Camp Kupugani Blog
6 Ways to Maximize Family Happiness
At our girls-only and boys-only summer camps, we recognize the value and importance of community. A recent post from Intelligence for Your Life helps prompt ways that we can strengthen family bonds. The whole article is at this link, with useful bullets below: Make Family Priority Make sure the kids know their family’s history. Studies show that kids who know their family history (good and bad) have higher self-esteem, are more resilient, and are better at handling stress. Hold weekly family meetings. You can make changes before minor glitches turn […]
10 Ways to Boost Emotional Resilience
At our Midwest summer camp near Chicago, Illinois, we are mindful of personal development. A recent article offers some good tips on how to foster emotional resilience. Bullets below, with the whole article from the folks at Barking Up the Wrong Tree available at this link. Increase Emotional Resilience Foster optimism: Don’t be in denial. See the world clearly but believe in your abilities. Face your fears: Hiding from fear makes it worse. Face it and you overcome it. Have a moral compass: A strong feeling of right and wrong tells […]
Easy Ways to Help Your Environment
As camp people, we have a vested interest in protecting our Earth’s limited resources, which are in jeopardy of being forever ruined during our lifetimes. When you have twenty minutes or so, take the time to watch the video linked here, if you haven’t yet seen it. It provides an entertaining, clear, and hopeful explanation of why the economy and world are in their current conditions. Check it out, show it to your kids, and pass it on. Maybe we can turn things around … hopefully so!
When You Should NOT Send Your Child to Camp
At our midwest summer camp, we recognize that camp can be a great opportunity for child development by facilitating kids’ abilities to stretch and empower themselves. We also recognize that certain parents may not quite be ready to allow that experience for their child. Below are some times when you as a parent should probably not send your child to camp. If you are a parent riddled with fear and anxiety, and you have a child who expresses reluctance about camp, don’t send them to camp! If, as a parent, […]
Why Being a Bedwetter Can Be a Good Thing at Camp
Being a bedwetter affects many children, ranging from primary aged children to older teens. (The current blogger, aka Kevin—through age 12—and his lovely wife—through age 10 or so—were also in that not-so-exclusive club.) For some children, bedwetting can be a source of embarrassment, preventing them from participating in overnight activities such as sleepovers and overnight camps. However, bedwetting should not and need not prevent your child from taking part in overnight stays, and especially shouldn’t inhibit your child from enjoying the benefits that overnight camp can bring. In fact, being […]
Should Siblings Attend Camp Together?
At our children’s summer camp outside of Chicago, we have sessions for girls-only, boys-only, and a blended session (with intentional opportunities for them to interact). So there are options when considering the best option for a single child. When there are other siblings in the family, you should also consider whether it’s better for them to attend camp together, or to be able to have their own individual camp experience. Here are some useful factors to analyze about siblings going to camp together: Single-Sex or Not Consider whether the individual […]
5 Ways to Help Your Girl Increase Her Confidence
Girls today get a lot of conflicting signals at school, from friends, and through mass media about who they are and what they can be. They receive many mixed messages about their bodies and their abilities. In a Harris poll, 3rd through 12th grade girls were asked about gender stereotypes, their quality of life, and their future plans. 52% said people think girls are interested only in love and romance. 59% said girls are told not to brag about things they do well. 62% said in school, boys think they have […]
Resist the Urge to Pick Up a Child Early from Camp
As a camp owner, I often see parents struggle with the idea of sending their children to camp and wanting to pick their child up early from camp. They can’t pinpoint exactly why they’re worried (and often conflate their own fears by saying/thinking that their child is the one who’s not ready); in truth, the very notion of their child navigating an unfamiliar environment (even a loving and supportive one) without their help makes them deeply uncomfortable. Indeed, if you ask a sample of parents what their biggest parental challenges […]
Strategies to Maximize the Camp Experience
Camp Kupugani is a longstanding member of the American Camp Association (ACA), the largest accrediting body for summer camps in the country. The ACA has some good tips on how to “cope” with camp. For many, the camp experience has been a long-standing family tradition. For others, the camp experience seems almost counter-intuitive. Send your child off to camp for maybe weeks at a time? Why? “As parents, recognizing that you and your child are growing and learning on a journey together is key to adequately preparing yourself and your child for any type of separation, including going to camp for […]
9 Ways to Maximize Development of Social Awareness
At our girls-only and boys-only summer camps in the Midwest, we model and emphasize ways for our campers to maximize the development of social awareness. A recent article by Katie Duper has some great ideas on how to raise a child to develop social awareness. Bullets below, with the whole article at this link. Developing Social Awareness Address privilege — and do it early. Talk to your child about how these differences often make things more difficult for certain groups of people and continue to talk about privilege when real-life […]
6 Ways to Strengthen Your Inner Will
As part of our girls-empowerment and boys-empowerment camps near Chicago, we emphasize ways to develop our inner will. A recent article from Everydayhealth.com lists some good ones. Bullets below, with the whole article at this link. Resolve situations in your life that seem to be on hold Avoid letting others control your will or take advantage of you Reduce or purge acts or attitudes that don’t serve you positively Activate good habits Let go of fears that limit you Start new initatives
Eight Easy Ways to Reduce Your Child’s Screen Time
At our Illinois summer camp, because we don’t allow electronics at camp, it’s pretty easy to limit campers’ screen time. It’s also always interesting year-over-year, seeing returning campers look forward to being electronics-free and liberated from the pressures of having to be “connected” at all times. At home, however, it can often be a challenge to manage (and help kiddos manage) screen time. An article by Lindsey Barton Straus has eight great tips for helping that process. Bullets below, with the full article at this link. Check Yourself Be aware […]
