I started sending my older 2 kids to camp 2 years ago. They were 8 and 11 at the time. They went for a week each the past 2 years. This year my 13 year old goes for 2 weeks and the 10 year old goes for a week. Next year most likely the 14 year old and 11 year old will go for 2 weeks and the 8 year old for one week.
I save through the year for camp in a special camp account since our monthly daycare expenses have went down I just roll some of that into the camp account. Our camp (YMCA) also is pretty generous with the scholarships from what I understand (we don’t utilize, but that’s always an option).
Our school also does outdoor ed overnight multi day field trips starting in 5th grade every year (k-12 school).
I think it’s really good for kids to be away from their parents and out in the wilderness with no screens. I think this is one of the best gifts I can give my kids. It fosters independence, space from parents (especially in this day and age of extreme helicopter parenting as the norm), gives them a serious sense of pride, gets them outdoors, it’s just an amazing thing for them.
Post by undecidedowl on Jul 6, 2019 14:14:20 GMT -5
I went to sleepaway church camp and sports camps but not the type of camps people here describe. I don't plan to send my kids to camp just for a camp experience, unless they convince me otherwise when they get older. I'm more worried about living the life I want, travelling as a family, etc.
Post by closertofine on Jul 6, 2019 14:28:55 GMT -5
I went from ages 10-17, starting out at a week, and my last summer I went for 6. I loved it and absolutely credit it with my easy transition to college. We go to my camp as a family every year now, and dd goes for the first time on her own in three weeks.
We're actually spending the weekend with an old camp friend of mine in Rochester. Camp friendships run deep
Post by game blouses on Jul 6, 2019 14:29:25 GMT -5
I went on regular campouts as a Girl Scout (1-2 times a month, plus a longer one during the summer for Camporee) and loved it. It fostered the sense of independence that got me through college and into adulthood. I would have loved a long sleepaway camp but in So Cal it’s not as popular.
Day camps here are as expensive as any sleepaway camp I’ve seen, so it likely wouldn’t affect our summer budget too much.
DS1 is fiercely independent and would do great in a sleepaway camp when he is old enough. Luckily I have friends from the East Coast who know good camps to send them to!
Post by cabbagecabbage on Jul 6, 2019 14:44:47 GMT -5
I wanted to go so badly but I had a single mom and did the least expensive day camp all summer every summer. I finally got a session of sleep away church camp at 12. It was super evangelical and we were not. I still loved it and wish i could have gone more. I have made it a big priority for my kids. Next year DD will start overnight camp at 7. We will probably never be able to afford a full summer of fancy camp but we can do one or two weeks at girl scout camp.
But I don't consider camp an across the board necessity or a standard part of childhood. It's a privilege and a luxury and probably not for every kid.
I did not. I never really asked to go and we couldn’t have afforded it anyway. I don’t know if any friends who did it either.
I used to get brochures in the mail for a sleep away basketball camp in the Poconos. I never really liked playing basketball but I thought it’d be cool to go away for a while (super strict parents) so I’d daydream about it lol.
Post by farmvillelover on Jul 6, 2019 15:19:18 GMT -5
It’s not a thing here in OC. Very few people do it. It’s about $2500-4K a week and the lower end of those are referred to as basic. It’s not an expense I’m willing to pay for. It helps that none of my kids friends talk about it.
Post by expectantsteelerfan on Jul 6, 2019 16:03:43 GMT -5
I never went to want, but I would have loved it if my parents had sent me to one and could have afforded it. I did know kids who went to camp, but it wasn't like everyone went.
That's similar to how it is here (on the East Coast). I know a good number of kids who go to different camps, but it's not like EVERYONE goes. I am hoping to be able to afford to send ds to a YMCA camp next summer for 1 or 2 weeks, but that's only because I know he would LOVE it (he's in scouts, loves to be outdoors, is already pretty independent). DD would be more hesitant to go, but I bet if ds goes and loves it, in another year or two she'd be begging to go too.
I will say, last year we didn't go on a single vacation, and that was much more out of the norm than not going to camp. I felt really bad for my kids during the first week of school when everyone was asking 'where'd you go this summer' and all the other kids had fun answers, and they had none. We usually at least go visit my brother in NY and my friends in central PA, but last summer both came to visit us.
I went to church camp, CTY (summer program for gifted youth), and band camp. I imagine that church camp is a lot cheaper than the fancy camps that some people send their kids to (like the sailing camp one of my friends grew up going to).
I did not go to sleep away camp. I was an only child for 11 years and always had a bit of trouble making fast friends, and it never appealed to me.
But I went clear across the country to university, made tons of friends, then spent 12 years living abroad. I obviously didn't need sleep away camp to accomplish this. I think a big part of it was motivation and maturity as a young adult.
Post by sporklemotion on Jul 6, 2019 17:19:33 GMT -5
I went twice, to two different Jewish camps. The first was fun, but I HATED the second one. I was super shy and very unathletic, so I had a very hard time making friends. Many of the activities fed my insecurities as the last picked for every team instead of building my confidence. I wasn’t homesick, per se, but I felt very out of place. Had it been more of an arts or STEM camp, I might have done better with it because I wouldn’t have dreaded so much of the day. I did a couple of sleep away summer programs in HS at boarding schools, and those were great.
I feel as if I’d like to send my kids if they are interested, but I will probably lean more towards a specialty focus than the general swim/sports type that I went to, unless they have friends going or we know the vibe. And $$ is a much bigger issue for us, so I doubt we’d be able to afford more than a week or two.
I went to Girl Scout camp for a week the summer after 4th grade and hated it. I went with my friend who got poison ivy on day 1 and was sent home the morning of day2. Everyone else had their friends there and I didn’t know anyone after she left. It was also advertised that we would be doing hikes and learning about nature when we actually had to sing and dance on stage on swim suits to a routine a leader choreographed to “Under the Sea”. I was mortified and disappointed. We also had to be up and in the pool at 8am daily and the water was freezing. I remember writing letters asking my parents to pick me up ASAP on pick up day and was counting down. I was hoping for a “parent trap” like camp.
Eta. I did do mission trips every summer in high school for a week with the youth group. We should paint houses, do landscaping and other labor/service. It was an amazing experience and i loved it and hope my kids do these when they’re older.
I went twice, I think a week each time. It was definitely a scholarship situation, since I had a single mom. I loved it both times, but I learned the hard way to take unscented toiletries. One year I got over 100 mosquito bites and had to borrow shoes from the nurse because all of mine rubbed the bites. I was in so much pain that year.
I’d like to send DS when he’s a bit older, but I haven’t researched the price yet. It may be out of our budget.
I only went to 4-H sleep-away camp with 1 friend in 5th grade...after that we started going away to WY all summer. It was a blast though. My older brothers did sports sleep away camps. Outside of sports camps, very few people did sleep-away in the area I grew up in in IL. Now I live in Denver and many kids do go to sleep-away camps here...usually in the mountains. My older girls go to sleep-away in WY but only for a week or 2 a year. I’d send them to longer camps (4wk) but they have too much else going on. My oldest (14) is a “counselor in training” this Summer at a Camp...so she’ll be gone longer than usual.
I did a Girl Scout sleep away camp. I did like it. I was homesick. I went with a friend and made another friend so there was some tension there. But otherwise it was a good experience. I was also a camp counselor at the same camp. Being a counselor was pretty amazing but I think I made like $500 the entire summer because they took lodging and food out. And it was exhausting because we only got 2 hour breaks every day so we worked 22 hours a day because we were in call while sleeping (kind of like being a parent). We only got 6 hours off once a week and only 24 hours off every 2 weeks.
DS just went to a church sleep away camp and loved it. It was only $600 though. I say only because I see some that are 1k or 1200. DD was with the grandparents that week so we saved her day camp fee so it was only 200 more than their daycamp.
I went to a week Girl Scout camp. It sucked and I didn’t go back. I was supposed to be there for tennis, but my group was basically all of the activities that didn’t get full attendance and we were all stuck together with different expectations.
I did a lot of local camps that ranged from 2-8 weeks. I also raced sailboats, so I couldn’t really be away from home during summer.
I also went and stayed with my grandparents for extended periods to do sailing camps oot.
I don’t know if we’ll do basic overnight camps, but I think if there are sports ones, we’ll do those when she’s older.
ETA: E is spending a week with my parents in August doing a 1/2 day art camp at the local cc. I’m so looking forward to that week!
Post by cricketwife on Jul 6, 2019 21:09:44 GMT -5
Yes, I went four four summers to Girl Scout camp. It was 1 or 2 week sessions and it was wonderful. I loved it ( except the swimming in the lake part - I hated that, lol) . I can remember filling out the financial aid requests with my mom. I glad she was able to make it work for me. If my kids want to go, I would love to send them, but even the “affordable” options seem out of reach.
Post by dcrunnergirl52 on Jul 6, 2019 21:44:45 GMT -5
No, but I went to day camp every summer for 8-10 weeks, starting with Girl Scout camp until the summer after 7th grade, and then a regular day camp where I eventually was a counselor for a few years. I LOVED those last few summers.
DD is almost 9 and going to GS sleepaway camp next week for a week. If she likes it, we'll do more next year. I'd love to send DS but he wasn't quite ready this year. Eventually I'd like all four kids to at least try sleepaway camp.
ETA: I didn't know anyone from my town except me who went to day camp (99% of kids except me had SAHMs), let alone sleepaway camp. My mom, however, went to full summers at Jewish sleepaway camp growing up, so it was always on my radar. Also, I desperately wanted a twin and Parent Trap was my favorite movie (Halley Mills version).
Post by bookqueen15 on Jul 6, 2019 21:45:37 GMT -5
Yes, I went to a YMCA camp about an hour from home when I was 12 and 13 for one week each time, two summers in a row. I definitely didn't love it, as I was a pretty shy kid who didn't make friends easily but I went with my best friend which helped and she absolutely loved it! The cabins were not air conditioned and it was in Florida, so I remember it being super hot and that part really sucked. But I guess I liked it well enough to go back a second year. That was during my vegetarian phase so I was also pretty hungry most of the week, as I got tired of the day old PBJ that was the only alternative meal option!
I remember looking at camp options in the NE but I never went, I was too nervous to be that far from home and not knowing anyone. My 5 year old DD already knows about sleep away camp due to a book and says she wants to go when she's older. If she still wants to in a few years I'll look into some of the camp options not too far from us (I know there are some girl scout camps) and see how she does with one of those before looking at out of state camp options...although as I experienced perhaps summer camp somewhere cooler than Florida might be a better experience! Hopefully most cabins at camps around here are at least air conditioned now.
I did Girl Scout and church camps growing up then ballet summer programs in high school (some 3 weeks, some 6 weeks, which are not really camp but have the same aspects of independence.
My dd is 6 and is the type of kid that would love summer camp activities. It’s not something that is super common here but it’s also not uncommon. She will probably go with one or two friends. The prices really are a wide range, with the super religious ones and Girl Scouts being most affordable.
"Hello babies. Welcome to Earth. It's hot in the summer and cold in the winter. It's round and wet and crowded. On the outside, babies, you've got a hundred years here. There's only one rule that I know of, babies-"God damn it, you've got to be kind.”
Yes. And I loved it and My kids love it. But no you aren’t hurting your kids by not doing it!!!
It’s been very beneficial for my daughter who has anxiety and struggles with being independent. But there are other ways to do that if camp isn’t for you.
Post by mccallister84 on Jul 7, 2019 5:51:09 GMT -5
I didn’t, but my sister did and LOVED it. And honestly it was the best thing ever for her - but she’s the youngest and has always been super immature (there are other issues at play here as well). The first year the school system got a grant and she was selected to go. My parents scraped together the money the other years because it was so great for her.
I know PP have said this but I would look in to financial assistance - especially by calling the camp directly to see how they can work with you. My parents always paid for one session a summer but sometimes my sister would go for a second session for free or a hugely discounted rate - if the session had a ton of openings they were really willing to work with people to get kids there since a lot of the costs were fixed (counselors had a contract for the summer, etc.)