Posts Tagged ‘Homesickness’

Preparing Your Child for Summer Camp

Friday, May 13th, 2011

Ahhhhh, summer camp! Fireflies, fishing, friends and fun are just around the corner for your favorite camper. There are several things that you can do to help prepare them for camp.

Talk to your child about camp. You will only know about your camper’s concerns if you talk about them. Talk about your experiences if you attended camp.

Talk about homesickness. For many children, sleep away camp is their first away from home experience other than staying with family members. Talk about how you handled it. Explain that homesickness is a normal experience and that the activities and making new friends will distract them from feeling sad or nervous. Let them know that their counselors will always be there for them to talk to. Tell your camper that they will be receiving mail from you and that you will be logging in to see pictures of the fun they are having. Have your child choose something from home like a picture or stuffed animal to take with them to camp. Show your camper the opening and closing dates of camp and mark them on the calendar. If there are any recent stressful events in your family, discuss them so they are not worried while they are away from camp.

If you child has any special needs such as reminders for help in specific areas, dietary needs, medical needs…etc. assure your child that you have spoken with the camp and those needs will be taken care. Remind them that they can always ask their counselor for help as well.

Pre-write some letters to leave in the camper Mail Box at Check-in. This will assure that he/she gets mail the first days at camp. Plan and encourage your camper to write home by sending paper, envelopes & stamps.

Get your camper involved! Involve your camper in selecting their activity preferences. Discuss the options and have your camper look at the list of activities and videos on our website to guide them in their selection.

Involve your child in any shopping that needs to be done and packing to get ready for camp. Let him make some choices.

Involve him in putting batteries in the flashlight, choosing a book he might like to read during rest time and help label clothing and belongings.

Talk about the things that they will learn and friends that they’ll make.

Always be positive, assure them that they are mature enough to handle being away from home and encourage them about the fun that they will experience!

Pray for your child. God has great plans for your camper, but He wants to hear from your heart!

 

You might also like: 5 Ways Parents Can Help Prevent Summer Camp Homesickness

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5 Ways Parents Can Help Prevent Summer Camp Homesickness

Monday, May 24th, 2010

Summer Camp is drawing near and it is time to start preparing your child for camp. More often than not parents focus on the physical needs of their child while at camp and don’t always prepare their child emotionally for summer camp. They worry about, how many t-shirts to pack, if SPF 2000 sun block is too much, and if they should pack that extra pair of socks (yes, in fact pack 2 more pairs.) The fact is, you need to make sure that you pack your child’s emotional suitcase so that they are fully prepared for camp and not just focus on what “things” to bring. Here are some simple ways that you can mentally prepare your child for camp.

Pack something personal!

1.  Include Your Camper in the Packing Process

I know I said that you should not just focus on the physical, but your child will be more at rest if they know that their physical needs will be met. Make sure that your child is part of the packing process for camp. They need to know that they have everything they need. Have them go over the camp provided “What to Bring” checklist with you. Give them an opportunity to bring a little bit of home to camp. Encourage them to bring their favorite book, stuffed animal, etc.

2.  Visit the Summer Camp

If your child has never been to camp or they are going to a new camp, schedule a visit so that they can see where they are going and meet some of the people that work at the camp. This will go a long way to making your child feel like they are going somewhere safe.

3.  Tell Your Child the Truth

The last thing you want to do is misrepresent the experience your child will have at camp in order to get them to be okay with going to camp. If you promise your child something that the camp does not in fact offer, your child will feel like they were “tricked” into going to camp and they will have a hard time enjoying the experience. Basic rule of thumb is that an informed camper is a happy camper.

4.  Tell Your Child About Camp Ahead of Time

The sooner you tell your child about summer camp the better. Do not wait until the day before camp (or worse the day of!) to inform your child that they will be going to camp. Better yet, include your child in the process of choosing a camp. This will help your child take ownership of their camp experience and will help limit the amount of homesickness they experience.

5.  Letters, Letters, Letters.

One of the most helpful things you can do is write your child letters. Many Charis Hills Camp parents write letters ahead of time and put them into labeled envelopes that they then give to the camp to give to the camper throughout the week. Every child will appreciate this gesture. Be sure to address the issue of homesickness in the letters. You should tell your child that homesickness is normal and that you miss them, but that learning independence is an important part of growing up. Go on to tell your child that you are very proud of them for conquering their homesickness!

Parents, if you have any other helpful hints, please share them in the comments section below. – James

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