When many adults look back at their favorite childhood memories, summer camp is one of the best experiences. With camps, kids develop confidence and grow their social engagement. With screens and other distractors dominating children's lives, having a camp where they can experience life to the fullest is a great experience.
As a parent though, you want to make sure that your kid's camp is safe. The responsibility and trust that you place in these camps is huge. How exactly do you ensure that your child will have an experience that's safe while also being good for them? There are a few simple steps that you can take. Use this framework to get started.
Understand the Importance of the Camp Counselor
At kids camp in Singapore, the counselors are the camper's friends, cheerleaders, teachers, and even disciplinarians when needed. Children remember their counselors for the rest of their lives. As counselors know, they have to earn the respect of the children in their care. It's often interesting to learn that the kid will often start imitating their counselors a few days into the camp session. For example, a counselor that may use certain phrases or words should not be surprised when the campers begin to use the same phrasing in their own sentences. This may be seen as amusing to the kids. Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery though.
Counselors play a large role in the experience so your child's counselors should be well-trained and prepared to handle a group of busy kids. They should be patient as well as kind in their mannerisms and be capable of handling a number of challenges that come their way.
Important Questions to Ask the Camp
1. What are their standards?
Different camps may have different standards when it comes to health, food, medical, and staffing standards. To get an idea if the camp meets safety needs, be sure to take a look at these areas. Keep in mind that day camps may have slightly different standards than overnight programs and adjust your expectations accordingly. A well-established and safe camp is going to have this information available and will be able to answer your questions.
2. What is the camp's emergency action plan and how often is it reviewed?
An emergency action plan or EAP is developed and maintained on a regular basis. This is a document that outlines every detail of staffing, management, and medical response for any incident that could occur at camp. For example at Newtonshow camp with their science programs, accidents can happen. Although the staff will work diligently to prevent any accidents with campers, they will also have a plan in place in case a child or a staff member experiences and injury. Having this plan in place ensures that the organization has thought through a number of scenarios and is prepared to deal with each one.
The correct answer to how often it should be reviewed is at least once a year. Camps may also want to review their EAP after specific events but should be completing an overall review at least once a year. A camp that doesn't follow this practice may not be prioritizing the safety of the kids involved adequately. This document may not always be available for parents to review. But asking about the existence of the plan and how often it is reviewed will let you know how well they are prepared to handle emergencies.
2. What is the ratio of campers to adults?
This number can vary depending on the type of camp but the minimum should be a ratio of 8:1. This is standard for cabin groups and counselors. This means that if the camp is an overnight camp and the cabin has more than 8 campers, there should be at least two counselors in the cabin with the kids. this may not be the final camp ratio though. Since there will be additional camping staff and session directing teams, this number may end up being closer to 4:1. There should be a strong team of adults who are committed to ensuring that campers get a great experience and also are safe while enjoying their time.
If these ratios are not high enough, then the safety of your children may be at stake. This is due to counselors being overworked, not having enough staff to handle emergencies, and even the possibility for a number of communication breakdowns at the camp.
3. How safe are the activities?
Activities at the camp may be adventurous and this is a good thing. These adventures allow campers to find their inner confidence and shine brighter than ever before. Camp activities can be experiments, games, biking, hiking, and more. These activities may require more awareness and professionalism from the camp staff. Before they can be enjoyed though, the activities must be guaranteed to be safe. Camps want to ensure that campers remain safe. Depending on the activities that are being offered, ask about what safety protocols or guidelines are being followed. Counselors may also have specialized training to help them promote safety in the summer camp.
4. What are the counselor's expectations? What training did they receive to prepare them for working at the camp?
These questions are important to ask since they provide insight into the culture of the camp. This is especially important since it shows how much priority is placed on long and short-term development of the staff. The training for the majority of camps usually takes place in a number of short-term blocks usually over weekends. The best training programs focus on developing a strong and supportive community for the counselors as well as teaching them group management techniques.
What is less desirable is trying to conduct the entire counselor training over a weekend before the start of the camp session. This may be necessary due to time limitations and counselor availability. However, it is less desirable and counselors may not receive the training that they need.
5. How does the camp check their staff and volunteers?
Kids camp in Singapore should ensure that their organization checks every person who works and volunteers there. They should maintain background checks on all staff. These checks should be performed through an outside, independent company to avoid running into problems. It typically takes a week or two to complete these checks. Not all camps can implement and require drug screening as it can become expensive. However, they should drug screen any person who may be suspected of a specific incident. Before signing up for the camp, always verify that that the staff are vetted appropriately.
6. Are certified and specialized training positions available?
Some activities that take place at camps may require staff which are certified and specialized. For example, pool and water-based activity staff should always be trained lifeguards. There are training programs where staff can obtain this certification fairly easily. Other activities such as rope staff may be certified or may have specialized training. Other specialized areas may not have specific certifications but counselors should have received training in these areas. For camps that offer these experiences, always ask about qualifications for staff.
7. Who is the camp medical technician?
This position can take on a number of names. A camp nurse, medical technician, or similar job title is simply the person who is designed to provide first aid and offer aid in a medical emergency. This position can be filled by a wide range of medical professions from basic first aid staff to medical doctors. They play the most important role in ensuring safety at the camp and are usually the only staff member that may be allowed to be alone with campers.
The medical technician should have a current and active certification in their specialized profession. They should be working in an area that is an appropriate setting. For example, many camps have a medical hut or center where children can go for bandaids and other medical services. Any severe medical needs will require additional assistance but the medical technician can usually provide at least basic first aid. There are too many insights to provide in the medical field but this is an area which can be concerning for parents. This may be especially concerning for campers who have specialized medical needs. Ask about the medical services available at the camp. It's likely that they will be fairly minimal and need to seek outside help but should be able to keep campers stable until help arrives if needed.
Choosing a Camp
Theses are the basic questions that parents should ask before deciding on a camp. What these questions will demonstrate is how safe the camp is, how well campers are supervised, and if the camp has adequate staff to keep campers safe. Before deciding on a camping experience, review these questions with a camp director or other qualified staff member. They will be able to answer these basic questions to allow you to determine if this is the right choice for your child. You can also check tips about How To Trust Your Kids Summer Camps here.