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If you haven’t already made your summer camp reservations for your children then you had better get started. Many of the best summer camps are already filled up for prime weeks and placing children on waiting lists, incase someone cancels. Some of the specialty camps may only offer one or two weeks to choose from over the entire summer making those spots more difficult to come by. Recently, I came across a list of summer camps available throughout the continental United States for children and adults with communication disorders. It interested me because we have a child with a communication disorder. I decided to investigate to see what these camps had to offer. Our daughter participated in speech therapy for many years and continues to struggle with verbal Apraxia and dysphasia. We taught her American Sign Language when she came to us as a four year old because I was the only person who could understand her back then.
Here are the links for the summer camp programs for children and adults with communication disorders by region. Reviews for two of the camps are included to give you an idea of what is offered. I am not personally familiar with any of these camps. The camps reviewed were chosen at random so please do not consider this a personal endorsement but do your own research.
New England Region Summer Camps – These are for the following states: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont.
Mid Atlantic Region Summer Camp Programs – These are for the following states: Delaware, District of Columbia, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia.
Southern Region Summer Camp Programs – These are for the following states: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina.
Southwestern Region Summer Camp Programs – These are for the following states: Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas.
Midwest Region Summer Camp Programs – These are for the following states: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin.
A camp in Minnesota, called Courage Camp, says they offer safe and accessible residential and regional day camps for children and adults with physical disabilities, sensory and language impairments, and other disabilities or illnesses. Their website indicates that children will make new friends, learn sports, or hobbies that they may continue to develop at home. This should increase their self-confidence and attitude. The camp also makes available Speech and language services for campers on the active caseload of a school Speech/Language Pathologist.
Western Region Summer Camp Programs – These are for the following states: Alaska, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming.
Building Bridges Camp is located in California. Their websites says the camp is designed to give individuals who use Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) and Assistive Technology (AT) an opportunity to develop their communication skills in a fun, motivating, no-pressure environment. This camp is geared towards campers between five and 17 years. Activities are designed to support the development of their AAC and AT skills. Activities at this camp include swimming, horseback riding, arts & crafts, skits, and campfires.
Photo Credit: 2007 Julia Fuller.
