Most Painful part of Day Camp - What would you change?

[Anonymous]

Outside of how expensive camps can be...what is one (or more) thing you would change about Day Camps if you were in charge of one? Communication? Registration? Organization? Carpool? Lunch? Activities? Friendships?

[Anonymous]

The number of lost items we go through is staggering. Water bottles, towels, goggles, and more...where does it all go?

[Anonymous]

making sure that everyone is engaged. not just focusing on the outgoing kids who easily attract attention, but also on the quieter ones who might not draw attention to themselves if they're not engaged or might need a little boost to start making friends with others at camp.

[Anonymous]

Making the day longer and aftercare more engaging. Next year I'm going to try to put my son in Calleva all summer(instead of just 2 weeks) so I don't have to deal with the short days and the complaints about aftercare.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:making sure that everyone is engaged. not just focusing on the outgoing kids who easily attract attention, but also on the quieter ones who might not draw attention to themselves if they're not engaged or might need a little boost to start making friends with others at camp.

+1 this is so important. Typically day camps hire teens and college kids who may not be aware of how to navigate this. Every voice should be heard.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:making sure that everyone is engaged. not just focusing on the outgoing kids who easily attract attention, but also on the quieter ones who might not draw attention to themselves if they're not engaged or might need a little boost to start making friends with others at camp.

+1 this is so important. Typically day camps hire teens and college kids who may not be aware of how to navigate this. Every voice should be heard.

I think you can mitigate this by choosing the right camp(s) for your kid(s). One of my kids takes longer to warm up in groups and has specific opinions about how they want to spend their days. That kid is not a good fit for county parks camps while my other kid loves them.

[Anonymous]

We went to one camp with the WORST pick up line. Kids no longer go to that camp.

[Anonymous]

like how late they start and early they end?

[Anonymous]

Check-in time (how long it takes, bottlenecks) and availability of before/aftercare

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We went to one camp with the WORST pick up line. Kids no longer go to that camp.

+1 even though the rest of the camp was fabulous

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:making sure that everyone is engaged. not just focusing on the outgoing kids who easily attract attention, but also on the quieter ones who might not draw attention to themselves if they're not engaged or might need a little boost to start making friends with others at camp.

+1 this is so important. Typically day camps hire teens and college kids who may not be aware of how to navigate this. Every voice should be heard.

I would say just better camp instructors overall (which I know is a challenge).

[Anonymous]

Registration can be pretty terrible when it's a camp that fills up quickly and you're clicking and clicking and uploading vax files and entering credit card info and sweating and THEN you are registered. I would set up something more equitable.

[Anonymous]

Drop-off and pick-up lines that are disorganized or otherwise suck.

[Anonymous]

Provide lunch and snacks
Efficient pick up process (hint: walkie talkies and multiple stations help)
Air conditioning breaks on hot days
Provide down time

[Anonymous]

The last-minute notice that tomorrow is a dress-up/theme day that puts our evening into chaos trying to figure it out.