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Just curious what people are planning for their kids 5 -10. I have a home daycare and have a couple of openings, in Cornelius. Great references. What kind of things are people looking for this summer for the kids?
My kids are past that age but I imagine, with the gas prices and poor economy, many will be looking to work from home, leave their kids with a neighbor or teen and have them someplace close to their work.
Usually I could be home in the summer. But, in general, when we did have to find summer care I looked for:
1. LOTS of outdoor and swim time (they are inside for school all year...they don't need to be in the summer!). Even sprinkler and slippy slide time in the yard was good.
2. Field Trips to places I did not have the time or interest to take them: Discovery Place, parks, kids movies, nature museum, etc.
3. Interaction with well supervised and behaved kids (I don't want my kids bullied or picking up a ton of bad habits and words in summer camp)
4. Lunch Provided (sounds ridiculous, but I would gladly pay $10+ a week more to avoid the headache of packing lunch in the summer...I wanted a break from that!)
5. For my kids to return with stories of the fun things they did each day.
It varies....if the mom's don't work, alot either goto their community pool (if they have one), the Y/aquatic centers w/their camps are pretty popular also....
Thanks for the ideas. We have a community pool with lifeguards, so I was planning to spend a lot of time there and at the playground. I also thought we would do some fun games to keep kids on track at school.
My child is past that age, but the Y is where I sent her for the summer. From age 7, she started at two weeks of overnight, and yearly we added on a week or two. By age 15, she spent her entire summer at camp. In between, she either went to her dad's house or day camp at Chelsea Piers (NYC). Summer camp is expensive but worth every penny for the learning experience and growth process for those who could afford it.
The Observer usually have a summer insert with things to do for the summer.
Carowinds season pass!
Neighborhood pool, hiking Crowder Mountain, going to the beach. That is the majority of our time.
We'll probably check out the Whitewater Center for the trails and the scenery too.
The privates (and I'm sure other schools) offer some really fun summer camp options. Also, places like MyGym have great camps as well.
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