It’s that time of year again! The end of March and the beginning of April are that glorious point in Spring when parents rejoice and start to exit their homes with their children to burn off some of that cabin fever they endured during the long months of cold and snow. We enjoy the smattering of warm days that spring affords us, between the freak snow storms that still occasionally occur, well, up here in the midwest anyway, and we watch our children play like maniacs at the local park. It takes about five minutes for parents to think, ‘wait one second! This is how much energy they’ll have ALL summer, when they’re with me, AT HOME!’ It’s around that time that we, the parents of the world, start to think about ways to harness that energy for the good over the summer. Summer camp immediately comes to mind.
When you’re parenting a child through adoption, summer camp not only becomes a GREAT way to harness the inevitable energy in a fun, nature-based way, but it can also be an awesome way to connect a child to other children who came to their families through adoption or share a common heritage. For a child with a special need or visible difference it is a great way to find community and support with a group of kids with a shared experience. For all these reasons, we’ve put together a Red Thread Advocates ‘All Things China Adoption Summer Camp Guide’ JUST FOR YOU!
This guide includes camps related to: adoption, language and heritage. Since China adoption has become, largely, a program for children with medical/developmental special needs or visible differences, one section of the guide is devoted to camps that serve children with specific medical diagnoses and/or differences.
Camps in this guide that are China heritage or generally adoption related are organized by geographic area of the country: northeast, south, midwest, and west. Camps that are special need/difference related are organized by need or difference. General/multiple diagnoses camps can be found in the section at the bottom of the guide.
If you have experience with a camp your child has attended, or one you’ve heard someone say they had a great experience with, please let us know! You can email us at redthreadadvocates@gmail.com or you can comment on the linked post on the Red Thread Facebook page.
Adoption, Heritage, China Language Camps:
NORTHEAST
Chinese Language School Summer Camp–Conneticut
Chinese Dragon Camp–Maine
New England Chinese Youth Summer Camp–Massachusetts
Winchester School of Chinese Culture Summer Program–Massachusetts
Camp Friendship–New Jersey
Camp FCC–New Jersey
Holt International East Coast Camp–Pennsylvania
Chinese Culture Camp–Vermont
Camp For Me–Vermont
AdopTeen Camp–Washington D.C.
SOUTH
Camp China–North Carolina
Lily Pad Chinese School Summer Camp Program–Texas
FCC Austin Culture Camp–Texas
MIDWEST
Chinese Folk Art Summer Camp–Illinois
Chinese Culture and Language Camp–Illinois
Kaleidoscope Culture Camp–Illinois
Families for International Children–Michigan
Adoption Day Camp–Minnesota
Holt International Nebraska Camp–Nebraska
Dillon International China Camp–Oklahoma
Holt International Wisconsin Camp–Wisconsin
WEST & Alaska
Babylon Language Camp–Alaska
PACT Family Camp–California
Chinese Folk Art Summer Camp–California
Irvine Chinese School Summer Program–California
Chinese Culture Camp–California
China Heritage Mountain Camp–Colorado
China Heritage Urban Camp–Colorado
China Heritage Camp II–Colorado
Holt International Oregon Camp–Oregon
WACAP Family Camp–Washington
FCC Northwest Family Camp–Washington
Camps for Kids with Special Needs/Visible Differences:
Cleft & Craniofacial Anomalies
Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia (CAH)
General/Multiple Needs Camps:
Red Thread Advocates 