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What's New in Summer Camps for Kids and Teens -2by Lisa Mullen
Page 1 | Page 2 Trends for Teens
So, what are the trends that are driving the teen summer program industry? There is a demand for shorter programs to accommodate the schedules of busyteens. Programs have to be planned around summer school, sports commitments, or family vacations. Parents want more “bang for the buck.” While programs abroad used to be strictly delineated between language programs, community service, or adventure travel, today your teen could choose one program in which she could do all three. Program directors are starting to plan their itineraries to attract more boys, because girls tend to dominate the travel industry. One director planned more trips to China because boys are interested in ancient Chinese warriors. Here are some other trends and unique summer programs to help you and your child think outside the Options for “Tweens”: Kids may skip the whole traditional camp experience and seek a non-camp experience later. Because teen program directors have realized that middle school age kids are looking for new and exciting programs, these “tweeners” have a world of options open to them now. Most language requests used to be for Spanish and French, now there are language programs for Chinese, Japanese and Arabic. Spanish may still be your child’s passion, so how about a community service program in Costa Rica? If your 7th grader is interested in saving the world, there are marine science sailing programs in the British Virgin Islands where they can participate in turtle conservation. Most adventure travel programs that used to be dedicated solely to high school students, now offer the same types of experiences to 6th, 7th and 8th graders, customized to their maturity level and educational experience. Community Service: How do we teach our children the value of “giving back,” of appreciating what they have? Or, more pragmatically, how do we complete those high school community service requirements? This is no small task for a parent, but more easily accomplished through a quality community service program. Your child can assist in the construction of new classrooms in India or work with orphans in Russia. Your child can work on hurricane reconstruction on the Gulf Coast or teach tennis to underprivileged kids in urban areas. Internships: Does your child have a specific interest in a career path? Do you want them to gain experience in that field? If so, this is the option for your child. In an internship program, your child can work side by side with professionals in their area of interest – from Archaeology to Fashion Design, from Medical Language programs: Though learning a foreign language is not a new concept, combining it with other interests in clearly a new phenomenon. Plus, your teen can dabble in rare languages, like Arabic, Modern Greek, or Swedish right here in the U.S. Many language programs abroad incorporate a home stay, where a student is matched with a family in order to reinforce the language of study while enriching the student’s experience through cultural exchange and community service. Some students will forego the home stay experience to focus on another interest. Perhaps your child wants to study painting, photography or cooking while learning Italian. Or, maybe your child wants to study architecture in Switzerland while learning French. More Exotic and Intensive Teen Travel: The travel programs are responding to the fact that parents want a bigger “bang for the buck.” Now a child can live with a host family in a rural village, hike to ancient ruins, and help build a school for kids -- all in a 4-week trip. Teen travel programs used to focus on traditional destinations like Western Europe or Central America. Now, there is a trend to the more exotic. It is not uncommon to find teen programs that travel to Senegal, Bolivia or Cambodia. While these programs used to be about visiting busy tourist attractions, some have morphed into mini think tanks, undertaking the study of global issues. One such program for next year will take students and turn them into global awareness “action corps” groups. They might study health care and global health care issues in Ghana, or community development in El Salvador, or biodiversity in Madagascar. While in those countries, they would participate alongside local friends and experts before returning to the U.S. to develop and present plans for continuing action. College Campus Academic Study Programs: Whether purely for enrichment or college credit, academic programs are much in demand. They give high school students a taste of what it’s like to live on a college campus. In addition to academic study, each Gap Year Programming: U.S. students are one of the few countries in which kids follow a traditional path from high school to college to graduate school to profession. Our students are finally mirroring the desire of their foreign counterparts and taking some time off between high school and college. They now even have a name for it – “the Odyssey.” Your graduate can sail around the world or live with a family in a rural village in Kenya, help teach in the village secondary school, offer extracurricular activities and initiate and participate in community service projects. There are summer programs for graduates and programs that range from 3 months to a full year of study or travel. These are great for the graduate who does not start their college experience until January, too. Summer programs can provide alternative and enriching opportunities for kids of all ages. Whatever type of program you and your child choose, you want it to be a well-run, well-supervised, enriching experience. With all of the choices available, it can be helpful to talk to a camp and teen trip consultant to help you formulate the right questions and guide you to the right program. Happy camping!
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: For further information contact: Co-directors of Tips on Trips and Camps, Carey Rivers 202 337-3451, carey@tipsontripsandcamps.com or Eve Eifler 410 337-8645 eve@tipsontripsandcamps.com . Tips on Trips and Camps is a 37 year old advisory service helping families find just the right sleep away summer programs for their children, ages 8-18. Advisors are located in New York, Westchester, Connecticut, Princeton, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, DC Metro Area, South Florida, St. Louis, Chicago, Los Angeles and Paris, France. Article Source: www.articlesbase.com/ This document last modified Sunday, 16-Mar-2008 21:28:06 EDT | |||
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Tidbits & Stuff was born on Thursday, March 9, 2006
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When it comes to summer camps and teen program trends, parents seem to be driving the train. Whether it is “helicopter parents” demanding more communication with their children while they are away or parents demanding peanut free environments, camp and teen trip directors must adapt to a changing society. In the last 15 years, summer programming for teens has become a very competitive industry. Each program must differentiate itself in some way and stay one step ahead of the curve. By this time, program directors have evaluated what worked best for their participants last summer and are now busy trying to be on the “cutting edge” for next summer. Teen program directors walk the fine line of trying to use the “build it and they will come” philosophy, while appealing to both parents’ wishes and those of the teens. 
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Research to Strategic Studies. Up to now, this type of internship experience has been organized mainly in England, but now they are springing up in large U.S. cities, like New York City, Boston and Philadelphia, run by reputable teen program directors. After their daily “work,” the staff organizes evening activities, weekend excursions and college visits for the participants. They are housed on safe college campuses.
program offers SAT Prep, college tours, leadership programs, a range of sports programs, visits to local attractions as well as weekend excursions to nearby cities. The directors of these programs are always looking to provide unusual course offerings. Course studies range from architecture to advertising, economics to environmental science.
