Sending your kids to overnight camp for the first time is a big deal! And it’s important to make sure everyone is ready for it. Take this quick quiz to find out if you and your child are both ready for overnight camp this summer! If you answer “yes” to most of the following questions, it’s a good indication your child is ready:
• My child has happy experiences at sleepovers with friends or relatives.
• My child is open to trying new foods and experiences.
• My child can wash and dress themselves independently.
• My child wants to go to an overnight camp.
• I want my child to go an overnight camp!*
* If you answer “No” to this, there’s a chance your attitude and comments will negatively impact the readiness of your kid (in other words, the answer directly above likely matches). If the majority of your answers are “No,” go through the questions again next year, or the next. Or never again because there’s no rule that every kid has to go to sleep-away camp!
If you and your kid are raring to go, here’s the rough order of how to proceed:
• Research overnight camps: decide what your budget is and find out the timelines for applying.
• Talk to your child about what sort of camp they’re interested in. Is there something new they’d like to try or a skill they want to improve? Where, if anywhere, are their friends going? Is that somewhere they want to go too or would they rather start fresh with the friendships?
• Request camp info and attend camp fairs: details of these are often posted on association websites.
• Visit shortlisted camps if possible or go through their websites with your child. Discuss the pros and cons of each.
• Select the camp in agreement with your child.
• Shop for supplies and pack well in advance; allow time for ordering and applying name labels to clothes and other camp gear.
• Mark off the camp start and end dates clearly on a calendar so your child has a clear sense of timelines.
• As the time approaches, talk about camp in a casual way and get answers to any questions that may arise.
• If you manage all the above, you’re ready: relax!
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