Do you remember the days of bonfires, toasted marshmallows, and tent pitching? Or do you have people that you met at camp and until today they are still your friends?
When I was a high school student, I attended a week-long camp. I remember once celebrating my birthday at camp. I barely know the people I was with yet they prepared cupcakes (using store-bought muffins.
Until now, every time I celebrate my birthday, I cannot stop thinking about that one time strangers celebrated my birthday with me even though they barely knew me.
Summer camps have always been a part of our childhood. It is where some of us experienced our first.
Some would like to tell stories about their first tent pitching experience. Some have tried attending a music camp but inevitably failing first at it because they don’t even have a musical tone in their body.
Still, both parents and kids are reminded that camp is for everyone. It is unlike school were everything, if not most of what you do in class is graded and is part of the curriculum.
The primary purpose of many camps is educational, athletic, or cultural development. A summer camp environment may allow children to learn new skills in a safe and nurturing environment. Honestly, summer camps were one of the best parts of American childhood.
Wouldn’t it be nice for our children to experience it as well?
Table of Contents
Traditional Summer Camp
The traditional view of a summer camp as a woody place with hiking, canoeing, and campfires is changing, with greater acceptance of newer types of summer camps that offer a wide variety of specialized activities. However, the most important question should be asked. How are we going to do a boot camp in a pandemic?
One can do it through the technology of course. Almost all sectors in the world have moved to online platforms. Parents have a work from home set up and kids have an online learning setup as well.
Everyone must admit that this adjustment has been difficult for everyone. Covid-19 has hit the world in an instant. It is a good thing that as humans, we are always capable of adapting to the changes in the world.
So what’s better than spending summer at home? It is spending time through an online summer camps of course.
There are so many activities that one can do during the summer. Such as from doing physical activities, spending time with the family, to honing skills through virtual camp or in this case, an online summer camps.
Kids these days have a short attention span. So it is our duty as parents to try to engage them in as many activities as we can.
Online Summer Camps
Hey! How does online summer camps work?
A summer camp is a supervised program for children or teenagers conducted during the summer months in some countries. Children and adolescents who attend summer camp are known as campers.
Summer school is usually a part of the academic curriculum for some students to make up work not accomplished during the academic year. Summer camps can sometimes include academic work but is not a requirement for graduation.
Camps usually last for a certain number of days to weeks or even to a month depending on the program. At some camps, all campers stay overnight in cabins and eat all their meals in a cafeteria. In day camps, the campers go home each night.
In the US, residential camps that have overnight facilities are sometimes called “sleepaway camps. Summer camp is often the first time that children spend an extended period of time away from home and away from their parents.
Online summer camp is basically summer camp but moved to an online platform. Instructors as well as co-campers are all present virtually.
There are some online camps that offer one on one coaching to their enrollees. Instructors are available depending on their assigned schedules. The program could be streamed live or could be replayed over and over again. Some even have a series of videos so students can take the course depending on their schedule.
Generally, virtual summer camp is not as complicated as it may seem. The big difference between a traditional summer camp and an online summer camp is the place where everything is conducted. But that shouldn’t stop anyone from thinking that online summer camp is no better than the traditional summer camp,
Parents should first decide which type of skill or activity they would like for their kids to focus on. For example, certain camps are designed specifically for musically-inclined kids. Parents should take time to look into the about me or introduction page of the camp in which they decide to enrol their child in.
What activities are available in the online summer camp?
There are a lot of online summer camps which offer different activities basing on certain specialities. Most include arts, music, science and technology and one which includes a little bit of everything. It is up to both the parents and the kid to choose which program they think would benefit them the most.
Music camp
Remember the 2008 Camp Rock from the Disney channel? Here’s a little plot. A young girl is aspiring to be a singer and during her time at Camp Rock, a summer music camp, where she will discover friends, adversaries, romance, and her voice.
In this movie, we can see that this summer camp offers a program for musically inclined kids. There is a part where kids get to know each other through introductions by showcasing their skills. There is also a camp end concert where most kids compete to be the winner of the activity.
Campers’ age ranges from 5 years old to high school students. Just like for online virtual camp, there is a good age range of campers. Similarly, there is also a good range of instructors. From teenager guides to middle-aged men and women who have excelled in the field of music, regardless of how old one is, there is a place for them in a music camp.
Generally, music programs help improve proficiency, deepen understanding of music theory, and prepare for an audition. There are a lot of other skills that one can learn in a music inclined camp.
One of the things that a person can learn in a music camp is to gain social and teamwork skills. Outside of a familiar school peer group, a new social environment gives young people the chance to try on different behaviours and identities.
Playing in an orchestra, singing in the choir and living together means that you must quickly learn to cooperate with and respect each other, taking responsibility as individuals and learning social risk-taking and conflict-resolution skills along the way. Making music together is the ultimate teamwork.
Similarly, these activities are available for online summer camps.
Art summer camps
Art summer online camps offer a wide array of activities for kids. These include online art tutorials as well as one on one instruction for a better grasp of understanding for the kids.
In online art camps, instructors hold classes by a schedule for certain class size. Another way they do it is by uploading certain tutorials and ideas.
The only difference between that online summer art camp and a regular art camp is that the materials needed are provided in the physical camp. It would cost us parents a little more couple of bucks for art materials shopping.
Art materials are pretty pricey. For example, having your child participate in an online painting class would cost the materials around $20 to $100. Depending on how much you are willing to spend on your kids, you should be ready that some things, especially certain materials, are expensive.
However, it is still a good investment for your child to learn arts. The quarantine has made them spend their time in front of the screen. What’s better than spending a virtual camp is having a certain output for them to remember it by?
Science and technology camp
Some well-known universities and organizations offer STEM-related summer camps. With the shift of almost everything to the online platform, STEM camps are not going anywhere.
One example is the Johns Hopkins Engineering Innovation program. This five-week program offers an opportunity to expand your knowledge of math and science and apply their theories to real-life situations. Participants also have to participate in civil, electrical, mechanical and chemical engineering labs and projects.
For students who plan on going into engineering or similar fields, the Johns Hopkins Engineering innovation program offers the opportunity to experience a similar environment that one will receive in college. Students face a challenging curriculum that ultimately helps enhance their knowledge and prepares them for the difficulty of college.
Similarly in an online setup, different organizations and universities offer a good summer camp that prepares both kids and teenagers for their future.
A little bit of everything camp
Most of us have tried that camp where we do almost everything. From self-improvement activities, physical education classes and many more, there are many life skills that our kids can learn in a “little bit of everything” camp.
The week-long camp has to lead us to what we are now. Whether you know it or not, it doesn’t matter. But we adults will always cherish those kinds of experiences when we were younger.
Online camps would be very much different. But from what we know, a little bit of everything camp put online would give our kids a virtual touch for everything. Some online camps give kids a virtual tour of the physical camp so that they could feel and imagine the same setting.
Another change for online camp is that kids are encouraged to maximize the resources they have at home.
For example, in tent pitching, instructors would do a live instruction to our kids to pitch a tent in our backyards. This does not just give us an opportunity to spend time with them but also let them learn a skill that they would always be part of their lives.
In the case of spending for the summer camp of your kids, there are many programs that are budget-friendly. Similarly, there are many other camps that are pretty pricey but offer a great curriculum. To be able to find the best camp for our kids, what we can do is research as much as we can.
Regardless of what virtual summer camp our kids decide to get into, it is important that they are interested in what they do. This is because we would like for our kids to maximize everything they can learn (as well as maximize the tuition we pay for).
In addition to these, we should take note that the end goal is for our kids to hone their skills, build connections, as well as being able to grow and be confident.
Conclusion
What’s important is our kids should still have fun whilst having a few laughs along the way.
We hope you now have an idea of what summer camp you would enroll your kids to next time. To briefly recap, we have discussed
Todd VanDuzer
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