A Parent's Role During Camp

Thank you for allowing your child to attend Rhodes Grove camp.  We are confident that your child is going to have an incredible experience, and we want to give you all the information you need to help make that happen.  We get to spend one action packed week with your child, but we want you to know that you have a role before, during, and after that week of camp. 

Leading up to the week of camp, start getting your child ready for their experience.  Tell them how excited you are for them and what a great time you know they are going to have.  When you are confident, your child will be confident and excited to spend a week away.  On the day of check-in, make sure to arrive on time.  Go through the necessary check-in procedures and meet your child's counselor.  Once you have completed the check-in process, don't linger!  Say goodbye to your child and head out.  This will help all the campers dive right into their small groups for the week without dwelling on the fact that they just said goodbye to whomever just dropped them off.

During the week of camp, your number one priority should be to pray for your camper.  Pray that God would do big things in their life through camp and that they would continue to have a great time.  You can also send letters and e-mails to your camper, which will be delivered daily.  An encouraging letter or e-mail can be a great boost to your child's experience.  We suggest mailing letters the week before camp so they will be sure to receive them.  If you want to hear back from your child, be sure to include addressed and stamped envelopes for easy mailing.  Your camper will not be able to send e-mails or phone home, so snail mail is the way to go.

Make sure to arrive on time to pick your child up from camp.  Let them lead the way in greeting you and make sure they get to say goodbye to friends and counselors.  The ride home is a great time for you to ask more questions about camp.  You will have seen a video highlighting the experience at the closing ceremony, so this is a great place for you to begin.  Remember, your child will probably not volunteer information about camp - you have to ask for it.  Ask what they learned, what they had the most fun doing, and who they met.  You are the key to a great transition home, so spend time talking and you will be amazed at all they experienced.

Parent's Follow-up After Camp is Over

Camp is one of those places where kids can eliminate the distractions created by video games, television, cell phones, etc.  This being such a unique environment today, kids have the opportunity to really connect with other kids their age and God in a different way at camp.  For this reason, it is important to process through a week of camp with your child. 

How can I help my son or daughter process their week of camp?

Processing:

A great way to help someone process an experience is to ask them a series of thought provoking questions.  Here is a list of examples:

What was the best part of your week?

What was the most exciting thing that happened this week?

What was your favorite activity?

Did you learn anything this week that you didn't know before?

What had the greatest impact on you this week?

Did you make any commitments during your week of camp? 

What did you learn about yourself this week?

What did you learn about your relationships with others this week?

What is the one thing you are going to take home with you from this week?

Is there anything in your life that you will do differently after being at camp this week?  

Other ideas:

Look at the summer theme/verse and daily verses from the week of camp and continue to discuss them over the next few weeks after camp or create ways of reminding them of what they learned, i.e. framing an important scripture and hanging it on their bedroom wall.

Help them maintain their commitments with encouragement.  Leave them little notes, give them inspiration though scripture, or help them be accountable or encourage them to find someone to help keep them accountable for those commitments.

Talk with their Sunday school teacher or youth leader to give them insight in a direction they could take or can continue to take that would benefit your child.

Encourage your child to get names, addresses and email addresses for all members of their cabin, including their counselor. Doing this will enable them to stay in contact throughout the entire year and will not only build their friendships but allow them to encourage one another spiritually as well.

Troubleshooting:

If you are finding it to be a challenge to get your child to open up and discuss their week of camp try: 

Telling them about your week

Tell them that you missed them & why you missed them

Allowing them to sleep a little before you talk

Taking them out to eat

To do something they enjoy doing with them

Have their Sunday school teacher or youth leader contact them to go through the process with them.

What if my child gets homesick?

A little homesickness is to be expected of most campers.  Often it stems from being in a new environment and being unsure of what will happen.  Most of the time, as they become fully involved in the camp experience, the homesickness subsides.  Occasionally, homesickness may continue, and counselors are trained to help campers at times when they are particularly missing home.  For campers who experience extreme homesickness and all our best methods of providing comfort and distraction have not worked, the Program Specialist will call you and let you know what is happening.  Together you can work out a plan that is best for your child.

There are also steps you can take to minimize homesickness your child may feel. 

Assure your child that they are going to have a wonderful time at camp, and that you'll be praying for them to have a great week. 

Don't tell them over and over that you'll miss them, because that may make them feel responsible to be at home for you. 

Send them regular emails through our email system.

Maybe send a little care package in their suitcase that has a small note or a note for them to open each day they are at camp. 

You can also get friends and family to send postcards or letters while they are there.

Most of all pray for your camper.