"Apparently, I shouldn't stay home all summer," said Isaac, a rising Cleveland High School sophomore who'd rather spend his free time practicing with his band.

But Isaac settled on "Bad to the Bones," a weeklong camp that introduces young people to the ins and outs of crime-scene investigation. Isaac and two dozen other young people learned how to preserve evidence, take fingerprints and secure a crime scene.

Many young people around the area are taking part in summer camps that organizers hope will keep their minds and bodies engaged in the absence of school. But some say the still-sluggish economy continues to take a toll on camp attendance, as parents struggle to afford them.

Kim Wiggs Gamlin, a department chair at JCC, said she helped promote the college's summer camps by handing out brochures at local events. "People would look at it and say, 'I wish I could send my child to a camp, but I just can't afford it,'" she said.

In the past, the college's IMPACT camp for students in grades 6-8 averaged about 40 students. This year, it had 25, Wiggs Gamlin said.

JCC canceled some camps, including piano, fitness and T-shirt making, because not enough students signed up, she said.

But other camps have thrived. Instructor Cynthia Moore had to turn away students for the "CSI"-themed camp, which cost $115.

The camp, for students in grades 7-12, was bound to be a big draw, she said. "They watch it on TV, and they really get involved in it, and it sparks their interest," Moore said.

The daytime camp at the Clayton Community Center is popular too, said Larry Bailey, the town's parks and recreation director. About 80 kids ages 6-12 have been showing up for the camp every day, he said. It costs $40 a week for Clayton residents and $80 a week for those who live outside of town.

The camp grew when the town built the community center a couple of years ago, Bailey said. Until then, the summer camp was at a picnic shelter at Municipal Park and had about 50 youngsters a day. The department extended the camp hours when it moved to the community center.

"Now that we're in the new building, we're having more response," Bailey said.

In Smithfield, the day camp at the town's recreation and aquatics center has been reaching its capacity of 30 children, said Kristin Sasser, the center's supervisor. Last year, the cutoff was 24.

But enrollment in some of Smithfield's nine sports camps has been slower than usual, said Jan Ashley, who works for the Parks and Recreation Department.

Meanwhile, JCC has expanded its camp offerings to 35. Usually the college hosts about 12 camps. And this is the first year JCC is having camps on its main campus. In the past, they have been at the Cleveland campus and local schools.

At the "Bad to the Bones" camp, 12-year-old Anna Spoon, a rising seventh-grader at Four Oaks Middle School, said the camp was sort of like school - but better.

"This is interesting, and school can be boring," Anna said.

Wiggs Gamlin, who hopes camp-goers will one day attend JCC, liked Anna's assessment. "That's exactly what we want to hear," she said.