Girl Scouts - Privacy Rules

[sha_lyn]

I'm just suprised that so many posters think that it's no big deal and the little girl should just do it or even quit camp. I also don't think that you can compare this situation to a gym. At a gym, the women choose to be there and to change or not. They choose to be in that position.

As I said I do sympathize with the OP, but IMHO yes it is a comparable situation. If you don't want to be a member of a gym that doesn't have individual changing areas, you don't have to join. If you don't want to be at a camp that doesn't have separate changing areas, you don't have to attend.

OP...I hope can see that some good has come out of you/your DD's problem. While I know it doesn't offer any consolation to your DD, I think a lot of us from both sides have learned from you sharing this.

 

[Loverly]

And you decided again to send her to a camp program that was obviously not a good fit for your family?

-Becca-

Honestly!
If you are a Girl Scout you want to go to camp with your friends in the Troop!! Simply being shy about undressing in front of your friends does NOT mean that the camp is not "right" for you!
I was in the Brownies & GS for 7 years and I treasure the memories of trips,
Campouts, Jamborees,
and activities we shared-they were the best times!

 

[dreamer17555]

Honestly!
If you are a Girl Scout you want to go to camp with your friends in the Troop!! Simply being shy about undressing in front of your friends does NOT mean that the camp is not "right" for you!
I was in the Brownies & GS for 7 years and I treasure the memories of trips,
Campouts, Jamborees,
and activities we shared-they were the best times!

Really not or even most girl scouts go to GSUSA run day camps. Yes they camp out as a troop but that is not what is happening here. She is attending a day camp without her troop. This is different. If the rules are causing you to be uncomfortable and not have fun than yes that camp is not the right one for you. Why send a child where she will be uncomfortable?

-Becca-

 

[mickeyboat]

Really not or even most girl scouts go to GSUSA run day camps. Yes they camp out as a troop but that is not what is happening here. She is attending a day camp without her troop. This is different. If the rules are causing you to be uncomfortable and not have fun than yes that camp is not the right one for you. Why send a child where she will be uncomfortable?

-Becca-

But she is having fun. Yesterday the local nature institute brought three birds (a red-tailed hawk, an owl and some other bird) for the girls to learn about. She and her sister made a trreasure box out of popsicle sticks. Our older neighbor girl is helping out at the camp and the girls could not be more thrilled. They are playing tether ball and learning to make a fire. They "make" their afternoon snacks each day.

She's not uncomfortable all day long, actually not uncomfortable at all since she is not being required to undress in front of the other kids. The camp schedule has probably 10 activities per day, one of which is swimming. Just because she is uncomfortable about the changing rules, doesn't mean she shouldn't attend the camp. Just as if your daughter didn't get a hot dog doesn't mean she shouldn't go to the camp-out.

To be honest, I am a becoming offended at your repeated attempts to make me out to be some horrific monster for sending my DD somewhere where she might not enjoy one of the activities. It happens at some point every single day of her life.

I am helping her come up with a solution that will make everyone happy - it is my job as her parent to help her learn problem-solving skills, not to remove her from any situation where she might have some misgivings.

That being said, she said she is going to try the changing under a shirt method today and I sent a huge long-sleeved sweatshirt. I told her it is a good opportunity to practice changing under a shirt because not everywhere she goes will have a private place for her to change.

Denae

 

[luvmy3]

mickeyboat, I'm so glad your dd is enjoying her time at camp.
I wouldn't worry too much about what other people say, it doesn't really matter anyway. Until a mom is in your position they will never understand or see it the way you do, no matter what they say here on the DIS.

 

[dreamer17555]

But she is having fun. Yesterday the local nature institute brought three birds (a red-tailed hawk, an owl and some other bird) for the girls to learn about. She and her sister made a trreasure box out of popsicle sticks. Our older neighbor girl is helping out at the camp and the girls could not be more thrilled. They are playing tether ball and learning to make a fire. They "make" their afternoon snacks each day.

She's not uncomfortable all day long, actually not uncomfortable at all since she is not being required to undress in front of the other kids. The camp schedule has probably 10 activities per day, one of which is swimming. Just because she is uncomfortable about the changing rules, doesn't mean she shouldn't attend the camp. Just as if your daughter didn't get a hot dog doesn't mean she shouldn't go to the camp-out.

To be honest, I am a becoming offended at your repeated attempts to make me out to be some horrific monster for sending my DD somewhere where she might not enjoy one of the activities. It happens at some point every single day of her life.

I am helping her come up with a solution that will make everyone happy - it is my job as her parent to help her learn problem-solving skills, not to remove her from any situation where she might have some misgivings.

That being said, she said she is going to try the changing under a shirt method today and I sent a huge long-sleeved sweatshirt. I told her it is a good opportunity to practice changing under a shirt because not everywhere she goes will have a private place for her to change.

Denae

I will say you are right about some things it is not your job to make sure she enjoys every single one of her activites and children do have to roll with the punches but then why feel the need to question the director about the rules? It seems like you do not want her to have to deal with things but then go on to say she has to deal with things.

As I stated its great that the camp is working with her and allowing her other activites, your earlier posts seem to make the camp sound terrible. I am sorry but you cannot say the camp is poorly run in one breath and then say it is wonderful in another. I get there are good and bad points to everything but if it is a good, safe place to send your DDs you wouldn't feel the need to vent of a forum about it. I mean changing issue aside you said they dont enforce the rules, girls are stealing clothes and glasses and hiding them and that the leaders are not being helpful (ie, won't let the girls change, obviously wont help them find their clothes, glasses, ect.) So is this camp wonderful or not?

I do not think you are a monster. I would never say that. I am just confused. If you one DD was so upset that she had to shove herself into a locker to change last summer why send her back? Or why not talk to the director about it before signing her up again? I do not think the rules should be changed but they might have been able to offer the alternative activity from the start and saved everyone the headache.

I am glad to hear that you and encouraging your daughter to try different ways to solve her changing problem. The big shirt idea is a great one. I hope she will have a wonderful time.

-Becca-

 

[mickeyboat]

Becca -

I will repeat what I have posted several times already in this thread. Please read this entire post.

DDs mentioned issues with changing last year which were solved (as far as I knew) by girls holding towels for one another. I was not told about the locker changing until the girls and I discussed camp this year. She was not permanently damaged because of the locker incident. I assured DD that there would be some solution in place so she would be comfortable with changing this year - that solution could have ranged from asking for an exception to the rule, to finding a good way to change in the room while still maintaining privacy, to opting out of swimming.

I emailed the director an entire MONTH before the camp's start date to inqurie about the rules and some sort of solution which would satisfy the camp and DD. When I received no response I tried to talk to the director before the start of camp on Day 1. I inquired about the reasoning behind the rules so that I could explain that to DD. I never asked that the rules be changed, but made sure the director knew that DD's privacy was important to her. The explanation and the changing solution presented did not satisfy DD, so she opted out of swimming on Day 1 - which was one of the options offered.

Just because I vent here that I think the rule is stupid, not necessary, not being enforced, and that I don't think they respect DD's right to privacy does not mean I am hounding the director every day, that I am bad-mouthing the camp to DD or that I think the camp is a terrible place. I would not send DDs to a place that I think is terrible. It just means I think the rule is stupid, unnecessary and not being enforced. I have not had anything bad to say about the camp besides the poor changing policy and the issue DD8 had with her clothes on Day 1.

 

[Mr. & Mrs. Smith]

Mickeyboat, the grand majority of people who have posted here agree that everything you have done is reasonable and that your concerns are legitimate. Even those, like sha_lyn, who have agreed with the leaders not to break the rule have shared their opinion respectfully. There is only one user who is saying that you have done, said or thought anything wrong in this situation. I have never advocated the use of nor have I used the ignore button before but now would be the time.

I'm so glad that both of your girls are having a good time. It's so nice to see kids continuing to interact with one another in healthy activities instead of sitting in front of the old ****tube (That means television.) or whatever it is the young people are into these days.

 

[sha_lyn]

On the attending day camp or resident camp with ones troop:

I do not know how it is handled elsewhere, but here the resident camps
will honor 1 buddy request if each girl's request is on the registration form.
For the day camp that I volunteer at, they do try to keep troop members together in a unit unless there is a buddy request that would prevent that.
however there in no guarantee. Last yr DD and one girl from our troop were in a unit together, while 6 other girls were in another unit. The reason they did that is they assumed the girls would rather be with their mothers then with their friends. The mother of the other girl from our troop in the unit was my co-leader for the unit.

This yr I repeated my request to not have DD in my unit, and this time they remembered it LOL. She was in a unit with 2 others from our troop and 2 girls that used to be in our troop (along with a dozen other girls of course). My unit was made up of mostly 1 troop, 2 girls from another troop, and 1 girl that did not have anyone from her troop attending the camp. I did request one of the older girls from our troop as our Pit (Pal in Training. PAL=peer assistant leader I believe).