The Virginia Institute of Marine Science will begin its first of five 2011 summer science camp sessions on Monday.

Sarah McGuire, program coordinator for the Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in Virginia, said this will be the third year the camps are offered at no charge through a gift from an anonymous donor. The camps began in 2009 and are scheduled to run through 2013.

During each of the five weeklong sessions, campers get wet and muddy at sites around the Chesapeake Bay, McGuire said. Four of the sessions will be held on the VIMS campus at Gloucester Point, with one session planned at VIMS’s Eastern Shore campus.

"Bay Buddies," the camp for rising third and fourth graders, will kick off the summer series June 20-24. McGuire said campers will learn about ways to protect and preserve the Chesapeake Bay environment, with activities to include seining in the York River, using field guides, making crafts, and completing projects that will benefi...