Summer Camp Leadership Prepares Teens for College

Camps have always been associated with learning and freedom. There are many things one can learn from camp experiences. Camps help children develop different skills that are needed for college life. It may be safe to say that summer camps are preparatory opportunities for teenagers.

Responsibility, independence and interdependence are just some of the greater lessons one can learn in summer camps. Children have to live on their own and therefore, have to do chores that they may not be doing at home. At the same time, they also share responsibilities with their fellow campers, honing their social skills. Summer camp training allows children to experience how life will be like when they set off to college and live on their own.  

Summer camp also helps bring out a child’s individuality. It provides an experience where teenagers can act without their parents, and therefore, can discover themselves without someone looking over their shoulder and telling them what to do. But with this freedom, they are also trained to be responsible for their every action. This scenario is very much reflective of college life. Through camp activities, teenagers learn the weight of their decisions and actions, not only for themselves, but also how it affects the people around them.

Camp activities also hone one’s decision-making and communication skills. When they start to learn how they can affect the people around them and the circumstances that may occur, they become more aware of which decisions will be better for the majority. This skill gives them the edge to be leaders in the future. While they develop their decision-making skills, they are also enhancing their problem-solving capabilities.

Camp activities also help children develop their communication skills. Leaders have to be good communicators and summer camps provide an opportunity for such. Camp activities allow children to effectively connect and converse with a wide variety of people, from their fellow campers, to their counselors, and to the rest of the camp staff. This gives them a venue to be more aware of how other people think and act, and how to respond to these situations. This makes them more emotionally aware and this can help them immensely as they go through with college life and life after that.

College life is never easy, but it can be made easier by preparing your child and equipping them with the right skill sets they need as they venture through these different life stages. Summer camps, like Zodiac, offer this privilege to teenagers to discover themselves, and to grow with the experience. We have many children and teenagers joining the Zodiac Camp who were very happy with their summer camp experience and we believe that they have developed strong physical, emotional and social skills that will help them tackle the challenges that college life may bring.