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CNN Sunday Morning

Finding the Best Summer Camps for Kids

Aired May 06, 2001 - 09:56   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Just as quick as you can say beanie weenies and popsicle sticks, it's the summer camp season. And if you're a parent in search of pawning off your kids -- I mean sending your kids away to camp and having them have a wonderful experience in the woods, the person to check in with is Kelly Gould, who's the Executive Editorial Director of iVillage.com.

Kelly, first of all, isn't a little late to be planning for camp this year?

KELLY GOULD, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, IVILLAGE.COM: Well, I wouldn't wait any longer but there's still a little time.

O'BRIEN: Yeah. All right. So what should one do if they've, you know, sort of forgot about the kids all year? Oh, gosh, what am I going to do with them all this summer? Is it -- what's the first step?

GOULD: The first step is really to do some research. And the Internet is a great place to start. You can, for example, go to iVillage where we have a summer camp selector with thousands of camps and you can look them up, see pictures, find out what the program schedules are, even call camp directors.

O'BRIEN: And -- all right, what should a parent be looking for in the way of the camp? Obviously, you need to sort of get a sense of what your child is interested in.

GOULD: Absolutely.

O'BRIEN: I do know -- I remember talking to a parent who sent his poor son to math camp. And I felt very sorry for that son. And you know, it -- should camp be a sort of take your medicine thing or should it be fun or just a little bit of both maybe?

GOULD: It should be absolutely fun. It should -- you really need to talk to your child first and then figure out what's right for your child. Is a sleepover camp the right thing? Is a day camp the right thing? There are so many options now. They can go to art camps, summer -- you know, sports camps, music camps -- there are just lots of options.

O'BRIEN: What about the due diligence here? You go to the Web pages and make a few phone calls. How can you find out that the camp is going to be a safe and healthy and good and happy place for your son or daughter?

GOULD: One thing you can do is really look to see if the camp is an accredited camp, which the American Camping Association looks at -- things like health and safety. And they really are a non-profit organization that sort of governs camps across the country.

O'BRIEN: And so it -- I presume they probably have a Web site too. You can probably check them...

GOULD: They do; American Camping Association.

O'BRIEN: And I've heard in the past there are people that actually are sort of like camp brokers almost, people who help you find camps and book camps. Is that a good route to go you think?

GOULD: If that's -- you know, if you really need help, that's one way to go. But you can also just talk to other parents. They're usually one of the best resources for finding the right camp because they're kids may have gone to a camp that might be right for your child.

O'BRIEN: All right. Just before you get away Kelly, you send the little one to camp and you get that inevitable letter a week or 10 days afterwards saying I'm homesick and I want to come home.

GOULD: Right.

O'BRIEN: What's a parent to do then?

GOULD: I think you really need to talk to your child because often times it's just that they haven't really adjusted yet. They're worried about what's in store for them or if they're going to make friends. And usually after a few days, the kids adjust and they're so happy that they're there. But you really do need to have a serious talk with your child if you're hearing that.

O'BRIEN: All right Kelly Gould, you want to sing your camp song for us real quick before you leave? No, we'll let you go. We won't make you do that. Thanks for being with us on CNN SUNDAY MORNING.

GOULD: Thank you.

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