Choosing a Summer Camp

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by Eileen Bailey
Tuesday, February 02, 2010

Summer camp offers many advantages to children. At camp, kids can make new friends, experience new adventures, gain self-esteem and enjoy independence. Finding the right camp to fit your child's needs can make all the difference. But finding a camp to fit your budget and still offers great opportunities for growth can be a daunting task.

Before checking out specific camps, think about different types of camps available. The following are ten considerations when choosing a summer camp for your child.

Overnight or day camp. Which type of camp your child attends may be partially based on your budget but your child's needs may also be of concern. Depending on your child's age and maturity, he or she may not be ready to spend a few days or a week away from home. In that case, a day camp may be a better choice. On the other hand, overnight camps offer a great way to develop independent skills.

Specialized camps. Some camps offer specialized curriculums. You can find camps for just about every interest. If you are looking for your child to gain knowledge in a specific area, specialized camps can help. There are camps available in sports, music, dance, math, science and just about any other interest. There are also more general camps providing an overall camp experience with games, crafts, swimming and boating.

Cost. No matter how much we may want our child to enjoy a camp experience, most families will need to take cost into consideration. Overnight camps are more expensive than day camps and many times specialized camps are more expensive than general camps. It is a good idea to plan ahead, so that you can begin to budget how much money you will need.

Transportation. If you are planning to send your child to a camp located near your home, transportation may not be a problem, however, if the camp is far away, how will your child get there? Even day camps located on the other side of town may cause hardship or create scheduling problems in the morning, while you are rushing to get to work or later in the afternoon.

Vacation schedules. Does your family have plans for the summer? It could be your family vacation or time spent visiting relatives. A camp's schedule may not fit into your schedule. Check for camp date to be sure there are no conflicts.

How many children attend the camp? The size of the camp and the number of children attending may be important. If there are hundreds of children, ask how children are broken down into smaller groups. With a large group, your child may feel lost and not get the individual attention he or she needs. However, many large camps are quite successful and making each child feel special by working with small groups of children within different activities. Find out what the counselor/child ratio is. If there is a low ratio, such as one counselor for every four children, your child will probably receive individual attention.

How are counselors chosen? For children with special needs, the counselors are extremely important. The counselors will be surrogate parents while your child is at camp. How does the camp choose the counselors? Are criminal background checks completed? Do all counselors have prior experience working with special needs children?