Month-by-Month Camp Planner With Ways To Plan For Your Child’s Summer Camp Experience

Countdown To Summer 2018

By Jess Michaels

Thinking about day or overnight camp? The American Camp Association, New York and New Jersey suggests the following month-by-month camp planner with ways to plan for your child’s summer camp experience.

January

Talk to camp directors –Parents want to make sure they click with the camp director. Speaking with the camp director and asking some key questions is a good way for families to find out about a camp’s philosophy and if it matches your own. Get to know the camp director through phone calls, correspondence and in person. Make sure to give the camp director an accurate picture of your child and what your specific goals are for your child’s camp experience.

Prepare child with overnights – If you are considering sleepaway camp, schedule sleepovers with friends and relatives and make sure these overnights are successful. If your child felt panicked and needed to come home in the middle of the night, they may not be ready for sleepaway camp.

February/March

Home visits and camp fairs – These are both good ways to get to know a camp director and about a camp program. Ask about the camps’ mission statement and what type of child is successful at camp. Camp fairs bring dozens of camps to a community and provides parents the opportunity to speak one-on-one with many different camp directors in one day. Often times, a camp director will come to your home for a home visit which allows you to get to know the director and for the director to get to know your family.

April/May

Share positive messages- As camp approaches, talk to your child about the camp program and the activities he or she will be participating in. Parents should let their child know that they are confident in the child's ability in having a successful camp experience.

June

Shop & Pack together - Your child will feel more secure if they know what they are bringing to camp. If your child is going to overnight camp, shop for camp items together. Once you have all your items labeled with your child’s name, pack together and use the time to talk to your child about how much fun camp is going to be.

Mail letter to camp – Send a letter to sleepaway camp so your child has a letter the first day they are at camp. Let them know how much fun they are going to have at camp.