Camp Arowhon

Outdoor Education

November 28, 2013

Letter from a Camp Arowhon staff

  There’s something special about Arowhon that’s really hard to put into words until you experience it. The summer I chose to come to Arowhon I had a few different job options to consider, but I picked Arowhon. I had an incredible summer, and each one following has been even better. Clearly, I love the […]

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November 13, 2013

New-school leadership can be summed up as LBSA: Leadership By Serving Around

A former Arowhon Program Director – who grew up at camp and grew into being a great leader, emailed me the link to this Globe and Mail article on leadership, with the comment: “We were doing this at camp in 2001, Glad it’s caught on.” http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/leadership-lab/old-school-leadership-is-out/article15398192/

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November 8, 2013

The tallest tree in camp goes down

We regret to announce  that camp’s sole remaining first growth white pine tree died this year. Yesterday  we took it down.  (It had to come down, for safety.) This year we saw the passing of two important symbols of Camp Arowhon – the tallest tree and the Main Lodge –  and we are sad to […]

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November 7, 2013

In Homesick and Happy, Michael Thompson writes about a study where people were asked about their happiest childhood memory; more than 80 percent name a parent-free moment.

My Daughter Went Away to Camp and Changed By John Dickerson Children in summer camp can be their essential selves, not worrying about how their parents might react.Photo by Christian Science Monitor/Getty Images When I look at my phone, I see my daughter leaving for camp on my home screen. She stands at the bottom of […]

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November 1, 2013

The Canoe – a craft of grace

“What sets a canoeing expedition apart is that it purifies you more rapidly and inescapably than any other. Travel a thousand miles by train and you are a brute; pedal five hundred on a bicycle and you remain basically a bourgeois; paddle a hundred in a canoe and you are already a child of nature.” […]

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October 21, 2013

What did you do when you were 15?

I heard an interview with Malala Yousefzai on the radio the other day. After being shot in the head by the Taliban for going to school, the 15 year old has gone on to become a world-famous advocate for girls’ education. She spoke more confidently and articulately than I (with my Ivy League grad degree […]

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October 8, 2013

Why camp, now more than ever?

  The radius of play for young people has shrunk to 500 feet. They are spending  5  1/2  hours a day in front of screens, and their outside time has reduced by 25% over the last 20 years…. None of which matters – unless you believe that children need the outdoors, they need direct interpersonal […]

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October 4, 2013

Preparing kids for college? Does camp help?

What’s Needed to Prepare Your Child for the Future? The Answer May Surprise You…. from the Huffington Post by Todd Kestin Since Junior’s birth, you’ve been socking away savings from every paycheck to ensure he has money for college. After all, that’s what responsible parents do, right? Making sure he has the education to prepare […]

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September 27, 2013

Letter from a camper mom

Hi Joanne, Somehow I missed opening up one of our recent envelopes from Camp A until last evening…. out tumbled a swimming badge, some awards and an extraordinary letter from Adam Ruzzo. We know that Elliot (Schrider) is very musical and, although he only started playing guitar at the end of January, his progress has […]

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September 26, 2013

Why we don’t let campers sneak out at night

I’ve had a few parents calling me in the past week about campers sneaking out of their cabins at night at other camps. Apparently it’s the cool thing to do at some camps. Which makes me sad. I know what kids do when they sneak out to visit the opposite sex in the middle of […]

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