The Gift of Independence
One of the things that sets Falling Creek apart is the opportunity for free choice throughout the camp experience. Boys are able to be independent and choose how they want to spend their time at camp, from the activities they sign up for to the trips they go on. In addition to this, each day has two “free choice periods” before lunch and dinner, where boys can do less structured things like swim, play in the gym, or play under the dining hall. This summer based on the popularity of “free choice,” we added a new activity to allow even more freedom during the 6 daily periods.
Signing up for “Dining Hall” (or “D-Hall”) is a new daily option for boys - they can sign up to play games under the dining hall like ping pong, foosball, Magic the Gathering card games, chess, Warrior Ball, carpet ball, 4-square, and more. Many boys also just enjoy chatting with their friends or reading a book while overlooking the lake! With so many action packed activities around camp all day, it can be nice to have an area to recharge while enjoying more relaxed games.
The feedback about the new activity has been great so far! It’s been an especially popular activity for those who enjoy playing Magic the Gathering card games. I talked to a few boys on Wednesday who were playing on the picnic tables, and asked them what made them want to sign up for this each day. “I just wanted to try it out,” one of them said. “It’s the first new activity option in a little while.” His friend agreed, and explained how nice it was to have a space to play cards together. “This is a good solution, because kids were asking for a Magic activity,” he said. Even if campers come to Falling Creek without a Magic deck, they can ask to borrow one of camp’s decks to play with their friends during D-Hall.
Boys were able to make new friends while playing cards as well, since they were all in the same period together. Gates came over while we were chatting. “Can I play with you guys next?” he asked. “Sure!” said Griffin, “but you probably want to play me, not Miller,” he laughed, since Miller had been beating everyone with his good card strategies.
Other boys were playing carpetball, and there was an around-the-world ping pong game going on with several boys. Jack playing against two other friends in foosball, and scored a few goals just in the couple of minutes I was standing there. “I have a foosball table at home,” he explained. I asked him why he chose to sign up for D-Hall - “It’s just a nice chill activity in the morning,” he said.
The relaxed pace and ability to choose what they want to do are both key reasons for the “D-Hall’s” popularity. Independence is a great skill that boys foster at camp, but sometimes it takes time to get used to having freedom away from home. This brings us to the topic of homesickness, which we wanted to mention as you will probably be receiving your first letters home from your sons (unless they’ve been too busy to write!)
While we know that many letters will contain fun stories about new activities or friends, we also know that many will share feelings of missing home or feeling upset. We wanted to make a note of encouraging you as parents in case a few have received homesick “snail mail” letters, reflecting boys’ feelings during the first few days of settling in at camp. Now that the boys have been here for a couple of days and camp is still new to them, this can be a time when homesickness could begin to show in some of them. Homesickness is completely normal and we’re prepared to work with each boy, as no situation is the same.
Our counselors are great at working through homesickness with campers, and we wrote a blog about this last session which you can read here
If you do get a homesick letter in the mail over these next few days, don’t panic. These feelings are common for all campers at some point throughout the session. The challenging times for them can be when things are moving at a slower pace, such as during rest hour or at night. This is also usually when they have the most time to write home!
Parents also can experience the challenge of their son being away from them. Many of the boys have highly scheduled days at home with not much opportunity to play freely and make decisions on their own without parental input. This may explain why many parents are feeling more anxious than their sons, since they are not used to them being away.
Your boys are making their own decisions here at camp on what activities they want to take, walking themselves to the classes, signing up for trips, learning new skills, and making friends. These life lessons learned at camp can help in many situations back home where they may be the new boy in school, moving to a new neighborhood, or even later when preparing for college.
Please be assured that if your son shows any continuing signs of homesickness, we will be in touch with you. A good rule of thumb typically is that no news from us is good news, and the homesickness usually passes quickly. Getting them doing things is the quickest way to get their mind off of home and distracted by the fun trips and activities. The boys are learning to be independent and resilient, and you are giving them a great opportunity to do that by allowing them to be at camp.
Today is the beginning of July, and another great day at camp!