Evening star., 1939-06-21
Camp Offers
Advantages
ForChild
Change From Daily
Routine Helpful
To Youngsters
BY ANGELO PATRI.


child's education and training. Ter
months in the year he goes to school
In comparative inactivity. The usual
school Is concerned only with book
lessons, and the conditions that
make book learning effective. That
means silence, stiffness, much listen
ing, much writing, much, too much
inactivity of body, the activity that
is SO essential to healthy, effective
growth.
Books are storehouses OF ideas
Under fine teacher they can be
used to stimulate ideas and ideals
but the usual school conditions do
not allow the essential step, the
experiencing Of the activity that
realizes the ideas and approaches
the ideals. Ten months Of that kind
of training is enough. The next
two months ought to present q
different environment, offer a diff
ferent kind of inspiration. For that
the camp in the country, by the
shore, among the mountains, along
the trails, seems to me Just about
ideal.
Children need to get away from
home, and home needs to be freed
of them, for a time. Any expert
ence prolonged beyond a certain
period, loses it's effectiveness. Say
the same thing too many times
and the children cease to hear 1t
Feed them a certain article of diet
too often and their stomachs re-
fuse it because it no longer nourishes
the body. Keep a child home toe
long, hold him in set routine toe
long, and he becomes immune to
its influences. A stay in camp
relieves the routine of home and
school, makes the new environment
effective, and, upon return, makes
the old one seem good. wholesome
and altogether to-be-desired.
Taking camp for granted one must
consider the kind of camp it is
Who heads 1t? What are his ideals?
What does he expect to do for the
children? What are the sanitary
conditions? How about the food
and water? What sort of people are
the counsellors and what is theil
training? And what is the programi
A camp that continues the &C.
tivities the children have known
for all their lives is not the thint
that is wanted. A change from
the routine, a new set OF expert.
ences. fine leadership. a chance
for self-development. are what /!
needed more than anything else.
Years ago a friend OF mine opened
a camp for boys. A man. famous
for his riches, sent his son to tina
camp. Unexpectedly. and wisely. HI
visited camp one day. The boy
had built their homes out of ma
terials at hand, and they cooked
their own meals, and served them
selves. This particular day they hat
gone fishing for their breakfast ant
were cooking the catch.
Down the trail came a sunburnet
lad. his bare feet and legs scratched
one sleeve torn from its mooring
and riding the wind, his trouser
splashed and stained Juggling a pal
Of spring water. Hi, you, Turkey
don't you clean my fish. Lay of
him. I caught him and I'll cleal
him and I'll eat him. YOU"
The father peered across the fell
at the youngster, now in the thicl
of kitchen mess and said, rs tina
my boy?"
ut is" said the Head, thinking
that now he was going to be blaste'
out of sight, but ready to put up
fight for his idea.
"You can have him for as lonl
as you'll keep him. It's the frs
time he's ever had a chance II
live"
That's what camp means many
many times-the very first chanc,
a child ever had to really live. Civ
it to him If you can.