Things You Can Do to Get Your Child Ready for Summer Day Camp

Perhaps you’re not comfortable with the idea of sending your kid away for weeks at a time. Even before the departure day, you experience anxiety, which makes it impossible to sleep or eat. You simply can’t handle the emotion. So, what’s the answer? Should you give up on the idea of sending your child to camp? No. Send your kid to summer day camp and achieve a parenting milestone. Day camps offer activities in a larger social setting – near home town or where the youngsters return home in the evening. There are many benefits to summer day camp such as responsibility and resilience resulting from learning new skills, growth in confidence, and failing an activity but learning to try again. 

All kids are different, so it’s important to determine whether your child is ready for the experience. If your kid is comfortable sleeping at their grandparents, they go to school for more than four hours a day, or take part in extracurricular activities such as sports, they’re ready. Of course, you can take some extra steps to make sure that your youngster is prepared for the new experience. Going to summer day camp is an important milestone for your child. It’s an event filled with excitement, pleasure, and anxiety. Here are some simple tips you can implement. 

Teach Your Child About Their Emotions

Inevitably, your kid has feelings about summer day camp, whether positive or negative. What you need to understand is that it’s hard for youngsters to identify feelings like frustration, let alone manage them effectively. Kids experience complex emotions, just like adults, meaning that they get excited, nervous, frightened, worried, and embarrassed. Children who understand their emotions are less likely to act out. Put simply, you don’t have to worry about tantrums, aggression, or defiance. Ask your loved one how they feel about camp and don’t be content until you get a real answer. 

Let your child know that there are several ways of dealing with negative feelings. Deep breathing, for instance, is a good coping strategy. Deep breathing exercises can be done using props like bubbles. Equally, your kid can use a stuffed animal. Ask them to lie down on their back and place the stuffed animal on their belly. In terms of coping strategies, you can create a music playlist together. In anxious times, it helps to rely on calming songs. Just so you know, there are various playlists and albums with relaxing music on Spotify and YouTube. 

Go Shopping Together

As a rule, summer day camps ensure the items necessary for every activity, but you do need to do some shopping. Your child will need sunscreen, a towel, a bathing suit, etc. Taking your kid shopping with you provides the chance to bond and talk about the upcoming event. As a parent, it’s your duty to get them excited about the new adventure through support, preparation, and insight. Going shopping together gives your kid a sense of ownership and confidence about the camp experience. They’ll tune in their adventure spirit when they arrive. 

Discuss The Activities

If your kid knows what activities are carried out at summer day camp, they can prepare ahead of time. Children who attend summer day camp can engage in all sorts of activities, including climbing, drama and theater, dancing, arts and crafts, and sports (dodgeball, football, volleyball, wiffleball, and so on). Needless to say, this list isn’t exhaustive. There’s a broad range of camps and programs available in Brooklyn, which means that there’s something to suit every interest. Your loved one will be away for the day and back home for the night. Brooklyn day camps offer a wide range of activities and experiences to help kids grow during the time spent on the facilities. 

Get your kid ready for the new adventure, but refrain from taking control of the situation or showing your concern, if any. It would be better to discuss your personal experience with camp. They need to know what it’s like to be away from home. Of course, you should only share happy memories from when you were young. Getting back on topic, great activities help build community spirit and keep campers coming back time and time again. Camp is a place where youngsters can try a great many activities. 

Talk About Making New Friends

Friends help children acquire important life skills, such as getting along with others. Kids with lots and lots of friends are less likely to develop emotional issues later in life. Campers are a friendly group, so it’s impossible not to make new friends at the campsite. Making friends isn’t a magic trick, but it does come difficult for some. Most importantly, it’s something you can help your child with. By engaging in role-playing, you’ll give them the confidence they need to succeed. Role-playing shows facial expressions, body language, and words that invite or repel friendship. You can use puppets to get your point across. 

Another thing you can try is to craft a questionnaire. As you know, asking the right questions can help make friends. Brainstorm questions, write them down, and do a role-play discussion. Taking turns answering questions reduces prejudice and anxiety. Let’s not even talk about the fact that it requires vulnerability. Summer day camp naturally builds friendships. Campers delight in their achievements together, especially during group activities. What is more, they can make face-to-face connections. It doesn’t compare with social media profiles and “likes”. Kids today should know what life without the Internet and Facebook is like. 

All in all, your child will have the time of their life at summer day camp. Your kid may be sad when they get on the bus, but be sure that the situation won’t remain the same too long. You can rest assured that your child will have a great camp experience. Once they’re there, they’ll realize how fun it is. Camp professionals make every moment enjoyable and the fleeting moments of time are reflected in the benefits that youngsters derive from camp.