Sesame Street Parents - March 2000
Hot Camps for Cool Kids
Just in time: Sizzling Summer Options

Your lawn may still be covered by a foot of snow, but it's time to set your sights on...summer camp! That's right, moms and dads. As parents of grade-schoolers you should know that camps and other summer programs around the country are signing up kids even as you read this.

Two big trends: Campers are getting younger, thanks to shorter programs and those that send kids home on weekends, and camps are becoming more specialized. "Parents now see the summer as a time to enrich and empower their children," says Susan Greenberg, director of precollege services for Peterson's, a provider of book and online information and educational services in Princeton, New Jersey. As a result, overnight and day camps are catering to kids' interests and talents with invention camps, science camps, performing-art classes, sports programs, and more. And within each of these categories there's a trend toward specialization. For example, it's not just science -- it's biotechnology or marine science.

To find the best program for your child, start by talking with her about particular interests or skills she'd like to focus on. Then call your local recreation department, and check out resources like the American Camping Association in Martinsville, Indiana which accredits all types of camps for health, safety and quality standards; Peterson's; and KidsCamps.com.

Special Connections.
"We're seeing more camps designed for children with conditions like ADD, Autism, diabetes, cancer, blindness, and other special needs," says Nancy LaPook Diamond, a cofounder of KidsCamps.com, an online directory of more than 12,000 summer programs. For children who share all kinds of special circumstances, including being a twin or an adoptee, these types of programs provide a great camp experience. The kids meet and bond with others who have similar life experiences.

If all this camp chat has left you feeling activity deprived, consider heading off to summer camp yourself. Camp for grownups? Yes, moms and dads, it's another hot trend.