How Long is Long Enough? The Parent’s Dilemma

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Camp Miniwanca Junior smiles next to her horse-crop

Curated by Hannah Patterson

Through the years I worked at both Miniwanca and Merrowvista, our sister camp in New Hampshire, one of the most helpful things I have found to keep in mind was the saying “Not too much too soon, or too little too late.” As a programmer, this was a reminder about timing, keeping me focused on the goal of helping our campers and participants discover their own best selves. If we talk about deep topics immediately, the campers might feel like the conversation is out of place, or they might not have built enough trust yet to speak about sensitive things in front of their peers. And if we only touch on meaningful subjects on the final day, campers may miss out on the growth and connections they can build while they are at camp. Today’s feature article brought this saying to mind.

Campers running on the beach
Campers running on the beach

This week’s blog features the article Is Your Child Ready for Overnight Camp? found on Summercamps.com, and touches on the struggle parents go through to know if their child is ready for an overnight camp. Is one week away from home too much too soon? Has your camper stayed overnight at someone else’s house before? Or is it too little too late? With only a week to get a taste of camp, many campers feel as though they are leaving just as they have started to get comfortable. If you ask your child if they would like to go away for two weeks, they may surprise you.