Whether your school offers some kind of outdoor education week where all the kids in a class go to a nearby camp for a few days, or you are the type of parent that likes to send kids to summer camp every year, eventually you’ll need to think about how you can best prepare the tots in your household for sleeping somewhere other than in the familiar comforts of their bedroom at home. Even if it’s only for a few days, kids can get understandably anxious when their routines are disrupted and they find themselves out of their element. As a parent, it’s your duty to remove as much stress from the situation as possible. But how do you make that happen? Here are a few tips to prepare your child for his time at sleep-away camp.

One issue that many parents deal with is separation anxiety. While most kids overcome the desire to stay home with a parent at a young age thanks to inclusion in daycare or school, your child may not be entirely comfortable with the prospect of being away from home overnight, much less for several days. The best way, then, to prepare your child for this eventuality is by making sure he participates in sleepovers with friends leading up to sleep-away camp. When he stays with a friend close to home, there is an inherent safety net – you can always pick him up if he gets too anxious. This will help him to ease into the prospect of being away from home. And then you can explain that sleep-away camp is just like any other sleepover and that he’ll have just as much fun.
[Read more…]