News & Press Releases
7th Annual ACA-NJ Camp Fairs
WINTER IS THE PERFECT TIME TO RESEARCH
A SUMMER CAMP FOR YOUR CHILD
You might not think that the dead of winter is a perfect time to find a summer camp for your child, but indeed it is. Would your child be interested in a horseback riding camp or a sailing camp or traveling to Israel? How about a fashion or modeling camp? What about an adventure or sports camps? Are you looking for a summer camp for your child with special needs? All of these types of camps and many more will be attending the 7th Annual ACA-NJ Camp Fairs throughout January.
In the Princeton area, the camp fair will be held on Saturday, January 22, 2011 from Noon to 4 p.m. at the MarketFair Mall, Route 1 South, Princeton.
Additional fairs begin the weekend before in Bridgewater and Summit, and will also be held the weekend of and after the Princeton fair in Tenafly, Woodcliff Lake and East Hanover.
All fairs will run from noon to 4 p.m., and are open to the public; admission is free. There are numerous free giveaways. Free face painting at all fairs will be done by Bella Faccia. The Somerset Patriots will bring their mascot, Sparkee, to the Bridgewater fair.
The free admission provides parents with a 60+-page booklet summarizing all the camps and providing future contact information for all the camps participating in the ACA’s camp fairs this season. Camp directors show DVDs, talk with parents about the programs and facilities that their camp offers. In addition, they distribute their own pamphlets and often their own camp DVD’s and giveaways. Camp directors offer sign-up sheets for parents to make more personal and further contacts. Often camp directors make home visits to discuss their camp.
“Although the Internet is a great way to do preliminary research when finding a camp,” according to Barbara Rubin, Camp Fair Director, “it does not have the impact of a face-to-face meeting with a camp director, let alone, almost 35+ of them in one room. The camp fairs provide a perfect one-stop shopping spot for busy parents.”
Representatives from the non-profit American Camp Association (ACA) will be on hand to answer questions about “How to Choose a Camp,” distribute pamphlets with the questions most frequently asked by parents who are trying to choose a camp for their child.
The camps, which are located from Maine to Georgia, and include a camp from Israel, will be informing parents and campers of their wide range of activities. Sessions vary from one week to eight weeks, and are priced to meet a variety of family budgets. For younger children and those less eager to go far from home, there are numerous camps and summer programs available nearby. Many of the day camps offer early drop off and late pick up to accommodate working parents. Numerous resident camps offer special sessions for young or first time campers; a number of the camps specialize in programs only for teenagers. Sleep-away camps offer a variety in the kinds of activities available, length of session, location, cost, and population. Some camps are coed, while others cater to one sex; some are sports camps, some camps are private, others are run by YMCAs, and several stress religious values.
Rubin said, “If your older teen is interested in unique adventures, traveling around the globe or taking pre-college course there is program out there for him/her. Certainly there are lots of traditional summer experiences available but more and more adolescents are looking for a new experience and our camp fairs are a way to find not only the traditional but what’s cutting edge in summer programs.”
Resident camps may participate in one fair or all six fairs; check the website, www.acanjsummercampfairs.org, for exact location participation. The list is extensive and there is detailed information about each camp who will attend the camp fairs. Sleepaway camps attending the Princeton fair are listed on the site, too.
Local day camps attending the Princeton fair include: The Dance Connection Performing Arts Camp, Hillsborough; Eagle River Day Camp, Monroe; The Goddard School, North Brunswick; The Hun School, Princeton; LakeView Day Camp, East Brunswick; NJ Audubon’s Plainsboro Preserve Nature Camp, Plainsboro; Oasis Children Services, Ewing; Princeton Day School, Princeton; Princeton Montessori Summer Quest, Princeton; Rambling Pines Day Camp, Hopewell; School of Rock Princeton, Hamilton; Summer Institute for the Gifted, Princeton; Summer Programs at Peddie School, Hightstown; Summer at Stuart, Princeton.
This year Special Needs camps such as Camp Huntington, Round Valley, part of the NJ “Y” Camps, and Frost Valley, are able to focus on children with autism, developmental disabilities, learning disabilities, ADD/HD, and kidney disease
The American Camp Association is a community of camp professionals who, for nearly 100 years, have joined together to share their knowledge and experience and to ensure the quality of camp programs.
Men and women over the age of 18 seeking summer employment may request a staff job application and often camp directors will conduct interviews on the spot.
For a list of camps attending specific fairs and exact directions to the fairs please log on to our web site: www.acanjsummercampfairs.org. Local camp directors and directors of summer programs who are interested in joining the camp fairs may contact the camp fair director, Barbara Rubin, at 877-488-2267.
