Has anyone had any experience with them? My 12 yr.DD wants to go to this camp this year. It's for 4 weeks and it will cost me 1200. All comments welcome

I dont know anything at all about this but I know I wouldnt want my 12 year old gone 4 weeks over night anywhere.

I've never heard of the camp but I did a google search and a lot of links came up. You might want to go thru google and look at them. However, spending $1,200 for a summer camp is an awful lot for a 12-year old.
BTW, are you Jewish? The reason I ask is because it says it teaches the children about Jewish values.

Since 1948, Golden Slipper Camp in the Pocono Mountains has provided kids, ages 7 to 15, with a setting that lets them discover more about themselves in a supportive, nurturing environment, while also learning about Jewish values. Located on 600 beautifully wooded acres overlooking a private lake, Golden Slipper Camp fosters independence, builds self-esteem, and encourages skill development with positive role models. We offer dozens of activities and an expanding, exciting assortment of Jewish programming, while providing modern, secure overnight camping facilities. And our camp "spirit" and community is second to none. Here at Slipper, kids learn while they're having fun and make friendships that last a lifetime.

There's no way in this world that another child of mine will ever go to sleepaway camp. There are too many things that counselors miss or choose to ignore. JMO..

1200 for 4 weeks is very reasonable for an overnight camp. I was a camp nurse while my kids were young. They got to go to camp most of the summer and really enjoyed the experience. It was a Methodist camp. Any child of any religion would have benefitted from it, so I don't see an issue if you are not Jewish.

Good luck with your decision. IMO, being away from parents gives a child a lot of strengths and independence to the right child. Often, it is the parent who has more trouble separating than the child. And, some find the experience horrible. By the age of 12, a kid can hide something from a parent probably easier than from a counselor that is sleeping with them and watching over them 24/7. But, that is just my first hand experience being a camp nurse 8 weeks a year for 5 years.

At age 12 a child can, if they are so inclined, keep things from their parents. Parents miss "stuff" and choose to ignore things as well....

If a parent does their research then a sleep away camp can be good for some kids.

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Mental that one, I'm telling you. ---Ron Weasley, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"

Kids actually open up a lot to their counselors at the camp I nursed at. Maybe because of the closeness of age, yet someone older to get to know enough to trust. I know I discovered a lot of kids with problems their parents were totally clueless to and wouldn't have known but for the child going to camp. Laxative abuse and cutting are much more common than one would like to believe.

My little girl last year wanted to go to Girl Scout camp. It was a whole week and parents were not allowed to go, they were also not allowed to check in to see how they were doing or drop by just to see thier child. To me, that is a red flag. Any camp that tells parents they are off limits in this day and age just isn't working with me.

The camp I was at had that rule. Letters and faxes and packages were fine. Kids could go home at any time. But, no "dropping by" or any visits were allowed except for really unusual circumstances (illness, broken bones, etc). Oddly, many parents try to sabatoge the child's independence. But, I'll bet there are camps that don't have those rules. I just wouldn't see that as a "red flag."

Obviously...

For us though, Fletcher learned what he did at his sleepaway camp (and his group was supposed to have a counselor 24/7).
Then dh and I chose to believe what he was saying about the things we did notice after he got back. I'm sure there are great camps out there, but I'm not willing to risk it again. That's all I was trying to say.

And see this is a case where I didn't respond to the person, but the content of the post.
I didn't even realize it was you I was responding to. I do apologize if you felt that I was directing it at YOU on a personal level, I was not.

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Mental that one, I'm telling you. ---Ron Weasley, "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets"

Your situation is particularly unique and so was Fletcher.

On the subject of the Jewish values, that's not something that would bother me too much. We try to be open-minded, value others and their opinions, and learn as much as we can about as much as we can. My sons attend(ed) a Catholic high school where they study Christianity and Catholicism in particular. We are not Catholic. Some of the students are Jewish, some Muslim, and some who know what else. Our society is diverse; we need to be prepared for it and learn from it.

Off soapbox now.

cj/

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I was walking home one night and a guy hammering on a roof called me a paranoid little weirdo. In morse code. -Emo Phillips

I do allow my children to go to sleepovers and sleepover camps. I just personally do not want to miss out on entire month of my childrens summers.

My oldest dd went twice for 4 days & 3 nights. She absolutely loved it. Youngest wanted to go, but scheduling hasn't worked out for her. This year we've found another. She is 12 and going to a 7 day, 6 night camp. She absolutely can't wait. She can't wait. 4 days was hard without oldest dd. 7 days is going to be really long!

I think overnight camp is good for kids. Oh, we can't visit or call either. We are encouraged to write before camp so they have letters waiting. But, when I was a kid & went, there were no visits or phone calls either. It's to help with homesickness for those who are prone.

My daughter will be fine. She is not prone to homesickness. I doubt she'll even miss us. Oldest didn't. I sent preaddressed, stamped cards for her to write home and she didn't. When I asked about it she said they didn't have time. Truth is, she didn't want to take time.

Lisa

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"It's not having what you want,
It's wanting what you've got"