Sending Teens to Summer Camp

By Kerrie McLoughlin

Summer camp seems the perfect summertime solution for elementary-age kids so they don’t sit around the house bored and so they can make friends and learn new things while having fun. As our children grow out of their “little kid years,” we sometimes forget they still need those kinds of experiences they had when they were younger, just in a different form. Maybe the thought hasn’t crossed your mind that your teen might need to find a fun summer camp. Your teen should be babysitting, mowing lawns, working at the pool, making TikTok videos, hanging around with friends, right? Well, sure! But why not send teens off for a week or more of summer fun and learning this year for a break? Here are some great benefits for teens attending summer camp:

Learning how to give back. Community service camps offer a great chance for teens to make a difference and help out in the community, while also learning lifelong skills. Kids get to spend their days helping others, which just feels good to everyone involved. Maybe your teen will learn how to pack food for the homeless, teach kids how to read or work on a project that will benefit the community, like cleaning up a playground or fixing equipment. Teens even could learn how to paint a house, care for the yard of an elderly person who is unable to do so anymore … or they may even learn how to plan and build a house for someone in need.

Deepening faith. If your teen enjoys church youth groups and activities, a church or other organized religious camp might be just the ticket. The day might begin with a church service, followed by breakfast, then a hike and some time spent in the cabin with friends memorizing Bible verses for a competition at the end of the week. Later there could be singing songs around a bonfire while roasting s’mores.

Working as a team. Your child will be meeting kids of different ages and who are from different backgrounds. Learning how to get along and work as a team is a huge life skill that will be reinforced at camp. Some camps even have kids do teambuilding and trust activities to help them get to know each other.

Standing on their own. Let’s face it. As our kids get older, they start to grow away from us. They are simply preparing to head out on their own and they are also preparing you for that transition by perhaps being a little distant. They are stuck in between childhood and adulthood, and it’s a confusing time. Going away to camp for even a short period of time helps teach independence. A daily structure at camp is already in place, which teens need to follow. Because parents aren’t the ones doing the nagging, teens don’t tune out, but rather respect other adults and learn from them.

Appreciating everything. Away from screens, a person finds it easier to focus on nature, learning, forming relationships and more. Being away from parents, kids will come home with a new appreciation for what it takes to be in a family and help out in the running of the household. Your teen will probably also appreciate funny things like a full pantry that’s open all day, a comfy bed and privacy!

Teen summer camp has so many benefits that cover all the bases, including physical, social, mental and spiritual. As for the rest of the summer? Well, your teen can spend plenty of time doing those odd jobs to help pay for camp next year! 

Kerrie McLoughlin is the seasoned homeschooling mom of five. Find them at TheKerrieShow.com.

By Katy M. Clark

ow I recall those sleepless nights when my kids were newborns. Those nights morphed into long days carrying chunky toddlers, then chasing precocious preschoolers. Yup, parenting little ones wore me out.

As my kids grew, things settled down a bit when they entered elementary school. Still, they kept me moving with endless birthday parties and afterschool activities like scouts and art class. I even recall a six month stint playing goalie in front of our backyard soccer net as they practiced their skills.

So it was with great anticipation that I envisioned a rest when they reached their teen years. They were more independent and less helpless after all. Welp, I was wrong! There are countless ways that nurturing my teens into adults exhausts me, physically and mentally. Here are all the ways that parenting a teen wears a parent out:

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I take way more than ten thousand steps a day as the mother of teens. There are the steps I take behind a cart loading it with more (and heavier) groceries that my teenage son consumes in just a few days. And all the walking I do behind my teens as they cruise the stores at the mall.

I’m always burning calories trotting to their events, too, whether it’s a concert in the school auditorium or claiming a seat at a game. Not to mention lugging snacks, water, or costumes as well as a chair or blanket, depending on the activity and the weather.

Then I pace the sidelines, jump up and down when something good happens, or stand and clap during an ovation. I wear out my voice cheering, not to mention my heart as it bursts with pride over whatever amazing thing my teens did just on the court or stage.

They say your home should be your sanctuary, but as the mother of teens, sometimes it feels more like an exercise class. I’ll stand and bend dozens of times in as many minutes picking up the cups, plates, and silverware left on their desks or bedroom floors. I scoop up that wad of clothes that hasn’t moved from the corner of their room in a week.

I’m the one taking items, like the new pack of toilet paper, up the stairs that I’d left on the landing, hoping against hope that my teens would do it first. Plus, there’s put- ting the mountains of groceries away, cooking the plethora of groceries for meals, and wiping down the kitchen, day in and day out. Sure, I appreciate the times my teens pitch in, but mostly I’m the captain of this ship we call home, hustling to keep them fed, clothed and alive. Phew! to digest, not to mention apps for their activities and portals for their healthcare.

There are long drives to tournaments, concerts, or taking them to or from college. Early morning rides to workouts and late nights sitting in a dark car waiting for your teen to finish social events after which you can finally take them--and yourself!--home to bed.

And let’s talk about how exhausting it can be teaching them how to drive. My hand hurts from clutching the passenger door and I think I’ve worn out my jaw from all the clenching. My right foot and calf muscle are tired from pushing the non-existent brake pedal from where I sit on the passenger side while my teen practices driving.

Then there is the worrying that driving produces. Will my teens be safe? What about the drivers around them? How about when they ride with their friends? I have a permanent crease wedged on my forehead as the parent of teens. Forget sleep, too, as I lie awake in bed listening for them pull into the driveway.

And their requests, too, like for the trendiest shoes or phones. Not only do they want things, but my teens are smarter, savvier and more persistent about begging me than when they were little. Sometimes I feel like I’m a lawyer arguing for the defense!

Then there’s the mental load that comes from loving your teen and wanting what’s best for them every day. Do they have friends? Like their classes? Why aren’t they talking more? Oh, wait, maybe that’s because they are tired, too.

Of course, while parenting teens wears the heck out of us, it produces a good kind of tiredness, too. I might not have the energy to leave the house, but I feel content knowing I’ve loved and cared for my teens. And I might not want to get up off the couch at the end of the day, but I still buzz with happiness when my kids are under my roof, at college or in the real world knowing all the care I’ve poured into them. Yup, parenting teens wear us out, but loving them makes it all worth it. 

Katy M. Clark is a writer and mom of two who embraces her imperfections on her blog Experienced Bad Mom Raising teens is mentally exhausting for sure. There are so many emails from their schools