I’m a little excited! Okay, I’m ALOT excited because YMCA Summer Camp registration officially begins THIS Monday, March 21! Summer camp registration is my second favorite time of the year. My favorite, of course, would have to be the first day of summer camp which is in exactly 65 days…not that I’m keeping track or anything. But, I love summer camp registration. I love looking through the applications and seeing all the names come through. I get so excited just knowing how much fun each of them are going to have this summer.
So, for today’s Summer Camp Guru installment, I’ve decided to answer some of most asked questions. I hope to let you in on just a few of the many reasons why YMCA Summer Camp is not only an option for your child this summer, but the best choice for your child.
Let’s talk staff! One of the biggest differences in our camp programs are the people that work in our programs. This summer, 75% of our counselors are returning counselors. We love our counselors. And, our counselors love each camper that comes through our programs. When you walk in one of our camps, you are always in for a real surprise. Our counselors might be in full Wizard of Oz dress. One of my favorite memories of last summer would have to be attending the Friday morning premiere of Toy Story 3 with every single YMCA summer camp employee including our Child Care Director dressed as a Toy Story character and actually going out in public dressed this way. This is one of the big things that sets us apart. Our summer camp staff go above and beyond to ensure that your child not only has fun but is loved!
Let’s talk ratios! Another HUGE difference in our program is our staff to child ratio. We have a very low staff to child ratio. For every ten campers we have a counselor. This enables us to excel in a couple of areas. First off, our low ratio allows us to know what is going on with each camper. Our counselors truly get to know each camper throughout the course of the summer. They learn what they like and they don’t like. Your child will develop a unique bond with their counselor over the summer. A low ratio enables us to connect with each child that walks through our doors. Secondly, our low ratio allows us to have all areas of camp well supervised throughout the day. This cuts down on any problems that may arise during the camp day with our campers.
Let’s talk activities! Our day is packed with fun! We have a very structured program with planned activities from 9 to 4 daily. Our program is very unique and it is very good. We start off each morning with singing and dancing and then we head to our clubs. Each week we run six to eight different clubs each day that are centered on our weekly theme. The awesome thing about these clubs, is that your child gets to pick which four club he attends each week. We also go swimming three days a week and go on a field trip. Eastman comes out to our camps weekly and does really cool science experiments with the campers. We even have people from the Kingsport Arts Council that come out weekly and do art with the kids. I can assure you that there is never a dull moment at camp! Your child will go home tired, but will be up early ready for another day.
Let’s talk field trips! We have some really great trips planned this summer. I know I can’t wait to go on them. But, I think today that I’ll just highlight my favorite one for this summer. This summer we have arranged for Barter Theatre to bring one of their plays to Johnson Elementary School. How cool is that?! We try to use our field trips to allow our campers to take part in things that they wouldn’t necessarily get to do every day.
Let’s talk registration! One of the neatest things about our program is your ability to choose when you need your child to attend camp. Let’s be honest…summer is the time to go on vacation and to visit grandparents. It is very hard to commit to every single week in a ten week summer. So, with us, you don’t have to. You can pick and choose which weeks you need us. I will warn you, though, your child will want to come every week! They won’t want to miss out on team competition, clubs, and field trips. Camp is addicting!
Remember, applications are available this coming Monday! Get yours and get it in because our camp spaces are limited and camp does fill up fast. As always, I’ll be happy to answer any of your summer camp questions! Thanks for spending a few minutes with “The Summer Camp Guru”. I’ll see you next week!
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