I'm in my mid-40s and it was so much different as a child. We probably spent half our summer doing nothing but hanging at the pool, but that worked because back then everybody did nothing and went to the pool. I would still do that with my boys now, but all of their friends are in structured activities like day camps, sleep away camps, etc., so it basically forces me to do the same. My boys have zero desire to go to the pool with mom and dad if none of their friends will be there. I know some people are still lucky enough to have that dynamic, but for my middle school boys it doesn't exist anymore.

Anonymous wrote:I WOH and we have gone from 8 weeks of day camp to 6 and now 4 at 7, just about to turn 8. A lot of it though is that I have more flexibility with work now, school is starting earlier, and DS is starting on the swim team. I agree with others that two to three week of complete downtime is probably enough. As much as I like to let DS have downtime; he invariably ends up on the iPad, etc.

I have also though about some half day options as a nice balance. There is a golf camp near us that is half day, and we are thinking of trying that.

I'm the mom who let her kids start not having full summers of camp at 12. But how do you manage half day camps? Do you live near the home or camp? Hire someone to drive?

My youngest is desperate for a particular half-day camp, and I'm fine with him (14) being home alone for half a day. But the camp isn't close enough to our house for him to bike or walk safely, no public transportation options... and I'm going to be at work. I'd love ideas if you have them.

I WOH and we have gone from 8 weeks of day camp to 6 and now 4 at 7, just about to turn 8. A lot of it though is that I have more flexibility with work now, school is starting earlier, and DS is starting on the swim team. I agree with others that two to three week of complete downtime is probably enough. As much as I like to let DS have downtime; he invariably ends up on the iPad, etc.

I have also though about some half day options as a nice balance. There is a golf camp near us that is half day, and we are thinking of trying that.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I raised two kids and we never put them in all summer long camps. It was two camps maximum per summer, most of them a week long, i think just few was two weeks. I don't believe in a lot of structured activities and let my kids just have a free time on summer.

And did you stay home?
This is about parents who work. Unless you work full time at home?

Nope, I always worked full + time.

We either paid a nanny, flied grandparents here for summer or flight kids to grandparents. Once the older turned 10, they was able to stay home along.

It's nice for you that you had grandparents that were willing to babysitter, but not everyone has that option. Some of us have parents that are deceased, or work, or are simply unable or uninterested in babysitting all summer. So get off your high horse.

Anonymous wrote:man you people are nuts no wonder kids have so many issues these days structured out to death and then not knowing what to do when they actually have free time

More structure when you were younger might have helped with your ability to write. Do you have issues with punctuation?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I raised two kids and we never put them in all summer long camps. It was two camps maximum per summer, most of them a week long, i think just few was two weeks. I don't believe in a lot of structured activities and let my kids just have a free time on summer.

And did you stay home?
This is about parents who work. Unless you work full time at home?

Nope, I always worked full + time.

We either paid a nanny, flied grandparents here for summer or flight kids to grandparents. Once the older turned 10, they was able to stay home along.

PP: sorry for mistakes, typing from my phone.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I raised two kids and we never put them in all summer long camps. It was two camps maximum per summer, most of them a week long, i think just few was two weeks. I don't believe in a lot of structured activities and let my kids just have a free time on summer.

And did you stay home?
This is about parents who work. Unless you work full time at home?

Nope, I always worked full + time.

We either paid a nanny, flied grandparents here for summer or flight kids to grandparents. Once the older turned 10, they was able to stay home along.

man you people are nuts no wonder kids have so many issues these days structured out to death and then not knowing what to do when they actually have free time

Anonymous wrote:I raised two kids and we never put them in all summer long camps. It was two camps maximum per summer, most of them a week long, i think just few was two weeks. I don't believe in a lot of structured activities and let my kids just have a free time on summer.

And did you stay home?
This is about parents who work. Unless you work full time at home?

Anonymous wrote:Seems like a lot of these responses are from stay-at-home moms?

I'm wondering what the working parents do because I'm in the same situation as OP.

I'm a working parent my son is 12:

He is doing day camp all summer except:

3 weeks of sleepover camp, 1 week vacation, and 1 week of nothing. During that week of nothing I told him he could stay home by himself as a trial for two days if he walked the dog and went to the pool. (Our pool does not have a rule of how old your child has to be to be alone, that I know of. I started letting him go alone last year). The other 3 days I plan to take off of work.)

Next year we are talking about 6 weeks sleep over camp (he loves it), or some combination swim team/volunteering. He does not want to be in day camps. I do not want him sitting home all day.

Before someone lectures me about:

1: sending my child away all summer-I did it and I loved it and I don't care what you think.
2: Having my child in camps all summer, I work and this is what it is like when both parents work.

Seems like a lot of these responses are from stay-at-home moms?

I'm wondering what the working parents do because I'm in the same situation as OP.

I raised two kids and we never put them in all summer long camps. It was two camps maximum per summer, most of them a week long, i think just few was two weeks. I don't believe in a lot of structured activities and let my kids just have a free time on summer.

My DS is 12 and just finishing 6th grade. This is the first summer we have no camps set up - his choice. He does play baseball and his travel team is going to Cooperstown, so I guess that is one "camp", but other than that - he's hanging at the pool this summer. Most of his friends are not doing camps either. At that age, they don't have to be supervised at the pool during daytime hours so they can come and go as they please.

My children at 12 don't have to do a full summer camp. We started this because my oldest couldn't find camps for the whole summer she was interested in at 12, and she made a good argument for not needing summer camp the whole camp. We learned that summer that she prefers being around other kids rather than being home alone (and at 12 was not old enough to go to the pool by herself, so after swim team practice in the morning she had to come home). She started being a CIT when she was 13 and that filled up most of the summer weeks that didn't have camps she personally wanted to attend.

I wouldn't let a 12 year old go the whole summer with no camps, but I could see taking a week after school ends and having nothing, and maybe a week break between a couple camps throughout the summer, and another week or two of no camp before school starts. I'd only do this if your child is on board. And I provide my children with a list of chores and a deal - if they complete the chores on the list, they get paid at the end of the week (I'll have saved $ on camp, and they'll be doing work for me). We tend to have our family vacation at the end of summer, so it's a way for my kids to get extra spending $ for the vacation and a way for me to make sure they're not spending the entire day lounging in front of the TV.

13 for day camps. 15 for the away camps.