Bayview Glen Camp: Parent Interview with Meghan McGregor

Watch our Parent interview with Meghan McGregor to hear firsthand what children experience and how they grow at Bayview Glen Camp.

Transcript of the interview

What was unique about Bayview Glen Camp that made you want to enroll your child there?

We had heard wonderful things about the camp from other camp parents, from the school she attends, and it was mainly the programming that they offered that was just so wonderful. And the fact that we had the option of seven weeks. They had a really great presence online on Instagram.

They were introducing a different counselor every week, getting to know them. They would give fun facts. It just really felt like you kind of already knew them and how it operated before you even went on your first day. The amount of communication that went home, all of the information, it just felt really well organized.

Something that was unique about this camp was that part of the program every day was a portion of quiet time, but focused quiet time. So she was actually still practicing her letters and some of those skills, like doing some writing. She had a workbook and they would send home the sheets every week. So even though we know that camp is meant to be fun, she was still getting some valuable education and quiet focus time out of there, which was nice.

Keeping a routine, but adding in fun and excitement and music and outdoors and indoors was the ideal situation for her for the summer.

Was there any change or noticeable personal growth you saw in your child after her time at Bayview Glen Camp?

Absolutely. She was already a little bit outgoing, but after camp she would come home with stories and friends and having learned so many new skills. Their "Learn to Bike" program, she really wasn't that confident before, but she gained a lot of confidence in that area. She made a lot of childhood friendships, and she really enjoyed her counselors and everyone she interacted with.

Her level of independence and knowing the routine, knowing how to listen to other adults and follow along, and just general sharing, interacting, turn-taking all developed. They did have competitions, so she had to learn that some people win and some people don't win, but we all had fun. I think that she would have missed out on many social-building interactions.

What would you highlight about Bayview Glen Camp's program or counselors?

She really liked that there was a routine, so we kind of had a schedule and she would know and she would ask every day what she got to do, from gymnastics to MasterChef Junior to water fun to carnival days and theme days. There was always something exciting.

Drop-off was a big highlight of her day because she got to see all of her friends and everyone knew her name and she loved getting out and telling them different things. And so she really liked it from beginning to end.

How can you as a parent support your child to get the most out of this camp?

Encouragement, encouraging them to participate even if it's just for a little bit, try something new even if it scares them. I just asked a lot of questions at the end of the day to kind of find out what she liked, maybe what she was a little bit nervous about, and we would talk about it and she'd try it again.

And just being okay to ask questions, that she could ask her counselors and anyone a question if she didn't know the answer or needed some help with something.

How would you describe Bayview Glen Camp to another parent?

We felt very safe. We felt that everything had been thought about, all of the detailed information, the amount of information they gathered from us beforehand. They always got back to email. They always answered phone calls.

I really felt that the staff that was there really wanted to be there. They were really child-focused and I would say fun-focused. They all dressed up for the different theme days and put a lot of time into making it a really great program for the kids. So to any parents looking for that and looking to try out a little bit of everything from karate to gymnastics to all kinds of things, it was a wonderful introduction to camp. And one that we look forward to continuing in the future.

The food was very child-friendly and appropriate, and she always came home even having tried something new. And so that was really great that that was something else that was included. She was also given a little backpack on her first day that she got to take, and she thought that that was very cool that all the kids got the same backpack. So that was another unique little thing that really meant a lot to the campers.