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Be sure your child has the necessary supplies to write back home to friends and family while they’re attending summer camp. Not only is letter writing a great way to maintain and improve upon the academic skill of writing, it also helps maintain an important connection to family and friends at home while they are away at camp over the summer.
While there are certainly some residential or sleepover summer camps which might have computer stations available with the ability to send email back in some capacity (be sure to check with the camp director prior to the start of camp to find out one way or the other), there is really no substitute for an old fashioned supplies such as: a pen or pencil, pad of paper, envelopes, and stamps. Be sure to provide your child with enough of these basic letter writing supplies to last throughout the duration of their stay at summer camp.
Whether your child is going away to camp this summer for only a few days or eight weeks, letters written back home will serve as a real time journal (or real life “blog”) which will record their thoughts, activities, accomplishments, fears, encounters, etc. in real time so as family and friends can follow along on a camper’s journey over the course of their time away from home at camp. The act of writing a letter helps a child process and record their individual experiences in a manner which is meaningful on a personal level; whether it is regarding issues such as homesickness as well as about significant accomplishments.
By the same token, letters written to campers attending summer camp might serve as a valuable connection to life back at home with respect to relatives, friends, and general happenings in the neighborhood. At many sleep away camps, there is often a time dedicated to “mail call” whereby a camp counselor will distribute letters to all campers in their cabin or unit. While it is certainly an important life skill to be able to cope with not receiving a letter when most other kids have gotten mail, it is also a nice feeling for a camper to be on the receiving end of news from home.
