Timbertop Camp

The HCS Summer Program

camp@hampshirecountryschool.net

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What are the benefits of sleep-away camp?

Camp is a very powerful experience for all children and adolescents. It is often the first, and sometimes the only, place where they can act independently in a world which is manageable for them. Camp means learning to live around others, being part of a community, and feeling how that is rewarding and challenging at the same time. Camp offers children and adolescents a chance to make friends, gain self- confidence, and learn how to solve problems on their own. Camp is also the place to reinvent oneself. When campers come to camp, they leave their emotional baggage at home. It's a place that does not judge, a place where one is accepted, and where idiosyncrasies are seen as part of everyone's character, rather than being a major obstacle.

What if my child is reluctant to come to camp?

Our enrollment process looks carefully at every camper. Timbertop Camp is a camp for campers who want to be here. Many campers, especially first year campers, feel a certain amount of anxiety. How will I do without my parents? Can I live without a my comforts at home? Will I be accepted? Can I make friends? In our interviews with you and your child, we will address these questions. If we feel that Timbertop Camp is the right camp for your child, more often than not, your child will feel as if it is the right camp. Our dorms allow for more privacy than a traditional cabin setting, our sessions are a little shorter than in other settings. Especially for first year campers, a 2.5 week session is something that seems manageable. Even five weeks allow our campers to spend a healthy part of the summer at home, with their family. Campers see their parent's anxiety about camp. If you are not sure that you can manage without your child at home, he will feel that. We are confident that, at the end of our enrollment process, you and your child will feel that this is the right choice.

How will my child get to camp?

There are two ways of getting to Timbertop Camp. You may drop off your camper or we will pick the camper up at Boston or Manchester, NH airport. Dropping your child off at camp may make the separation more difficult. We will have one central drop off area, and the counselors will walk your camper to the dorm.

How do I communicate with my child?

Hampshire Country School and the Timbertop Camp program are free of technology. You can e-mail your child letters to the camp's e-mail address, send letters by mail, or fax letters to our fax number. Your camper's e-mail will be scanned and send to you by e-mail. Phone calls happen during the second week and fourth week of camp.

The camp leadership is always available to give you an update on your camper. Please call the office or send an e-mail. We try to return your call within 12 hours.

Are there any visiting days?

You are encouraged to visit the campus before you enroll your camper. During the summer, you have a chance to visit on the pick-up day for your camper.

How do you handle homesickness?

We distinguish between missing home and being homesick. Missing home is a good feeling. It shows that one cares about someone else, it's an expression of still adjusting to a new surrounding, and it does not interrupt the many positive experiences a camper has every day. A child that misses home might be sad during rest hour or other quiet times. Throughout the day however, the camper is engaged, plays actively, and has interactions and fun with other staff and campers. We don't want to suppress this feeling, but we keep it to a minimum by engaging each camper in activities and community life, and let them enjoy the many new experiences that await our campers at Timbertop Camp.

Being homesick means that a camper might be withdrawn, does not enjoy his experience, and makes no or little contact with staff or other campers. Here at Hampshire Country School we do not see much of this. Our students are generally excited that this is a place where they are accepted, where they can play with friends, and where they are accepted. They seem to know that this is a place where they fit, a place where they are genuinely liked, and where they can relax. The first days after arrival are sometimes difficult. Our family style living makes it easier for the campers to create their own space, and have access to caring adults.

What about laundry?

You should pack for about 10 days of active play. Our laundry service picks the laundry up once a week, and usually returns it the same night.

Tell me about the meals.

Our kitchen serves family style meals. Mealtimes are a core aspect of our program. They offer a chance for conversation and exchange, and they are one of the times where our whole camp comes together at the same time. Every table has two adults and about 5 or 6 campers. Food and kitchen are a top priority at our school. For the summer, we have the chance to place our Dean of Students into the kitchen. The kitchen for Timbertop Camp will be influenced by Mr. Ciglar's love for fresh local produce, his strong knowledge of the dietary needs of our population, and his magnificent homemade baked products. Food is one of the most important areas of any summer camp. We provide a kid-friendly diet, but we use top quality ingredients, and all dishes are cooked from scratch. Our kitchen can accommodate vegetarian and kosher-style diets.

Where is Hampshire Country School located?

Hampshire Country School's remarkable 1700 acre rural property is the heart of the school and a source of recreation, renewal, and pride. In the late 1700s it was farms. In the late 1800s it was a privately owned agricultural and industrial community. In the middle 1900s it became a school.

The property includes three ponds (Mill Pond, Island Pond, and Stump Pond) which range in size from a few acres to 39 acres. It covers hundreds of acres of deep forest, open fields, wetlands and the Pratt Peak and Stonytop portions of Barrett Mountain. It includes the most remarkable collection of old stone walls and foundations in New Hampshire. The western half of the property holds the headwaters of the Miller's River, a major tributary of the Connecticut River. The land supports a large variety of wildlife including beaver, deer, wild turkey, moose, mink, otter, coyotes, bobcats, and many other mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and birds. The lakes contain an abundance of pickerel and bass.

This remarkable setting provides students an opportunity to live and learn in the quiet of a rural environment and to hike, camp, canoe, study nature, and explore forests and wetlands, all without having to pack into a car or leave campus.

Timbertop Camp
The HCS Summer Program
28 Patey Circle
Rindge, NH 03461
(603)899-3325
e-mail: camp@hampshirecountryschool.net