city (laws, tradeoffs in determining how a limited resource is used, the role of taxes). It definitely got her thinking. In fact, one morning she heard the garbage truck drive by and she asked me whether our taxes paid for the garbage collection. On top of that, there was learning to work within a small team. The teachers were excellent at guiding the kids while simultaneously letting them try out new ideas. Plus, my daughter had fun!
August 5, 2015
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Lisa Bourgeault
Verified Purchase
My son and his friend had an "awesome" (I wish I had a nickel for every time they said it was awesome) week at Kidizens. One of their favorite activities was making an ad for their re-election campaign as co-mayors of the city they created. We'll be back next year for more!
July 27, 2015
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Rebecca Lowell
Verified Purchase
My son just finished a week of camp at Kidizens and he absolutely loved it! The combination of Lego building and learning about urban planning, taxes, the court system, laws and citizenship was incredibly interesting and enlightening to my child. He came home excited every day about what he had learned. The woman who ran the camp did a terrific job of helping the children to understand the WHY of so many issues in a city. Kidizens was a great experience and worth every penny!
June 28, 2015
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Joann Collins
Verified Purchase
This is my son's favorite camp by a mile! One day he said, "every day I'm not at Lego camp I die a little inside."
June 24, 2015
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Melissa Jankowski
Verified Purchase
Being an only child, my nine-year-old son does not get as many chances to practice his social skills on a daily basis. Having Kidizens in his life this past school year in Los Altos every Monday has been an awesome addition to his mental and social growth! He has to compromise, lead, come up with ideas, deal with winning and failure. It's been such a great experience having Scott and Prerana teach my child about cities, architecture, government, to name a few things!
June 21, 2015
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Debbie Bunin
Verified Purchase
My two boys (6 and 9) loved the week of summer camp at Belmont Kidizens. They couldn't wait every morning to get there and have already asked to do it again next summer. They weren't even big fans of building with legos beforehand.
April 17, 2015
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Peter Betlem
My 9 year-old daughter (who could not care less about legos) and 11-year old son (who loves legos) have taken multiple classes at Kidizens and they both love it. It is a fascinating way to learn about civics, the basics of economics and how society functions. Kids learn how to work in teams, develop leadership skills and how to communicate.
