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Sending Your Child with Special Needs to Camp

     You’ve done it - you’ve taken the plunge and decided to send your child to camp this summer. There are many types of camps to choose from, including camps intended just for your child’s special needs to mainstream camps where your child will be with kids who have no special needs. You’ve done your research, and now that you and your child have made up your minds, what can you do to get ready.


Preparing Your Child - and Yourself

     If you and your child haven’t had the opportunity to visit the camp, make sure you get as much literature about the camp as possible, including a description of the layout and a video if they have one. You and your child should go over these materials together. Tell her that you’ll be checking in regularly with the camp staff to make sure that she has everything she needs and stress that she can always let the staff know if her needs aren’t being met. Talk to your child about her feelings. Find out if she has any concerns, and do your best to reassure her that you and the camp staff will take every precaution to make sure she stays safe. You might find it helpful to talk about why she’s attending camp and what some of her goals might be, such as to try a new sport, to make new friends, or to just enjoy a break from therapy sessions.

     If your child is intimidated by the thought of attending a residential camp or an inclusionary camp, you might consider starting her off in a day camp or a sports team for kids with special needs. This step can give your child the skills and confidence she needs to feel comfortable about going to a residential camp. “Start with regular sports activities and day camp. Then use a special-needs camp to get a child used to being away before sending your child to an inclusionary camp,” advises Ann Dolloff, extension specialist for the New Hampshire 4-H Camps.

     Another option you might consider is sending your child to camp with a friend or a sibling. If your child is attending an inclusionary or mainstream camp, the buddy doesn’t have to have a special need. “Going with a friend is a huge stress reduction for both child and family - they’ll be looking out for each other,” Dolloff says.


     This information was provided by KidsHealth and The Alfred I. duPont Hospital for Children, operating divisions of The Nemours Foundation. For more articles like this one, visit www.KidsHealth.org.