Camping with Kids
 If you really want to see pure, unconditional excitement, watch kids when they go camping.
Camping with children is a fascinating experience that they will cherish for years to come.
At an early age, camping is an empowering learning experience that introduces them to the beauty and wonder of the natural world. The experience can set them upon an enriching path for life.
The more obvious benefits of camping with children are it requires physical effort, it invigorates their senses, it teaches positive awareness of their world and its creatures, it teaches important life skills and responsibilities, it is not competitive or ego orientated and it provides group social skills.
So basically it is a great activity for their personal development. Besides that sort of stuff though, if you ask the kids for their opinion it's simple: one word - fun!
Some Useful Tips
* Allow plenty of extra time for everything - packing gear, getting up in the morning, cooking, setting up the tent and hiking. Enjoy the leisure time and avoid rushing to get things done.
* Nurture the curiosity and enthusiasm that your children already have, you may even learn with your child.
* Take a camera, lots of film and keep it handy for those memorable events and moments.
* Be very well organized and be prepared for all your activities.
* Have a relaxed, fun, informal attitude. Thunderstorms should be exciting and not something to dampen spirits.
* Shopping for camping equipment should be a family event. Kids will help investigate and show you just about everything in the store.
* Get everyone involved in the caring of the equipment, both while camping and at home.
* When hiking, get a field guide to the area you’re visiting and make it a treasure hunt to see how many creatures you can spot from the guide.
This article is courtesy of Camping Australia and
Holidays with Kids
|