TPP 059: 12-year-old Asher Talks About How He's Prepping for Sleep Away Camp

A special kid's POV episode, where Asher and I talk all about that rite of passage for millions of children around the world—sleep away camp. This summer, Asher is going to a sleep away camp for the second time in his life. The first time was two years ago, when he went to a very traditional outdoorsy camp with his best friend in the Pacific Northwest. All things considered, that experience went pretty well, and we learned a few things about what can be hard about camp and what kind of situations might be challenging for Asher (and for many differently-wired kids).

This year, we’re going to give it another try, this time at Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama, something Asher is, shall we say, INCREDIBLY excited about. And at the same time, when we first signed him up, Asher recognized there would be situations at Space Camp that could potentially be especially tough for him. As you’ll hear, Asher came to me and asked to work with a therapist / coach to help him figure out strategies for navigating tricky situations that might come up.

So, that’s what we’re going to talk about today…the different strategies we’ve used to help Asher get prepared for sleep away camp, as well as Asher’s own revelations about what he thinks will help him have a positive experience, even if and when things come up that push him mentally and emotionally.

Debbie Reber is the founder of Tilt and the host of the Tilt Parenting Podcast. Asher is Debbie’s son and is regularly featured on the podcast.

Things you'll learn from this episode:

• How Debbie and Asher prepped for the kinds of situations that might come up at sleep away camp
• Asher’s new strategy for getting “un-angry”
• How Maslov’s Hierachy of Needs has helped Asher learn more about his own emotional responses

Resources Mentioned:

• Camp Orkila 
• Space Camp
• Kate Berger on What Mindfulness Can Do for Kids and How to Get Started (podcast)
• Asher Talks with David Flink, a Social Movement Leader on the Front Lines of the Learning Differences Movement (podcast)
• Julie George on the Role of Executive Functioning in Differently-Wired Kids (podcast)
• Eye to Eye National
• Kerbal Space Program
• The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster

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