Vermont Insect Summer Camp 2026 | Bug Huggers Adventure Camp (Grades 5–8)

 Looking for a Vermont insect summer camp for middle school students?

 Bug Huggers Adventure Camp* offers a hands-on, science-rich experience for students entering Grades 5–8. *Concept by VEA, but the camp is an SMC program: run/managed by Saint Michael's College

📍 Hosted at Saint Michael’s College
📅 June 22–26, 2026
🕘 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM
👩‍🔬 Maximum 15 students

What Makes This Vermont Youth Science Camp Unique?

This is a lab and outdoor field observation camp.

Students explore:

• Insect observation and collecting on campus grounds
• Aquatic insect life at local waterways (pond, river)
• Insect behavior, beauty, and diversity
• Food webs and ecosystem connections

Campers use real field tools:

• Nets
• Hand lenses
• Microscopes

They also contribute observations to iNaturalist, learning how community science supports conservation and biodiversity research.

Who Should Attend?

This camp is ideal for students who:

• Love being outdoors
• Ask questions about nature
• Enjoy hands-on science
• Want to build confidence in observation and identification

No prior entomology experience required.

Cost 

• $280 per student (includes daily lunch)
• Limited enrollment (15 students)

👉 Apply here: https://tinyurl.com/mr3hhu6f

If you're searching for a Vermont middle school science camp that builds curiosity, ecological literacy, and confidence, Bug Huggers Adventure Camp is designed for exactly that.

THANK YOU Donors

We wish to thank the following donors for scholarships and program support

• Bee The Change (Mike Kiernan et al): Scholarship funds.

• Anonymous donor:  Scholarship funds.

• Stephen and Clare Earley: Scholarship funds.

• Vermont Entomology Society: Insect-themed t-shirts for registrants.

• Spencer Hardy: Glass vials to temporarily hold live insects for close-up observation

• Brad Vietje: Copper Sieve for straining out water invertebrates from ponds or streams.

• Declan McCabe: Magnifying glasses with lanards, and devotion to introducing and teaching youth about invertebrates.

• Sandra Fary

• Emily Rowe (Northern Woodlands org.): 30 copies of Northern Woodlands magazine.

• Alden Wicker (Communication Specialist, Vermont Center for EcoStudies): 25 copies of VCE Field Notes magazine.

Bug Huggers Adventure Camp was developed by Vermont Entomology Academy | Insect Education, Youth Programs & Community Science in Vermont and is run by Saint Michael's College. 

You cannot protect what you do not love.

You cannot protect what you do not love.

You cannot love what you do not understand.

You cannot understand what you are not taught.

Come learn with us.