This review is for the Mad Science Summer Camp ONLY. This business is the kind where they find a place to rent out for a few weeks sight unseen *so the venue can be filthy, falling apart, dangerous as in failing equipment, broken down classroom seating and utensils, and they won't know it. Our camp was housed in a filthy and musty public elementary school in a small classroom. This room was too small for the entire group and so all were cramped. The reality was ALARMING that the instructors function as bodies to direct a script but are not truly educators *so you can have a recent college grad with a BA in History teaching your kid "science" and add to that a person not in tune, or give a hoot about kids, how to educate, nurture nor watch over children. Worst of all and YIKES they do not not pay attention nor supervise these kids, they are hands off if any trouble or accidents happen and they do not report injuries to the parents. These instructors are oblivious about harm done to the student and are more worried about having time to get and eat lunch, drinking Starbucks, being on their phones, etc.* SOOOOOO With that as the preface all I can say is do not waste your money because your child will not learn much science. All they will get is a babysitter who pretends to be a teacher, who if you are lucky feigns cheeriness, add to that the other children in the class will not respect the instructor nor their peers and as in the case of my daughter, get physically injured. SO WHAT HAPPENED? An experiment went sideways and my daughters entire back had the skin scraped off while being pulled by a boy to the point that her shirt came up while being pulled the equipment broke, and the skin came off she was left with a raw back, no attention was given and it was bleeding. The instructor kept her mouth SHUT and only when I went to hug my daughter once I picked her up, did she cry out in pain and showed me her entire back was still bleeding. The instructors were gone by then so I had to wait until the next day. I went up to the main instructor the next day and told her it was unacceptable to hide a severe injury such as what my daughter had suffered and all she could muster was "I AM SORRY I HAD NO CLUE ANYTHING HAPPENED" Huh? Aren't they watching a group of 6 and 7 year olds? And there were 2 instructors for the group. I WOULD NOT TRUST ANY MAD SCIENCE SUMMER CAMP AND I WOULD NOT RECOMMEND THIS COMPANY TO ANYONE. ***I find it highly unusual that they have such high reviews seems suspicious and why I question every five star review*** it read more

Awesome party! Everyone had a blast. Arrived early, setup in time, and guests were all enthralled. So many parents asked where I found them. Always nice as a parent to throw the party that all the other parents are talking about! read more

My 6-year old daughter really enjoyed the week-long Dinosaur-themed Mad-Science. I loved that she made new friends (even though I sent her with her classmate), learned, had lots to talk about to us when they came home each day, and were tired. The counselors seemed good and Wil, the Director, was Fantastic. As a first-time summer camp mom, he was super responsive, understanding, and helpful. Knowing what I know now, I will definitely be signing my kids up next summer. Thank you! read more

I used Mad Sciences services for the first time 2 years ago. I turned to them again for another birthday party hoping for the same customer service and great interaction. The performance provided was wonderful. It is what came after this, the negative interaction. As a result unfortunately, this is not an organization I would recommend or fraternize again. read more

We hosted a birthday party at our house, and the mad scientist was such a hit. He kept the kids entertained, laughing, and amazed! Highly recommend! read more

I'm a retired educator; with the parents of my twin grandsons, we wrote this review. After the STEM Expo on April 4, the boys eagerly showed up for the weeklong Mad Science (MS) DC camp at Citizen Heights Church in Tenleytown. The age 10 boys were met with biting, tossed glass, were spat upon and kicked and bruised. (The owner has pics). Staff did not intervene, despite my grandsons' requests. No manager is onsite, so parents were told to call, director/owner, Will Naron. With injuries involved, we requested a meeting before week's end, but the earliest would be that next week and preferably he'd come to us; as onsite was small, with no chairs! (With the delay, the boys would lose the chance to point out the violent children, and offsite, we would not see the camp 'in action.') However, he promptly refunded the approx $700 cost. Naron stated he has no protocols for incident reports and didn't feel the need to inform the other parents. Plus, he NEVER mentioned his, his staff or the children--including the twins, as appropriate--apologizing. Obviously, stated expectations/accountability is not part of his MS code of conduct. My grandsons were the only Black children; all others were white and about 5-7, except another boy, approx. age 10. Naron has owned the MS franchise 6 years and states his staff is extensively trained. The twins felt neither welcome nor safe. His staff failed. As a side, all children were called "Dude," a lazy, disrespectful short-cut to taking time to learn campers' names. Parents, ask for written descriptions of planned STEM activities, protocols for incident reporting, and waivers for photographs, injuries from science experiments, snacks/lunches, etc. Instead of the advertised STEM program, Naron's MS DC crammed energetic, naturally curious children of inappropriate age groupings into a basement room, and babysat for $330+. Avoid this camp until its track record shows otherwise. read more

We had an incredible experience hosting our son's 4th birthday party at home. The kids had so much fun making all kinds of scientific experiments and playing with dry ice. Adults also enjoyed watching! Communication with this business was excellent and I would highly recommend Mad Science to anyone considering birthday entertainment. It's been almost a month and my son is still talking about it. For me, it's a win-win, when the kids are entertained and learning at the same time. Highly recommend! We were worried about not having enough space but the setup was minimum and our Mad Scientist brought everything needed. read more

My son did this program through his Elementary school in Virginia as an after school program. I was the parent volunteer, so I sat in on all of the classes. The instructor for the first class was good, but then things went downhill. The new instructor brought supplies for an entirely different class, which was geared toward much older kids than the kindergarten/first graders that they had. They were supposed to build a rocket ship, but there was no engine included--parents were supposed to go to a hobby store to buy that. After visits to three hobby stores with no success, I contacted Mad Science and was directed to a store in fairfax (40 minutes from us). My husband took our son to the store, where we learned that the launch kit was $80.00 and you had to get a special permit from Arlington County in order to launch it. Please try explaining this to a kindergartener. The remainder of the weekly sessions were at least the correct content, the instructor had very little control over the kids, and was 30 minutes late to the last class, leaving 19 kindergartner/first grade kids to mill around the classroom waiting. The class was thin on educational content, and each week there seemed to be a snafu (forgotten power cord, something broken, etc). He was more interested in talking to me on the side about how he is a DJ than interacting with the kids. It was very disappointing. read more

We had a Mad Science birthday party for my seven year old. She picked it up, I was thinking maybe princesses or a teddy bear party, but she was really set as she has seen Mad Science at school. Tony (who was the scientist) came on time to set up and he was really attentive and engaging with the kids. Tony showed several experiments and at the end, the kids made putty and they brought it home. It was an amazing experience to see the kids excited in learning and having fun at the same time. If I have to change something, I would probably ask for more hands on experiments, but overall great! read more

very disappointing, educational content was thin, classroom was small and filthy, trash strewn everywhere. pre/after care was little more than a teenage girl preoccupied with her cell phone while the kids climbed over and under the desks. I called several people at Mad Science, got a polite blowoff from everyone. Security at College gardens was non existent. I was able to enter the building, and roam the halls (looking for my son's classroom, no signs anywhere). I wrote a review at their website, but it never showed up, I sure they screen out anything less than five stars. Live and learn. read more

Mr D kept 20 kids (kindergartners) entertained and interested in learning for over an hour ! Best money we've spent for a birthday party. Beats Chuck E. Cheese or other dispensable fun. Perfect for k and first grade! He made the birthday girl feel special but included everyone. Get the cotton candy! read more

My son loved the Mad Science program at St. Bernadette. It was well run and he really enjoyed the magic and the take home projects. We've also really enjoyed their birthday parties and Montgomery County library programs. read more

We have enjoyed the Mad Science of Washington summer camps for several years now. We love the educational quality of the program and our kids love all the fun that they have. They've asked to attend again this year for the 4th time! The instructors are very professional and have tons of energy to work with all these active kids. It is nice to find a camp that caters to both our 10 year old son and our 7 year old daughter. What a plus to find a camp where we can have them both at the same location. We look forward to another summer of fun with Mad Science! read more

We used the Mad Science of Washington last weekend for our son's 6th birthday party. Ms. C was great and kept the kids really engaged throughout the entire show. She even handled a couple of "challenging" guests with firmness, but not at all coming off as mean. She was well trained to handle those situations. The kids were completely enthralled throughout and several kids stated afterwards that they want Mad Science for their birthday parties, which is the best compliment that Ms. C and the Mad Science team could receive. Highly recommend this group for birthday parties and other special occasions. Well-organized and manageing organization. read more

We used Mad Science of Washington for my son's 6th birthday party and they were simply fantastic. The scientist arrived early, kept the 18 kids entertained and engaged in learning for the whole 1 1/4 hour, and left them with fond memories and great goodies to take home. She was fun and completely unflappable, even when a couple of kids were acting up. Several kids from my son's party wrote about it in their journals at school today because it was the best thing they did this weekend. Parent approved and kid recommended. Doesn't get better than that! read more

I want to preface his story by saying that the administration of Mad Science was very responsive and apologetic about this incident. But I feel parents considering a Mad Science summer camp should know what happened to my son last week. We signed him up for a second summer camp in Fairfax--he also went last year--and was put in a pack of 5 kids that ranged in age from 6-10. The teacher, Sam, was a little truculent but I didn't judge. My son, who loves science and never complains about teachers or students, came home the third day and told me a 5th grader was hurting him--purposely stepping on his hands and such. The teacher's response to him was "it's not that bad." I smilingly informed the teacher what was happening and he motioned to the girl who was doing the bullying--which was so unprofessional. But I left my son there on day 4 because he begged me to let him attend. I wish I'd thought better of it. At the end of that day I arrived to pick him up early and overheard the teacher lecturing his class of little kids on the parts of the brain, in the overly complex manner of a college professor, not a camp counselor who has a couple of 6 year olds in his midst. But Okay, I thought. They're totally quiet in there, so I guess they must be into it. Then, out of nowhere, he starts SCREAMING my son's name, then yelling "Are you even listening to one thing I'm saying?! You know what, I'm so sick of this!!! I'm so sick of you not listening?!" The tone was one of an adult screaming at another adult. He was just completely losing it on my kid; it was 100 percent abusive. My son just broke down in tears. I ran in and confronted the teacher and he said "I talk to my own kid that was and he doesn't seem to have a problem with it." This teacher didn't seem to be able to discern the difference between talking to your own kid and communicating as a teacher. He never apologized beyond "I'm sorry you feel that way." I called the main office immediately and the president got on the phone with me and was shocked, concerned and apologetic, and said he would talk to this teacher. He refunded us for the last day of camp. My son, who never cries, cried all the way home and it marred the entire experience for him. The worst part: he said it wasn't the first time this guy had lost it on him. That pretty much broke my heart. I just wanted to write this to urge other parents to ask for references and even a resume when signing up for any camp. I wish I had, and feel guilty that I didn't. I do not think this person is indicative of what Mad Science typically staffs--my son had a really good time last summer with a very sweet counselor. And the administrators were horrified when they heard. But I really think they should have a two-teacher policy. There's just no one watching what the teacher/counselor does all day with your kids! read more

Mad Science of Washington is great! We've had both a birthday party and attended summer camp. My daughter absolutely loved both. This was a big hit as a birthday party. We loved it so much that we're planning to do it again for one of my other kids. You definitely won't be disappointed. read more

After participating in several Mad Science after-school programs at his elementary school, my older son asked if he could have a Mad Science birthday party for his 8th birthday. He's been doing the after-school program since kindergarten ( one session each year) and this was his third year doing it. I was a little hesitant at first about the party b/c it seemed kind of pricey and, while he enjoyed the after-school programs, they did not seem particularly 'science-y". I guess I'm a little picky b/c I'm a chemist. The after-school program is worth the money, but it's also a small fraction of the birthday party package. Basically I needed the birthday party to be waaaaaaay better than the after-school program to be worth the money. So we decided to give it a try and it did not disappoint. We purchased the deluxe package, which included an extra dry-ice demonstration, an extra 30 minutes of scientist time ( for a total of 1 hr and 15 minutes), and the goody bags. It was AWESOME!!! My husband was skeptical at first that the kids (mostly 8-y-o's) would be able to pay attention that long, but the kids were totally captivated from the minute our Mad Scientist started and throughout the whole thing. The only thing I wish they had was a little more kid involvement, but with so many kids, and limited space, I can understand why it's structured the way it is. My son felt pretty good getting to be the assistant on several "experiments". and our scientist, Jamie, explained everything in a way the kids could understand, but without "dumbing it down". She was really very dynamic and just fantastic. The kids loved her. Parents were telling me afterwards how much their kid loved the party. I would totally do it again for my other kids. It was an absolute hit with everyone. read more