Earlier isn’t always better, but when it comes to camp enrollment it’s a good idea to get a jump on things. You may be thinking that summer is a long way off, and in some respects that’s very true. After all, the forecast is still predicting frigid temperatures, rain, and even snow up and down the East Coast. We’re barely past winter break and the spring holidays are a while off—how could a person possibly be planning summer vacation already?
The thing is, though, that the time between now and the first day of summer vacation has a tendency to pass in the blink of an eye. Something about the second half of the school year is slippery that way. One minute, you’re buying presents and packing for a ski trip, the next you’re trying to find water wings and swimsuits. In the meantime, while you were busy keeping up with the hubbub of daily life, all the spots at local summer camps got filled by other kids. May is too late to start enrollment. Frankly, April is a little late as well. If your kids have their heart set on a certain type of camp—say, a horseback riding camp or an art camp—it’s a good idea to get that lined up as soon as possible. Let’s take a look at a few reasons why you should sign up early for summer camp.
Early enrollment means you get all the best options.
There are a lot of summer camps operating in the United States. In fact, a recent survey showed that there were more than 5,400 summer camps across the country. Of course, that number includes overnight camps, day camps, and specialized camps of all flavors. Your children aren’t going to be interested in all of them, but they may have a very particular idea about what they’d like a summer camp experience to look like. Enrolling early means that you have time to explore your options. Not all art camps are the same, for example. The instructors will have different educational approaches and a variety of experience levels. Is your child interested in learning a specific skill, like sculpture in clay or plaster? Well, that may take more time to find. It means you’ll need to seek out that exact art camp amongst the ones that focus on artistic exploration or illustration and drawing. Get all that searching out of the way early.
Summer camp spots fill up quickly.
This may be surprising, but it’s true. Summer camps are already opening enrollment; if they haven’t already they’ll be opening up in the coming weeks. That means that the parents or guardians who are on the ball will have enrolled their children for the summer camps of their choice by the end of March. Nobody wants to have to tell their kid that the art camp of their dreams is booked. As mentioned above, a different art camp may not meet the desires and needs of a particular child so signing up before the roster is full is a good move.
Your kid can sign up for the same summer camp as their friends.
Speaking of rosters, a sure way to make sure your child is on the same attendance sheet as their bestie is to enroll early. One of the best parts about art camp is the fun of participating with your favorite people. The bonding experiences that children have when they’re tie-dying a shirt or painting a mural together is incomparable—and impossible to achieve if they sign up for different camps. This is a good time to shoot a text to other parents and see what their summer camp plans are.