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Author: Amelia Joselow, Director of Marketing and Outreach, Green Program Director, Cambridge Winter Farmers Market co-manager.
It is hard to imagine, but it is time to start thinking about summer programs. Families prepare early to get their children into the right program for them, and summer programs prepare early to make sure they have the very best to offer youth. But what's the rush all about? Why does it matter? 1. Summer programs keep children's minds active over the summer months, to avoid the "brain dump" that can occur when a child leaves school. With a general enrichment summer program, youth return to school in the fall ready to continue learning; not start over. 2. Summer programs keep kids active! We live an an increasingly screen-centered world- televisions, computers, tablets, phones- but children need to move around to stay healthy! Summer programs usually offer outdoor time, sports, swimming, and more physical activities. Summer is not a time to be a couch potato; it is a time to get out in the sun and have some fun! 3. Summer programs build confidence and a positive attitude. "Ninety-six percent of campers say that 'camp helped me make new friends,' and 92 percent say, 'Camp helped me feel good about myself.' Seventy percent of camp parents say, 'My child gained self-confidence at camp' " (ACA, 2005). When children are a part of a group, a team, a program, they grow individually and together, an invaluable social and developmental experience. 4. Summer programs allow youth to explore new interests. Unlike the classroom, most summer camps allow youth to choose which activities they'd like to participate in. This choice and responsibility engages children and allows them to learn and enjoy something new or delve deeper into something they are already passionate about. 5. Summer programs serve families too. A day camp is not just a great place for a child to spend their days, it is a viable option for parents who need a flexible schedule to accommodate their work. While it works for some families to send their children to a sleep-away camp, for many children and parents that is not the right choice. Day programs keep children close to home and allow parents to communicate as often as they like with group leaders, directors, and staff to ensure that the children are receiving the very best. Cowemoki Summer Enrichment Program, the K-8 summer program at the Cambridge Community Center, is proud to be a part of this tradition and to offer these important aspects to the community. Find out more about our program here. And get ready for summer! It will be here (hopefully) sooner than you think! Additional resources: http://www.acacamps.org/campmag/1111/why-day-camp-matters http://www.campparents.org/expert/benefitscamp
21 Comments
5/15/2018 07:05:15 pm
I like how you say that summer programs will give your kids a choice in what sort of activities they'll be participating in. I have two kids, a ten-year-old and an eight-year-old. Personally, I'm worried that they'll forget everything they learned in school during the summer. It seems like it would be a good idea for me to find some summer programs to enroll them in. 7/23/2018 01:12:39 pm
My daughter loves to learn and this summer I am thinking about enrolling her in a few summer school programs so that she can stay active and keep learning. It is interesting that you say summer programs help to build confidence as well as a positive attitude because children make a lot of new friends and are part of a group. My daughter is shy and I think that learning to make new friends and work together with other children would be a huge benefit for her. 8/9/2018 04:43:46 pm
Thanks for elaborating on the benefits of having your kids participate in a summer program. In my opinion, one of the biggest benefits is that it helps children to build self-confidence and it teaches them how to lead. My sister has been looking into having her daughters go to a summer camp to try new things; I will be sure to share this with her. 8/30/2018 05:56:59 pm
Growing up, I always wanted to go and have fun with my friends at a summer camp, but never had the opportunity to do so. I would like to give my children the opportunity of going to a camp. I especially like the idea when I take into consideration your point that summer camps can help youth explore new activities and interests. I do agree with you that a summer camp is important for the kids' social and developmental experience as they get to meet new friends in the process and learn how to interact with them. My daughter is telling me she will join their next summer camp and already excited about that though my husband has a little reservation about that. I will show him your article and convince him to let our daughter join the camp for the benefits that you mentioned. 11/30/2018 08:33:44 am
I have been thinking about sending my son to a summer camp next year so thanks for sharing this. I like your point about how summer camps help your kids explore new possibilities and interests. I want him to explore lots of subjects so he can decide what he wants to study in college, so I'll definitely bring this up soon. 7/3/2019 01:19:56 pm
I'm glad to know that kids' summer athletic camp will help my children's minds stay active. I think I'll sign them up to camp if it can build their confidence and make new friends. Since it will help them explore new interests, it will make them more rounded individuals. 7/25/2019 05:26:10 pm
I like what you said about how a summer program can keep kid's minds active over the summer months. Sending my kids to a summer camp could be really fun. They would really like to go to a space center camp. 8/29/2019 12:37:46 pm
I appreciate you helping me learn more about the benefits of youth summer programs. I like how you said that camps help children reduce their screen time. In general, I think we all can agree that children need to explore, socialize, and be outside more. 10/29/2019 05:49:40 pm
I like that you mentioned that summer camps can help improve the confidence of the kids that attend them. I would say that these activity programs help kids that are recovering from injuries, a burn injury, for example, to feel normal again. If I had a child that was recovering from something, I would want to put them in a summer camp. 7/28/2020 02:37:04 pm
My 10-year-old son and I moved to a new state about a month ago because of my new job, and unfortunately, we moved after the school year ended, so my son is having trouble making friends his age. I am thinking about sending him to a summer camp so that he can interact with other kids, and I didn't realize that there are so many benefits until I read this article! Thanks for explaining that my son will be able to make friends along with exploring new hobbies and interests he didn't know about before. 9/8/2020 06:32:46 pm
I liked what you said about how they will be able to grow with confidence and have more experiences in a social setting. My uncle really wants his kids to go to a summer camp where they can get outside and interact with others. He would really like to have them go to a camp that they are interested in but is run by a professional so that it can be a lot safer and do a lot more to educate them. 11/18/2020 10:25:08 pm
I like that this post mentioned that one of the benefits of summer youth program is that it keeps children active. Keeping our children active during the holidays is important as it ensures they stay fit, healthy and happy with all the various activities available. Since my kids mentioned that they would like to keep occupied during the break, I will enrol them in a youth program. 2/18/2021 01:42:56 pm
Thank you for explaining how summer programs can help facilitate physical health with various physical activities that do not involve technology. My wife and I have noticed that our son tends to play video games during the summertime since he doesn't have any friends that enjoy playing outside, and we'd like to find a summer program that will help him meet some people that he can enjoy physical activities with. Maybe we should find a summer camp that will benefit our son's health. 4/5/2022 03:20:54 pm
It's amazing that you elaborated on programs that help keep our kids busy when school's over. My wife and I are worried about our son's behavior, and we'd like to find a way to help him make friends and be active while we're working. We think it'd be wise to research youth programs next week, so we'll look into it. We appreciate your advice on summer programs and how they'd offer physical activities. 5/26/2022 12:26:45 pm
Thank you for pointing out that summer camp can be a good way to keep your kids' minds engaged during the summer months away from school. I've been wondering how to keep our kids learning during summer break. I'll be sure to mention this to my husband to see if we can get them signed up for something. 5/26/2022 12:41:15 pm
It's good to know that summer camp builds confidence in children. My kids are getting out of school soon. I should see what they think about going to a summer camp. 6/14/2022 12:51:36 pm
It's good to know that summer programs help to keep children's minds active during the summer months. My 16-year-old daughter asked if she could do a youth program sometime this summer. She asked if there were any that involved politics, so I told her I'd look. 7/14/2022 01:21:42 am
It captured me the most when you discussed that summer camps allow youth to choose which activities interest them. My son wants to join a camp this coming summer. I should let him do it since it can allow him to learn and enjoy. 10/24/2022 10:32:47 am
I want to make sure that my son has something to do over the summer. It's good to know that a summer camp can provide a lot of fun things for him to do. That might be worth signing him up for. 3/27/2023 03:10:00 am
Hello, I wanted to say thanks for the fantastic article. This is one of the finest blogs I've read that helped me learn more about the summer camp programme. Thanks for sharing your findings; they've been well researched. If you want to learn more about Joshuacreekarts.com, you can do so by clicking right here. Leave a Reply. |
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