Summer is arriving, and that means one thing to parents: the end of regular school classes. Your children will be out of school and have nothing to do; they may even be at home all day long. Without giving them something to do, your kids may become lethargic and unmotivated, putting them at further risk. Researchers have found that daily routines performed by children are linked to a 47 percent higher chance of having improved social-emotional health.
Researchers examined the number of daily routines that more than 8,500 children practiced with their families. They found each ritual was linked to a 47 percent increase in the odds that children would have high so-called social-emotional health
Enter: summer camp, the traditional solution that has given generations of children structure and guidance over the summer holiday. Year after year, summer camp has been a regular rite of passage, and for good reason. Not only are they a large source of nostalgia for many, but they provide a great number of benefits as well.
And, in keeping with the times, summer camps are now offered in a variety of formats that include “virtually.” Today’s campers have the benefit of enrolling in online camps that provide the benefits of summer camp to children without the need of leaving home!
Want to know more? Here’s a list of reasons of how summer camp can benefit your child:
Between school and extracurricular activities as well as sports and hobbies, children have much to do. It’s great to spur your child’s development with multiple activities, but the downside of such a busy schedule is that they don’t have the chance to focus their attention.
In-person and online summer camps are an answer to this. By providing an intensive program that specializes in a singular skill, camps provide a chance for children to concentrate on a single focus without distractions. And, with school and other commitments taking up most of the year, summer camp makes for a rare opportunity when children have the chance to develop themselves in their own way.
Not only that, summer camp gives parents a chance to help explore their children’s interests. By going to a specialized summer camp, a child can discover a new passion that they’ve never discovered before.
Children are constantly growing and learning. They need proper stimulation to encourage this growth. And, if they stick to the same daily routine for too long, a child can experience stunted growth.
Summer camps are great because they put children in a new environment that challenges their perceptions. Free of their usual routine, children are free to explore new ways of seeing the world. As well, this new environment can also serve as the stimulus to see themselves in a new light.
That’s why in addition to being great educational experiences, summer camps can be learning experiences about a child’s own identity. They make for great opportunities to inspire a child to break out of their shell and achieve true growth.
Children sometimes need a little encouragement. They are young people that are often experiencing things for the first time. They may not have experienced what it’s like to succeed, which is why it’s important to give this feeling to them properly. Instead of artificially inflating their self-worth, parents should help foster their child’s confidence through self-achievement.
By setting up challenges to overcome and objectives to complete, summer camps give kids a chance to earn their own achievements. They are a place where kids are on their own and must make their own decisions.
Summer camps give children a chance to create something they can be proud of. In this way, camps help build confidence in children through goal-oriented initiatives. And, camps work; according to Philliber Research Associates, 70 percent of parents say their child gained self-confidence while attending camp.
Whenever you ask someone about their best experiences with summer camp, you’ll often get the answer of “friendship.” Summer camp plays a big part in many people’s development because it’s a unique childhood experience, and also because this experience was shared and experienced with others.
By meeting online or in person, a child has a chance to make new friends at summer camp with like-minded people; they are able to build their social skills with children that are their peers. Under these circumstances, it’s easy to see why summer camp is the place where people often make their life-long friendships.
It’s an unfortunate statistic: according to Statistics Canada, less than 1 in 5 children (5-11 year-olds) in Canada meet the national movement behaviour guidelines for physical activity. This is bad enough on its own, but when combined with summer vacation, an extended period of inactivity can adversely harm your child’s health and development.
Online and in-person summer camp is your opportunity to change that. Get your child involved in a physical program that interests and stimulates them. Take advantage of summer camp’s ability to provide transformative experiences that encourage children to grow and gain maturity. Give them a chance to develop on their own, and make the best out of summer!
Are you interested in enrolling your child in summer camp? CDM Dance & Music is hosting our annual Summer Dance Camps, and we want to invite your child to take part! We have a wide variety of online and in-person camps with kid-friendly themes sure to engage your child. Check out our list of camps here!
