Kids' camps: more careers than crafts
Forget the image of years gone by. Many of today's summer camps are tailored for instruction, from robotics to rock 'n' roll.
By SHARON GINN
Published April 4, 2005
A young girl who hopes someday to be a firefighter could spend her entire teens without meeting another girl like her.
That is, unless she signs up for Camp Blaze, a camp for girls 16 to 19 that eschews traditional summer activities for things like rappelling, aerial ladder climbing and, yes, entering a burning building.
It's a weeklong summer camp aimed at empowering girls and giving them a taste of life as a firefighter. Founded in 1999, Camp Blaze (www.campblaze.com) will be held this year in North Bend, Wash.. Staffed by female firefighters, most of them from the West Coast, the camp is free to girls who apply and are accepted.
It's just one example of the fast-growing group of niche-market camps that bear little resemblance to the summer standards. Not everyone plays sports or wants to spend a week in the mountains doing arts and crafts, and the camp industry is recognizing that.
The Internet may be your best ally in searching for the right camp. If you can Google it, you'll probably find it. Camp directors report that while they are still doing traditional advertising in magazines and other publications, a large percentage of campers are finding their camps online.
Many of these niche camps are less than 10 years old, some only a few years old. They run the gamut from outrageous luxury to intensive instruction to a special place to just make some friends. Here are some of the more interesting residential camps in Florida and around the nation.
Stunts, spies and spasWhat some kids might call the ultimate fantasy camp is hidden in the mountains of Southern California, about 90 minutes from Los Angeles. The location, 74 acres near Lake Arrowhead, is serene. But the activities are pure over-the-top Hollywood.
Kids at Pali Overnight Adventures can choose from 18 specialties, including Secret Agent Camp, Culinary Institute, Broadcasting Academy, Fashion Design, Rock Star Camp and Hollywood Stunt Camp. For those who just want to escape from their stressed-out lives, there's a Spa and Well-Being Camp.
Young fashionistas get to take a trip to the L.A. fashion district to meet with designers. Stunt-kids-in-training learn how to do a high fall and rock star wanna-bes get to work with professional songwriters, producers and choreographers.
Owner Andy Wexler said he and his staff search the world for professional, experienced counselors to teach the kids and give them a great experience. The camp is pricey ($1,435 for one week, $2,795 for two), but "it's not the wealthy, snooty kids," Wexler said. "We're not a Four Seasons or a Ritz-Carlton. It's summer camp. We have great, great kids with great attitudes."
Beyond summer stockCamps abound for kids who love to perform. And they don't necessarily have to sing, dance or act.
They might, say, enjoy flying through the air with the greatest of ease. Or squeezing into a tiny car with 12 of their closest friends.
Yes, there are circus camps. One of the oldest and most well-known is Circus Smirkus in Vermont (www.circussmirkus.org) which offers one-and two-week circus camps ($885 and $1,585) and even a camp for families ($1,580 and up).
For kids who would rather be in pictures than run away to the circus, the New York Film Academy (www.nyfa.com) offers, one-, four- and six-week summer camp sessions in nine locations, including one at Disney/MGM Studios in Orlando.
The one-week session (starting at $1,000) provides an introduction to acting and filmmaking, but the longer sessions ($4,000 to $6,900) are more intensive and modeled after the academy's adult programs. Campers can choose to focus on acting for film, filmmaking or 3-D animation.
"We do not alter the instruction for high school students," senior director David Klein said. "We give them the same instruction (as adults), they get the same exercises. We feel there's no reason to water it down."
You, robotmakerComputer camp sounds dull, until you get to the part where they let you make a robot. That's the big bonus of CyberCamps' robotics course, which is programming camp in disguise.
"During the week of camp, kids will actually build a robot that they will have to program to do some things," said David Kinard, marketing director at CyberCamps, based in Washington state. "It's a wheels robot, not a talking and opposable-thumb sort of robot. They have to learn how to program it and tell it what to do."
Once campers create their robots, they finish the week with a quasirobotic Olympics, which includes maze races, a "battlebot" tournament and robot dance contests. CyberCamps (www.cybercamps.com residential camp starting at $974 a week has locations across the country, including one at the University of Central Florida.
Catch a waveNo need to go all the way to Hawaii or California to learn to surf. There are decent waves not too far from here on Florida's east coast, and an entire operation set up to teach kids how to ride them. Who knew?
Pro surfer Bryan Hewitson formed Sebastian Inlet Surf Camp (www.sisurfcamp.com) to "spread the love," said Stephanie Pair, one of the camp directors. Lots of top professionals have come from Brevard County, she said, and it's a great place to learn.
"A lot of really good surfers are born and bred in these waters," said Pair, who grew up in the area and lived in California for a while. "Everyone likes to say that East Coast surfers are twice as hungry for waves, so they'll surf anything, any time."
Summer in Sebastian Inlet means somewhat gentler and less-intimidating waves (unless, of course, there's a hurricane churning offshore). The camp, which costs $995 a week, attracts mostly novices and those with just a season or two of experience, but some are advanced surfers competing on amateur circuits. The staff limits enrollment to 12 surfers at a time, Pair said, and about half the kids come from Florida.
Comfort and joyLots of kids don't fit in well at traditional camps. Others have faced a family tragedy and might benefit from being around kids who have had similar troubles. For those children, camp opportunities abound.
It's fairly easy to find camps for children who have been touched by cancer or who have developmental problems like attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder or Asperger's syndrome. Several camps even offer an expenses-paid respite for children who lost a parent or guardian in the Sept. 11 attacks, with locations in New York, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts.
Some kids are just . . . well, quirky. There are places for them too.
Four years ago, Adam Simon of the New York-based Omega Institute - which calls itself the nation's largest holistic learning center - started Omega Teen Camp (www.omegateencamp.com) in a location an hour north of New York City. The slogan for the camp (priced at $1,850 for two weeks): "A safe place to be exactly who you are."
"We get a lot of hippie kids," Simon said. "Kids who hated camp. Somehow they come here and it seems to work pretty well."
In addition to sports and dance, he said campers do "freaky and funky" things like yoga, Thai massage and astrology. Camp counselors are in their late 20s and 30s, older than average counselors and with more life experience. Some of the female campers are battling depression and eating disorders. Simon said a lot of the campers tell him, "People at school don't get me."
"This is a place where kids feel like they're going to be emotionally or physically safe," he said. "That's our strength."
CAMPING TIPSUnderstand the camp's policies: How secure is the facility and what safety precautions are taken? What if your child gets sick? How are children disciplined? Does the camp follow any nutritional guidelines? Ask about staff members: How are they hired and trained? Are they subject to a background check? And what is the staff-child ratio? The recommended ratio ranges from 1 to 8 for the youngest children to 1 to 15 for teens. How structured is the itinerary?: Quality camps ensure a number of structured activities, with properly timed breaks for snacks, meals and rest. Ask to review a typical daily plan. For residential camps: Be sure you understand who will be supervising your child and when. How many counselors will bunk with what number of children? And if your child is homesick, who is available for them? It's a good idea to ask for references.
Understand the costs: Find out if there are hidden costs. And ask about the cancellation policy.
Sources: Florida Children's Forum (www.flchild.com/schoolage) the American Camping Association (www.acacamps.org)