If you’re a summer camp alum, and you had some extra wishes lying around, would you use one to go back to camp? If you could go back today, what would you do? We asked and you answered, on Facebook and on Twitter. Here’s some of what your fellow camp alums had to say. We challenged them to finish this sentence:
If I could go back to Camp Laurel South, I would:
…not even know where to start… or what to do with myself!
…stay.
…ask for chicken patties.
…veg out on the docks with my feet in the water and watch the sunset with my favorite LS friends!
…challenge Agawam to a staff basketball game at Rest Hour and Win!
…sit in Sail Chair and soak it all in.
…ask for “chick p” for lunch, but only with chipotle mayo!
…I would probably start screaming CITS CITS CITS!
…never want to leave again!
What would you do if you could go back to camp today? Use the comments section to let us know!
Summer Camp is a time of firsts. The first time you try to catch a ball with a lacrosse stick (and realize you can!). The first time you get on on water-skis. The first time you serve an ace in tennis. The first time you get up on stage in front of hundreds of kids your age. The first time you scale the climbing tower…trot with your very own horse…..Now that camp has ended for the summer and everyone is getting ready for the school year, we thought we’d share some tales from camp. What have the kids taken home with them to last the next 9 months, until camp starts again?
Many families are surprised at the sheer amount of first-time experiences their kids have at summer camp. When Justin, a 12 year old who attended camp this year, was asked to list things he did for the first time at camp, he had quite the list. “I learned how to play guitar, archery, and golf,” he said. During our conversation, it also came out that he also learned new baseball skills and got to play tennis. He also experienced the camp evening programs for the first time, which he raved about as being “fun and creative.” Justin’s going to be talking to a lot of people about camp when he goes back to school. And what is he going to tell them? “I made a lot of new friends and tried a lot of new things. I had the best time!”
My own summer camp experiences – way back in the 80s – were largely defined by a feeling of the summer camp community breaking apart at the end of the summer. We would often promise to write letters we never sent or make long distance calls our parents wouldn’t pay for, but when summer was over, camp was tucked firmly behind us for another year.
With today’s technology, however, the summer camp community can stay together all year, even when they return to the home cities, states and countries. Camp Laurel South has an active Facebook community where current campers, families and alumni can connect, share stories and keep up to date with the staff and the current session. In these early days of October, much of the chatter is about how much everyone misses camp and wishes they were back on the lake, riding the horses, singing in the dining hall, etc.
For those who’ve connected to Laurel South through Facebook and other new social networks (Twitter anyone?) the camp experience doesn’t end with teary good-byes in August. So when will we meet again?
I don’t know about you, but my kids are constantly plugged into something, whether they are texting their friends (does anyone talk anymore?), bopping along to Lady Gaga’s latest, updating their Facebook status, researching a school project online and creating a multi-media presentation, or playing games on my iPhone while I desperately try to finish a conversation at the vet’s office.
Some days I can win a battle or two (no texting at dinner!) but the war is ongoing. And honestly, I’m not the best example. That iPhone I mentioned is never far from reach, and right now I’m surfing online, listening to my own brand of pop music, answering text messages as they come in and writing this blog.
Don’t you wish there was a place where we could all live life unplugged? We adults may not be so lucky; but for our kids, that place is summer camp.
Knowing that someone out there is cultivating a culture of back-to-basics, low-tech life is an irresistible draw for me as a parent. My husband and I love the outdoors and frequently take our kids on short camping trips, but these offer only a short break from the world of “screen time”. Monday morning comes and before the sleeping bags air out, we’re all rushing to see what awaits us in our email inboxes.
As a mom, I worry about the long-term effects of all of these tech ways of communicating. I’m not alone. Several studies have suggested that kids who spend too much time plugged in lose some skills for interpersonal interaction. Let’s fight back.
At camp, social interaction is done the old fashioned way – face-to-face. Campers and counselors alike leave their cell phones at home and get back to a simpler life, when there is an art to conversation. If you were a camper, think back to your best memories. All of mine involve revolve around interpersonal interactions you just can’t get through an email: telling stories around a camp fire; sharing hushed secrets late into the night; telling the worst jokes you ever heard; huddling together to decide the best capture-the-flag strategy.
Friendship doesn’t need a high-tech interface. Don’t think your kids will get with the program? In a recent Seventeen article, teen girls shared their favorite summer camp memories. Guess what? Not one involves a cell phone!
Summer 2010 is finally here and it’s hard to believe we’ve been in Casco for nearly a week!!! We had an amazing opening day as the staff enthusiastically welcomed our First Session campers. Old friendships were rekindled and new ones began as the Laurel South family finally gathered as one. Friday was our annual Moose Stomp Day…schedules were created…s’mores were devoured…we bumper tubed on Crescent Lake…and we concluded our day with our Council Fire celebrating fun and friendship. On Saturday, full activity and program began. The ballfields, courts, waterfront, theater and Challenge Course were alive with activity. Our 7th grade girls just returned from an amazing camping trip and our 8th graders and CIT’s head out tomorrow on their Acadia and White Water Rafting trips. Intercamps and Tournaments began today and tomorrow is our first “S” day of the summer. The action never ends at Laurel South!
You’ve collected the brochures, visited the web sites, maybe you’ve visited a camp or two. You may have even have marked off a few weeks in July on your calendar. But you did it in pencil, because you just can’t get rid of that nagging question – is my child, my baby (sniff) ready for overnight camp?
There is no magic formula or age for camp, and every child is unique; but there are some tried and true signs of readiness. So before you pack the tennis racquets and the swimsuits, start by answering these five questions:
1. Is your child interested in and asking about camp?
Spring has just sprung – if your child is already asking about going away to camp, take that as a good sign. Children who are self-motivated and interested in attending camp have a greater chance of being successful once they arrive. Point your child to this: It’s My Life, a PBS web site for tweens, which has advice specifically for kids headed to camp. The site even encourages kids to talk to their families first. What mom doesn’t love that tidbit?
2. Can your child manage personal care needs and the tasks of daily living without mom around? On their own?
Overnight camp involves independent living. Does your child get dressed for school without your help? Can he/she fix themselves a snack? Take a shower? Remember to brush their teeth? If they still need help or daily reminders, you don’t have to keep them home (remember, your child will have great camp counselors to care for them), but you may want to encourage more self-reliance, a good quality to have at home, too.
3. How long has your child been away overnight without you? Was it a positive experience?
If your child loves sleepovers and slumber parties (at other people’s houses) transitioning to sleep-away camp may be a breeze. A week at grandma’s isn’t the same as three or four weeks at summer-camp; but if an overnight without you has never worked, do some trial runs before registering your child for camp. My own personal role model, Supernanny, has some great tips for making sleepovers a breeze.
4. Does your child have a healthy respect for adults and listen to instructions?
Life will be much easier for everyone if your child is good at following instructions and is willing to go along with camp rules. Just keep in mind that our kids often reserve their worst behavior for us, their parents, bless them. If your child is well-behaved in school, with coaches and other adults in positions of authority, they should do fine at camp.
5. Is your child willing to try new things?
Life comes at you fast, Ferris Bueller said, and the same is true for summer camp. Each day is filled with new people to meet, new surroundings, and new activities to try. For kids willing to give it a go, there’s no better place to spread their wings than summer camp.
The Bottom Line
No one knows your child like you do – even after you’ve completed all the quizzes and checklists and asked all your friends about their kids’ experiences, the best thing to do is trust your instincts. If you feel it in your gut that your child can handle overnight camp, you’re probably right. Get ready… summer is on its way!
We’re so excited to begin the May countdown to camp. The staff is hired…the fields are green…the new Tennis Complex is just about finished…and we’re getting ready to start moving beds and cubbies in anticipation of arrival day. Believe it or not, our first group of “Pre Camp Staff” head to Maine in a couple weeks to work on opening preparations.
Max has been busy in the Gainesville office communicating with the 200 plus counselors and staff members who begin their journey soon from all over the country…and the world…to Casco. We have counselors coming from more than 50 colleges throughout the United States.
Starting in early June, Laurel South becomes a beehive of activity as staff begin to arrive for departmental training programs. Counselors working in Archery, Equestrian, Waterskiing and Riflery will join us on Crescent Lake to fine tune their skills. We’ll also be running our lifeguard certification program. In early June, the Adventure Staff (Outdoor Tripping and Ropes) join us for an orientation program with Inner Quest and SOLO Wilderness Expeditions, two groups from Virginia and New Hampshire which have been leading our adventure orientation programs for 15 years! And a few days before the counselors arrive, the Campus Leaders come to work with me, Dagni, Max and Laz to get everything ready for Staff Orientation
We’ll check in from time to time to keep you updated with news from camp.
In the meantime, start laying out your clothes and gear for Summer 2010. We’re psyched and can’t wait to see you soon!
As always, Dagni joins me in sending warmest and best regards,
