The Gift of Nature

Friday, December 21st, 2018

Giving Your Child the Gift of the Outdoors

“Between every two pines is a doorway to a new world.”

-John Muir

The holiday season always has us thinking about what we can do for others, especially our children. One of the greatest gifts that you can give your child is the gift of the outdoors and one of the best ways to do that is to give them an experience like sleep away camp. In our current fast-paced and ever changing society that is so saturated with technology, it is even more important that our children have the opportunity to learn and grow in the outdoors.

Studies have shown that our imaginations are developed more deeply when exposed to nature. Our stress and anxiety are alleviated and our mind creates space for happiness and relaxation. Just a walk in nature alone has been proven to improve our mood.

When we are in the great outdoors we use our senses more, we see, we smell, we hear, we touch, we feel things we cannot get from a screen. Allowing for your children to experience these wonderful and simplistic aspects of life can in turn, create happy, calm and imaginative minds. Fostering outdoor learning is imperative for a child’s cognitive, physical and emotional development.

There are many other ways that you can give you child the gift of the outdoors. Taking a trip to the beach, or a local river or lake, going hiking or to the park can allow your children unstructured outdoor play that can give them the well needed break they need from screens. This time of year when it’s cold outside we tend to want to hibernate and stay warm indoors. Bundling up and getting outdoors even when it’s cold can do wonders for you and your children. Creating a healthy balance between spending time in the outdoors and indoors will have major benefits for not just your children but yourselves as well. 

Those of you that have been sending you children to Camp Birch Hill have seen the benefits that summer camp can have for your child’s growth. It is the gift of a lifetime. Your children come home from their time away refreshed, happy and more motivated than ever before. Not only do your children discover their independence and self confidence but they are able to completely connect with their imaginations and explore parts of themselves and their surroundings that they otherwise may not be able to.

At Camp Birch Hill we are focused on our campers ability to have fun while being safe and independent. What makes our program unique is our elective based schedule that allows each camper to design their schedule based on their interests and change their schedule as those interests develop and they explore themselves more at camp.

If you are thinking about enrolling or reenrolling your child for camp now is the time to do it. We still  have early bird discounts:

Early Enrollment Discount – $100 off tuition if enrolled by 1/1/19. Single Sibling Discount – $100 off per camper. Multiple Sibling Discount – $200 off per camper.

We are so excited for summer 2019 and to see all of our camp friends and families again. A day full of activities like horseback riding, sailing, archery, soccer, rock climbing, capture the flag, campfires and star gazing  is what we have in store for you at Camp Birch Hill! Days like these can open a child’s mind to be more adventurous and have the courage to take on life’s challenges with ambition and confidence.

We encourage everyone to step outside their comfort zones and try things they may not get the opportunity to try outside of camp.