CDE (Ages 4+-10)

Students: 120 from over 20 countries
Student Staff ratio 3:1

Le Château des Enfants is an international, educational summer camp for young children from all nations, backgrounds, and cultures. It provides a unique blend of traditional camp activities for boarding (6-10-year-olds) and day (4+-10-year- olds) students with French, English, and Italian language learning in a warm, safe, and nurturing environment. With the experienced and caring support of our multi-lingual staff, our program encourages an interchange of experiences and customs among children. The program aims to help children develop greater independence and self-confidence in the context of a well-supervised and diverse community.

Learn a Language
Children are exposed to a variety of languages and cultures, but English remains the principal language of the program. In morning and afternoon lessons of 4-8 students each, children learn French, English, or Italian. Our bilingual teachers create a friendly and appropriately- challenging learning environment, buoyed by drama, singing, and the wonderful energy generated by the children. 

Activities and Excursions

Throughout the session, the children participate in a varied program of recreational and artistic activities. In our arts and crafts program, students put their creative young minds and hands to work producing paintings, puppets, collages, papier-mâché, or clay models, while learning about various artistic styles. 

Video No. 9 : Château des Enfants
Watch our youngest children enjoy their summer experience at CDE.

Children especially enjoy drama as a way to explore language. Our drama program has been specially created for our age group and focuses on storytelling, body movement and control, using language, and building self-confidence. Older children have the opportunity to participate in an original musical production. In the past, the children have performed The Swiss Family Robinson and William Tell musicals. 

We offer age-appropriate sports and instruction, including kickball, baseball, basketball, tennis, soccer, and a daily swimming class. Some of our excursions include paddle boating, climbing through medieval castles in Bellinzona, visiting a falconry in Locarno, and touring a chocolate factory. 

Camping
Our 8- to 10-year-olds enjoy a special overnight camping experience that begins with an afternoon dip in a spring-fed mountain stream and culminates with roasting marshmallows and singing around a campfire, while overlooking spectacular moonlit views of Lake Lugano and the surrounding peaks. Some of the younger children join us for swimming and for a barbeque around the fire before returning to campus for the night. Children 8 years of age and older are welcome to join the overnight camping trip in the mountains.