Do many more kids go to overnight camps these days?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Seems like everyone these days send their kids to overnight camps once they reach a certain age. I only remember a few friends going when i was a kid. Is this a nee trend, or did i just have an unusual group of friends and his was aleays the case?

Jewish parents send their kids for a month or all summer starting at like 7-8yrs old. It is really weird. Don't you want to spend any time with your kids? It is definitely this area. Sadly neighborhoods are ghost towns because parents don't want to parent. Kids have structure 24/7. Very sad.

So you know every jewish parent in the area? Lately this board is full of people who seem to know all about what jewish parents think about camp, college and marriage.

It is hard to understand that an area that is so liberal and supposedly so educated has so many people that buy into stereotypes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Seems like everyone these days send their kids to overnight camps once they reach a certain age. I only remember a few friends going when i was a kid. Is this a nee trend, or did i just have an unusual group of friends and his was aleays the case?

Jewish parents send their kids for a month or all summer starting at like 7-8yrs old. It is really weird. Don't you want to spend any time with your kids? It is definitely this area. Sadly neighborhoods are ghost towns because parents don't want to parent. Kids have structure 24/7. Very sad.

First--it's not sad. Parents are sending their kids (who want to go) to gain experiences they can't give them at home. They are not sending them because they don't want to parent. Independence within a supportive environment; consequences for actions ie, you have to sweep the floor, else as a cabin we fail inspection---this teaches team work, accountability, and pride in your work; ability to make choices about what you want to do....archery or zipline, dance or volleyball?

Second, it's not just this area. If you do a search you'll find that there are sleep away camps all over the country and even the world. They wouldn't exist in areas outside of "this area" if there wasn't the demand.

Third---not all parents have the luxury of staying home with their children all summer. Sometimes, both parents have to work. Younger children need childcare. I have yet to hear of a day camp that offers completely unstructured days. There is structure in every child care environment.

I was on the phone yesterday with a camp director discussing options for my child for next summer. He made a comment that resonated with me. He said that many children are developmentally ready to attend camp by 2nd or 3rd grade but parents are not ready to send their children until 5th or 6th grade. Sleep away camp is not the right choice for all families, but for families that do make the choice, it is by no means "very sad".

I know kids who don't want to go and are sent anyway, even all summer. But most are 21-28 days. And if you can't discipline your child to teach them independence and consequences then I guess paying others to do it while you go on your own vacations and dinners with your husband, then more power to you.

Even in such cases, I would argue that those kids are better off spending some time away from their awful parents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have never done it and I never will. That's not how I parent.

This could have come out of my mom's mouth, along with the stuff about a missing bond and all that. I obviously never went. She talked about parents who didn't want their kids around, how she could never let us go, etc. I recognized it for the bragging it was even as a kid.

We will send our kids when they are old enough. I don't want to do what my mom did in this respect.

My kids and I are closer than imaginable. But every year since they were 10-11, they have gone to camp for a week. Not because I need a break, or because I want to do something for myself, but because they want to. They have a blast, and the independence is great for their social/emotional development and self -esteem. I miss them every second they are gone, but it's not about me.

I'm absolutely dumbfounded that people seem to equate one week of summer camp to sending your kid to live with the nanny for the first 18 years, and I believe that people who refuse to let kids who want to experience camp go are thinking only of themselves and doing their kids a disservice.

Could not agree more. Some kids actually LOVE going to camp; more power to them!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have never done it and I never will. That's not how I parent.

Can you expand on this? What are the reasons that you wold never send your child to sleep away camp? Or that it reflects on what type of parent you are?

Not the PP, and we have a few years until DD is old enough, but I'm torn about the idea of sleepaway camp.

I went to a private school growing up and was on scholarship unlike many of my wealthy classmates. A number of them went to the same expensive camp in another state every summer for a month or more. I remember my mother telling me it was because their parents didn't want them at home during the summer. I know she probably told me that simply so I wouldn't feel badly that they couldn't afford to send me, but it stuck with me.

I have a feeling that we'll probably allow a short overnight camp stint at some point during her summers in addition to a week at her grandparents' house, but I love her too much and she'll be off to college in just a few short years that I wouldn't want to have her gone all summer while still a kid.

Hate to break it to you but your mom is right. Parents ship their kids off because they don't want to parent 24/7. It is easier for wealthy families to have nannies and send them to 8 weeks of summer camp. It is the thing to do. And the kids that go claim they love it because they rather be there than with their shitty parents anyway. I know many wealthy parents that keep their kids around, have swimming parties, go on family vacations and the like.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To some extent there may be more kids going to overnight camps because there are more families with both parents WOH -- so parents needs to figure out what to do with the kids all summer and, with 2 incomes, they can pay for camp.

Beyond that, though, I think it's a cultural thing. Growing up in California, I can barely remember anybody going to camp for more than 1 week, but when I came east to college I met lots of people who'd gone for several weeks every summer. Interestingly, most of these folks were either Jewish or super-WASPY (like my DH), and in both cases, it seemed like their parents wanted them to meet other kids with the same socio-economic background.

My own kids picked swim team over camp; they're in HS and college now and have many happy summer memories (including memories of summers when they volunteered or were paid to coach swimming). When they were younger -- through ES -- they combined swim team with day camps; with the abundance of options in this area they got to try a lot of activities -- tennis, kayaking, horseback riding, photography, etc. In MS, they combined swim team, some day camps week, and some free-range weeks where swim team gave a bit of structure to the day, but they also just hung out with friends and came up with activities and projects on their own. (Your kids can actually do this if you give them a chance.) Finally, in HS, they went away for part of every summer to sports camps or on on service trips with school or church.

As teens and young adults in their early 20s, they're quite independent, so I don't think they were hampered by not going to camp. Among their friends, I'd say that those who have made the smoothest transition to young adulthood include some who went to overnight camp and others who didn't. The level of maturity, self-sufficient and independence, as well as the bond with parents and sibs, probably have more to do with the kind of family in which they grew up than with whether they went to camp.

Yes I agree. The Jewish camps only allow Jewish kids. These are parents that are saying we only want to send you to a camp with your kind. No Asian, no blacks, no Hispanics. We will pay top dollar and not look at any other camps that accept all kids. They are racist elitist snobs - oh but they are liberal. Lol

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have never done it and I never will. That's not how I parent.

This could have come out of my mom's mouth, along with the stuff about a missing bond and all that. I obviously never went. She talked about parents who didn't want their kids around, how she could never let us go, etc. I recognized it for the bragging it was even as a kid.

We will send our kids when they are old enough. I don't want to do what my mom did in this respect.

My kids and I are closer than imaginable. But every year since they were 10-11, they have gone to camp for a week. Not because I need a break, or because I want to do something for myself, but because they want to. They have a blast, and the independence is great for their social/emotional development and self -esteem. I miss them every second they are gone, but it's not about me.

I'm absolutely dumbfounded that people seem to equate one week of summer camp to sending your kid to live with the nanny for the first 18 years, and I believe that people who refuse to let kids who want to experience camp go are thinking only of themselves and doing their kids a disservice.

Could not agree more. Some kids actually LOVE going to camp; more power to them!

Going one week because they ask and being sent off on an airplane to 8 weeks of camp are two very different things.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To some extent there may be more kids going to overnight camps because there are more families with both parents WOH -- so parents needs to figure out what to do with the kids all summer and, with 2 incomes, they can pay for camp.

Beyond that, though, I think it's a cultural thing. Growing up in California, I can barely remember anybody going to camp for more than 1 week, but when I came east to college I met lots of people who'd gone for several weeks every summer. Interestingly, most of these folks were either Jewish or super-WASPY (like my DH), and in both cases, it seemed like their parents wanted them to meet other kids with the same socio-economic background.

My own kids picked swim team over camp; they're in HS and college now and have many happy summer memories (including memories of summers when they volunteered or were paid to coach swimming). When they were younger -- through ES -- they combined swim team with day camps; with the abundance of options in this area they got to try a lot of activities -- tennis, kayaking, horseback riding, photography, etc. In MS, they combined swim team, some day camps week, and some free-range weeks where swim team gave a bit of structure to the day, but they also just hung out with friends and came up with activities and projects on their own. (Your kids can actually do this if you give them a chance.) Finally, in HS, they went away for part of every summer to sports camps or on on service trips with school or church.

As teens and young adults in their early 20s, they're quite independent, so I don't think they were hampered by not going to camp. Among their friends, I'd say that those who have made the smoothest transition to young adulthood include some who went to overnight camp and others who didn't. The level of maturity, self-sufficient and independence, as well as the bond with parents and sibs, probably have more to do with the kind of family in which they grew up than with whether they went to camp.

Yes I agree. The Jewish camps only allow Jewish kids. These are parents that are saying we only want to send you to a camp with your kind. No Asian, no blacks, no Hispanics. We will pay top dollar and not look at any other camps that accept all kids. They are racist elitist snobs - oh but they are liberal. Lol

I have never heard of a jewish camp only accepting a jewish child. Please provide examples. And since you made a blanket statement, please provide multiple examples.

I will say that jewish camps often have an element of religion that non jews are not interested in. It could be friday night shabbat, it could be shabbat Saturday, it could be dietary restrictions.

[Anonymous]

Wow, this thread - particularly the anti-Semitic comments - are pretty horrible.

1. Many, many kids love sleep away camp. DHs camp friend are still some of his closest friends.

2. The parents I know with kids at sleep away camp miss them very much and scour the camp websites hourly trying to find pictures of them looking happy.

3. Jewish families often want their kids to have a Jewish education or experience but cannot afford Jewish day school. Studies have shown that Jewish camps are the best solution to this and offer the strongest experiences in terms of strengthening Jewish identity and awareness and learning about the religion and culture.

4. Very few Jewish camps exclude non-Jewish kids (maybe some Orthodox camps do, but given the level of religious ceremonial practice in these, very few, if any, non-Jewish kids express interest in attending those camps.

5. These camps are, for the most part, pretty expensive but parents I know scrupulously save and go without many other luxuries in life in order to afford them bc they can be such an amazing experience for the kids.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous[b wrote:]Wow, this thread - particularly the anti-Semitic comments - are pretty horrible.[/b]

1. Many, many kids love sleep away camp. DHs camp friend are still some of his closest friends.

2. The parents I know with kids at sleep away camp miss them very much and scour the camp websites hourly trying to find pictures of them looking happy.

3. Jewish families often want their kids to have a Jewish education or experience but cannot afford Jewish day school. Studies have shown that Jewish camps are the best solution to this and offer the strongest experiences in terms of strengthening Jewish identity and awareness and learning about the religion and culture.

4. Very few Jewish camps exclude non-Jewish kids (maybe some Orthodox camps do, but given the level of religious ceremonial practice in these, very few, if any, non-Jewish kids express interest in attending those camps.

5. These camps are, for the most part, pretty expensive but parents I know scrupulously save and go without many other luxuries in life in order to afford them bc they can be such an amazing experience for the kids.

+1 This seem to be a running thread through many other forums about schools, colleges and camps. read the comments on "should i send my daughter to NYU" or the comments on the political forum anout israel.

it is truly disapointing that we live in an area that calls itself liberal and is supposed to be such an educated population but the haters come out of the woodwork at the mention of the word "jewish."

[Anonymous]

I never went to camp and no one I knew ever did either. No one could afford things like that where I was from.

My eldest (15) has done a 1 week sleepaway camp and didn't love it enough to want to return. Now she has too many other interests in the summer to try again. She has a few friends who go away for 3 weeks or so. My youngest (12) has never wanted to go. Her friends only do day camps.

[Anonymous]

What an interesting thread! I am not an American but went to camp for 3 weeks every year in Europe. My oldest now is in camp in my home country (first time ever overnight camp). I always loved camps and went as a kid and later as teenager councellor. THe difference is back home the camps are REALLY affordable. Compared to average pay, anyone can afford it and so kids go (as I did) from 1st, 2nd grade.

I want to ask about here in the US - the process of selecting the camp. It seems from the replies that you TOUR the camp first? That must be expensive!! And you call and talk to the director a year ahead? Can you please explain the process to me - at home, you sign them up in APril, May of the year, there is no touring etc, it simply is not done, kids just go.

And, when the camp is say in NH or VT, do you drive them up or they fly on their own and the camp people pick them up at airport? You fly with them?

I want to send my two older ones next year so some awesome camp and would welcome any feedback on the process. Thank you! My US DH never went to camp so this will need to be my effort...

[Anonymous]

I have three kids, two of whom are sleep away camp age. I send everyone away (except the baby, who has day care) at different times so that I get at least one solid week of one-on-one time with each child during the summer. I get to geek-out for a week with my science kid, go rock climbing hiking with my jock kid, and go to toddler times with the baby. I couldn't do any of that if I didn't work things out this way.

But to be clear, I don't send the older kids to camp to get rid of them. Rather, I do not have the means to teach archery or sailing in my yard. Nor am I a team of 8 boys working on team-buiding exercises. Horses and powerboats? Nope. Don't have those either. There are precious few opportunities for boys to be boys in their day-to-day life and they cherish their time at camp for that. In fact, they beg me for more weeks of camp than they already do have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow, this thread - particularly the anti-Semitic comments - are pretty horrible.

1. Many, many kids love sleep away camp. DHs camp friend are still some of his closest friends.

2. The parents I know with kids at sleep away camp miss them very much and scour the camp websites hourly trying to find pictures of them looking happy.

3. Jewish families often want their kids to have a Jewish education or experience but cannot afford Jewish day school. Studies have shown that Jewish camps are the best solution to this and offer the strongest experiences in terms of strengthening Jewish identity and awareness and learning about the religion and culture.

4. Very few Jewish camps exclude non-Jewish kids (maybe some Orthodox camps do, but given the level of religious ceremonial practice in these, very few, if any, non-Jewish kids express interest in attending those camps.

5. These camps are, for the most part, pretty expensive but parents I know scrupulously save and go without many other luxuries in life in order to afford them bc they can be such an amazing experience for the kids.

I was at a camp tour this past weekend (a Jewish camp) and the director mentioned how much scholarship money they give out, it was a ton. And the kids, counselors - don't know who is on scholarship and who isn't (and since it is an all girls camp, they all wear t-shirts and shorts every day , clothes aren't a big deal). It's a great way to have independence and gain the Jewish experience , especially for those that live in areas with not many Jews

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wow, this thread - particularly the anti-Semitic comments - are pretty horrible.

1. Many, many kids love sleep away camp. DHs camp friend are still some of his closest friends.

2. The parents I know with kids at sleep away camp miss them very much and scour the camp websites hourly trying to find pictures of them looking happy.

3. Jewish families often want their kids to have a Jewish education or experience but cannot afford Jewish day school. Studies have shown that Jewish camps are the best solution to this and offer the strongest experiences in terms of strengthening Jewish identity and awareness and learning about the religion and culture.

4. Very few Jewish camps exclude non-Jewish kids (maybe some Orthodox camps do, but given the level of religious ceremonial practice in these, very few, if any, non-Jewish kids express interest in attending those camps.

5. These camps are, for the most part, pretty expensive but parents I know scrupulously save and go without many other luxuries in life in order to afford them bc they can be such an amazing experience for the kids.

I was at a camp tour this past weekend (a Jewish camp) and the director mentioned how much scholarship money they give out, it was a ton. And the kids, counselors - don't know who is on scholarship and who isn't (and since it is an all girls camp, they all wear t-shirts and shorts every day , clothes aren't a big deal). It's a great way to have independence and gain the Jewish experience , especially for those that live in areas with not many Jews

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I never went to camp and no one I knew ever did either. No one could afford things like that where I was from.

My eldest (15) has done a 1 week sleepaway camp and didn't love it enough to want to return. Now she has too many other interests in the summer to try again. She has a few friends who go away for 3 weeks or so. My youngest (12) has never wanted to go. Her friends only do day camps.

I'm from a working class town and plenty of kids I knew (including me) went to Girl Scout camp--it was like $300 for a two-week session (this was in the 1980s), and they didn't require uniforms or anything. All the girls there were from pretty much the same background.