How Summer Camp Helps Girls 8 to 11 Grow

Girls 8 to 11 grow and have fun at summer camp!

Summer camp can help your daughter develop critical life skills, particularly in social relations, empathy and understanding of others, and confidence through skill building, all wrapped up in lots and lots of fun!

Understanding Your Daughter's Developmental Stage

As a parent of a girl between 8 and 11, you’ve seen your daughter grow from early childhood to middle childhood. Children mature at different rates, but child development experts tell us that middle childhood is a time when children generally start to build their interpersonal and social skills. They are still strongly attached to their family but making friends is becoming more and more important. They begin to identify with peers and want to fit in and not stick out. Some girls at the upper end of this age range may enter puberty, which can be unsettling. Empathy is starting to develop. They can be full of energy and excited but nervous about exploring the world. They may listen well but not remember what they’ve heard and can have a limited attention span. They like to learn and acquire skills and then hear how much they’ve improved, particularly by adults. They still look to adults for approval, however, satisfaction is shifting from getting adult approval to a sense of accomplishment. And they still like to be in organized groups with other girls.

Here's how summer camp can help your daughter develop age-appropriate skills:

Social Competence

Summer camp can help your daughter build social competence. Your daughter will live and eat with other girls who are within a year of her age. Many, if not all, of the campers will likely be new to her. Meeting new kids and living in a close communal setting under the caring supervision of trained adults provides lots of opportunity for social interaction. This also supports two of the summer camp’s essential values - tolerance and respect for all. If there’s a bump along the way, there’s an adult nearby to help your daughter work through the issue. And when your daughter makes friends, she'll gain confidence in her social abilities. Your daughter will also have the opportunity to select the activities she wants, allowing her to be with her friends and other girls with whom she wants to be friends.

Empathy and Understanding

Summer camp can help build empathy and understanding of others. The campers with whom your daughter will live, eat, and play may not just be new to her, but they may come from a different state or even country and a very different background. For example, each summer we typically have some campers who come from across the U.S., and even from Europe and Asia. And even many of our counselors are here on an international cultural exchange visa. Getting to know people from different regions and backgrounds begins the process of understanding them, which in turn nurtures empathy. It’s a fantastic opportunity for your daughter to ask herself how she'd feel in their shoes.

Confidence

Summer camp can help your daughter build confidence. When anyone faces a challenge, especially one that's a little beyond her comfort zone, and then emerges on the other side successfully, she naturally gains confidence. She thinks, "Yeah, I can do that!" That holds true for being away from home for the first time, to making new friends, to acquiring new skills.

Girls 8-11 have not yet internalized (or at least not to the extent of older girls) any externally-imposed limits on what they should or are capable of doing. So let's work on empowering them now with these essential life skills and help them fulfill their potential!