Summer classes where you study what you like

Summer school has messed up many a kid's vacation plans, but adults can revel in courses that take place over the next few months. From

a two-hour barbecue skills session to

a four-week photography course, there are plenty of places to learn

this summer:

1 BBQ BOOT CAMP

WHEN | WHERE 2 p.m. Saturday at Waters Crest Winery, Route 48 and Cox's Lane, Cutchogue, Register in advance.

INFO 631-734-5065, waterscrestwinery.com

COST $45

Time to fire up the grill. Or on this Saturday, let chef Thomas Fazio do it for you.

Fazio, chef and co-owner of Waterside Caterers in Northport, will demonstrate how to up your grilling game by sharing marinade recipes, tips for rubs and injections, as well as explaining differences in gas and charcoal grilling. Questions are expected and encouraged.

"We try to run it really informally," says Fazio. "It's just me up there cooking a meal."

The two-hour lesson includes a glass of wine or pint of beer and samples from the treats Fazio cooks up. "That's the best part, isn't it?" says Fazio.

2 ARTS CAMPWHEN | WHERE9 a.m. to 3 p.m. July 18 at USDAN Center, 185 Colonial Springs Rd. Wheatley Heights

INFO 631-643-7900, usdan.com

COST $65 (discount for

two or more registering together)

Parents sending their children to the well-regarded performing and fine arts summer school often pined to attend themselves, which sparked the interest of officials at the school. Why not?, they said.

So, about 10 years ago, they opened the one-day-only USDAN University. Parents, alumni -- or any adult -- can take a full day to experience the same things the children do at the camp.

"It closely replicates the students' day," says Patrice Frank, director of development for the arts camp. "They are in the midst of the students."

Adult students choose a "major" for three hours, such as fine art, theater or photography, enjoy a noontime concert and then an afternoon activity, which could be anything from a nature walk to archery.

3 WRITING CLASSES Noted authors and screenwriters will be at two local universities this summer for serious writers who want to hone their craft.

WHEN | WHERE 10 a.m.-2 p.m. July 7-18, Hofstra University, 1000 Fulton Ave., Hempstead

INFO 516-463-0258, or email richard.j.pioreck@hofstra.edu

COST $650 for noncredit course

Hofstra University holds its 40th summer writing program for two weeks, focusing on screenwriting, short fiction and children's book writing. Workshops are designed to help writers find their own voices. There is mentoring and class discussions of the work. One instructor is Reed Farrel Coleman, who was just signed by Putnam Books for four titles in Robert B. Parker's Jess Stone series after Parker's death in 2011.

WHEN | WHERE July 9-20 for full conference. July 9-13 for intensive workshop. July 16-20 for children's literature workshop at Stony Brook University's Southampton campus, 239 Montauk Hwy.

INFO 631-632-5007,

or email christian.mclean

@stonybrook.edu

COST $1,895 for 12-day sessions. $1,175 for five-day sessions. Other workshops available.

Students bunk in the dorms and take advantage of Southampton's natural beauty as they take full-day (and sometimes night) sessions for serious writers.

Classes are in fiction, nonfiction, poetry and screenwriting and taught by accomplished writers in their own right. Meals are not included, but the campus food court is open.

ALSO TRY Canio's Books in Sag Harbor (631-725-4926) will continue its writing and photography workshops this summer.

The writing class, "Hot Memoirs," taught by co-owner Maryann Calendrille, will be four sessions on narrative prose, vignette writing and other writing styles. Classes are 9:30-11 a.m. Thursdays, July 31 through Aug. 21 and cost $100.

"We get inspired by one another," says Calendrille.

The photography workshops, taught by the other Canio owner, fine-arts photographer Kathryn Szoka, will also be four sessions, focusing on summer landscapes. 9:30-11 a.m., Tuesdays, July 8-Aug. 1 for $150.