Summer Camp Experience Research Articles

An Effective Interprofessional Collaboration to Support African Refugee Students' Oral and Written Language and Social Integration

Purpose: Two faculty members collaborated to advance educational equity by providing a summer camp experience to prevent summer learning loss for African refugee students in preschool through high school. Both faculty members educate university students in graduate programs, one for students aiming to become educators of English to Speakers of Other Languages and the other for speech-language pathology students. Method: Speech-language pathology graduate students provided supports for oral and written language within Tier 1 of a multitiered systems of support framework during camp. Interventions were provided within the context of the camp activities, rooted in the constructs of contextualized intervention, implicit learning, and feedback-free learning. The speech-language pathology students collaborated with the faculty members, camp director, community members, and the campers. Results: The speech-language pathology students learned to provide language support in natural environments, analyze writing, recognize strengths and areas for growth in multilingual learners, establish rapport with individuals from cultural and linguistic backgrounds that differ from their own, collaborate with other professionals, and build campers' confidence and self-esteem. The campers expanded their vocabulary, syntactic, and narrative production and developed teamwork, collaboration, and leadership. Conclusions: This program can be a model for others aiming to collaborate to advance educational equity. Speech-language pathologists have an important role in collaborating with colleagues from other disciplines to provide programs for language and literacy support, even when the students do not have underlying language disorder.

Empathy in an ecosystem: A longitudinal study examining contributions of summer camp and school experiences to empathy during early adolescence

This study utilized data from a national longitudinal study of 277 early adolescent summer camp participants to examine the iterative links between youths’ experiences in two contexts – summer camp and school – and empathy over two years. Using a cross-lagged panel model, the authors examined how the quality of youths’ developmental experiences within each context, defined as a combination of supportive relationships and engaged learning opportunities, were related to youths’ empathy over time. Results showed that 1) higher quality developmental experiences in each context uniquely predicted improvements in empathy; 2) youths’ developmental experiences at camp and school were mutually reinforcing over time; and 3) school experiences partly mediated the effects of camp experiences and vice versa. Results illustrate the value of out-of-school-time contexts for supporting empathy, the importance of developmental experiences across settings, and the need for researchers and practitioners to attend to the ecosystem of social development.

Beyond the Camp High: The Contribution of Christian Summer Camps to the Development of Owned Personal Faith

This study sought to understand the contribution of repeat adolescent summer camp experiences within the larger landscape of adolescent faith formation. Using a qualitative approach with a sample of former, multi-year attendees of Christian camps in Wisconsin and Michigan, this study demonstrated that Christian summer camps may help facilitate the development of owned faith and foster affiliation with the body of Christ.

AI Made by Youth: A Conversational AI Curriculum for Middle School Summer Camps

As artificial intelligence permeates our lives through various tools and services, there is an increasing need to consider how to teach young learners about AI in a relevant and engaging way. One way to do so is to leverage familiar and pervasive technologies such as conversational AIs. By learning about conversational AIs, learners are introduced to AI concepts such as computers’ perception of natural language, the need for training datasets, and the design of AI-human interactions. In this experience report, we describe a summer camp curriculum designed for middle school learners composed of general AI lessons, unplugged activities, conversational AI lessons, and project activities in which the campers develop their own conversational agents. The results show that this summer camp experience fostered significant increases in learners’ ability beliefs, willingness to share their learning experience, and intent to persist in AI learning. We conclude with a discussion of how conversational AI can be used as an entry point to K-12 AI education.

Short-Term Changes in Youth Physical Activity Behaviors and Attitudes: The Influence of Summer Camp

Changes in patterns of physical activity are common across adolescence and are often associated with psychological factors such as feelings of athletic competence (Agans et al., 2017; Dawes et al., 2014). However, although physical activity preferences and beliefs about competence and abilities are important contributors to participation (Sallis et al., 2000), these factors are rarely studied over shorter time scales or in the context of specific recreational environments. We therefore assessed the extent to which summer camp experiences may contribute to changes in youth physical activity behavior and attitudes, and examined factors associated with these changes. Data were collected from 309 youth (85% white, 44% female, average age of 11.6) attending three different summer camps in the northeastern United States. Camper survey data were analyzed using multilevel regression models to account for potential camp-level differences in physical activity experiences. Our findings suggest that youth experiences with physical activity at camp are not isolated from prior physical activity behaviors and attitudes, but that even one-week camp sessions can lead to changes for some youth. Specifically, overall physical activity levels increased from pre-camp to the end of camp, but camper demographics and pre-camp physical activity behaviors and beliefs were associated with participants’ self-reported activity levels, self-perceived athletic competence, and eagerness for physical activity at the end of a week of camp. We also found that many campers reported decreases in their enjoyment of physical activities with which they had prior experience, and this was especially true for teens with the lowest levels of physical activity at camp. Finally, we found that youth who tried more new types of physical activity at camp reported decreased self-perceived competence but were more likely to have higher levels of physical activity while at camp. These results suggest that summer camps can enable youth to increase their physical activity levels and change their physical activity-related beliefs, but that recreational camp programs do not affect all youth similarly. Camp staff should therefore be attentive to campers’ prior experiences, and seek to tailor their programs to better support the physical activity behaviors and attitudes of all campers.

Analysis of a Year-Round Mentoring Program for Youth with Physical Disabilities Attending a Medical Specialty Camp

Residential medical specialty camps provide short-term psychosocial benefits to youth with health conditions during summer camp, yet extinguishing effects are commonly seen in followup data as campers return to home and school settings (Dawson, 2017; Knapp et al., 2015; Moola et al., 2014; Plante et al., 2001). Innovative year-round support approaches are needed to enhance existing residential medical camps to improve long-term psychosocial outcomes associated with the months following the summer experience (Dawson, 2017; Dawson et al., 2018). This study is a qualitative analysis of an online mentoring support program designed as a follow-up approach in the months after residential summer camp experience has ended. The mentoring support program matched adolescent campers with a physical disability to an adult mentor having a similar disability and was structured through an online support curriculum facilitated by a recreational therapist. Qualitative analysis yielded two major themes from mentors and mentees (a) mentor as a disability life coach providing psychosocial support and expanding life expectations, and (b) barriers and facilitators to the mentee-mentor relationship. Discussion centers on insights for further developing this mentoring support program as an adjunct to traditional medical specialty camps.

A Virtual Skin-Model-Building Activity Educates Campers With Chronic Skin Disorders and Their Families

A Virtual Skin-Model-Building Activity Educates Campers With Chronic Skin Disorders and Their Families

"Like Any Other Camp": Experiences and lessons learned from an integrated day camp for children with heart disease.

Summer camps for children living with heart disease can have a profound impact on well-being. However, specialized camps often require extensive resources (i.e., 24-hmedical staff supervision) and may be located in farremote settings. Integrating children with heart disease into mainstream day camps may address these barriers. The purpose of this study is to describe the experience of attending an integrated day camp from the perspectives of children with heart disease and their parents. This study used a qualitative descriptive design. Among 25 eligible families, 9 participated in interviews which were held 3 months to 2 years after attending an integrated camp (mean age of children at camp was 7.3 ± 2.25 years). Interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim for an inductive thematic analysis. Many parents chose the integrated camp as their child's first summer camp experience, citing trust in the local division of Cardiology's approval of the camp activities as an important reason for enrolling. All participants agreed the integrated camp was a valued opportunity which should continue, although not all described positive camp experiences. Participants' descriptions of the integrated camp were organized into two main themes: 1) overall expectations of the camp and 2) important opportunities afforded by the camp experience. Partaking in a typical camp experience, connecting to local children with heart disease, adequate safety precautions and activity adaptations were specific expectations held by participants. Important opportunities included greater independence and confidence, navigating disclosure of their diagnosis to peers on their own terms, and more diverse social connections. Improving communication with parents to ensure expectations match camp objectives would have enhanced the experience. Practitioners looking for an alternative to specialized camps for their patients with heart disease may use these results to guide the design and promotion of an integrated camp.

Queer at Camp: The Impact of Summer Camps on LGBTQ Campers in the United States

The purpose of this study is to explore the ways in which LGBTQ campers and counsellors are shaped by and shape summer camp. Summer camps are often the place where many US youth begin to learn about sex and sexuality. It is a unique and important spatial locale that is understudied in both sexualities and wider sociological enquiry. To better understand the impact of summer camp experiences on sexualities, the study analyses retrospective interviews with former campers about their experiences at a summer camp, as well as podcasts and blogs. We address two key areas of camp life: sexual firsts and being openly queer at camp. Many campers are less likely to be out at camp than they are at home. The exception to this is when there are visible staff or counsellors that are out at camp. Despite not being out, many LGBTQ campers have their first sexual experience at camp, though many do not see it as sexual at the time of the act. Our findings reaffirm the importance of contact with queer people, both for LGBTQ acceptance from straight/cis people and for the self-acceptance of young queer persons. We conclude by discussing how this space is unique and how it can be improved for LGBTQ people's experiences and development at summer camps.

Outcomes Following Participation in a Support-Based Summer Camp for Children Who Stutter.

Self-help and support activities are often recommended for people who stutter, and there is growing interest in understanding whether and how such experiences might be beneficial for children who stutter. The purpose of this study was to explore the potential impact of participation in Camp SAY, an overnight support-based summer camp experience for children who stutter, by measuring changes in scores on the Overall Assessment of the Speaker's Experience of Stuttering (OASES). Participants were 107 children who stutter (age range: 8-18 years) who attended Camp SAY during the summers of 2013, 2015, and/or 2016. We examined changes in OASES scores (a) pre- to postcamp, (b) the durability of changes 6 months after the conclusion of the camp, and group differences (c) between school-age campers and teenage campers and (d) between first-time campers and those who had previously attended the camp. Comparison of precamp to postcamp scores revealed significant improvements related to reactions to stuttering, quality of life, and overall adverse impact of stuttering. Scores on each subsection of the OASES were maintained (and further improved) 6 months after camp. There were no significant differences between school-age campers and teenage campers. Both first-time and returning campers showed significant improvements related to reactions to stuttering, though first-time campers had a significantly larger improvement in attitudes toward communication related to stuttering than returning campers. These outcomes suggest that participation in support activities, like Camp SAY, is associated with significant reductions in the overall adverse impact of stuttering and can therefore be beneficial for children who stutter.

Comparing Three Overnight Summer Camp Experiences for Marginalized Middle School Students: Negative, Neutral, and Positive Results

Background: Summer camps can promote positive youth development. Unfortunately, racial, ethnic, and economic disparities contribute to inequities in camp participation and related research on marginalized youth. Consequently, it is not clear what types of camping programs work best for marginalized youth. Purpose: To conduct a quasi-experimental comparison of three summer camps described as experiential education camp (EEC), recreational camp (RC), and integrated didactic and experiential camp (IC). Methodology/Approach: Black and Latinx middle schoolers completed summer camps with the support of a community organization that also provided social-emotional learning classes during the school year. Findings/Conclusions: Dependent sample t tests and effect size comparisons on self-report collected before and after the camp showed that the EEC had small negative effects, the RC had neutral or mixed effects, and IC had positive effects. Implications: Overnight summer camp interventions can have a range of effects based on the type of activities and procedures. Outcomes may be improved by integrating didactic lessons with experiential education. Other explanations, such as positive behavioral supports and relationships with adults on the trip, could also account for differences in outcomes. Further research is needed to establish best practices for overnight camps to support the positive development of marginalized youth.

Impact of a Residential Summer Camp Experience on Children With Sickle Cell Disease.

Background: Sickle cell disease (SCD) has a significant psychosocial impact on affected children. Summer camp has been shown to improve psychological and physical states for children with diabetes and cancer. However, opportunities to attend camp for children with SCD are limited, as many are from low-income families, and many camps are not equipped to care for children with medical complexities. To our knowledge, no literature evaluates how camp can positively affect emotional functioning, social functioning, self-esteem, and physical activity levels in children with SCD.Methods: Children with SCD attending a residential summer camp during 2019 were identified. Participants completed a modified version of the Pediatric Camp Outcome Measure, a validated 29-item questionnaire that evaluates self-esteem, emotional function, social function, and physical activity. Four additional questions related to SCD were included.Results: Nine campers enrolled in the study. Questionnaire results showed a total score of 113.7 (maximum score135, range 84-129), with a self-esteem subscale score of 22.1 (maximum score 25, range 20-25), an emotional subscale score of 32.1 (maximum score 40, range 25-39), a social subscale score of 38.9 (maximum score 45, range 24-45), and a physical activity subscale score of 20.6 (maximum score 25, range 19-25). All campers indicated that they would return to camp.Conclusion: Attending summer camp has a beneficial impact on emotional function, social function, self-esteem, and physical activity. Mean questionnaire scores from children with cardiac disease and cancer are similar to those of children with SCD. Increased funding should be awarded to sickle cell camps to allow for more children to have this beneficial experience.

The Role of Prior Experiences in Black Science Pre-Service Teacher Career Decisions

In this study, framed in Expectancy Value Theory (EVT) and Factors Influencing Teaching (FIT) Choice model, I employed an explanatory sequential mixed methods research design to explain which factors influence Black novice and pre-service teachers (NPSTs) to pursue a career in science education. Drawing from EVT, FIT Choice® theory provided a theoretical framework explicitly focused on the antecedent experiences, values, and expectancies of success influencing teaching career choice. Based on this study’s results, Black NPSTs are motivated by many factors, including factors of social utility, ability, and career, and subject area interest. These factors are primarily influenced through prior teaching and learning experiences, such as informal summer camp experiences and tutoring. Understanding the factors that influence Black novice and pre-service teachers to pursue science teaching can help address future recruiting and retention efforts in primary and secondary schools.

‘Both are equal, which is awesome’: exploring gendered discourses of Canadian summer camp experiences

ABSTRACT This study discusses gendered discourses of summer residential camp experiences and, in particular, the gendered roles performed by camp counsellors. By drawing on feminist poststructuralist concepts, this article considers how gender power-relations operate and how camp counsellors perform gender within camps. We start by considering the history of gender in early camp movements and recent research literature on camps. Interview participants revealed the iteration and reiteration of stereotypic gender norms within camp contexts. The findings suggest that participants found both empowerment and challenge in the assumed genderlessness, or gender neutrality, of camp experiences. Findings also suggest that women counsellors are assumed to do disproportionate amount of care work. The article concludes by considering opportunities for positive youth development when gendered norms are critically considered, resisted and/or transformed within camp contexts.

TEACHING ENGLISH AS A FOREIGN LANGUAGE: A CASE STUDY FROM POLAND

This article presents a detailed history of the development of a particular immersion program to teach English to young Polish students. The program draws support from two organizations, the Kościuszko Foundation and the Polish Scouting Organization. Kościuszko Foundation is dedicated to strengthening the ties between the United States and Poland as well as to increase knowledge of Poland’s history and culture in the United States. The cooperation of these two organizations developed an experience of immersion in language and cultural exchange. Both the teachers and the students in this program benefited from the opportunity to engage in a number of different types of language activities and cultural events through a summer camp experience. This program is, of course, unique, but the elements of context, culture and immersion could be used in other programs to develop English skills and knowledge in the context American culture.

Examining perceived adolescent socioemotional development and repeated camp experiences using a planned missing data design

In questionnaire-based research, leisure investigators must balance the need for comprehensive measurement with participant fatigue associated with lengthy questionnaires. Planned missing data designs (PMDD) offer a solution to reduce survey length while maintaining precision in measurement. This study introduces PMDD through an examination of the influence of parental years of camp experience as a child (M = 2.54 years) and their child’s level of camp experience (M = 1.39 years) on parental perceptions of developmental outcomes (PPDO) associated with camp participation. Data were collected from a cross-sectional sample of 699 parents via an online survey examining the influence of repeated camp experiences on adolescent socioemotional development following their child’s (M age = 12.25 years) participation in a residential summer camp experience. Utilizing a structural equation model in combination with the PMDD, the results indicated neither parent nor child level of camp experience influenced PPDO score.

Defining Moments of Summer Camp Experiences: An Exploratory Study With Youth in Early Adolescence

Interest in both the objective dimension and the subjective dimension of summer camp experiences has grown among camp scholars. As a building block for understanding subjective elements of summer camp experiences, discrete defining moments may provide insights into linkages between what program providers deliver and the experiences that youth receive. This study identified defining moments of summer camp experiences and examined when defining moments occurred, using interviews conducted with 21 youth in early adolescence immediately following camp. Themes derived from the data suggest that moments involving novelty, challenge, friend-making, tradition, achievement, positivity, and emotional safety are most salient. Practitioners can use the study findings to more intentionally design memorable and meaningful summer camp experiences. Researchers can build on these exploratory findings to examine defining moments of camp experiences across other samples of camp participants.Subscribe to JOREL

1277-P: Diabetes Camp Improves Diabetes Knowledge, Independence, and Mental Health in Youth with Type 1 Diabetes

American Diabetes Association Diabetes Camps are offered each summer to nearly 6,000 youth with diabetes across the United States. Camps are designed to facilitate a traditional summer camp experience in a medically-safe environment while fostering opportunities for children to develop basic diabetes self-care skills, overcome feelings of isolation, and gain self-confidence. In 2019, a study was conducted to assess the impact of camp on 1) knowledge of diabetes management, 2) ability to independently manage diabetes, and 3) emotional well-being of youth campers with type 1 diabetes. A survey was administered via online questionnaires to caregivers of camp participants 1-week prior to camp (N=4,562) and 1-month post-camp (N=1,484). Key demographics were collected representing results from 55 summer camps across the country (55% female, mean age 12, 46% diagnosed ≤ 4 years, 10% diagnosed ≤ 1 year). Paired samples analysis using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests was performed to assess the level of change on each individual camper from pre-camp to one-month post-camp (N=1,343 pairs). One month following camp, camper knowledge of diabetes management skills increased 31% after camp, and 38% of campers increased their confidence to try new methods to manage their diabetes. Campers’ ability to independently solve problems related to their diabetes management increased 17%, and 97% of campers were able to independently perform at least one diabetes management skill, such as draw up insulin, give own injections, or change pimp site. In addition, camper self-confidence increased 30%, and feelings of negative emotions decreased 31%. A statistically significant increase was seen in each measure (p≤0.001). The evidence indicates that camp positively impacts a wide-range of camper outcomes, with more substantial improvement seen among younger campers and newly diagnosed campers. Future research will be conducted to better understand the longer-term impact of camp among return-campers. Disclosure R. Woolley: Employee; Self; American Diabetes Association. S. Amanat: None. K. Mueller: None.

Pediatric Clinical for Nursing Students in Rural Areas: The Camp Nursing Experience

Problem: Clinical placement for nursing students in pediatrics can be challenging in rural settings. Hospitals in rural areas typically do not have the numbers of pediatric patients necessary to provide individual inpatient pediatric experiences for a group of nursing students nor can community settings accommodate a full group of students at once. Children’s hospitals or hospitals with pediatric inpatient units are often a significant distance from nursing programs located in rural areas and there is competition among nursing programs for placement in these facilities. A study by the Institute of Pediatric Nursing (IPN) in cooperation with the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) concluded that nursing schools had challenges finding pediatric clinical sites and that pediatric content was lacking in depth and breadth (McCarthy & Wyatt, 2014). Alternative Clinical Placement: For one nursing program located in a rural area, nursing students were placed at summer camps for children with various health care needs, including diabetes, developmental delays and special needs. Placing nursing students in a pediatric clinical experience at summer camps provided a supervised environment where they interacted with children with a variety of health care needs and provided care that included recognizing signs of diabetic emergencies, working with insulin pumps, administering medications and feedings via gastric tubes, providing basic first aid, health promotion and health teaching, and engaging in therapeutic communication. Outcomes: Evaluation of the summer camp experience was positive from students, faculty and camp personnel and student learning outcomes for the pediatric clinical course were met. Summer camps can provide excellent learning experiences for nursing students and serve as viable alternatives for pediatric clinical sites when inpatient pediatric facilities are not available. DOI:  https://dx.doi.org/10.14574/ojrnhc.v20i1.603             Grant Funding Provided by a Dawley Seed Grant Award

Parental Anxiety Associated with Summer Camp Experiences: A Comparative Analysis Across Volunteer and Employee-Staffed Camps

Parent anxiety can limit a parent’s willingness to involve their child in out-of-school time experiences such as summer camps. Researchers have studied anxiety within the context of camp, but these studies used narrow frameworks of anxiety. In this exploratory study, we collected open-ended responses about causes of parent anxiety associated with summer camp experiences from 656 parents whose children attended one of two Extension-administered camps. The camps represented different camp staffing models—one primarily staffed by volunteers and the other primarily staffed by employees. The primary purpose of the study was to identify salient categories of anxiety and to examine if anxiety differed based on staffing model. The secondary purpose was to develop a camp-related parent anxiety measure informed by the anxiety categories. Eleven categories were constructed from the data, which both affirmed and expanded existing literature on parent anxiety associated with camp experiences. No differences in parent anxiety were found based on staffing model, suggesting that parents were no more likely to perceive anxiety associated with camp when the program was staffed with volunteers as they were when the program was staffed by employees. Implications for practice and future directions are examined.