Understanding and Responding to Letters Home from Camp

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When your child with ADHD, Asperger's syndrome, NLD, or other learning challenges is away at a special needs summer camp, letters home are a great way to be a part of your child's experience. Most parents anxiously await the first letter from their son or daughter. But what should parents expect in that first letter?

For many children, summer camp is a rite of passage, a first taste of independence experienced within the safety, S'mores, and campfires that only a summer camp environment can provide. But for some parents of young people with special needs, camp can also mean a little bit of worry. Will their child make friends? Will the counselors understand the special needs of their son or daughter? After all, school and even camp experiences are not always easy for some young people, especially those with ADHD, Asperger's, NLD, or learning disabilities.

With all of this anxiety, it can be tempting for parents to interpret that first letter home as a barometer of their child's summer camp experience. In many cases, that first letter home may not be as glowing as you'd hoped. But parents should resist the urge to race off to camp and bring their child home, which may send the message that your child has failed. Instead, be aware that summer camp letters are a snapshot into a few moments of camp, and may not always tell the whole story.

Here are a few considerations to keep in mind when opening those first letters home:

Summer Camp Is a Transitional Experience
As parents of young people with special needs know, transitions can be difficult. Summer camp is indeed a transition - one that comes with the homesickness and frustrations that sometimes accompany new experiences for young people with ADHD, Asperger's, or similar challenges. The good news is these transitions can be managed well, especially if the summer camp is an ADHD summer camp, Asperger's summer camp, or other special needs summer camp that is prepared to guide children and their families through this transition.

At Talisman, the summer camp experience is structured in a way that builds trust and eases anxiety from the outset. One of the first items on the agenda is getting campers settled into their bunks and familiar with their new surroundings. As a camp designed specifically for young people with ADHD, Asperger's, NLD, and learning disabilities, Talisman has a high staff-to-camper ratio and follows a consistent morning and evening routine to take some of the anxiety out of day-to-day life. The camp also schedules some of the most popular activities in the first few days of camp so that campers get a taste of success and the joy of camp life right away.

The staff at Talisman receive extensive training on working with young people with special needs like ADHD and Asperger's, as well as specific training on helping campers transition into camp life. On day one, parents meet with program staff to discuss their goals and concerns. They also receive ongoing updates throughout camp regarding their child's progress. With all of this support and encouragement, most campers (and their parents) quickly overcome the initial homesickness and frustration they may feel during this period of transition.

The Timing and Circumstances Surrounding Letters Home
When parents get letters home from their child, it is important to consider the timing and circumstances surrounding the letter. After all, who has time to write mom a letter when they are rafting down a river or are enthralled in a checkers game?

Often, after a fun-filled day making new friends and enjoying exciting activities, children have a few quiet moments in the evening to reflect on the day and prepare for bedtime. It is during this time that many campers write letters home. It is also during this time that campers are missing their evening routine at home and thinking about their families.

Missing home is a normal and healthy reaction to being away at camp, and campers should be encouraged to express these feelings to help them cope. But keep in mind that a little bit of homesickness doesn't negate the advances children are making at camp, or make the camp experience a negative one.

Campers also tend to write home after they have acted out in some way and received a consequence for that action. Kids at camp have ups and downs just like they do at home. Consistency and understanding the consequences of one's actions is an important goal at a summer camp for children with special needs. Having a system of natural and logical consequences helps students learn how to get their needs met in an appropriate way.

For example, if a camper knocks over a trashcan, camp staff may ask him to pick up the trash before going to his next activity. Children, like all people, sometimes need to vent their frustrations at those moments. Once they let out the frustration, most campers go right back to having fun enjoying camp life. But parents, who are anxiously awaiting input from their child, may get a lopsided view of their child's camp experience if they focus too heavily on a letter that comes after this type of interaction.

At Talisman summer camps for children with ADHD, Asperger's, NLD, and learning disabilities, the staff encourages campers to write letters home at least once a week. If parents are curious or concerned about a letter they receive, they are encouraged to call the camp and get their questions answered. In addition to letters from their child, parents can access a secure website with photographs of their child around camp and receive regular update phone calls from staff members.

Parents of dyslexic or dysgraphic children should keep in mind that their child may be hesitant to write letters. At Talisman, staff members work with these campers to write a letter home or provide them with drawing materials to send pictures home. If parents would like their child to practice letter-writing more often, all it takes is a quick phone call to the camp.

Responding to Letters Home
If parents receive homesick letters from their child during summer camp, the staff at Talisman recommends that parents validate and respect those feelings while expressing confidence in their child's ability to make it through camp successfully. Through Talisman's one-way email system, parents can communicate regularly with their child, conveying positive messages about the new experiences and wonderful memories their child is making at camp.

It's never easy to entrust your child's care to others. You may leave after dropping your son or daughter off at camp with a lump in your throat and a tear in your eye. After the first letter home, you may be tempted to forget summer camp entirely. But for those who know how to interpret letters home and the transitional stages their child experiences while adjusting to camp life, the summer camp experience will be well worth the investment. But be forewarned, most children thrive at summer camp, and your little camper may just be begging to go back to camp next year!

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