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Week 2 Highlights

Anxiety About Sleeping Away At Camp? Here’s What We Can Do.

Written by Camp Birchmont - Posted March 26, 2023

It’s common for children to feel anxious or nervous about sleeping away at camp, especially if it’s their first time. Sometimes these feelings or expressions of anxiety don’t crop up until the start of camp draws closer.  Here are some things you can do to help alleviate anxiety and prepare your child for the experience:

Talk about it: Discuss the experience with your child beforehand, including what to expect, what they’re looking forward to, and any concerns or fears they may have. Encourage your child to ask questions and express their feelings openly.

Practice separation: Practice separation by arranging sleepovers with family or friends beforehand. This can help your child get used to being away from home and build confidence in their ability to cope with new situations.

Involve your child in the packing process: Involve your child in the packing process, and make sure they have all necessary items and comforts from home, such as a favorite stuffed animal or pillow.

Communication: Let your camper know they can write you letters and that you will be writing to them too.  Make sure they know they can always talk with camp staff or the camp director if they ever need anything or are having a hard time. Make sure they knowing that they will have a phone call with you after the first week of camp.  Knowing this communication with home is on the horizon will help ease anxiety and get the camper to focus on the camp experience in the first few days of camp instead of focusing on calling home right away or talking to a parent at the first sign of homesickness.

Create a coping strategy: Work with your child to create a coping strategy for managing anxiety, such as deep breathing exercises or visualizing a peaceful place. Encourage your child to use this strategy if they feel overwhelmed or anxious.

Trust the staff: Most importantly, the camp staff is trained to handle a variety of situations and ensure the safety and well-being of campers including normal feelings of anxiety when being away from home for the first time. Trust that they will take care of your child and address any concerns or issues that arise and make sure your child knows they can always approach camp staff to help them too.

Stay positive and encouraging: Remind your child that sleepaway camp will be a fun and exciting experience and that they are capable of handling new situations and challenges. Stay positive and encouraging, and express confidence in their ability to thrive at camp.

Overall, it’s important to be supportive and understanding of your child’s feelings about sleeping away at camp. By preparing them for the experience, and fostering a positive attitude, you can help alleviate anxiety and ensure a positive and rewarding experience for your child.

Value-of-Summer-Camp

What Is The Best Age To Go To Overnight Camp?

Written by Camp Birchmont - Posted February 22, 2023

The best age to go to overnight camp depends on the individual child and their maturity level, interests, and comfort level with being away from home. However, many overnight camps typically accept children between the ages of 7 and 15. Here are some things to consider when determining the best age for your child to attend overnight camp:

Readiness for being away from home: Children who have previously attended sleepovers or been away from home for short periods of time may be more comfortable with the idea of overnight camp than those who have not. It’s important to consider your child’s comfort level with being away from home for an extended period of time and their ability to cope with homesickness.

Ability to follow rules and routines: Overnight camps have rules and routines that campers are expected to follow, such as set meal times and bedtimes, and regulations around personal conduct and behavior. Children who are able to follow rules and routines and understand the importance of respecting others may be better suited for overnight camp.

Interest in the camp’s activities: Overnight camps offer a wide variety of activities, from sports and outdoor adventure to arts and crafts and performing arts. It’s important to consider your child’s interests and whether the camp’s activities align with those interests. Children who are enthusiastic about the camp’s activities may be more likely to enjoy their time at camp and build strong relationships with their peers.

Maturity level: Some children may be more mature than others at a certain age, and it’s important to consider your child’s emotional maturity and ability to handle social situations, conflicts, and responsibility. A child who is mature for their age may be better suited for overnight camp than a child who is still developing these skills.

Overall, the best age to go to overnight camp varies from child to child, and it’s important to consider each child’s individual needs and interests when making the decision. It can be helpful to involve your child in the decision-making process and encourage them to share their thoughts and feelings about attending overnight camp.

Ready??! Request information about overnight camp here.

First-Time Parent of a Sleepaway Summer Camper? Here’s What You Should Know.

Written by Camp Birchmont - Posted January 12, 2023

Sending your child to sleepaway summer camp for the first time can be both exciting and nerve-wracking, especially for first-time parents. Here are some things you should know to help ease your worries and ensure a positive experience for both you and your child:

Do your research: Before choosing a sleepaway camp, do your research and make sure it aligns with your child’s interests and needs. Look into the camp’s policies and procedures, safety measures, staff qualifications, and communication protocols.

Involve your child in the decision-making process: Involve your child in the decision to attend sleepaway camp without letting them be the decision maker. Discuss the camp’s activities, expectations, and rules together. This can help your child feel more comfortable and excited about the experience while the parents are ultimately making the decision based on the things they find most important.

Prepare your child for the experience: Talk to your child about what to expect at sleepaway camp, including the daily routine, accommodations, and activities. You can also practice separation by arranging sleepovers with family or friends beforehand.

Establish communication: Discuss the communication plan with your child beforehand, including how often you will communicate and through what channels. It’s important to balance staying connected with allowing your child to fully immerse in the camp experience.

Manage homesickness: It’s common for children to experience homesickness, especially during the first few days at camp. Remind your child that it’s normal to feel this way and encourage them to talk to their counselor or a trusted staff member if they need support.

Trust the staff: The camp staff is trained to handle a variety of situations and ensure the safety and well-being of campers. Trust that they will take care of your child and address any concerns or issues that arise.

Overall, sending your child to sleepaway summer camp can be a wonderful experience that can help them build independence, make new friends, and try new activities. By preparing yourself and your child for the experience and establishing open communication with the camp staff, you can help ensure a positive and rewarding experience for all involved.

Spirit Day 2014

Why Should I Send My Child to a Co-Ed Overnight Camp This Summer?

Written by Camp Birchmont - Posted October 5, 2022

Co-ed camps offer a comfortable family atmosphere that is simply not attainable at unisex camps, or separate camps which bill themselves as Brother/Sister camps to attract siblings.

Birchmont activities are both single sex and co-ed depending on the activity: While Birchmont’s athletics are not co-ed, we do host a range of special events, activities, trips and meals which are co-ed. Our campers share the facilities, and pass each other throughout their day, emphasizing an “at-ease” atmosphere rather than stressing the absence of a particular gender.

Promotes healthy relationships: Co-ed overnight camps provide a unique opportunity for children to interact with peers of the opposite gender in a safe and supportive environment. This can help them develop healthy relationships and learn how to communicate and collaborate with others.

Strengthens family bonds: Many siblings and cousins have found great common ground at Birchmont, and the shared experience is one which will carry them through years and distance. The idea of spending one visiting day together as a family, without the logistics of visiting two camps, should not be underestimated.

Feeling connected, accomplished, and making friends is what camp life is all about…no matter your gender.

Words From Our Woods

~ Laura Pierce - Posted July 26, 2016

Lake Sunset

“When I see birches bend to the left and right…
I like to think some boy’s been swinging them.”
– Robert Frost

“We have not merely escaped from something, but also into something…We have joined the greatest of all communities, which is not that of man alone, but of everything which shares with us the great adventure of being alive.”
– Joseph Wood Krutch

Lake and Field

“How glorious a greeting the sun gives the mountain.”
– John Muir

“Children learning about the natural world should be treated as one of the most important events in their lives.”
– Thomas Berry

“In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.”
– John Muir

words-from-our-woods
These quotes are just a few of the many powerful and poignant statements made about our natural world, and really fall under the “I couldn’t have said it better myself” category.

When you see the impact, both subtle and profound that is made upon a child who is discovering the woods, and mountains around them, it is impossible not to take notice.

That our campers enjoy a lot of time outdoors is no surprise, but the amount of time we spend plunging into lakes, running in the rain, watching wind in trees, seeing the light of day fade away, tramping up trails, sailing in sunlight, feeling firelight, as part of our daily experience might surprise you; we sometimes surprises ourselves, and that’s a good thing.

Because we are aware, that we have something very precious here; it’s the luxury of time in the beauty of nature. Unlike computers and television … Nature does not steal time, it amplifies it. The camp community is about taking time to make friends, time to experience all the nature that surrounds us everyday and every night. Sure we are busy till the setting sun, but what sunsets they are, and what peace comes with knowing we will wake up with our friends the next day and be able to play with them in this beautiful place where the air always smells of fresh pine, and we notice things like moss on trees and flowers falling over fences, and dragonflies and frogs and robins having babies up in the rafters of Notches… For this we are grateful!

Lessons From Camp

Written by Camp Birchmont - Posted July 10, 2016

Free from school-year demands, summer camps are a key venue for social-emotional learning

By Leah Shafer, on July 1, 2016 11:23am

Summer camp: For so many kids, it signifies carefree days of swimming, playing sports, singing songs, and reveling in freedom from the demands of the school year. Camp means no homework, no studying, and no teachers.

But significant learning is still taking place at summer camp — even if the campers don’t necessarily realize it.

Summer Learning (Without the Books)

All those classic camp dynamics — being away from home and parents, making new friends, being part of a team, and trying new things — are building blocks to crucial social-emotional skills.

Social-emotional learning (SEL) can encompass a variety of practices, but most experts agree that a child with high SEL skills is successful in five core areas: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision making. These skills are increasingly understood to be central to success in school and in professional life beyond, but schools don’t always have the time or capacities to teach them explicitly. Obligations to complete curriculum and boost student achievement often make it difficult for teachers to prioritize community building, goal-setting, or problem solving in their classrooms.

Unconnected to the commitments of the school day, summer camps (particularly overnight camps) can dive head-first into social-emotional learning — and many do. These opportunities are especially importance for low-income students, many of whom already have fewer opportunities to gain these skills outside of school.

A 2005 study of 80 camps by the American Camp Association (ACA) found significant growth in children’s social-emotional skills after a session of summer camp. Camp staff, parents, and children reported increases in children’s self-esteem, independence, leadership, friendship skills, social comfort, and values and decision-making skills, from the beginning to the end of a session.

What a Good Camp Experience Looks Like

It’s not just the new environment and flexible schedule that builds kids’ social-emotional skills. Many camps have an intentional focus on social-emotional learning. YMCA camps, for instance, explicitly discuss their four values — honest, caring, respect, and responsibility — constantly, through songs, skits, and rallies. And most camps train staff to coach kids on becoming more independent, socially aware, and reflective.

In particular, camps foster relationship skills and social awareness by:

  • Introducing children to an entirely new group of peers. Camp may be the first time children have spent substantial time with people whose background — home, race, or religion — is different from their own.
  • Setting up opportunities for children to find their own friends. According to education researcher and longtime camp counselor and director Claire Gogolen, counselors often begin a session by leading icebreakers and regularly sorting a cabin group into different pairs. These activities give campers explicit opportunities to get to know each other, allowing them to figure out who they want to become better friends with.
  • Creating a space where silliness is accepted, and bullying is not. Without the need to plunge into academic content, camps have time to use the beginning of a session to prioritize group norms, says learning specialist and former camp counselor and director Ari Fleisher. Counselors can make it very clear that bullying and teasing are not acceptable. At the same time, camps can encourage songs, jokes, and general silliness that allow campers to relax and be themselves.
  • Taking a break from technology. Many overnight camps restrict or prohibit phones and computers. For many campers, this means it’s the first time they’ve made friends without the help of Instagram or Snapchat, and they learn how to navigate social cues to build and maintain friendships in “real life.”
  • Modeling teamwork and sportsmanship. During staff training, many camps stress the importance of adults demonstrating cooperation and friendship to their campers. When campers are surrounded by positive role models — particularly role models closer to their own age than teachers are — they learn how to get along with peers who may be different from them.

Camps also nurture self-awareness, self-management, and responsible decision making by:

  • Requiring children to solve day-to-day problems on their own. With limited contact with parents, campers have to learn how to manage their own conflicts, whether it’s a disagreement with a bunkmate or not getting their first-choice activity.
  • Presenting activities that are new to everyone. Counselors often purposefully lead games and activities that none of their campers have tried before, says afterschool specialist and former camp counselor Nicky DeCesare. Without the fear that some peers will already have a leg-up on lava tag or basket making, children may be more likely to decide to try new things.
  • Offering kids the chance to set and accomplish daily goals. The sheer amount of new activities makes it possible for kids to continually set and achieve goals, deepening their understanding of personal limits. One day a camper may be set on reaching the top of the climbing wall, and the next she may be determined to collaborate with her group to create a new song.
  • Helping children uncover new skills. Kids who are usually immersed in academics may become aware of new skills that they didn’t know they had. For children who struggle in school, these opportunities can increase self-confidence.
  • Providing time for reflection. Many camps begin or end the day with reflection activities, in which campers can think about the challenges they’ve faced, how they’ve grown, and what they’re excited for. These moments, rare in a typical school day, can develop self-awareness and mindfulness for all kids.

Additional Resources

Read the full American Camp Association report.