The Power of Difficult Play
Climbing is a Path
Connect. Grow. Climb. Call it higher learning. Our after-school programs provide kids a chance to take their first steps into the sport and support them all the way to our sport’s biggest stages. We’ve built programs to meet each age tier at their ability level and help young climbers follow their curiosity.
Winter Registration opens November 2nd. Please pay attention to age categories.
Pebbles
Format: Seasonal
Duration: 1 hour
Ratio: 1:4
Age Range: 4 – 5 years
Cadence: Once a week, consistent group
Play is a powerful teacher. The Pebbles program turns climbing walls into a playground for a preschooler’s imagination. Games and cooperative play provide the backbone of a program that fosters coordination, strength, teamwork and listening skills. Our goal – build confidence, coordination and focus with an emphasis on growth and fun.
Is your desired day and time sold out? Join our waitlist at Minneapolis or St. Paul!
Rocks
Format: Seasonal
Duration: 1.5 hours
Ratio: 1:5
Age Range: 5 – 7 years
Cadence: Once a week, consistent group — great entry point for first-timers
While much of climbing comes naturally to young climbers, technique and structure goes a long way. At this age kids absorb coaching. Through thoughtful games and challenges, young climbers learn footwork and body position while working together. We emphasize creative problem solving on the wall and sharing in each other’s success.
Is your desired day and time sold out? Join our waitlist at Minneapolis or St. Paul!
Boulders
Format: Seasonal
Duration: 2 hours
Ratio: 1:5
Age Range: 8-11 years
Cadence: Once a week, consistent group
At this age, young athletes begin to understand their mind plays an equal role to strength in meeting athletic challenges. Fostering perseverance takes consistency and a supportive peer group. Together, climbers tackle on-the-wall problem solving, begin to set goals and help each other work towards them while also learning how to take turns, practice good climbing etiquette and cheer each other on in whatever challenge they’ve chosen.
Is your desired day and time sold out? Join our waitlist at Minneapolis or St. Paul!
Crushers
Format: Seasonal
Duration: 2 hours
Ratio: 1:6
Age Range: 12 – 14 years
Cadence: Once a week, consistent group — open to all levels
We meet teen climbers where they are — building independence, forming identity, and wanting to know the “why” behind everything. Crushers 1 makes space for teens who have just found the sport with introductions to technique and collaborative problem solving. Climbers set their own goals, take ownership of their progress, and build self-reliance that carries far beyond the gym all while supporting one another.
Is your desired day and time sold out? Join our waitlist at Minneapolis or St. Paul!
Senders
Format: Seasonal
Duration: 2 hours
Ratio: 1:6
Age Range: 14-18 years
Cadence: Once a week, consistent group — open to all levels
Whenever you find climbing, it can lead you on a path. Designed to be an on ramp into the sport, teens build skills, set goals and develop problem solving tools. With solid mentorship, teens often make rapid progress and coaches encourage first steps towards structured, purposeful practice.
Drop In Classes
Curious about rock climbing? Drop-in classes are the perfect place to learn how to climb and make awesome memories at the same time!
Sundays from 11:30am-12:30pm, ages 5-12.
YOUTH TEAMS
Our climbing teams develop youth as climbers and humans, fostering personal growth through setting and achieving goals, developing critical thinking skills, and increasing self-confidence through a competitive platform.
- Youth under the age of 14 must be closely accompanied by an adult at all times.
- Our supervision ratio is 2 to 1; up to 2 youth climbers can be supervised by 1 adult chaperone at a time.
- Stay far from the walls and out of fall zones when moving through the gym or waiting to climb. A “fall zone” is anywhere on the mats where a climber could land if they were to fall.
- Make sure to check where a route ends before starting to climb–some routes are close together or even overlap, and you don’t want to end up directly above, below, or next to another climber.
- This is a climbing gym! Please save running, wrestling, horseplay, and gymnastics for other spaces.
- Youth ages 13 and under are not allowed in our fitness and yoga spaces or classes. Youth 14-17 must have an adult age 18+ supervising to use our fitness and yoga spaces or attend a class.
Due to programming, the youth room is unavailable on certain days and times each week. When not in use for programming, the Youth Room is open and available for you to enjoy!
In general, the Youth Room is unavailable during the following times:
- Weekdays from 4:30 PM – 6:30PM
- Weekends from 9:00 AM – 12:30 PM
- When Adventure Days & Camps are occurring
- When a private birthday event is booked (often occurring on Saturdays and Sundays: 1PM – 3PM, 3:30 PM – 5:30 PM)
Have questions about climbing, the facility, or risk? Ask our staff—we are here to help.
Youth Programs: msp.programs@boulderingproject.com
| Youth Program Season | Class Dates | Number of Classes | Holiday Breaks (No Classes) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall 2026 | St. Paul | September 8th – November 23rd Minneapolis | September 21st – November 21st |
St. Paul | 10 classes Minneapolis | 9 classes |
St. Paul | October 19th-25th (Boulderfest) |
| Winter 2026-2027 | November 30th – March 6th | 12 classes | December 21st-January 3rd (Winter Break) |
| Spring 2027 | March 8th – June 5th | 12 classes | April 5th-11th (Spring Break) |
Youth Newsletter Sign Up
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