National Academies Press: OpenBook

Shaping Summertime Experiences: Opportunities to Promote Healthy Development and Well-Being for Children and Youth (2019)

Chapter: Appendix B: Characteristics of American Camp Association Accredited Day and Overnight Camps in 2016

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Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Characteristics of American Camp Association Accredited Day and Overnight Camps in 2016." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Shaping Summertime Experiences: Opportunities to Promote Healthy Development and Well-Being for Children and Youth. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25546.
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Appendix B

Characteristics of American Camp Association Accredited Day and Overnight Camps in 2016

Day camps Overnight camps
Of the 14,000 day and overnight camps in the U.S. . . . 5,600 operate as day camps. 8,400 operate as overnight camps.
Sessions typically last for . . . 8 or more weeks for day camp sessions (39% of all day camps). 1 week or less (29% of all overnight camps) or 7–8 weeks (20% of all overnight camps).
The most common programs offered are . . . recreational and instructional swimming, arts/crafts, basketball, archery, Ga-Ga ball, baseball/softball, theatre/drama, and soccer. recreational swimming, arts/crafts, archery, canoeing, camping skills, team-building, hiking, fishing, basketball, leadership training, and challenge/ropes course.
Time spent outdoors is . . . 5–6 hours outdoors daily for 32% of day campers. 5 hours or more outdoors daily for 96% of youth attending overnight camp; and 8 hours daily for 68% of youth attending overnight camp.
Time spent in intense physical activity is . . . an average of at least 3 hours in intense physical activity daily for 47% of children during day camp. An average of at least 3 hours in intense physical activity daily for 49% of children during overnight camp.
Most popular activities are . . . watersports/waterfront programs, field trips, and arts/crafts. watersports/waterfront programs, archery, and challenge/ropes course.
The program outcomes most likely to be targeted are . . . development of social and emotional skills, character, and physical activity. development of social and emotional skills, character, and physical activity.
Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Characteristics of American Camp Association Accredited Day and Overnight Camps in 2016." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Shaping Summertime Experiences: Opportunities to Promote Healthy Development and Well-Being for Children and Youth. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25546.
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Day camps Overnight camps
Age
18 or older 1% 13%
13–17 11% 34%
10–12 31% 37%
6–9 44% 16%
Under 6 13% 1%
Gender
Female 49% 53%
Male 51% 47%
Race/Ethnicity
Caucasian/White 68% 72%
Black/African American 12% 10%
Hispanic/Latino 8% 8%
Biracial or multiracial 6% 4%
Asian 6% 3%
Other 1% 1%
Health
Youth with special health care needs or disabilities (e.g. physical, mental, emotional, cognitive) 13% 20%
Most Common Disability Designations
Attention-deficit disorder/attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder 35% 25%
Autism spectrum disorders 27% 17%
Food allergies/dietary issues 22% 25%
Asthma/respiratory ailment 21% 17%
Intellectual disabilities 14% 11%
Diabetes 13% 15%
Epilepsy 12%

SOURCE: American Camp Association, 2016 Sites, Facilities, & Programs Study Report: Overnight Camps (Martinsville, IN: 2017); American Camp Association. 2016 Sites, Facilities, & Programs Study Report: Day Camps (Martinsville, IN: 2017).

Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Characteristics of American Camp Association Accredited Day and Overnight Camps in 2016." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Shaping Summertime Experiences: Opportunities to Promote Healthy Development and Well-Being for Children and Youth. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25546.
×
Page 195
Suggested Citation:"Appendix B: Characteristics of American Camp Association Accredited Day and Overnight Camps in 2016." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Shaping Summertime Experiences: Opportunities to Promote Healthy Development and Well-Being for Children and Youth. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25546.
×
Page 196
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For children and youth, summertime presents a unique break from the traditional structure, resources, and support systems that exist during the school year. For some students, this time involves opportunities to engage in fun and enriching activities and programs, while others face additional challenges as they lose a variety of supports, including healthy meals, medical care, supervision, and structured programs that enhance development. Children that are limited by their social, economic, or physical environments during the summer months are at higher risk for worse academic, health, social and emotional, and safety outcomes. In contrast, structured summertime activities and programs support basic developmental needs and positive outcomes for children and youth who can access and afford these programs. These discrepancies in summertime experiences exacerbate pre-existing academic inequities. While further research is needed regarding the impact of summertime on developmental domains outside of the academic setting, extensive literature exists regarding the impact of summertime on academic development trajectories. However, this knowledge is not sufficiently applied to policy and practice, and it is important to address these inequalities.

Shaping Summertime Experiences examines the impact of summertime experiences on the developmental trajectories of school-age children and youth across four areas of well-being, including academic learning, social and emotional development, physical and mental health, and health-promoting and safety behaviors. It also reviews the state of science and available literature regarding the impact of summertime experiences. In addition, this report provides recommendations to improve the experiences of children over the summertime regarding planning, access and equity, and opportunities for further research and data collection.

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