Good Gifts
The best thing you can give your children, next to good habits, are good memories. -Sydney Harris Our home is overrun with more electronic gadgets than there are people. And, with our kids beyond the age where they ask for small toys, it’s difficult to think of a gift that is remotely needed other than…
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Way Too Much of a Good Thing
Anyone who’s been reading my blog knows that I’m a big proponent of getting kids “unplugged.” I love that they get two weeks of tech free time to focus on face-to-face relationships while they’re at camp. Unfortunately, I think many of them fall back into their same tech habits, and those of their parents,…
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Messages for an Anxious Camper
Check out more Summer Camp videos. “Children want to be independent, and they realize that they cannot be truly independent until they beat homesickness, even when they have a painful case of it.” –Michael Thompson, PhD., Homesick and Happy Messages for a Hesitant Camper Recently I spoke with a mom whose 11-year-old son is coming to…
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Homesickness Help
Homesickness is an emotion that most campers feel to some degree at camp. Fortunately, in most cases, the fun and excitement of camp far outweigh any sad feelings. If this is your child’s first experience away from you for a significant period of time, we encourage you to read through the following recommendations. Homesickness Dos…
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“Kidsickness”: Help for First Time Camp Parents
Who’s REALLY not ready for camp? Usually, parents say it’s their kid who’s not ready, but in my experience, the kids are raring to go, and it’s the parents who aren’t ready. After spending the last three decades at camp having fun with the campers, and talking to their anxious parents at home, I’m certain…
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Get Unplugged
The January/February, 2011, issue of Stanford Magazine reported on research being done about the impact of time spent online (link to the article provided below). It gave me even more reasons to celebrate that Gold Arrow Camp gives kids an extended period of “unplugged” time. Researchers at Stanford (and I’m sure elsewhere) are investigating what…
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Hand Written Letters
This week I’ve been going through the many boxes of letters, photos, and memorabilia which I have collected over my first four decades. It’s been a time-consuming task, but I’m trying to organize into a smaller number of boxes what has been accumulated over the first half of my life. What has struck me most…
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Nature Pees and Lanyard Fishing Poles
Watching the campers construct fishing poles out of sticks and lanyard string, I had a revelation. Kids rarely get a chance to play like this any more. And, boy, are they good at it when they are given the opportunity! For the first time in many years, I went on a GAC backpacking trip last…
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