Summer Camps: Wheel Throwing and Ceramics in Novato | Marin Pottery

We LOVE pottery! We're offering weekly camps for our pottery lovers at our Novato, Marin Pottery studio. Camp is offered for ages 8-12 and 12-15, depending on the week.

Campers get to become fully immersed in messy, creative clay projects. We keep camp size small for individualized learning. This ceramics intensive camp will provide experience in wheel throwing, followed by explorations in sculpting, learning how to hand-build sculptural and functional items, glazing, and all things clay! Projects can vary from week to week so your camper can attend multiple sessions and gain new knowledge each time.

*Links will take you to our registration platform

June Summer Camps

July Summer Camps

August Summer Camps

Camp FAQ  

Why enroll in our camps?

Marin Pottery wants to share what the power of working in clay gives. Working with your hands is essential to being human and when you connect to clay you are connecting to earth after all clay is essentially mud. Our staff will share techniques in wheel throwing, sculpture, working with different clay bodies, glazing, and hand building.

Our curriculum is progressive, child-initiated, and thought-provoking. Marin Pottery creates and writes all curriculum, training our teachers in our philosophies and procedures. How to teach the whole child and honor each as the individuals they are is a pretty special way of teaching. We provide growth in children through honoring ideas, executing dream designs, guidance through questions to engage problem-solving, build creative thought processes through mistake-making, and celebrate collaboration.

What age are your camps for?

Our summer camps are for ages 8-15, depending on the week.

How many children are in each camp?

10 campers

Will my child get to work on the pottery wheel?

Yes!

Can we actually use the items my child makes?

If your child is making artwork that is meant to eat out of (cup, plate, bowl, etc.) their work is food, dishwasher, and microwave-safe.

Does the paint and clay wash out of clothes?

Sometimes! Clay can be messy and dark clays will stain. Please dress in clothes you can get messy.

Do you offer sibling discounts?

Siblings can receive a 10% discount.

Do you offer new art projects every time?

We have been hosting camps since 2000 and regularly get return campers. If a camper is registered for multiple weeks in the same summer, we will be sure to introduce new projects. Because of our teaching philosophy of letting our students decide what their artwork will be, they become leaders of their making allowing them to make decisions on are executions.

My child doesn't know much about or has never used clay. Will they feel overwhelmed?

Our camps are taught to scaffold the learning of each of our campers. We will meet a child at their level and have the ability to then work together to accomplish a work of art that they are proud of. We don’t ever compare work from one camper to another, we know every child comes with their own set of knowledge, our goal is to elevate and celebrate them from where they are.

What techniques will my child learn?

Campers will learn traditional clay techniques, learning to work with tools, understanding glazes, and build confidence and apply their knowledge with contemporary applications. Techniques include wheel throwing, slab building, coil building, underglaze application, glaze application, and more.

What is your refund policy for camps?

There are NO REFUNDS FOR CAMPS and no make-ups for missed days of art camp. If an emergency arises and your child is unable to attend camp there is a $100 non-refundable deposit per child. Please email info.marinpottery@gmail.com

Play with clay and have the best summer ever!