Did spring break sneak up on you?  Don’t worry, I’m not judging. There are people in my neighborhood who still have Christmas decorations up. They tell themselves they’ll take the lights down after Epiphany and then completely forget when Epiphany is. “Isn’t it around Super Bowl time?” Bottom line, it’s easy to lose track of when spring break happens…especially when it happens so close to Christmas.

Whether time has slipped away from you or you’ve just been bitten by the procrastination bug, don’t sweat it. There’s still time to get the wee ones out of the house and having a good time this spring break. Check out the Junior’s list of last minute camps.

Be inspired at one of Oil and Cotton’s spring break camps. Photo: Oil and Cotton

Get those creative juices going with one of  Oil and Cotton’s spring break museum-inspired art camps. Each day a favorite cultural institution is featured at the Oil and Cotton studios. Monday it’s the Latino Cultural Center, Tuesday it’s the Dallas Museum of Art, Wednesday the Crow Collection of Asian Art is featured, Thursday it’s the Nasher, and  Friday. Budding artists can draw inspiration from local collections and exhibitions and create their own masterpieces. Kids 4 to 12 can take part is this morning camp.

Spend this spring break with Mother Nature. Photo: Trinity River Audubon Center

Don’t let your little sloths languish away on the couch this spring break.  Get them away from the video games and into the great outdoors at Trinity River Audubon Center’s Audubon Adventure Camp. There’s a whole week’s worth of outdoor fun planned for kids ages 5 to 12 at the beautiful facility in the Great Trinity Forest. Little campers can hike, track wildlife, conduct field studies, create nature art, and my personal favorite, learn wilderness survival skills. This camp is from 9 to 3 with after care available.

If you want a camp that includes a good dose of nature and art, check out the Greater Denton Arts Council’s 5-Day Spring Break Camp. Kiddos can be inspired by nature as they sing, dance and create in the galleries, studios and outside at the Patterson-Appleton Art Center in Denton. They’ll experiment with a variety of media including drawing, weaving, and photography and on the last day of camp, kids will participate in a site specific art-installation in the sculpture garden that will be on view throughout the month.

See where imagination leads at a SCRAP camp. Photo: SCRAP

Another Denton camp for kids who love to create and invent is Camp SCRAP, an an art camp centered on themes of creative reuse. The theme this go round is Under the Sea. Kids 6-12 will use discarded materials to make useful projects with their own artistic flare.  Projects are a mix of staff lead projects and free building with access to a craft supply wall chock-full of materials to reuse. You can sign up for individual 1-day camps or the full 5-day camp.

How about a spring break camp hosted by a spring chicken? That’s right, along with the nice folks from Texas A&M Ag Extension, that celebrity bird and Rooster extraordinaire, George, is hosting his 2nd Annual Spring Break Camp for kids age 7 to 12 at Gecko Hardware. Activities include cooking, plant and animal science, bugs, art, photography, and of course, chickens! The best part is these half-day camps only cost a little more than chicken feed. Only $10 a day, or $40 for the whole week.

Come hang with George this spring break. Photo: Gecko Hardware