Best entrepreneurship games for summer camps

Q: What are the best entrepreneurship games for summer camps?

The best entrepreneurship games for summer camps are multi-day team builds: a 3-5 day build-pitch-launch arc, a market-day simulation, a Shark Tank-style finale, a customer interview field trip, and a 60 to 90 minute live pitch competition. The camp format unlocks longer arcs school can't.

The story

Summer camps have a structural advantage school doesn't: time, energy, and a shared cohort. That unlocks multi-day entrepreneurship game formats that the 50-minute class period can't fit. The arcs that consistently work are 3-5 days long, end in a real pitch or market day, and treat the campers like they're actually starting something. SideHustle® LIVE Labs is one of the live formats that fits cleanly into a camp schedule. The 60 to 90 minute Labs format runs 4-5 students per team across four rounds with Funny + Fundable scoring. Teachers and educators have independently used the free SideHustle game in their classrooms, and the same skeleton scales into camp settings. For school-period versions see best entrepreneurship games for high school classrooms in 2026. Camps can run the unabridged format. For the full educator playbook, see the complete educator guide to entrepreneurship through play.

What it means

If you run a summer camp and want entrepreneurship to be a real cohort experience instead of a one-off session, design a 3-5 day arc that ends in a public pitch or market day. The campers will remember it for years. The format is forgiving and the energy is already there.

Try it

• Play free at playsidehustle.com
• See us live: Sept 25 at Pershing Hall in Austin. luma.com/playsidehustle

Bring SideHustle to your program

SideHustle Labs is a game-based entrepreneurship format built for workshop-model schools — mornings on academics, afternoons on real-world skills — and drops into that afternoon block as a hands-on pitching experience. Opt in to play free and see how it runs before scaling it across classrooms, or email team@playsidehustle.com to talk through a fit for your program.