You asked: I’m (deciding about) sending my kid to camp or VBS this summer. Help?
Camp and VBS* can be awesome. I’ve worked for both, had a ton of fun, and seen it be a great opportunity for kids to explore parts of their faith.
When I’ve been asked online about camp/VBS in the past, two categories of concerns have emerged from the input:
*VBS = Vacation Bible School, a weekday, church-based day camp that usually features games, songs, Bible lessons, etc.
Curriculum: What will they teach my kid about God and the Bible?
Culture: How will it feel for my kid and what will that (perhaps silently/implicitly) teach my kid about God or faith?
So let’s talk about what to expect from a camp or VBS, and I’ll offer you some questions to ask yourself as you decide what’s best for the kids in your life.
Curriculum
For VBS, when it comes to curriculum, many churches buy a “box kit” from a company, which helps their team (often of volunteers) have a plan for the week. This means lessons will come from that company, often Group Publishing. So this summer (2024), you may see the same SCUBA banners around town–that’s why.
Camps, on the other hand, often have the chance to write their own curriculum, so it will reflect the camp and their creative team theologically. You can usually find at least the overarching theme on their website, as well as any speakers the camp might be bringing in.
I’ve written curriculum for both settings, as well as participated in a ton of camp. It’s my opinion that camp and VBS are the epitome of the axiom: teach to the center.
Teach to the Center
Teach to the center is the principle that good curriculum for a faith setting tells young people an “in the middle” truth. This is something widely agreed upon, something basic, something uncontroversial.
Examples of teaching to the center:
God made everything! (without diving into science or literalism)
God loves everyone! (without calling out specific groups)
God wants to be your friend! (without giving a specific atonement theory that makes that happen)
But wait! You may think I want them to talk about science, or marginalized groups, or a certain way God in Jesus brings about friendship!
You don’t.
You think you do, but you don’t.
Because they are talking to a huge, diverse group of kids whose families may or may not agree with you. You want the camp/church/curriculum to be on your team. But you know who else wants this? The mom who disagrees wildly with you and sent her kids to that same camp.
Teaching to the center is how a camp can be on your team, and on her team. As tempting as it is to want lessons that say exactly what you believe, it’s not a good curriculum strategy and its not likely to be what you’ll find.
However, if you want to be able to continue the conversation without having to correct or contradict the lesson at the very fun camp/church where your kid is having a great time and loving their counselor, then you want curriculum that teaches to the center.
You want them to teach to the center, and then you can add on the next layers.
Questions to ask yourself about curriculum:
Is this basically true?
Could I build on this? Could I add layers to it with my kid?
Will I have to correct or contradict this lesson afterwards for some reason?
Culture
When it comes to the culture of camp/VBS, there are again two main categories:
Is it safe and fun?
Every camp and church should have clear, written safety policies that they’ve trained their staff and volunteers in. These include things like restroom use, check in and check out, volunteer screening, and more. (They also should limit your access to your kid during program hours, because you haven’t gone through that training/screening, and depending on the situation, they might not even really know who you are.)
They should also be aware that emotional and spiritual safety matter, and should have trained folks along those lines too.
While safety is vital, it also matters that the time your kid spends is fun. (I’d say kids can’t have fun if they don’t feel safe. But kids can be as safe as if they were bubble wrapped and also be bored out their minds.)
Decision pressure and Emotional Manipulation
Assuming a camp or VBS is holistically safe and fun, that leaves the heart of the culture concern: decision pressure and fear, guilt, shame, or other emotionally manipulative approaches.
Decision pressure: Will they pressure my child to make some sort of faith decision? (Usually to accept Jesus and/or be baptized)
Fear: Will they use fear tactics in the ways they talk about faith? (Such as talking about hell or the “end times” or the “rapture”)
These have no place in a VBS or camp. It is very possible to tell Jesus’ story and invite kids to respond to it (including saying ‘yes’ to Jesus if they’d like) while making things unpressured and free from guilt, shame, and fear.
But you need to know that for some camps and churches the decision is the whole point. This is why they do it. They will count ‘decisions’ and share them on the weekend or to the board. Donors will give because of that number.
If you’d like to connect with a camp or church about curriculum or culture, it is very reasonable to ask. I’ll share some ideas for what that sounds like in just a second, but first, having been on the staff side of this a lot, some advice:
Reach out as early as you can, rather than the week before, if possible.
Consider what specific information you need to make your own decision and ask for that. “Tell me everything” is a challenging request.
If you would like to ask for something from them, first ask yourself: is this an accommodation that fits their size, facility, and resources? If not, can I help make this accommodation happen in some way?
For instance, if your child needs a 1-on-1 buddy, you may need to help find that person. It might be really hard for a church that runs a VBS during traditional work hours to find that person.
Remember that camp staff are usually late teens/young adults and church VBS is often volunteer run. This is not a high-paid gig.
Reaching out to a camp or church about curriculum or decision pressure might sound like this:
Dear ____________,
My name is Molly Weasley and my kids Ron and Ginny (10 and 7) are signed up for VBS. We are really excited to be part of it. [Name of your church] is new to us, and I hoped you could share more about the content you’ll cover in the Bible times.
Which stories are you telling the kids? (Or if you use a curriculum kit, you can just tell me the name and I can look it up.) Will there be some sort of decision invitation during the week? And if so, could you tell me more about what that will look like, please?
Thanks so much!
-Molly
Now, depending on what they share, you may wish to follow up, which could sound like:
Thanks for this! When you say “explain the gospel”, can you share more about what that will sound like for you all? Is that a particular way of talking about atonement? Are there key words you use when you share this with kids?
Or maybe:
That is so helpful, thanks! I would love to be able to be there for that session. How would we make that happen with your safety protocols?*
*Churches often can’t just let an adult they don’t know be in the room. This is a good thing, for kids’ safety. However, they probably have a way to navigate this, like a zone of the room you can be in.”
Maybe you want to check on other parts of the culture. You might write:
Hi! We signed up to join your church’s camp this summer and are really looking forward to it! This will be new for us, and I wondered if you could share a little more about the kinds of games you all do? My kiddo can sometimes get overwhelmed by high competition/pressure to participate/loud music/fill-in-the-blank.
But I also know you have a larger group you are trying to create a great experience for, and kids are all so different. Can you tell me more about your activity times?
Any good camp or church completely understands that parents and caregivers have questions. They know you wonder about safety. They know you hope kids are not manipulated, and that they have space and time to make their own choices about faith.
At the same time, ministry folks create these spaces so that kids can become more connected to their friends and faith community, explore the Bible and faith practices more, and create warm, fun memories of being part of the church.
So if camp or VBS is in the cards for you this summer, may it be full of all those wonderful things for the kids in your life. And if it’s not, you and your kid will be A-OK without it, because there is no one-size-fits-all childhood faith blueprint.
Great Big Bible Story Walkthrough
The Great Big Bible Story Walkthrough (GBBW) is a weekly email resource for kids ages 5-11 and their grown ups. Each week you’ll get a paraphrase of a Bible story, wonder questions, a game and a prayer idea.
Even if your family doesn’t do the activities together, the context and commentary cheat sheet to give YOU a better grasp of the stories is a gem.
GBBW is $30 for the year, and there are already 17 stories waiting for you, with three more from the Old Testament to go. In July, we’ll begin a series of 10 stories about Jesus.
Woven Price Drop
My book Woven: Nurturing a Faith Your Kid Doesn’t Have to Heal From is coming in paperback in August, which means the current hardback is dropping in price too! Grab a copy for a summer book group, to help the grandparents know where you’re heading with those grandbabies, or to read while the kids are at VBS.
A Summer Faith Guide
Last summer I wrote (and recorded if you prefer audio) a post on finding your Summer Faith Flow. It’s a 3-part process, with 8 simple questions you could use to help you think about how the summer season can be a uniquely lovely time for your kids.
You can read it here:
I Kid You Not Podcast
Back in May on I Kid You Not, Erin Moon and I discussed a range of your questions, from how to explain the trinity to kids to ‘my kid says this is pointless except for getting to heaven’.
May God bless you with eyes to see what your kid—specifically and uniquely—needs on their faith journey this summer. Amen.
Thanks for this. Camp has been a huge question for my deconstructing husband and me as we figure out summer childcare. I had a great Christian camp experience and his was the scary kind. This is a great criteria to work from.
So helpful, Meredith! Thank you!