Parents, have you ever thought that your child needs a well-deserved rest in summer after getting through another school year? NOT! What does “rest “mean? Does it mean to do absolutely nothing day after day ―what we call “veg out” in slang? Does it mean play video games from morning until night? How long does a child need to “rest” from the demanding school year; a week, maybe two? What about the rest of the summer?

Children are pretty resilient, so chances are they will likely be bursting with energy after a few days of downtime and soon become bored. Then what? Many well-wishing parents have fallen into the “I can come up with something” trap and have soon regretted it. If both parents are out of the house all day, how can you leave your child at home unsupervised and idle? Below are some ideas gleaned from Laval Families Magazine’s Summer Camp Directory guaranteed to help you avoid the “trap.”

Has your child had a rough school year? All the more reasons for you to find a summer activity that will allow her/him to let off some steam, something very physical. It could be a sports-oriented day camp or one that focuses on swimming or gymnastics. Or it could be a camp that combines both sports and play-time.

Is your child a super achiever and in constant need of new challenges? You may want to look at a day camp that offers new learning experiences such as languages, science or space.

Many children who are highly creative simply don’t get enough time during the school year to release their creative juices. For those children there are day camps that offer programs in creative writing, dance, theatre, music, singing, and visual arts. Chances are that having such a creative outlet will improve your child’s quality of life for the coming school year!

Does your child need some type of academic support during the summer? There are learning centres that offer this type of activity and may help your child’s self-confidence. But please make sure that your child also has other activities interspersed with the academic. The law of diminishing returns might apply here; if your child gets more of the same year-in and year-out she/he may suffer from overload and may not necessarily reap more benefits. Every child needs to tap into her/his other abilities and talents. Doing so might surprisingly improve the child’s performance in those other problem areas. It will also offer opportunities to socialize with new friends.

Are you ready to send you child off to sleep-away camp? This might be a frightening thought for a parent. However, this experience has been lived by many families before you, with very positive results for both parents and children. Sleep-away camp will help your child learn about sharing and getting along with others, about cooperation, and above all, about autonomy. Your child will come home from sleep-away camp a totally transformed young person.

Parents, whatever you choose to do, please be assured that your child doesn’t spend the summer idle. Talk it over with your child and let her/him know that the only choice she/he has is what activity to do, not whether to do it or not. There is a summer activity that suits every budget, and responds to every child’s needs and interests. Above all, make sure that your child is getting plenty of fresh air and exercise and having plenty of fun!