Choosing well

FUN TIMES: Camp can be a great experience, if you and your kids pick the right one for them.

Finding the right camp for your child

It may be winter but it’s not too early to start thinking about summer camp.

With a plethora of choices, Camp Kandalore’s director Dave Graham suggests parents call potential camps to find out more about their programming and philosophy in order to help figure out what would be a good fit for their kids.

Graham suggests parents gather and share information with their kids prior to any overnight excursions so they know what to expect and are excited and looking forward to the experience.

“Every child is unique and what I would encourage families to do is be very honest in your appraisal of your child,” he says. “Don’t stop your child from going to camp because you as a parent aren’t ready for them to go. Look at your child and if they’re ready to go, then do it.”

When it comes to choosing a camp Power Soccer’s director Liam Power says parents should look into the camp’s schedule to find a breakdown of the activities planned to see what kind of content their kids may learn and benefit from.

“I think it’s important for parents to consider the whole package of the camp, considering the price and stuff like the reputation of the camp and also just to talk to their friends because word of mouth is such an important method of communication as well,” he says.

Power says one of the benefits of choosing a specialized camp is it engages kids with a subject they’re already interested in and allows them to develop their skills and knowledge in the process.

Though he runs a general camp Graham says campers get the chance to try out many activities and potentially discover a passion for something they never knew existed.

“We’ve produced world-class athletes in kayaking out of our program from kids who just came to try all kinds of activities so you get that in a general camp,” he says. “If your child already has a very focused specialization that you want to take advantage of and progress even further, then you can look to a specialized camp.”

The Hollows Camp’s founder and co-director Stephen Fine believes picking a camp should be a family affair. He says parents can present potential options to their kids and ask which they’d be interested in attending or simply ask for their input in the first place. When choosing between day and overnight camps he says a day camp often serves as a stepping-stone to the residential experience.

“I think that at a certain age kids can really benefit from time away from that which they are really familiar with,” says Fine. “It’s an adventure to go away to a residential camp and it doesn’t have to be very far just getting out of the house and having some new surroundings and some new friends other than the ones that you see all the time.”

It may be hard for parents to envision warm weather during this time of year but Graham says booking early guarantees more than just discounted rates.

“Camps that are popular and good quality and well known are going to fill quite quickly,” says Graham. “The longer the delay you have in registering for camp, the less options you will have registering for camps. If you have a sense that’s something you want to do … get it out of the way and do it right now.”