Summer Camps in China

[Understudy]

Over the last few years, I have spent my summers working at a summer camp, a well established tradition in the United States. My interest in China has brought up the question of whether or not China has any tradition of summer camp, or yearly programs of a similar nature. I don't have much knowledge on the subject, but am very interesting in any thoughts- Does camping exist in the PRC?

[Jane_PA]

Sure, China has summer camps for students. I remember my brothers went to some summer camp focusing on radio related subject in the middle school. When they returned from the summer camp and they brought back the radio reciever assembled by themselves. There were other summer camps too. But when I was young, the opportunities were not many for many reasons, like money. Recent years, I think Chinese parents have enough money to send their children to summer camp, but the problem is many parents would send children to a part time school during the summer (like my niece)to study math, art, or English, which would be "useful" for children's future, not for fun...

[roddy]

Where did they sleep?

[SiMaKe]

@Understudy

I don't know how important it is to what you are looking for, but, if it is, then you might want to explain a little more about what you mean by "camping". Traditionally "camping" in the US usually meant living (sleeping and eating) in some type of shelter (cabin, tent, lean-to) in a bucolic setting from anywhere from a week to the whole summer where during the day one participated in such activities as learning to swim, shooting (guns or arrows), making pottery, boating, etc. This is how I would normally understand the term based on my experience as a kid. However, today, in the US, "camping" has taken on a broader meaning. Take any of the three characteristics listed above (living, shelter, content) and swap them out for something else. E.g, "day" camps where kids do not sleep over. If they do sleep over, change the type of shelter to a college dorm. Change the content from learning to swim to learning how to be an astronaut (one of my sons went to "space camp"). In our area, "Chinese camp" is a day camp in a church where Chinese cultural activities are the focus (language, calligraphy, etc)

The concept of "camping" may or may not be the same in China (or elsewhere). So what aspects of "camping" are important to you?

[Jane_PA]

"where did they sleep?"

Is this question for me?

In China, part time schools are only during day.

The summer camp that my brothers went many years ago was in a middle school. Summer campers slept in a classroom converted dorm...

[Understudy]

Thanks for the responses!

@SiMaKe

Hey, great question, my interests lie in what I will call the modern American Summer camp tradition. I think the idea of space camp and other interest specific camps falls closer to sending one's child away to an academic summer program. The 'standard' American sleep-away camp still retains many of the traditional activities (boating, archery, hiking...), but has some newer additions that have been added in the last 20 years or so. Most american children staying at sleep-away camp now stay in cabins and more modern lodges and housing. My focus is placed particularly on sleep-away camp, as opposed to the more recent Day camp. To better state my question, is there any equivalent in China to the American sleep-away camp? Any practice of sending one's children away for some portion of the summer (or other part of the year, for that matter) can be considered as a part of this comparison. Hope that cleared things up, though there are many variables.

[Jane_PA]

Just remember, this is another kind of summer camp in China, like a tour group. Teachers would take a group of students to another city for a tour.

Also, in China, 少年宫 is a place for k-12 students to do a lot of out of class activities, for fun, for special study interests, or summer camp. Usually every city has 少年宫 and it should be an organization under public education board of each city. I think Chinese parents would like the idea of summer camp. But I don't know does 少年宫 still does this in recent years.

[roddy]

is there any equivalent in China to the American sleep-away camp?

I guess so, but they're more likely to be staying in school dormitories than tents of lodges, and the activities will still be more educational than physical. I'll wager the number of Chinese kids learning archery this summer are so close to nil as to make no difference.