“I’m bored!” This is a phrase that parents often hear from their children during the summer months. A variety of free and affordable summer camps and programs are available throughout the city to help solve the problem.

Here’s an overview:

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee

Boys & Girls Clubs offers a full-day summer program for children to participate in sports, games and outdoor fun with a dose of education-based activities to exercise their brains in preparation for school resuming in the fall. The program also offers several field trips to places such as Milwaukee Public Museum, Wisconsin Dells and the Milwaukee Zoo.

Enjoy free admission to Milwaukee attractions

The Milwaukee Public Museum offers free general admission for all visitors on the first Thursday of every month. The Milwaukee Art Museum also offers free admission on the first Thursday of every month. Kids 12 and under are free every day.

Milwaukee Area Technical College

Milwaukee Area Technical College will hold 12 four- or five-day career summer camps in June for high school students across its four campuses. Most of the courses are free and taught by MATC instructors. Visit http://www.matc.edu/summer/ for details. Call (414)-267-6136 or email explore@matc.edu for a registration form.

Milwaukee Public Schools

Summer Enrichment Camps offered through Milwaukee Public Schools are free of charge for MPS students and City of Milwaukee residents. Interactive camps allow students to explore new ideas, develop new abilities and learn in a safe, nurturing environment. Camps include topics such as music, design, coding, robotics, outdoor education and more.

Urban Ecology Center

Register your child for a summer camp offered at the Urban Ecology Center. Activities include exploring nature and building science skills. The organization offers summer programs at three locations: Menomonee Valley, 3700 W. Pierce St., Riverside Park, 1500 E. Park Place, and Washington Park, 1859 N. 40^th St.

YMCA of Metropolitan Milwaukee

The YMCA of Metropolitan Milwaukee offers affordable summer camps and programs to youth at five locations around the city. The first summer session runs from June 18 to July 22 and the second summer session runs from July 23 to Aug. 26. Scholarships are available.

If you know of other free or affordable summer programs for children, please add a comment below.

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How to find free or low-cost summer activities for kids

by Madison Marx, Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
May 23, 2018

<h1>How to find free or low-cost summer activities for kids</h1> <p class="byline">by Madison Marx, Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service <br />May 23, 2018</p> <br /> <figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full wp-image-51343 is-resized"><img src="https://milwaukeenns.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/35287232565_42c81d62ba_o.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-51343" height="3456" width="5184" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Urban Ecology Center summer programs encourage youth to learn about science and nature while having fun. (Photo courtesy of the Urban Ecology Center)</figcaption></figure> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright is-resized"><a href="https://milwaukeenns.org/category/how-to/"><img src="https://milwaukeenns.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/nns-ht.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-23673" height="108" width="120" /></a></figure> </p> <p class="p1">“I’m bored!” This is a phrase that parents often hear from their children during the summer months. A variety of free and affordable summer camps and programs are available throughout the city to help solve the problem.</p> <p class="p1">Here’s an overview:</p> <p class="p3"><b>Boys &amp; Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee </b></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><a href="http://www.bgcmilwaukee.org/summer/">Boys &amp; Girls Clubs</a></span> offers a full-day summer program for children to participate in sports, games and outdoor fun with a dose of education-based activities to exercise their brains in preparation for school resuming in the fall. The program also offers several field trips to places such as Milwaukee Public Museum, Wisconsin Dells and the Milwaukee Zoo.</p> <p class="p3"><b>Enjoy free admission to Milwaukee attractions</b></p> <p class="p3">The Milwaukee Public Museum offers free general admission for all visitors on the first Thursday of every month. The Milwaukee Art Museum also offers free admission on the first Thursday of every month. Kids 12 and under are free every day.</p> <p class="p1"><b>Milwaukee Area Technical College </b></p> <p class="p1">Milwaukee Area Technical College will hold 12 four- or five-day career summer camps in June for high school students across its four campuses. Most of the courses are free and taught by MATC instructors. Visit <a href="https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.matc.edu_summer_&amp;d=DwMFaQ&amp;c=S1d2Gs1Y1NQV8Lx35_Qi5FnTH2uYWyh_OhOS94IqYCo&amp;r=ZZs91oqaxw4PoRDwmSuJe4eGQM4h6OALNBdnwdyRa_4&amp;m=vT5sFooNAXXc2Xu-hZ-n2shJCvlCSCbAZln1isNgP4k&amp;s=8nBddfCdcMX_I1GbnobpMJ_q2kZROLgsnGGOgjkcKO8&amp;e=%22%20%5Ct%20%22_blank"><span class="s1">http://www.matc.edu/summer/</span></a><span class="s2"> for details. Call (414)-267-6136 or email <a href="mailto:explore@matc.edu"><span class="s1">explore@matc.edu</span></a> for a registration form. </span></p> <p class="p3"><b>Milwaukee Public Schools</b></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><a href="http://mps.milwaukee.k12.wi.us/en/Programs/J-Term/Summer-Enrichment-Camps-.htm">Summer Enrichment Camps</a></span> offered through Milwaukee Public Schools are free of charge for MPS students and City of Milwaukee residents. Interactive camps allow students to explore new ideas, develop new abilities and learn in a safe, nurturing environment. Camps include topics such as music, design, coding, robotics, outdoor education and more.</p> <div><strong>Milwaukee Recreation&nbsp;</strong></div> <div></div> <div><a id="m_-6285710476707392904LPlnk377913" href="http://milwaukeerecreation.net/rec/Programs/Summer.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?hl=en&amp;q=http://milwaukeerecreation.net/rec/Programs/Summer.htm&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1527214746484000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFZQuP8NUGsENEKHt9H3KmVsRCGJw">MPS Summer Enrichment Programs&nbsp;</a>provide a safe haven for youth in grades K5-12 at more than 100 locations during non-school hours, including the summer. Summer enrichment programs provide academic support, including academic enrichment, art and music, technology education, sports and fitness activities, and activities to develop a young person’s leadership and social skills. Also learn about free summer playgrounds <a href="https://youtu.be/BIHkYpnOIXM">here</a>.</div> <p class="p3"><b>Urban Ecology Center </b></p> <p class="p3"><span class="s1"><a href="https://campscui.active.com/orgs/UrbanEcologyCenter%22%20%5Cl%20%22/selectSessions/2281101">Register</a></span> your child for a summer camp offered at the <a href="https://urbanecologycenter.org/"><span class="s1">Urban Ecology Center</span></a>. Activities include exploring nature and building science skills. The organization offers summer programs at three locations: Menomonee Valley, 3700 W. Pierce St., Riverside Park, 1500 E. Park Place, and Washington Park, 1859 N. 40^th St.</p> <p class="p3"><b>YMCA of Metropolitan Milwaukee </b></p> <p class="p3">The YMCA of Metropolitan Milwaukee offers affordable <a href="https://www.ymcamke.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Summer-2018-Program-Guide-Final-WEB.pdf"><span class="s1">summer camps and programs</span></a> to youth at five locations around the city. The first summer session runs from June 18 to July 22 and the second summer session runs from July 23 to Aug. 26. Scholarships are available.</p> <p class="p3">If you know of other free or affordable summer programs for children, please add a comment below.</p> <p>This &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://milwaukeenns.org/2018/05/23/how-to-find-free-or-low-cost-summer-activities-for-kids/&quot;&gt;article&lt;/a&gt; first appeared on &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://milwaukeenns.org&quot;&gt;Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service&lt;/a&gt; and is republished here under a &lt;a target=&quot;_blank&quot; href=&quot;https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/&quot;&gt;Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;img src=&quot;https://i0.wp.com/milwaukeenns.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/cropped-NNS-Favicon.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;amp;ssl=1&quot; style=&quot;width:1em;height:1em;margin-left:10px;&quot;&gt;</p> &lt;img id=&quot;republication-tracker-tool-source&quot; src=&quot;https://milwaukeenns.org/?republication-pixel=true&amp;post=51338&amp;amp;ga4=G-HGM4XK3QCM&quot; style=&quot;width:1px;height:1px;&quot;&gt;&lt;script&gt; PARSELY = { autotrack: false, onload: function() { PARSELY.beacon.trackPageView({ url: &quot;https://milwaukeenns.org/2018/05/23/how-to-find-free-or-low-cost-summer-activities-for-kids/&quot;, urlref: window.location.href }); } } &lt;/script&gt; &lt;script id=&quot;parsely-cfg&quot; src=&quot;//cdn.parsely.com/keys/milwaukeenns.org/p.js&quot;&gt;&lt;/script&gt;

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