4-H Camps at Canter's Cave: An opportunity of a lifetime

Kids everywhere will be looking for something to do this summer, besides playing video games, texting and being “bored,” so why not plan to spend time at 4-H Camp?

Each summer, thousands of kids from across the state attend one of many camps coordinated by Ohio State University Extension, 4-H Youth Development. There is still time to sign up for our June camps, and you don’t have to be a 4-H member to attend.

Beginner Camp for third through fifth grades is June 22-25 (register by June 11); Junior High Camp for sixth through eighth grades is June 8-11 (register by June 1); and Teen Camp for ninth through 12th grades is June 19-22 (register by June 11).

Camps are designed for the grade students are completing. The camp fee for Beginner and Junior High Camps are $136 for 4-H members and $140 for non-4-H members. The fee for Teen Camp is $140 for 4-H members and $145 for non-4-H members.

In Highland County, youth camp is held at Canter’s Cave 4-H Camp at the Elizabeth L. Evans Outdoor Education Center located just off S.R. 35 between Jackson and Chillicothe.

Because of the wonderful facilities located at Canter’s Cave, camping programs for Jackson County youth are not limited to just summertime. The camp offers year-round facilities for groups of all sizes, including public and private groups.

In addition to summer camps, 4-H Youth participate in weekend camping events throughout the year. All of these camps are offered through the Highland County OSU Extension office and Canter’s Cave 4-H Camp.

Each year, Highland County youth attend 4-H Camp, gaining important life skills that will help them to succeed in the future. Many people may only see the part of the 4-H program that goes on during the fair, but this is just one of the many additional educational experiences that take place throughout the year. 4-H Camping programs focus on developing knowledge and skills related to: outdoor education, creative arts, citizenship, recreational activities, singing and other special activities that offer unique opportunities to our young people.

Organized camping is more than mosquito bites and soggy tennis shoes, as it is an important "learning laboratory" where children can and do develop many life skills. The Ohio
4-H program defines organized camping as cooperative group living in a natural environment which focuses on the individual's social, spiritual, mental and physical development.

Important life skills learned at camp include: responsibility, decision making, cooperation, leadership and increased self-esteem. The development of these skills result from living with carefully selected and trained teen camp counselors as well as adult staff members who teach by the way they relate to each other and the campers, solve problems and care for materials and equipment.

Another aspect that encourages learning and reinforcing the development of these life skills is the context of “camp”—simply living in a cabin or room with a group of kids of the same age, laughing together, working together and sharing experiences unique to the camp environment.

Significant to the 4-H camp experience is the deliberate inclusion of the eight key elements of positive youth development. Although these or similar components are utilized by other youth development organizations, the Ohio 4-H program strongly values these elements and conscientiously incorporates them into all aspects of the 4-H program. A parent/guardian may find that these exact elements make the 4-H camping program unique and meaningful in terms of observable growth in their child who participates in an Ohio 4-H camping program.

The eight elements include: positive relationship with a caring adult; safe environment—emotionally and physically; opportunity for mastery of knowledge and skills; opportunity to value and practice service; opportunity for self-determination; a welcoming environment; to see oneself as an active participant in the future; and engagement in learning.

Throughout an individual’s 4-H experience and continuing into adulthood, a person must have the ability to work within a group to achieve goals. Camp allows individuals to participate in groups helping gain knowledge and skills that they may appreciate the diversity in people, communicate, set goals and work as a group for success. Whether it's in a volleyball game, cleaning up the cabin, planning a skit for the campfire or completing a team-building activity, campers must work together, share talents and ideas and support each other to be successful.

The 4-H program also encourages campers to study the outdoor environment with all five senses. They have an opportunity to touch, see, hear, smell and sometimes even taste the many interrelated elements needed to make nature work. This opportunity creates a base of understanding that supports the messages they hear in school, see on the news and read in the newspaper related to environmental stewardship and taking care of our world.

Camping programs are being planned for the 2015 summer season for youth in third through 12th grades.

For more information about the 4-H camping program or 4-H enrollment, please contact Kathy Bruynis, OSU 4-H Youth Development Educator at the Highland County OSU Extension office 937-393-1918, email at bruynis.5@osu.edu or visit our website at highland.osu.edu.

(Adapted from Ohio 4-H Week Article by Niki Nestor McNeely)