Finding The Best Camp For Your Child
10 Ways To Prepare Your Child For Camp
Thank you for letting goCamps.com and Frost's Summer Camp Guide help you and your child decide which summer camp to attend. Whether this is your child's first year at camp or otherwise, your family has much to look forward to. Camp is a place where children grow individually and socially as they embark on an array of adventures that will transform everyday summer life into a special, stimulating world they will never forget.
Before you begin reviewing our camp listings and special program lists, you'll want to read our articles on Finding The Best Camp For Your Child, How To Avoid Homesickness, and Camp Supply Checklist. Be sure to have the kids take a look at the summer camp articles just for them!
In return for promotional services, some camps have made a limited number of discounted registrations available only through Frost's Summer Camp Guide. The discounts are 25%, so it's worth a call to us at (845) 726-3232, or email us. If you're interested in saving money, go to the Camp Registration Discounts area and take a look!
Both accredited and non-accredited camps are listed in Frost's Summer Camp Guide. Those camps that are accredited have received their accreditation from the American Camp Association (ACA). The national office of the American Camp Association is at 5000 SR 67 N., Martinsville, IN 46151-7902. Current accreditation status, cost, and all other camp facts should be verified by parents when communicating directly with camp representatives. Unless camp is in session, you'll want to start out by contacting the camp operators first.
The staff here at Frost Publications, Inc. hopes you find the perfect camp within our site. If you have any ideas as to how we can improve our site, please let us know!
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Any number of things will initially attract and motivate you to seriously consider a camp for your child. Location, session duration, pricing, facilities and programs are all easily communicated in camp publications, brochures and videos. However, you'll ultimately want to learn about the people who are responsible for the camp's policies and operation: Camp Directors and Operators. These professionals and their staff will guide, support, entertain and educate your child while at camp, so you'll want to ask several important questions and discuss key topics in order to make the best possible choice. |
Review this list before calling or visiting the Camp Director and be sure to add to it. With a little time and effort, you'll find a wonderful camp that fits your needs and, more importantly, those of your youngster.
1. Camp Philosophy This relates to the camp's purpose and how it impacts on all areas of camp life. What ideas are emphasized and how they are reflected at camp. For instance, the importance of competition can vary widely from camp to camp. Some Camp Directors feel that experiencing competition is a natural part of life and emphasize this idea in sports and other activities. Others work in non-competitive ways to foster a greater sense of cooperation and interdependence.
2. Camp Director's Experience The American Camp Association (ACA) minimum standards for Camp Directors require a bachelor's degree, a minimum 16 weeks of camp administration experience, and the completion of in-service training within the previous 3 years. Whether a camp is accredited or not, you'll want to know about the Director's previous experience in staff and camper supervision. In some cases, you will speak with a Certified Camp Director (CCD). This certification comes from the ACA and is bestowed on those who have met requirements related to work experience, age, education, and have successfully completed a Camp Director Institute.
3. Staff Requirements Accredited overnight camps require a ratio of counselors to campers as follows: One counselor for every six campers for ages 7 and 8; one counselor for every eight campers for ages 9-14; one counselor for every ten campers forages 15-17. Day camp ratios are: One counselor for every eight campers for ages 6-8; one counselor for every ten campers ages 9-14; one counselor for every twelve campers for ages 15-17. Ask the Camp Director what they look for in their employees. Staff members must be dependable, enthusiastic, outgoing, knowledgeable and truly caring individuals. They will be looked up to and depended on by campers for physical and emotional support and must be qualified to assume this important responsibility. The American Camp Association recommends that at least 80% of the counselors and program staff should be 18 years or older and at least 20% of the administrative and program staff possess a bachelor's degree. Also, find out what experience the Camp Director and staff have had with children the same age as your own and other age groups.
4. References Ask the Director for references. It's always possible you'll find the name of someone you know. However, a conversation with a few other parents (friends or strangers) who have children attending the camp will be very helpful to you. Also, speak with your friends about camps they've had experience with. This can provide you with additional direction in locating the best camp for your child.
5. Rules & Discipline Be sure that discipline problems will be handled in a manner that you are comfortable with. You and your child will be interested in knowing about important rules and how discipline is applied. Penalties should be carried out in a fair and calm manner. Rules and policies should be communicated clearly and openly, and should uniformly apply to all campers.
6. Special Needs Be sure to discuss any special assistance your child will require. Everything from facilities and medical staff to special foods and medications should be reviewed to your satisfaction.
1. Read books about going to camp. Books for parent's and children's books (Off to Camp!). After you both read the books, discuss the camp experience with your child and refer to some of the issues raised in the books.
2. Talk with other parents and friends to learn from their camp experience. Ask the camp director to tell you of other camp families in your area. Introduce your child to other children who will be attending your child's camp. This can be in person, over the phone, or email. Take the opportunity to ask questions and discuss concerns.
3. Become familiar with the camp environment. Where do the children sleep, eat, and swim? What is the daily routine and schedule of activities? What do they do in the evening? Visit the camp, if possible.
4. Prepare your child to care for him/herself. Practice Camp. Have your child spend a long weekend with a friend or relative, help with the packing, learn to make their bed, set the table and if they are on medication to take responsibility to take the medication at the appropriate time. Do not communicate with your child while they are on their visit. Discuss how it felt not to be able to talk on the phone daily.
5. Problem solve with your child. Think about anticipatory problems, "What if? .... You lose baseball glove, don't feel well." Have your child think of ways they would solve the problems at camp. It is different than at home.
6. Role-play and practice with your child on how they would respond to camp situations. Walk in the dark at night with a flashlight.
7. Communication at camp is usually through letter writing. Help your child learn to write letters and practice. Address envelopes and post cards to all their friends and relatives so they will receive mail. Find out the camp policy on phone calls.
8. Homesickness feelings are normal in adjusting to any new environment. Discuss how your child felt after spending a weekend with a friend. Did they think about you? How did you feel when you were missing home? When did they get these feelings? Homesick feelings are more prevalent during meals, free time and at night. Remember these are normal feelings and they are to be expected. They usually don't last very long once the child becomes familiar and immersed in camp life.
9. Prepare yourself for the separation. Parents often are anxious about sending their child to camp for the first time. This is also very normal. Remember that you have chosen a safe camp for your child and they will be well cared for. Camp is a positive, growing experience. You will have mixed emotions.
10. The camp director is available for concerns. Call with questions and clarification.
Going to overnight camp, especially for the first time, marks a rite of passage for children. "Going away to camp is an experience in separation. It can represent anything from an exciting opportunity to a painful rejection," says Robert Hertel, Ph.D., a school psychologist based in New Jersey. Hertel points out that very young children process information with a very egocentric view. Although you may be looking at camp as an opportunity to broaden your child's horizons by letting them experience the fun of living outdoors and making new friends, your child's spin on the situation may be quite different. They may be wondering why you don't want them at home for a week, a month, or the summer.
Hertel suggests that children be involved in the planning and camp selection process from the beginning. He suggests that the ensuing dialogue-of a parent asking their child what appeals to them about one camp and what doesn't appeal to them about another, can provide both a window into the child's mind and an opportunity for them to communicate their needs and reveal their feelings. "By involving the child in the process," Hertel adds, "the child can have a feeling of empowerment." Conversely, Hertel discourages being dogmatic about sending your child to camp, or dictating where they'll go without fully involving them in the selection process. The child who has a say in making these decisions often feels a sense of mastery over the situation. By not including them in the process, you run the risk of heightening their anxiety and turning what could have been an experience in independence into one of helplessness.
"The process of coming to the decision is as important as the event itself," Hertel concludes. Harriet Kaplan agrees. Although she never went to camp as a child, her husband was a very enthusiastic camper and wanted their daughter, Nancy, to experience camp from a very young age. But Kaplan, an elementary school teacher, felt that sending her daughter away at too young an age would be detrimental to both the child and the family. "I had decided that Nancy wouldn't go away before she was ten. And although my husband wanted her to go earlier, I stuck to my guns." But that didn't mean that Nancy spent her summers in her own backyard; for three summers before going to overnight camp, Nancy boarded a bus that took her to a nearby day camp every weekday morning for six weeks. Through this experience, Nancy and her parents realized that she enjoyed camping and was ready to graduate to overnight camp. When Nancy was nine, the family visited a number camps. Kaplan says she had no preconceived notions of what she was looking for in choosing a camp for her daughter, but as the family traveled from camp to camp, they formed a list of what they liked and disliked, and what was important to them. Kaplan rated structure as the number one factor in narrowing down the family's list. "I wanted a well-structured camp program for Nancy," she says. "Not many children flourish when left to their own devices for long periods of time, so it was important to us that we chose a camp that had diverse and well-coordinated activities. I found out very early in the process that I didn't like camps where the children had too much time on their own-a laissez-faire policy was not for us!" She also rated cleanliness as being important and at every camp, she made sure that they met the Camp Director to get an impression of the overall philosophy embraced by its chief administrator. "After that," she adds, "everything else fell into place. " By the next summer, Nancy helped choose the camp and she left home for eight weeks. "Of course I was nervous," Nancy admits. "But I loved day camp and was really looking forward to trying something new."
As for homesickness, Nancy remembers that her "days were so packed that it was really impossible to be homesick." Obviously, her family's homework in looking for a well-structured camp paid off. Nonetheless, there were moments. Reading letters from home, rest hour, and "lights out" were times when Nancy thought about her parents. Although she loved getting daily letters from her mother, hearing that her parents had gone to a movie without her or had a party on the Fourth of July made her wonder if she wasn't missing too much by being away. Despite her concerns, Nancy went on to spend five summers at a camp in Monticello, New York, and was dubbed the "Happy Camper" by the Camp Director, who often asked her to escort prospective campers and their families around the camp. During his first and second year at a Boy Scout Camp in northern New Jersey, Mike Sheehan, who was then nine years old, was allowed to call home on the fourth day of his week-long stay. Mike's mother, Peggy, remembers tears during the phone calls they had during the first two years of camp. By the time Mike went to a basketball camp in Massachusetts the summer before he entered seventh grade, the tears were no longer there. According to Mike, "Telephone calls make homesickness much worse. Even letters from home remind you of what you're missing." Mike liked the policy of a New York camp where he spent three weeks last summer. No calls were allowed the first week so that campers could have the opportunity to integrate themselves into the camp. After the first week, his parents eagerly awaited his call. But Mike decided to improve on the policy; if a week was good, why not wait two weeks? Midway through Mike's second week away, his parents left a message for him to call home. Two days later, the day before his parents were scheduled to visit for Parents' Weekend, Mike called home. "That call wasn't bad at all," Mike noted. "I knew I'd be seeing them the next day." And Mike probably didn't have much time to dwell on homesickness during that call.
His mother reports that he was too busy making up excuses for why he hadn't called earlier! The Girl Scout Council of Bergen County in New Jersey sends a pamphlet to the parents of prospective campers that advises them on how to deal with homesickness, which they define as either "a mild or severe form of anxiety until the child becomes adjusted to the group camp environment." They offer several suggestions for preventing homesickness, including non-threatening experiences away from home beforehand for first time campers. Overnights with grandparents or friends can be helpful. Pack the child's bags with familiar clothing and special mementos, they advise. They also suggest talking to your child about the kinds of fun they will have exploring new camp activities and making new friends. You might want to send an encouraging letter that will be waiting for them when they arrive at camp. Avoid telling the child any bad news, they counsel, and don't dwell on how much you, the pet, or siblings miss them. They also suggest that you do not make a fuss at the time of departure or dwell on the subject of homesickness prior to camp. Paul Shackford recalls the scene when he left his two daughters off at the bus for the trip to camp. One moment, two hundred girls ranging in age from eight to fourteen were milling around and placing their sleeping and duffel bags next to their assigned buses. A whistle blew, and he barely had time to kiss his girls good-bye before they were on the bus. Two minutes later, the buses, which had darkened windows that prevented occupants from being seen from the outside, drove away before anyone had time to react. Shackford concedes that he had a much harder time with the initial separation than his girls did. While his daughters were singing camp songs en route, Shackford was trying to deal with the fact that he was separated from his little girls for a short time. He wondered if things would be different more recently when he and his wife drove their daughters to camp near Scranton, Pennsylvania. After getting each girl settled in her respective cabin, he and his wife toured the camp with their daughters. When it was time to go, the parents wondered if they should turn around and wave or call good-bye from the car. As they backed out of the parking space, the answer presented itself when they saw the two girls racing back to the camp and its action.
The concept of siblings attending the same camp raises some important questions. If a camp is good for one, does that necessarily mean it will be good for the other? If you are sending your children away to make new friends, how advisable is it to send them to a camp where they already have one or more friends and are less likely to branch out and meet others? The Shackford daughters' shared interests has played a definite role in choosing camps. Julia, their older daughter, first went to camp when she was nine. The following summer, when Kathryn was nine, she joined her big sister at the same New York camp for a two-week session (although the girls did not bunk together). Meanwhile, Julia had heard of a camp in Pennsylvania from a friend and gave it a try for two weeks. The following summer, Kathryn was on her own in New York while Julia attended the Pennsylvania camp for five weeks. At Julia's recommendation, Kathryn joined her there the following year. Shackford notes that he and his wife weren't necessarily looking for the same camp for their daughters, it just worked out that way because of their mutual interests.
When all is said and done, thorough knowledge of the camp goes a long way in providing parents and children with the comfort and security needed to cope with separation. If you are enthusiastic and confident with the camp selection, these feelings will be conveyed to your child. Ask questions first and chances are that at summer's end, you too will be able to welcome home a Happy Camper!
Nancy Sheffler is a freelance writer who is working on her second novel. Her daughter has gone to overnight camp for several summers.
Though most camps will provide you with a list of necessary items to bring along, it makes sense to ask if special items should be added for specific programs. The following is a checklist that, in many cases, applies both to day and overnight camps.
HOW DO I CHOOSE THE RIGHT CAMP FOR MY CHILD?
HOW DO I FIND THESE THINGS OUT ABOUT A CAMP?
WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF VISITING A CAMP BEFORE SENDING MY CHILD THERE?
WHAT IF I CAN'T VISIT A CAMP FIRST?
SHOULD MY CHILD BE PART OF THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS?
DO ALL CHILDREN GET HOMESICK?
IS THERE ANYTHING I CAN DO TO PREVENT MY CHILD FROM EXPERIENCING HOMESICKNESS?
WHAT SHOULD I SEND MY CHILD TO CAMP WITH?
WHAT QUESTIONS SHOULD I ASK A PROSPECTIVE CAMP DIRECTOR?
WHAT KIND OF EXPERIENCE SHOULD A CAMP DIRECTOR HAVE?
WHAT DOES IT MEAN WHEN A CAMP DIRECTOR SAYS HE IS A CERTIFIED CAMP DIRECTOR?
WHAT STAFFING RATIOS SHOULD I BE LOOKING FOR?
WHAT QUALITIES/EXPERIENCE SHOULD I BE LOOKING FOR IN COUNSELORS?
ARE REFERENCES IMPORTANT?
IS THERE ANYTHING I CAN TELL MY CHILD THAT CAN MAXIMIZE HIS CAMPING EXPERIENCE?
MY CHILD IS SHY. WHAT CAN I TELL HIM TO HELP HIM MAKE NEW FRIENDS?
WHAT DOES "ACA ACCREDITED® CAMP" MEAN?
Camp directors and counselors know that camp is more than a fun experience. By exposing children to new people and adventures, by putting them in situations where they are acting independently of their parents and taking responsibility for themselves, they prepare for the world beyond summer life.
Most camps, however, do not advertise that they are jump starting campers' future careers.The overall camp experience is emphasized, while life lessons are a serendipitous byproduct. But a growing number of camps are meeting the needs and interests of campers who want to get a taste of the future. Increasingly, campers, particularly adolescent campers, are asking for programs geared towards career choices.
Performing arts camps have been leaders in this area, offering talented youngsters the chance to study and perform as part of the summer camp experience. French Woods Festival of the Performing Arts in Hancock, New York has been offering music, theater, and dance, as well as fine art, circus, and general camp and sports activities since 1970. Full musical productions, dramatic performances, classical, jazz, and rock concerts and recitals cap their three, six, and nine week programs.
Meanwhile, both Robert Downey, Jr. and Helen Slater got their starts at Stagedoor Manor in New York's Catskills. Stagedoor places heavy emphasis on learning through doing: campers routinely perform shows and musical revues at nearby resort hotels.
Interested more in classic theater? Then Manhattan's American Academy of Dramatic Arts, which offers an eight week summer program for teens might fit the bill. Teens take classes in the same facilities as their adult counterparts in a true conservatory atmosphere, studying voice, movement, and drama. Graduates of the adult program include such diverse talents as Cecil B. DeMille, Robert Redford and Grace Kelly.
But you don't have to go to New York to go to theater camp: the Stanford Jazz Workshop in California offers a three week program for aspiring jazz musicians of all abilities, and Oscar nominee Tom Hulce attended Michigan's Interlochen Arts Camp, as did TV news broadcaster Mike Wallace.
Broadcasting is beginning to develop a subspecialty of its own in camping. Ohio's Wright State University in Dayton, for example, offers a Television Institute, where teenage campers go behind the camera in a professionally equipped television studio to learn how television programs and the broadcast industry really work. Participants create and tape a multiple camera television program, and learn how to be a director, camera operator, telepromptor operator, audio operator, floor director, and on camera talent. Wright offers college credit for high school students attending this residential camp as well as others as diverse as one and two week institutes in Theater, Technical Theater, Debate, Leadership, Creative Writing, New Art Forms, Clowning, Science and Math, and Aviation, where participants explore over fifty careers in aerospace, from piloting to meteorology.
US Space Camps in Huntsville, Alabama and Cape Canaveral, Florida, offer students interested in becoming astronauts the opportunity to go through many of the training activities offered to real astronauts, including weightlessness and hyper motion simulation. The weeklong programs culminate in a simulated space flight.
For campers interested in the military, North Carolina's Oak Ridge Military Academy Summer Cadet Program, where leadership, academic enrichment, and athletic competition are stressed, might be the ticket. The three week program also teaches outdoor skills, physical fitness, rope courses, and riflery, along with such standards as music, photography, sailing, and canoeing. Meanwhile, for teens interested in diplomatic careers, Concordia Language Villages in Moorhead, Minnesota offers the opportunity to immerse in any one of ten cultures.
Computer literacy is just the beginning at Computer Ed High Tech Camps in Weston, Massachusetts. Students study computers, robotics, rocketry, computer art, graphics, desktop publishing, and animation, and learn to build and repair their own PCs. For teens not content to experience virtual reality, a hands on experience is waiting for them at Seacamp in the Florida Keys, where they can learn oceanography, SCUBA diving, and environmental education.
Meanwhile, Camp Sea World Careers Camp in San Antonio, Texas, where students work with and learn about animals and marine related careers stresses both zoology and oceanography in its week long programs. But more than that, in the words of Mary Alice Ramirez, Seaworld's education director, "students learn about day to day responsibilities, hard work, and that by working as a team, great things can be accomplished." This is a recurring theme in career camp brochures, whether students are studying to be actors, astronauts, or military leaders.
New York City's Fresh Air Fund has an innovative Career Awareness Program, designed to help youngsters understand the relationship between school work and how to make choices that will determine their futures. In New York City, 12 to 15 year olds participate in job shadowings that offer close up views of business, year long monitoring programs, and an intensive four week summer session at the Career Awareness Camp, Camp Mariah, which was named in honor of the singer Mariah Carey, who has supported this program both financially and philosophically.
Speaking of celebrities, sports camps, either run by pro teams or sports figures, seem to be everywhere. And while some may question mentioning sports camps in an article on career camps, the folks at Five Star Basketball Camp can offer a compelling argument: Michael Jordan got his start there when he was thirteen!
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