Life lessons are learned relatively quickly at camp. In many ways, summer camp is a microcosm of the outside world or a fast-motion take on the relationships and changes kids face year-round. Even from a developmental standpoint, experts recognize summer camp as an amazing place.
Kids and parents needn’t worry. The fun is still there. So are the lakes, the friends, the food, the games, and the unforgettable first summer crush. However, camps today are more and more committed to creating experiences that help kids develop confidence, social skills, and leadership.
To see how this is working, the Search Institute, a Minneapolis-based nonprofit research organization, teamed up with the American Camp Association (ACA). The two conducted the largest study of camper outcomes ever in the United States, with more than 5,000 families and 80 camps participating.
The results show something that parents have always suspected: Camp is good for kids.
Dr. Scales, a developmental psychologist and senior fellow at the Search Institute, has a 25+ year relationship with the ACA and was part of the advisory committee directing the research. He calls accredited camps “a social institution that is working” and says camps are changing to reflect new and ongoing research in child development.
According to Scales, schools are often too enmeshed in political pulling and pushing among federal, state, and local bodies to serve kids the way camps can. Schools also overemphasize individual work, he says, and kids from ages 7 to 15 really need team experiences, which promote closer connections among kids, teach cooperation, and prepare them for the future wherein they will have to work with teams. Good schools recognize the importance of teams, so they’re often structured more like camps, says Scales.
Most importantly, camps build a positive identity. “It doesn’t change willy-nilly overnight,” says Scales. Some kids take a long, long time to change, but trying new things and having an experience while doing it changes the way kids see themselves.
The ACA/Search Institute study shows that camps help children:
- become more confident and experience increased self-esteem
- develop more social skills that help them make new friends
- grow more independent and show more leadership qualities
- become more adventurous and willing to try new things and
- realize spiritual growth, especially at camps that emphasize spirituality.
At camp, there’s often a social and developmental safety net that lets kids do that.
Scales points to many more camp benefits: A child who doesn’t think of herself as athletic or strong can claim a rock wall, conquer an obstacle course, and learn to swim or dive. She can be part of a team and contribute in competition. Through interaction with other kids, children develop social skills. In their new surroundings, kids learn self-reliance and independence, discovering skills they didn’t know they had.
And, they can have fun doing it.
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Related Article: Your Family’s Summer Camp Planning Guide
