Camping Pro Tip: Letter Writing
Letter writing is an integral part of having a camper at an overnight camp. While sending your child away to camp may seem daunting, communication to and from your camper can be a seamless and easy experience. In 2018 we are used to instant communication via text, facetimes, phone calls, and emails, so having a slower form of communication may seem scary, but these tips will hopefully ease your nerves and allow for a great summer of communication.
Camper To Parent
Receiving a letter from your camper is something that every parent hopes for when they check the mailbox. In this age, many campers do not even know how to address a letter. It is very important that you sit down with your camper before camp starts and set clear expectation on who they should write, how often they should write, what information you want in the letters, etc. We also suggest a quick letter writing tutorial, so they how to write a letter and address the envelope.
One of the best things you could do for your camper is to pre-address and pre-stamp envelopes with the number of letters you would like your camper to write. If you think your camper will have trouble coming up with things to write about, there are many stationary sets that will give your camper prompts that they could fill out. Some families even make their own mad-lib style letters for their campers.
In addition to the expectations you set with your camper, Camp Chi requires letters to be written home twice a week, on Sundays and Thursdays. We call our Sundays at camp, Postcard Sundays, because we supply your camper with a pre-addressed postcard home that they write every week. On Thursdays we also require campers to write a letter home. Thursdays are our “Letter Lotto” days, where the campers turn in their letters as their tickets to dinner and one letter is picked like a lottery ticket. The camper who wrote the letter that is picked wins a fun prize! After the lotto, the letters are sent home.
Parent To Camper
Receiving a letter from home is something that could make a camper’s day. When a camper receives a letter from home, it reminds them that their family is still thinking of them. Although campers only have one form of communication available, parents have a couple options they could use to communicate.
Just like the campers, parents too can write good old fashioned pen-and-paper. However, if you do not want to wait the 3-4 days it takes for your letter to be received, you can send an email to your camper from your CampInTouch account. Emails are printed every morning and delivered around rest hour each day, except for Shabbat. Although emailing your camper is definitely the quicker option, it is nice to write letters too, as campers always love receiving a letter in one of their loved one’s handwriting.
Letters To Be Aware Of
When receiving a letter from camp, sometimes it take 3-5 days for your camper’s letter to get to you. It is important to remember this and know that your camper is not sending you an instantaneous message. Campers have all sorts of emotions and it is not uncommon for parents to receive an unhappy letter. Veteran parents know that it is not uncommon in first letters from camper to see phrases like “I’m so homesick,” “I need to see you,” or “I miss you so much.” When you receive these letters, remember to stop and breathe- missing home is a natural part of camp that almost experiences at some point. Oftentimes your camper will only be sad for 15 minutes one day, but that is when they decide to write you a letter. It is also common for the next letter after what we call “a homesick letter” to read something like “I LOVE CAMP SO MUCH! I’M HAVING SO MUCH FUN.” You can always call your camper’s village leader if you get a letter that causes you concern.
When sending a letter to your camper it is important to remember certain things to cover, and certain topics to avoid. Campers get comforted when they read about your daily life at home. Reading that life at home is similar to it was before they left for camp will make your camper happy that life at home is still normal. It is also important to ask questions about camp in your letters. Not only will it give them something to write about in their next letter home, but it will make them excited that you are interested in their daily camp life. Other things to include in letters may be pictures of pets, drawings, and even weather and sports updates.
There are some topics that would be best to avoid in your letter to your camper. Certain things are best left out of letters, as reading these may cause a lot of emotional stress on your camper. One of the things that often causes a camper stress is hearing that home is really sad without them. When they hear about how their absence from home is making you miserable, the guilt kicks in and campers start to miss home more and forget about the fun they are having at camp. Another topic to avoid would be sending bad news in your letters. When bad news is sent in a letter, campers who read the news have a much harder time processing the news than if it were in a conversation. If there is news that cannot wait for your camper to hear, feel free to call camp and we could strategize the best way to talk to your camper.
It is important to remember that every camper is different and nobody knows your camper better than you do. We understand that in the 21st century letter writing may seem outdated, but it is one of those things that makes camp, camp. Writing and receiving letters is something that should not be stressful, and it is something that you and your camper should look forward too. We hope these tips were helpful. More Pro Tips are coming your way as well!\