About 14 years ago, I helped my older sister host a week long chocolate camp for kids, and it’s one of those sweet memories that’s always stuck with me. This summer, I decided it was time to recreate the magic—this time in our new neighborhood, with my 9-year-old daughter and over 11 girls who live right on our street! We’ve recently moved into our home, and I thought, what better way to kick off summer (and make new friends) than with a totally free, totally fun Chocolate Camp in our kitchen? With aprons, sprinkles, and melted chocolate flying, the day was full of laughter, sugar, and lots of chocolate. I’m sharing everything we did so you can bring the same kind of joy to your own home—no experience necessary, just a love of chocolate and a willingness to embrace a little mess!

Chocolate Camp Treat & Craft List

• Apron Decorating
• Caramel Apples – This is the main event and what will take up most of our time!
• Molasses Cookies with Chocolate Drizzle
• Caramel Chocolate Dipped Pretzels
• Caramel Chocolate Popcorn
• Dipped Oreos
• Dipped Nutter Butters
• Chocolate Dipped Marshmallow Sticks

More Fun Craft ideas:

• Chocolate Trivia
• Coloring Sheets
• Name Tag Decorating
• Painting

More Fun Treat Ideas:

• Chocolate dipped fruit (strawberries or bananas)
• Cake Pops
• Chocolate Molds
• Hot Chocolate Bombs
• Chocolate Bark

Chocoalte Camp Supply List

• Kid’s Aprons
• Iron On Patches for Aprons – Chocolate goodies (These are so cute!) – Pink Letters – White Letters – Flowers – Hearts
• Cookie Sheets – You’ll need lots! Next time I’m going to ask the kids attending to each bring their own. This way as they finish treats they can set theirs on their own pan at their station and nothing gets lost. Then when they go home they can take home all their treats right on their cookie sheet.
• Parchment Paper Sheets – These are precut and fit perfectly on a half cookie sheet. I would get at least 4 sheets for each child attending. Everything you dip in chocolate needs to be set on these sheets so they don’t stick.
• Treat Bags – You’ll need various sizes. Make sure to get some long ones for popcorn!
• Folding Table & Tablecloths – I used our large kitchen island and brought in our folding camp table. Next time I’d even borrow a second camp table. You’ll want each child to have their own space for all their treats and cookie sheet. I didn’t worry about chairs, the girls were standing most of the time.
• Chocolate Temper Machine – I ordered this on sale and it was very convenient to have. I put the melting chocolate in about and hour before camp started and it worked out perfectly. When it ran low I would heat chocolate up in the microwave and pour it into the machine as the girls worked on their treats.
• Microwave Safe Measuring Cup for melting chocolate –
• Treat Bag Sealer– My mom brought this and we used it to seal the cookies. It’s not a must, but it sure makes for cute cookies!
• Candy Melting Chocolate – I just used store brand from Kroger or Walmart. Don’t use chocolate chips, you need to use candy melting chocolate. If you’re real fancy and like to spend money, use the Ghirardelli chocolate.
• Package Stickers – We printed these on stickers for treat bags. Feel free to print them to use yourself!

• Granny Smith Apples (I did 3 per girl)
• Candy Apple Skewer Sticks – you need these for the apples and the marshmallows
• Molasses Cookies (1 dozen per kid)
• Large Marshmallows
• Oreos
• Nutter Butters
• Ritz Crackers
• Popcorn – I used Boom Chicka Pop Sweet & Salty Kettle corn from Costco. 2 large bags was plenty for 11 kids.
• Pretzel Sticks – I find these at Walmart
• Caramel – We made 2 batches of this recipe during camp. You can buy caramel and just melt it down, but in my experience making it is just easier and less mess.
• Candy bars for caramel apple toppings
• Sprinkles
• Fruity Pebble Cereal for caramel apples
• Graham Crackers for caramel apples (crush and dip apples in them)

Chocolate Camp Schedule

I scheduled our camp for one day, from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM, and it was the perfect amount of time—plenty to make lots of sweet treats without overwhelming anyone (myself included!). Here’s how we structured the day and what we made:

9:00–9:30 AM – Welcome & Apron Decorating
We kicked things off by decorating plain pink aprons with iron on patches I ordered on Amazon. This was a great icebreaker and gave us a little time to explain the day’s plan while the chocolate was melting.

9:30–10:00 AM – Cookie Dipping Station
Each kid had a pre cut parchment paper place setting and a dozen pre cooked molasses cookies. I showed them how to drizzle on chocolate or dip half the cookie in chocolate. They all took turns decorating all their cookies however they wanted.

10:00–11:00 AM – Caramel Apples & Pretzels
The girls helped rinse, dry, and put sticks in all the apples. The girls helped start the caramels over at the stove and then my mom took over and cooked it until the temperature reached 238 degrees. Each girl dipped 3 apples and a few pretzels. I used the last of the caramel to drizzle on popcorn and to make Ritz cracker sandwiches. Oh my! They were so good! We let all these goodies set while we worked on packaging the cookies.

11:00–11:30 AM – Package Cookies
My mom brought over her cookie sealer machine and made cute stickers to package all the goodies. You can download the stickers here to use if you’d like!

11:30–12:00 PM – Caramel Apples & Pretzel Decorating
Once the caramel apples and pretzels were cool it was time to add the chocolate! I showed the girls how to use a spoon to add chocolate to the top of the apples, or how to dip the bottom half of the apple in chocolate. They topped their apples with sprinkles, chocolate candy pieces(Twix, Snickers, KitKats, M&M’s etc.), graham crackers, or fruity pebbles(my favorite!!).

12:00 AM–12:30 PM – Cookies, Popcorn, & Marshmallows
We then used all the remaining chocolate to dip some Oreo’s, Nutter Butters, and marshmallows on a stick. They used all the leftover sprinkles and candy on these goodies.

12:30–1:00 PM – Finishing Touches & Packaging Treats
All the treats went into treat bags and got a sticker or a some ribbon. We gave each camper a take-home treat box to pack up their goodies. The older girls help clean up a bit while we helped the younger girls package up all their treats to go.

Tips for Success

• Use disposable table covers and have a clean-up plan.
• Have your attendees bring their own cookie sheet to use during camp and to take all their goodies home on.
• Keep you group small. More kids is more mess, more waiting in line for treat dipping, etc. I would aim for around 10 kids.
• Keep chocolate warm in a temper machine, slow cooker, or glass bowl on a heating pad.
• Have extra helpers or teen volunteers if you can. I couldn’t have done it without my mom! She was a big help.
• Take photos and send them to parents afterward—such a sweet keepsake!

Hosting my frist Chocolate Camp was such a sweet way to kick off summer and connect with the kids in our neighborhood. The joy on their faces (and the chocolate on their hands!) made every bit of prep totally worth it. Watching them create, laugh, and proudly pack up their homemade treats reminded me just how special simple moments like this can be. I’m already dreaming up ideas for a Holiday Chocolate Camp later this year—think peppermint bark, hot cocoa spoons, and reindeer pretzels. If you’re considering hosting your own chocolate camp, I hope this post gives you the confidence to go for it. Just stock up on chocolate and sprinkles—you’ll be so glad you did!