What are some memories you have of summer camp or even just a weekend away at camp? You probably recall the good times, the relationships you made, the confidence you developed, and the experiences that had an impact on you as you look back on your life.
Camp is a significant period in the lives of young people. Knowing this is crucial if you work with kids as a camp counselor or in other summertime or weekend activities since it will impact their development. What essential skills do students get from a weekend at camp that they might not be able to gain elsewhere? Let's take a look.
Ten Essential Skills You Can Learn on a Weekend at Camp
1. Independence
In today's culture, there are moments when we desire to shelter our children. In order to prevent trauma, parents, teachers, and other adults desire to have complete control over what their children watch and are exposed to. This includes running exercises for potentially risky scenarios at school, implementing parental restrictions, or simply keeping a close eye on the kids in general.
The appeal of a weekend away at camp is that it fosters a sense of independence and confidence. Students are able to have a sense of accomplishing things on their own. This will have an impact on them later in life when they encounter a problem and they remember their time at camp, sometimes unknowingly.
Because a child must eventually leave their parents in order to explore the outside world, the concept of independence comes naturally to them. Why not assist youth in developing these independence skills in a setting with a safety net, like a weekend away at camp?
2. Social Skills
School is an excellent place to gain social skills, one may say, but I would question the extent to which schools permit this to happen organically. Due to schedules and other things to learn, schools don't have time to intentionally teach social skills as much as we would like to believe.
Teaching kids how to interact with others becomes more of a scheduled activity at camp. The campers have intentional time in their cabins during bunk periods to socialize. There are walks, hikes, and campfires. Games that promote problem-solving and ice-breaking are played frequently in an atmosphere free from the constraints of academics.
All these activities enable the camp and counselors to concentrate on instructing campers in the complexities of socialization, such as how to make friends, how to apologize, how to solve an issue with a friend, discover common ground, and other such skills.
3. New Activity Skills
Spending a weekend at camp allows you to learn all kinds of new activity skills. Below are just a few of those activities you will learn new skills from.
- Fishing
- Climbing wall
- Hiking
- Frisbee golf
- Archery
- Miniature golf
- BB shooting range
- Low ropes course
- Zipline
- Camp-wide activities
- Outdoor education
- Arts and crafts
4. Diversity Appreciation
Through arts and crafts projects, activities, and new friends you make at camp, you can learn a lot about other cultures. Children get a fantastic opportunity at camp to meet with others who are different from them and discover they have a lot in common.
This is one of the most important roles a camp can play right now. Children need to learn tolerance and respect for other people's ways of life, and camp can be the vehicle for this to happen.
5. Character Building
Camp is a great place to learn how to be a caring and contributing citizen. Camp activities and camp culture intentionally teach youth how to be respectful, loyal, honest, a team player, and hard-working just to name a few. These character traits are vital in becoming a successful member of society.
6. Teambuilding
Teamwork is essential in our world today. Everyone knows you need to be able to work with others in order to do well in the world. Camp offers many opportunities to learn how to work as a team. This is an essential skill to learn.
7. Wilderness Survival Skills
Survival skills are a must when it comes to being in nature. While at a weekend camp, you can learn the following essential wilderness survival skills.
- Make a friction fire
- Build shelters
- Tracking
- Hiking skills
- Compass reading and navigation
- How to interact with wildlife properly
- Education on edible and medicinal plants
8. Instills Confidence
Confidence is not always an easy trait to have. Camp is the perfect place to instill confidence. For more ideas on how camp can instill confidence, take a peek at this blog.
9. Expand Comfort Zone
There will be many opportunities for you to step outside your comfort zone during a weekend at camp. This will help you be more adaptable and well-rounded in your life outside of camp.
10. How to Have Fun!
As we get older, it is so easy to forget how to have fun and fun is such an important part of living a full life. We can discover the fun parts of ourselves that may have been lost in our hectic world when we attend camp. We need to remember how to have fun, and how to play in nature.
High Peak Camp
There are many health advantages of spending time in nature, from strengthening your immune system to decreasing stress. High Peak Camp is a great place for you to explore and connect with nature in a safe environment while gaining essential life skills.
The vision of High Peak Camp is to use nature and the great outdoors as a setting to share the gospel of Jesus Christ, teach environmental awareness, encourage pro-social behavior, and safely provide opportunities to every camper for fun and adventure.
For more information about High Peak Camp, its facilities, and its program offerings, or to book your next retreat, contact us or visit our website.