Why did you decide to include your child in an overnight nature experience?
This time, we took two children from Okinawa to participate in a ski program in Honshu.
For several years, my children had been wanting to go on a trip outside the prefecture, but it was difficult for me to schedule time off work to coincide with theirs, and I felt it would be physically difficult for my mother to take the children on a trip by herself, so we were unable to make it happen.
When my son saw a snowy scene on TV, he said, "I'm the only one in the family who has never been on a plane or seen snow. That must be nice." That's when I thought it would be nice if there was a children's tour that would accommodate my older sister, who is in middle school, and my younger brother, who is in elementary school, rather than just a family trip, so I decided to look for one.
When we looked up "kids, snow, tours," we found that there were several organizations offering ski camps for children only from winter to spring. Both of us had experience attending summer camps for children only in the prefecture, so we were very enthusiastic about the suggestion of a camp where we could try skiing.
However, we were unsure whether there were any organizations that would accept children from Okinawa, and even if there were, we would be leaving our children with them across the ocean, so we made very careful inquiries and preparations in advance.
Why did you choose Campship Academy?
After contacting several organizations, the main reason we decided to work with Campship Academy was that they responded to our inquiries very politely and honestly.
To go into more detail, the following points made a deep impression on me:
- I found a video on Instagram of a program that was currently being held, and not only did the participating children look like they were having fun, but the organizing staff also seemed to be having fun and looking lively.
- They responded to my initial inquiry immediately, and when I told them that I wanted to include a child who had no experience with airplanes or snow, they welcomed the challenge.
- They met with me to discuss my participation well before I applied, which helped me to quickly dispel my concerns about attending from afar and get me started on my preparations.
- The company's website clearly outlined its approach and system for safety and health.
What kind of conversation did you have with your child when they first joined?
I thought my older sister, a middle school student in the midst of puberty, might not like taking her brother on a trip just the two of them, but when I suggested it, she was thrilled. She's not good at sports, but seeing the photos on our official Instagram page seems to have motivated her to try skiing.
My younger brother loves sports, and was excited to learn that he would not only be able to play in the snow, but also try skiing. However, even though he looked forward to it every day, he was anxious the night before we left. After crying a little, I could see how much he'd grown as he was able to change his mood on his own.
As a parent, rather than feeling anxious, I was more excited that my children would be able to experience skiing, something that I had never been able to experience before. My older sister has high school entrance exams coming up next year, so we talked about how it would be difficult for the two of us to go on a trip together if we missed this spring opportunity.
How did your child do after the program ended?
They both returned home very satisfied. The skiing instruction was very easy to understand, and they felt that their skiing skills had improved quickly.
He said he quickly became friends with everyone in the group, and that the leaders and older brothers and sisters treated him kindly and with kindness and fun.
My younger brother said that although playing in the ocean is fun, he has discovered that snow is even more fun. He wants to ski more, so he says he plans to go to a school outside of the prefecture when he grows up.
"Snow can be fluffy, gritty, crunchy, or hard," he proudly told me.
Please tell us if there are any aspects of Campship Academy that you feel are uniquely good.
After looking at the website, I was very impressed with Campship Academy's founding philosophy.
The phrase "a nature experience program that fulfills children's desires and parents' desires for their children to experience" really struck a chord with me.
When I introduced it to my friend's mother, she commented, "It's a wonderful website, it's exciting to look at." I agree!
