The period before camp calls for both physical and psychological preparations.
Advice for new campers
Familiarity can calm your fears and worries about anything new. Because visiting Camp Chikopi in advance is not possible, check out our website, social media sites, you tube video’s and information packages. Chat about your concerns with your parents, and get answers to your questions. Make pre-camp preparation part of your experience so you get excited and know what to expect. The more you know, the less you're going to be concerned about the unknown.
Talk to your friends who have been to camp can help make the new experience less scary.
To experience being away from home, sleep over at a friend's or relative's house.
Learn to be more independent by helping with chores at home, such as shopping with your parents, making the bed, organizing your belongings and packing what you need to bring to camp.
Advice for all parents
One of the most important tips for parents of new campers, involve your son in every step of the way so there are no surprises.
Complete and return all forms with accurate and current information and submit them on time.
Packing: Chikopi provides a packing list to follow. Include well-worn clothes that can withstand dirt and pine gum. Avoid bringing money or valuables. Don't pack or send junk food camps ban them for good reasons. To prevent mixing up or losing belongings, label all clothes and equipment with permanent marker or bright nail polish. Write down a list of all of your son’s stuff, put it in his luggage.
Attend to medical matters. If your son is taking a prescription medicine, send an adequate supply in the original container with the instructions on the label. On arrival at Chikopi, all medication will be locked away and dispensed under the supervision of the health care staff with the exception of medication that is required immediately such as an EpiPen® or asthma puffer. Send a fanny pack with your son to carry these around camp, this keeps these items always accessible. If you have decided to discontinue a medication, for example Ritalin, during the camp session, this is also pertinent information for the health care staff. If your son has been exposed to a communicable disease shortly before camp starts, the camp needs to know. Let camp health-care staff know if your son has recently discontinued medication or has been exposed to a communicable disease.
Inform the Director if your son is apprehensive. This important information will be relayed to the counselors who will then be alerted to pay even closer attention to your son’s integration in the first few days.
Avoid raising the issue about homesickness unless your son brings it up. If your son has concerns about being homesick, reassure him that it is normal, and he will have support from other campers, camp staff and the camp directors.
Chat about camp in a casual and positive way. If you are a former enthusiastic camper, be careful not to recall your past experiences in such glowing terms that might create unrealistic expectations. Allow your son to enjoy his own first impressions. As pre-camp mailings arrive, share the information with your son.
Allow your son to set his own goals. Problems can arise if a parent’s agenda does not match the son’s preferences. Although you may have been a keen canoeist who loved extended trips in the wilderness, your son may prefer the soccer field. Learning and achievement will happen, but at your son’s pace with the focus on fun!
Resist making foolish promises. Assume that your son will remain for the entire session. Occasionally a reluctant camper persuades his parents to promise to take him home if he does not like camp. Parents must not fall into this trap! The best approach is, “Give it your best try this summer and at the end of your stay, we will discuss if you want to return next year.” An apprehensive camper has a better chance of success if he is committed to finish the session. If a child knows you’ll give him the option to leave at his request, he may decide to test your word at the first hint of a problem: unpleasant weather, a loss at a camp game or a disagreement with a cabin mate. For his own personal growth and self-esteem, having made the commitment, the child should see it through.
You can be assured that if it is in the best interests of your son to leave camp prematurely, the director will be in touch with you. In our combined sixty years directing a boy’s camp, we encouraged and supported our share of homesick campers. Only once, when his parents arrived unexpectedly for a visit, did a homesick camper leave five days before the end of his session and wrote to us later in the summer to relay his regret.
Shortly before departure, check your son’s hair for head lice, and if discovered treat it. Chikopi will examine every camper on arrival, and send a child home for treatment rather than risk the spread to other campers. Because of the close quarters in sleeping cabins and the sharing of sports helmets head lice can spread quickly in a camp setting.
Departure for camp
Whether driving to Chikopi or the bus departure location, be punctual and prepared to leave promptly. Parents who hover make it difficult for new campers to get settled. Check in with the staff on duty. If there are last minute instructions for the camp, deliver these in writing, rather than verbally, to the staff person in charge. At the bus, say your goodbyes at the door and leave your son to find his own seat with the help of the supervising staff. A quick goodbye hug and kiss is fine with girls, but boys usually prefer a smile and a wave.
Your son is ready to start a great adventure! You have done your research and received satisfactory answers to all your questions. Now you can confidently place your faith and trust in our experience and skills as camp directors and our staff to do our very best for your son.
Arrival at camp
Camp Chikopi programs your child’s arrival very carefully to ensure a smooth transition.
First the camper is introduced to the staff and his counselors. Medications and valuables will be handed in at this time. Together the camper and counselor go to your son’s cabin to begin unpacking. A guided tour to familiarize the children with the property includes the dining hall, beaches, washroom facilities and other areas open to your son. On the arrival afternoon, campers and counselors participate in an activity on the front field, a dip in the lake or an activity in the library and game room. After the first evening program and a bedtime snack, the counselors will lead their cabin group through the bedtime routine: washing, brushing teeth, quiet conversation, and stories. The counselors will describe any night sounds that might worry their new campers. They will confirm that flashlights are permitted, until a certain time. They will reassure their group that they are not alone and that one of them is always on duty in the cabin.
