This break has me thinking about summer—share your thoughts, please!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don’t understand why it’s all or nothing. If you have 6 weeks of summer (taking out vacations) and you used to pay for 6 weeks of day camp, then pay for 2-3 weeks of more expensive specialty camps and the rest at home. Or look at half day classes which will cost less than full day programs. What kind of budget are you looking for?

My own kid who will be 12 this summer is doing a mix. She would be bored senseless if she was doing nothing all summer (we’re not in a neighborhood where there are other kids around and I work so can’t take her to do fun stuff.) A week of overnight Girl Scout camp, a week of rock climbing camp, a couple weeks of crew practice (early morning and the rest of the day free), etc.

This. Why is this a choice: skipping vacations so she can have a structured summer with day-camps and adequate socializing. Why not some day camps and some unstructured time and zero skipping of vacations? Some teen camps go out on an activity each day - Kings Dominion, water park, etc. find ones like that, see if a friend will join.

[Anonymous]

All you parents putting your kids in constant camps are laughable.

Unstructured summers are the best. My now 14yr old has them each year and loves them. She has been going on the metro/buses alone or with friends since 11 and can meet up with friends, pool, Smithsonian, the mall, parks, etc.... She bikes all of the time. Last year she was a petsitter and babysitter. Probably made about $1300 and I saved thousands not shoving her in structured babysitting. Oh and she also made clay bracelets and sold them too. She also had at least 15 sleepovers here and other places.

She has learned a lot about herself, structuring her time, street smarts, autonomy, and made a lot of new and closer friends that SHE wanted to be friends with. Not who she was forced to hang out with for weeks. It just works.

[Anonymous]

Unstructured summers is what the majority of the country does. Little niches like wealthy suburb kids go off to camps. It is not the norm at all. You must be in the "where are you sending your kids this summer" mom group in school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Unstructured summers is what the majority of the country does. Little niches like wealthy suburb kids go off to camps. It is not the norm at all. You must be in the "where are you sending your kids this summer" mom group in school.

I mean ... some of us do have jobs and don't want to leave a 12-year-old alone for weeks on end. So count me in as part of the laughable "where are you sending your kids this summer" mom group ...

[Anonymous]

Teens need practice being bored, learning to be comfortable with only themselves for company, and using their time in a productive manor. Sure there is going to be plenty of screentime, but even teens eventually get tired of that and want to do something else.

Mine have a week or two of specialty camps, a week or two of vacation, and then we just hang the rest of the summer. Lots of pool time, swapping books at the library. Playdates with friends.

The nice thing about them being older is most of their friends that used to be in daycare camp all summer are now home and available to them.

[Anonymous]

^manner.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You don't work in the summer and still sent her to full day, full summer camp until last year?

Normally I'd vote for unstructered (that's what we do) but you don't sound like the type.

My mother always told me insecure people make themselves feel better by putting others down.

Mine always told me to be suspicious of people who try to spend as little time with their kids as possible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Unstructured summers is what the majority of the country does. Little niches like wealthy suburb kids go off to camps. It is not the norm at all. You must be in the "where are you sending your kids this summer" mom group in school.

I mean ... some of us do have jobs and don't want to leave a 12-year-old alone for weeks on end. So count me in as part of the laughable "where are you sending your kids this summer" mom group ...

Neighborhood friends don't exist anymore?

[Anonymous]

Since covid and WFH I don't know anyone sending a middle schooler to full day camp all summer long.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:All you parents putting your kids in constant camps are laughable.

Unstructured summers are the best. My now 14yr old has them each year and loves them. She has been going on the metro/buses alone or with friends since 11 and can meet up with friends, pool, Smithsonian, the mall, parks, etc.... She bikes all of the time. Last year she was a petsitter and babysitter. Probably made about $1300 and I saved thousands not shoving her in structured babysitting. Oh and she also made clay bracelets and sold them too. She also had at least 15 sleepovers here and other places.

She has learned a lot about herself, structuring her time, street smarts, autonomy, and made a lot of new and closer friends that SHE wanted to be friends with. Not who she was forced to hang out with for weeks. It just works.

I think it’s more laughable that you’ve been a parent for 14 years and you STILL don’t understand that different things work for different kids and families. Good grief.

[Anonymous]

Would you be open to sending her to a 3-week long sleep away camp? That’s what I’m doing and the camp costs about $2700 for three weeks (with room and board included).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Would you be open to sending her to a 3-week long sleep away camp? That’s what I’m doing and the camp costs about $2700 for three weeks (with room and board included).

PP, do you mind naming the camp? I am looking for an affordable sleep away camp to send my kid to and haven’t found anything as cheap as $900/week.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Would you be open to sending her to a 3-week long sleep away camp? That’s what I’m doing and the camp costs about $2700 for three weeks (with room and board included).

PP, do you mind naming the camp? I am looking for an affordable sleep away camp to send my kid to and haven’t found anything as cheap as $900/week.

Sure, it’s Camp Celo in North Carolina.

[Anonymous]

Np but “unstructured summer” is will just be 100% screen time without a lot of parental management.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Np but “unstructured summer” is will just be 100% screen time without a lot of parental management.

That's what parents are supposed to do in the first place.