A mother of a gifted teenager reflects on her son's development as she awaits a letter from the son who is attending the West Virginia National Youth Science Camp. (DB)

Examined friendship formation and dissolution among 216 children, ages 8-15 years, over the course of a residential summer camp experience. Analyses suggested that friendship formation and duration were coherent, independent dimensions of individual differences and distinct from the overall extensivity of involvement in friendships. (MDM)

The mother of a physically disabled child encourages the participation of such children in mainstream camping programs. Suggestions to maximize the benefits of the camping experience are offered. (DB)

Relates how campers and staff at a camp in Iowa managed during the flood, initiated clean-up efforts, and attempted to secure aid to pay for over $100,000 in damage to camp facilities. Following a visit, singer Billy Ray Cyrus donated concert ticket revenues to help pay for flood damages. (LP)

Staff at a residential camp for high-risk youth dealt with campers eating potentially lethal hallucinogenic mushrooms by eliminating the mushrooms instead of confronting the group and thereby jeopardizing the relationship between staff and campers. Analyzes the situation and provides suggestions for handling similar incidents in the future. (LP)

An intensive three-day program at the Pines Catholic Camp, followed by weekly support meetings, aim to prevent Dallas teens from turning to gang participation. Program components include personal goal setting, commitment to a code of conduct, and physical activities that promote group unity and positive peer pressure. (SV)

Customer service can help increase camp enrollment, set the camp apart from competition, and improve camper retention. Strategies include encouraging parent and camper feedback; using proper telephone etiquette; handling complaints professionally; increasing parent contact; and surprising families with gifts, discounts, and other special offers.…

Describes Camp Invention--a day camp devoted to creativity and science, and the result of a partnership among 248 nationwide schools and a nonprofit center for creativity in Ohio called Inventure Place. States that the camp, designed for second to sixth graders, provides a creative setting in which students' abilities are needed to accomplish…

The primary research question for the study was, "Will older adult amateur musicians' personality profiles reflect the traits found in professional musicians?" Participants (N = 58, ages 52 to 79) recruited from a New Horizons Institute "band camp" for older adult amateur musicians completed a musical background questionnaire and the Cattell…

This book outlines standards that provide a basis for camp accreditation and site approval by the American Camping Association (ACA), Inc. The purpose of the ACA accreditation programs is to educate camp owners and directors in the administration of key aspects of camp operation, particularly those related to program quality and the health and…

Two methods were used to identify important operational constraints and their potential impact on special education camps: a review of current literature and programs using content analysis and the development of day and resident camping experiences. In the content analysis, a process of evolution through trial and error was seen as leading to…

A workshop on outdoor education, funded by the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, Title V, was held to develop guidelines for a residential program for urban disadvantaged youth. Participants came from various educational and other disciplines. Resource speakers and leaders were also involved. Tentative guidelines and objectives were produced…

This handbook represents an attempt by UNESCO to give a broad picture of the kinds of out-of-school activities that are designed to engage the participation of young people in different parts of the world. Out-of-school activities, as used in this publication, refers to educational activities undertaken or done outside the formal teaching periods…

Examines camping as a recreational, educational, and therapeutic institution to see what elements make it particularly adaptable to value and opinion types of objectives and to value and opinion development in camp programming. (Author/RK)

Physical fitness camp experience resulted in significant changes from an external to an internal locus of control (as well as in physical fitness performance levels) of children ages six to fourteen. (MB)