Are sleepaway camps a good idea?

[Anonymous]

I know some people who have begun sending 9-12 year olds to sleepaway camps. Are they a good idea? If you went, what were the benefits? I hate my kids to be away from me for an extended period of time, so I want to know if it’s any very concrete benefit you found.

[Anonymous]

Like anything else, it's great for some kids and awful for others. My cousin went to the same sleepaway camp for years and is still close friends in her early 50's with people she met there. I never wanted to go, so always did day camps.

[Anonymous]

It builds independence and resilience. I only went to one week of sleep away camp, the summer after 5th grade, but it was a big experience in my life and stayed with me for decades. My husband and I were talking about how camp leaves oversized memories for the amount of time we were actually there.

My 9yo went to her first week this year and she loved it. It was hard not being able to talk to her all week, but I think it is a valuable step in independence for a child.

[Anonymous]

I went to Girl Scout camp and other camps as a kid and my rising second grader (winter birthday) is at her first five-night Girl Scout camp right now. I bet I miss her more than she misses us, but it was one of the best, most formative parts of my childhood and I’m so glad she was eager to go. It teaches them confidence, self sufficiency, and gives them a chance to figure out themselves in a truly separate world from their “real” lives. And it’s tons of fun! S’mores, sleeping in tents, making new instant BFFs, etc etc etc.

[Anonymous]

I was just wondering about this for next year for my kid who will be rising 3rd grade. Think we’ll give it a try

[Anonymous]

As I kid I went to one I hated ( Girl Scouts) and one I loved ( youth group)
My kid went to one last year for 6 nights when she had just finished 4th grade. She stuck it out and enjoyed parts of it but overall was not a good experience and she doesn’t want to go again. She’ll happily go sleep at a friend though and visited a friend 3 hours away for 3 nights this summer.
She tried it, doesn’t want to do it again, I’m ok with that. We just do day camps now. If she wants to go again when she’s older she can.

[Anonymous]

We do it to build bonding between siblings. Far from home they need each other for emotional support.

[Anonymous]

My 11yo went for a week for the first time this summer. It was great for her because it was a full week without screens and being active.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I know some people who have begun sending 9-12 year olds to sleepaway camps. Are they a good idea? If you went, what were the benefits? I hate my kids to be away from me for an extended period of time, so I want to know if it’s any very concrete benefit you found.

But parenting is completely not about you. It's what's good for your kids. My kid loved summer camp every year. He made good friends and did activities he couldn't at home.

[Anonymous]

I went. I was a shy, unathletic kid, and this broke me out of my shell and got me trying new things. My kids go and love it - they come home with new skills and confidence and independence.

When I went to college there were kids who were so clueless about being away and their newfound independence, and I was comfortable doing a lot on my own.

[Anonymous]

I loved sleep away camps and did them from around age 7 or 8. It’s true that I was always very independent but I’m not sure if that can attributed to sleep away camp or not.

[Anonymous]

Out of sight out of mind amirite

[Anonymous]

In addition (or as offshoot of) independence and resilience, but it also teaches them to get along with others outside of the family unit. Even when they are at school, parents still can have a lot of interactions. Kids can come home and complain or worry about something at home, talk to their parents and their parents can intervene.

Sleepaway camps give one extra step of distance away from parents and family and teaches them to adapt and cope with others with less of a parental umbrella. Parents are still available, but they are a distance away and harder to get in touch with for daily problem solving. Kids still have the counselors and CITs to go to, but these adults are focused on the children as a group and have less bias for individuals over other individuals. So, the kids have to learn to cope with others in group settings with less parental guidance. As I said, an offshoot of independence, but still important.

When our kids were 8, we started with a one-night sleepaway. Our county parks and recreation program had a day camp M-F. Thursday night was a sleepover. When they were 9, they joined some kids from our church (so a few friends that they knew) or a Bible camp that was 3 days, 2 nights. Last year, when they were 10, they went to the same Bible camp for 6 days, 5 nights. This year, they did the same camp again because they loved it.

For us, the gradual escalation helped our kids overcome the anxiety of being away and they adapted very well to the increasing duration.

[Anonymous]

Depends on the kid. My kids both tried it for the first time the summer before fifth grade. DS hated it and never went again. DD loved it, went back every year, and now is a counselor.

[Anonymous]

All kid dependent. Compliant kids probably enjoy