Soar NC vs Sequoia for teen boy with ADHD

[Anonymous]

My son is now on his 3rd summer going to Soars. He has down the Florida keys trip, the Yellowstone trip and this summer he is off to Costa Rica. They do a great job!

[Anonymous]

Wanted to add that our adhd child with hfa was asked to leave SOAr mid-session. Told their autism was too obvious and required too
much staff attention. No refund.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wanted to add that our adhd child with hfa was asked to leave SOAr mid-session. Told their autism was too obvious and required too
much staff attention. No refund.

Unless you're my friend, you're the second person whose kid got kicked out of soar last summer for behaviors very much consistent with the disability.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wanted to add that our adhd child with hfa was asked to leave SOAr mid-session. Told their autism was too obvious and required too
much staff attention. No refund.

Really? I'm so sorry. How old is your DC?

[Anonymous]

My ADHD child attend both SOAR and Sequoia and they were both excellent. My child went back to Sequois for a few yearsin a row. When he was ready for a little more adventure he went to SOAR in the FL Keys. He would have repeated SOAR but for the pandemic.
I recommend you get on the phone with camp directors at both places. Be direct and honest about where your child has challenges and needs support. Ask them how they handle different situations so you can get a feel for their programs. There is not a bad choice betweeen the two. Pick the one you feel will best set up your child for success right now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wanted to add that our adhd child with hfa was asked to leave SOAr mid-session. Told their autism was too obvious and required too
much staff attention. No refund.

what does “too obvious” mean? was it a safety issue?

[Anonymous]

I would love to chat offline with any parents who sent their child to Sequoia. I am thinking about sending my rising 5th grader this summer but I am so nervous about so many things. Mostly that there is no staff member in the dorm rooms with them. I am nervous that he will get upset and how they will calm him down. I am nervous that other children may scare him with any outbursts. Any thoughts?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would love to chat offline with any parents who sent their child to Sequoia. I am thinking about sending my rising 5th grader this summer but I am so nervous about so many things. Mostly that there is no staff member in the dorm rooms with them. I am nervous that he will get upset and how they will calm him down. I am nervous that other children may scare him with any outbursts. Any thoughts?

The kids sleep in an old style dorm set up—2 kids in a room and a shared bath between them and the kids in the next room. Staff sleeps on the hall but in a different room.

[Anonymous]

Do any of you worry about your DC’s privacy from going to one of these camps? I have a child who I think would benefit, but kids talk about what they did over the summer and I’m worried about the social costs for DC of what other kids or families would think.

[Anonymous]

Another camp to consider - camp Akeela.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do any of you worry about your DC’s privacy from going to one of these camps? I have a child who I think would benefit, but kids talk about what they did over the summer and I’m worried about the social costs for DC of what other kids or families would think.

If your kid has ADHD severe enough that you are sending to a specialized camp at 3x the cost instead of a ND-friendly mainstream camp, the people who know your DC well realize there are issues. We don’t casually discuss diagnoses but we make sure there is no shame attached to them. Part of that is putting our DC in situations with “kids like him.”

I don’t think that the camps are well enough known that people who don’t have ND kids have heard of them. Most casual conversations, I just said they went to camp in PA and no one questioned.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wanted to add that our adhd child with hfa was asked to leave SOAr mid-session. Told their autism was too obvious and required too
much staff attention. No refund.

what does “too obvious” mean? was it a safety issue?

I would also be very interested to know. My kid is different than the mainstream population; that’s why we’re looking at SN camps! Are his differences too much for soar? Would be great to hear these negative experiences too.