------------- Yesterday is already a dream and tomorrow is only a vision, but today well lived makes every yesterday a dream of happiness and every tomorrow a vision of hope.
For me it's all about roughing it an all pitching in together. So many kids now have everything on a plate they just don't appreciate what they have.
Humans only thrived because they worked together. People actually enjoy working together such as putting the tent up, changing the water etc. That is a valuable lesson in life.
My children's local guide group voted to go to Edinburgh last year - good choice as it gave the la'al country bumpkins a chance to experience a bit of the city on their own but in a controlled manner.
They're back at their local guide camp in Ennerdale this year
The grass is always greener .............
I also have to say Im impressed that all your kids are such little angels when camping - helping out, sharing, etc
Mine sit in the car until the last possible moment and when the tent is pitched out they get into an inflatable chair, kindles on and noses stuck into books.
They will do the washing-up but only under protracted negotiation.
I have a feeling that the whole campsite heard my 'discussion' the other night with one of the girls on the need to shower so she doesn't stink out the tent. This 'discussion' included her reasoning that it wasn't 'nice' to use a shower that lots of other people had used and that when she is older she is not, I repeat not going to go camping so she doesn't have to use campsite showers!
Quote: Originally posted by Billy x on 30/5/2015
Is camping good for kids? Yes obviously it is.
Do kids who go camping do better at school? Are they more happy & healthy? Probably, but(as mentioned)I would guess it's not because they go camping, but because their parents are more likely to be middle class with more disposable income.
I notice French schools seem to organise camping trips, you will often see rows of identical tents at a camping municipal with kids doing organised activities. This could well give kids whoes parents could not otherwise afford a holiday a chance to go camping.
So if camping is so good for kids then perhaps UK schools should organise such trips, or perhaps some do already? I don't know how popular The Scouts are these days but I recall I really enjoyed my camping trips with them when I was a kid in the early 60s. It can't have cost much because my mum was a single parent with not much income.
As a Scouting Member, of a group with at least 50 members, I can confirm that our group LOVE to go camping - recent trip April 10 - 12. Scouting is taking a step back to the basics and camping is a huge part of that - and long may it continue!!
Camping gives children the chance to be children - running around, getting dirty and having endless hours of fun doing things that they normally don't do.
As a family we have camped, caravaned and stayed in hotels but nothing beats the feeling of freedom of camping. Hearing nature as it was intended just can't be put into words and from a personal point I love to hear other people's children giggling when you know for a fact they're doing something they shouldn't be.
We turned to camping because we couldn't afford fancy hotels or holidays abroad...so I wouldn't class camping as a luxury. However, any holiday is as cheap or as expensive as you make it. Nowadays the money we save can be spent on taking the kids places and trying new activities. Camping holidays make us all work together as a team and it's fun, not a chore.
Our girls do well at school and are what I call resilient - they still get bullied, but are able to deal with it better because they have a stable family background not because they've camped under canvas!
Personally I think it does have benefits, and this article certainly justifies us taking the kids out into the (relative) wild on holiday. However, from the article it seems to be based on parents opinions and doesn't mention cross referencing with pupils results or anything. Lazy science, even if I agree with the outcome :-)