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Overnight or sleepaway summer camp can help immerse kids in the outdoors in ways that might not be possible otherwise. Resident Overnight Camp Director at Avid4 Adventure, Eric Rightor, shares with Mile High Mamas', Amber Johnson just how and why overnight summer camp benefits all kids. 

The summer has started and you would love to see your child get outside this season and push their boundaries. Yet, you also know that your child has struggled with being adventurous in the past. Maybe you've looked at websites and photos of kids rock climbing or mountain biking have you thinking your child needs to be an experienced athlete to participate. What to do? If you were wondering whether outdoor adventure day camp is right for your unadventurous kid, the short answer is yes! Read on to learn more about how adventure camp can help your child tap into their adventurous spirit.

If you are a parent, you naturally want to see your child succeed. And chances are, if you want to see your child succeed, you might feel like you need to do everything in your power to get them there. In the context of learning how to ride a bicycle, the temptation to lend a physical hand is strong. “I’ll just steady them for a second”, you might think. Or “I can just hold one handlebar, they’re doing most of the work”, you could venture. While working for Avid4 Adventure this past summer I learned a hands-off technique to teach training-wheel-free biking that relies entirely on the power of demonstration, clear communication and patient encouragement and it blew my mind. The steps below provide a tutorial of this biking technique taught at Avid4 Adventure Learn to Bike summer camps (though keep in mind we haven't shared all of our secrets!).

Before you dive in to step 1, you'll want to make sure that your child has their own bike that fits them properly. 

So, you’ve heard about Avid4 Adventure and are thinking of signing your child up for the program. Yet, like any good parent, you want to do your homework first. When you visit the Avid4 website, the first thing you see are smiling children outdoors. They are clearly having fun and doing adventurous things. However, is that really what camp is like? Actually, it’s more! If you’re considering sending your child to camp, here's what a day in the life of your child at Avid4 day camp would look like.

Imagine campers sitting around the table, not a cell phone in sight, as they eat a meal together in the dining hall at Resident Camp. The sound of laughter and joking around rings throughout the cafeteria as kids plan for a skit night that evening. Or, imagine kids working together to set up basecamp on an Expedition. They sit around the campfire trading stories, making s'mores and playing card games before a day of mountain biking the next day. These moments may easily come to mind when you picture what overnight camp is like at Avid4 Adventure. What you can’t see though are the transformations that happen—the moments that become punctuation points in a child’s life leaving them forever changed as they continue their adventures after camp is over. These experiences are so meaningful because they represent the transformative power of the outdoors, friendships and strong role models. Below are two stories that highlight these very special experiences.