An effective camp marketing strategy should address both parents' and children's concerns that influence decisions about camp. Includes strategies for developing a targeted message through print media or video that addresses these concerns and persuades families to choose camp. Stresses the importance of following up with parents and children. (LP)

Percussion programming can be integrated into a camping experience that actively involves campers in clapping, singing, and dancing. Provides suggestions for making percussion instruments out of natural materials, and offers ideas for using percussion in storytelling, listening activities, and camper wake-up calls. (LP)

Study explored the perception of parents of campers with mental retardation regarding the benefits of summer camps. Parents rated the relative importance of 22 possible benefits and indicated 6 dimensions of benefits in an ideal program: social skill development, social competence, respite care, cognitive development, expressive development, and…

Thirty disadvantaged gifted children in Appalachian regions of Tennessee were provided scholarship money to attend a special summer camp program. Home visits before and after the camp experience demonstrated that these children benefited from both the social and academic aspects of the enrichment program. (DB)

Discusses the nature of spirituality and the resources people use in responding to spirituality based on Robert Coles' book, "The Spiritual Life of Children." Answers questions as to how to use the camp experience to afford campers opportunities for spiritual growth while respecting the many expressions of spirituality in society. (LP)

Discusses the importance of planning, implementing, and evaluating camp physical activity programs. Appropriate physical activity programing should consider frequency, intensity, time, and type of activity. Also important are following the principles critical to physical training: specificity, overload, and progression. Two examples of physical…

A four-week program at Sunrise Lake Camp (Cold Spring, New York) helps immigrant Russian Jewish children to adjust to their new country. Program components include language enhancement activities, bilingual staff, scholarship assistance, cultural sensitivity training for staff, and cross-cultural education for immigrant and U.S.-born campers. (SV)

To have a successful nature program, summer camp directors must hire qualified nature counselors, give the program equal status with other activities, promote the program to prospective campers and their parents, and incorporate environmental ethics. Included are suggestions for developing an appealing and relevant nature program. (LP)

The effect of a six-week multimodal summer camp program on the self-concept and reading/writing skills of 42 campers (ages 9 to 14) with dyslexia was assessed. Campers improved significantly in phonetic reading, spelling skills, self-concept, and overall academic competence, but not in sight-word vocabulary or reading speed. (Author/CR)

To increase its counselor retention rate, a New York camp developed a course for counselors that focuses on leadership training and earns participants college credit. The class teaches situational leadership and focuses on the camper, not the activity. Course curriculum and objectives, course elements, and lessons learned about program improvement…

Summarizes research concerning the influence of different types of discussions about moral dilemmas between adolescents and either parents or peers on the adolescents' moral development. Discusses implications for camp staff, who may lead campers in discussions based on real-life moral dilemmas in their cabins. (SV)

Reports on Seeds of Peace, a summer camp that brings together Arab and Israeli teenagers to embark on the process of making peace. Brings together teenagers from nations at war and allows them the physical, psychological, and emotional space to meet each other. Suggests that the concept of the camp works because real peace is made between people…

This study was designed to address the paucity of research on the efficacy of camps for children with visual impairments and their families. The study evaluated the performance of a two-day camp for families with young visually impaired children at the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind whose program was based on perceived family needs and…

The purpose of this manual is to educate camp directors and camp personnel regarding government-recognized standard practices and procedures followed within the camp industry. These standards also provide a basis for voluntary accreditation of camps by the American Camping Association (ACA) beyond the minimum requirements of licensing. The manual…

Survey responses from 87 of a total of 486 camps were adjusted to reflect projected 1981 economic conditions and to indicate the significance of children's summer camps to the economy of Massachusetts. Six categories of camps were identified: agency day (185 camps); agency resident (84); private day (91); private resident (69); public day, special…