Summer Camp Board Game Review

Summer Camp

Players: 2-4
Play Time: 30-45 min

Age: 10+

Honestly, when I bought Summer Camp, I did not know a whole lot about it other than it was supposed to be a good deck builder. Luckily, that turned out to be a pretty accurate description!

Gameplay

You are campers racing to earn merit badges and gain the best summer camp experience. Each game combines three different camp activity decks from which players can buy cards to add to their personal decks. You use your cards as either energy to buy more cards or to advance along the merit paths. The game ends when someone gets all three of their camper meeples to the end of each path. The winner is the camper with the most camp experience points.

Thoughts

I think this might be my new favorite competitive deck builder (Harry Potter Hogwarts Battle still wins favorite cooperative deck builder). The theme is fun and all of the cards and goals fit it very well. I enjoyed seeing what cards would come up for each activity. It has the components of a nice, streamlined deck builder, but having to race the meeples along the paths adds a fun additional element. Being able to chain bonuses is satisfying. I also like that some currency (energy) is limited to the turn while other can be saved (snack bars). With some planning, it makes it possible to acquire some of those higher value cards.

I love how well everything fits in the box. Since you only play with three of the seven decks in a given game, there's some variety for replayability.

I think my oldest could have probably played this game around 8 or 9, but it is still too complex for my 6 year old.

Check out my board game section of the blog:

Tot School Christmas Activities

December means Christmas themed tot school activities. While we didn't prepare as much as I would have liked, she still had plenty to do.

Pipecleaner tree with pony beads to string. This got used multiple times, until she pulled it apart.

We used magnetic bingo chips on these emotion matching cards from Tot Schooling.

We also used the magnetic bingo chips on this tree counting activity from Tot Schooling.

Sight words matching activity. She didn't feel like matching many, but read the words.

Christmas measuring activity. This is really the first time I'd introduced the idea to her, but she did great.

Making some ornaments

I pulled out some paper gingerbread men and had her draw a number tile. Then she would put the corresponding number of buttons on the gingerbread man.

She did lots and lots of play dough. I made some gingerbread play dough and had out little plastic candies and some gingerbread people I painted last year. She really enjoyed dressing them up "to go to a party."

We did a few pattern block pages from PreKinders. I like using the magnetic pattern blocks on a small white board to help them stay in place.

We got out the skip counting trees from when her big brother was younger. She's not as in to numbers as he was, so isn't ready for skip counting. However, it was a great size sorting activity for her.

Christmas vocabulary cards were pretty easy for her this year.

Decorating trees on the light table. I just cut the triangles out of a binder divider and used the magnetic bingo chips. She loved picking them all up.

Pattern making from Tot Schooling

Tree decorating with small plastic ornaments on a tree made of a floral cone and toothpicks.

Cookie decorating toy for lots of pretend play.

 

What's The Best Way To Educate Your Child When Living Abroad?

 

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Many children grow up in foreign countries because their parents decide to move. Whether this is something you always wanted to do or a choice forced by you or your partner's job, the fact remains that your child is growing up abroad. 

This can present different challenges, especially regarding their education. They’re living in a foreign country and may not speak the language—what’s the best way to educate them? The answer tends to come down to three options, which we’ll examine in more detail in this post. 

Homeschooling

The immediate benefit of homeschooling is that it’s inexpensive. You also have more control over your child’s education, which means you can support them from a close distance. You control the curriculum and ensure they’re taught the most valuable lessons and skills. 

The downside is that you might not be able to do this. Maybe you and your partner need to work and don’t have enough time to school your child. Also, do you have the patience or skills to teach a child? Some parents do, but others don’t. 

International Schools

Local schools are likely to be out of the question due to language barriers, but have you considered enrolling your child in an international school? Looking at www.kisrp.com, you can see that international schools are usually English-speaking schools designed for kids from various countries. It lets your child grow up without a language barrier while being in a proper school environment. 

A big benefit of international schooling is that your child gets to meet other kids and develop social skills. These schools also give children access to more educational resources and proper teachers, which they miss out on when you school them from home. The only drawback is finding a school in your local area, which can be easier said than done in some locations. 

Tutors

Hiring a tutor is something of a middle-ground between the two previous ideas. Your child still learns from home; only they get a professional tutor to run all their lessons. It takes the pressure and stress away from the parents while ensuring the child gets the help they need. 

Moreover, tutoring can be excellent when your child doesn’t work well in group environments. Perhaps their learning style is unique, and they’d benefit from more one-on-one tutoring. This approach still comes with a couple of drawbacks: your child may struggle to be sociable, and tutors are pretty darn expensive. 

In conclusion, all three approaches will help your child receive education when living abroad. Some children and families will prefer one method over the other two. If there are some good international schools in your area, then this makes the most amount of sense. It gives your child a more conventional educational experience and helps them make friends. However, if you can’t find these schools - or believe your child will benefit from one-on-one teaching - then homeschooling or tutoring will be fine choices. Homeschool if you have the time and patience; pay for tutoring if your budget allows it or you’re too busy to teach. 

***This is a contributed post