How to Assess if Your Kid is Ready for Day Camp

Day camp can be one of the best experiences your child will have in his or her young life. It can prepare your kid for preschool or for longer overnight camps. Day camps also have great summer programs for kids to help them learn new skills, meet new friends or just be active during the summer months. However, simply sending your child to day camp without assessing for readiness may also have negative effects on him or her.

How to Assess if Your Kid is Ready for Day Camp

Here are some tips that can help you assess if your child is ready to join a day camp with a summer program for kids:

1. Readiness isn’t just about age. Some kids get enrolled in summer programs for kids as early as their toddler years. Whether this is for swimming lessons or arts and crafts specialty camp, you need to find out if the program is fit for the developmental needs of your child in his particular age. Find out also if there is an age group within your chosen camp that your child can belong to.
2. Is your child always worried when you are not around? Separation anxiety is normal in the first few days of camp. If this is your child’s first time to be away from you for long periods, expect him or her to be a bit resistant during the first few days. Let a week of day camp pass before determining whether or not the separation anxiety is affecting your child so much that he or she would not enjoy the activities for the rest of summer. 
3. Socializing is an integral part of day camp. Some kids warm up to others fairly fast while others take some time. If your child is hesitant about meeting new people, it may be a good idea to bring him or her to other social activities first before considering enrolling in camp. 
4. Is your child able to follow instructions? To be able to safely take part in different activities at day camp without your guidance, your child must be able to listen and follow simple instructions. There are summer programs for kids that require the participation of parents or caregivers (such as swim programs for toddlers), but in most cases, these programs are designed to make your child more independent. 
5. Can he or she communicate his/her needs with adults? This is another important factor to consider before sending off your kid to day camp. You and your child may have a different level of communication where you are able to easily predict his or her needs, but in camp, the setting is entirely different. Other adults must be able to understand what your child is trying to say.

As the parent, you are the best judge of whether or not your child is ready for day camp. You can help ease any anxiety by talking them through what to expect from the program or even visiting the camp grounds before it officially starts.

Factors to Consider when Choosing a Specialty Program

Summer camp for kids, such as Zodiac Camps, offer specialty programs that let youand your child choose which activities to engage in for day camp. It’s a great way to add variety to your child’s summer. Specializing in a specific sport or activity also allows children to enhance their skills and continue to improve in a particular area.

Zodiac’s specialty program is designed for campers aged 5.5 to 12.5 years old. They can choose from the following: Adventure Challenge, Cheerleading, Circus Arts, Culinary Arts, Creatures, Creatures & Creativity, Dance, Extreme Biking, Fashion Arts, Gymnastics, Horseback Riding, Mega Sports, Film & Media, Performing Arts, Rocks, Ropes & Ramps, Science & Magic, Science & Rocketry, Swimming and Tennis, Trampoline Sports, Lake Sports, Snow Sports, Ramps and Science & Technology.

In general, when choosing which specialty to enroll your child in, you can consider the following:

• If it is aligned with your child’s interest – You may think you know what your child wants, but it is still best to ask him or her opinion about certain specialty programs. It is always a good idea to involve your child in the decision-making process when it comes to choosing a camp.

• Schedule –Day camps differ from overnight summer camp for kids because you need to work around a particular schedule for getting your child to camp, and picking them up at the end of the day. As such, the schedule of activities for the specialized program also needs to coincide with the schedule of the rest of the family.

• Group size – Find out how many people are enrolled in particular programs. High quality, low-ratio programs create a better opportunity for learning. Check if your child is comfortable with the number of campers in the program that he or she will need to get along with. 

• Quality of camp’s facilities – If your child is into swimming, lake sports or trampoline classes, it is best to check beforehand if your chosen day camp has the facilities for such activities.

• Equipment needed – It is important to know what kind of equipment will be needed for your child’s chosen specialty. This will work together with your family budget to ensure that the sport or chosen activity can be supported and sustained by the family even after summer. Summer camps for kids that deal with sports often have the sports equipment available at the camp, so there is no need to purchase right away. However, items like hockey masks, hockey sticks, skates or other sports equipment need to be purchased should your son or daughter decide to pursue the sport after camp.

Kid Vantage: Zodiac Camp Tot Program

Zodiac Camp has camp programs for young children. At camp, kids will enjoy playing with other kids and interacting with the counselors. The activities are fun and age-
appropriate.

Toronto, Ontario (www.zodiaccamp.on.ca)/ June 2014/ -- Zodiac Camp sets itself apart by offering programs for young kids that are not found in any other camps. The low camper-staff ratio works to your advantage because your child will get the attention he or she needs to fully engage in camp activities. The experienced and caring staff make sure that your child is supervised and well taken care of during his or her entire camp stay.

Toddlers and kids between the ages of 2.5 to 6.5 can join Zodiac Camp’s Kid Vantage (K-V) program. The specially designed activities are enriching, fun and age-appropriate. Kids can enjoy expert K-V programs such as Imagination with Shifra Zisman which focuses on music, dancing, drama, creating, imagining and more. Junior Sports with Jay Stenzler teaches sports like soccer, basketball, tennis, baseball, martial arts and more.

There are also swimming programs for tots and their parents or caregivers. The program focuses on letting young kids enjoy the water and learn how to swim at an early age. The programs also teach water safety, individual progress, and personal development. Classes include plenty of play time and songs for young kids to get a fun overall experience during the program. Kids are taught to float, do roll-overs, blast-offs, breath control, submersion, hand-eye coordination, glides, and jumps while at camp.

Give your young child a fun and enriching summer or weekend by signing them up with Zodiac Camp. If you need more information about the kids’ camp programs, you can visit www.zodiaccamp.on.ca for details.

About Zodiac Swim

Zodiac Swim School first opened its doors to the community in 1978 and, since that time, has earned the confidence of thousands of families! Countless children and participants have gained aquatic skills, self-confidence and a love of the water through high-quality, low-ratio Zodiac programming. In addition to excellence in aquatics, the Zodiac name also stands for quality and caring in the summer camp industry. Zodiac Swim & Specialty Camp opened in the summer of 1998.

Zodiac programs provide an enjoyable, unique and challenging opportunity which strongly appeals to kids and parents alike! We offer age-appropriate programming that will build your child’s self-esteem and confidence and enhance his/her personal growth and development.

Media Contact

160 Steeprock Drive
Toronto, Ontario M3J 2T4
Tel: 416 789-1989 x 252
Fax: 416 789-5525

info@zodiaccamp.on.ca