If you are like many parents, chances are you have made arrangements so that your kids can attend summer camp once the school year ends. While you are sure they will have plenty of fun, you also realize they may be a bit anxious about the new experience that awaits them. To make sure your kids are well-prepared for their first summer camp and all goes well, here are some things you may want to do leading up to the big event.

Share Your Camp Experiences

If you attended summer camp when you were a child, don’t hesitate to share your camp experiences with your kids. Whether you talk about the friends you made at camp who are still friends with you today, the great times you had sitting around a campfire toasting marshmallows, or other fun times you had at camp, doing so will show your kids they have plenty of fun and excitement awaiting them once they arrive at camp.

Acknowledge Their Feelings

Should the stay at summer camp be the first time your kids will be away from home for a significant period of time, acknowledge their feelings of anxiety and be willing to listen to any concerns they may have about attending camp. By doing so, you can help to reassure them that everything will be fine. Additionally, you may get an idea of how to help them feel more comfortable at the summer camp. For example, if they are afraid of missing you, you can hide little notes throughout their packed bags reminding them that you love them and are proud of them.

Involve Them in the Decision-Making

As you are trying to decide which camp your kids will attend this summer, always involve them in the decision-making process. Whether this involves looking through brochures, checking out various websites for more information, or other related tasks, giving your kids a say in which camp they want to attend will put them at ease and help them feel in control of the situation. Other challenges If you can, try picking a camp where some of their friends will be in attendance since this will likely make them even more eager for their new adventure. Once you have a good idea of what summer camp they want to go to or once you have narrowed it down to a couple of locations, you can start sharing videos and social media posts about the camp to help get them excited about it.

Pack Some Reminders of Home

Even for kids who love going to summer camp, chances are they will have a time or two along the way where they will get homesick. To help your kids get through these tough times, make sure you pack a few reminders of home. This can be their favorite stuffed animal, a family photo, or just a note from you telling your kids how much you love them.

When you keep these tips in mind as your kids prepare to head off to summer camp, there’s little doubt your kids will be more eager than you imagined to get their camp experience started as soon as possible.