Summer Camps Give Kids Change to Remain Active

The St. Peters Summer Activity Camps at the St. Peters Rec-Plex exposes local youth to fun and fitness in a variety of settings.             

“The purpose is to keep the kids busy and active every day,” Assistant Camp Director Marc Daigle said. “We try to do this mainly outside. It’s easier for kids to stay in motion and remain active outside.”

The camps run five days a week —Monday through Friday—and last from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Camps are divided into an activities and sports sections—the activities section is for six to 12-year-olds and the sports section in for seven to 12-year-olds. Activities camps expose campers to a variety of games and fitness while sports camps concentrate on a particular sport. Both sections last one week and about half of the kids stay involved in the camps the entire summer, said Daigle.  

“This ensures them at least eight hours of activity each day,” Daigle said on the activities camps. “They’re outside playing kickball and inside playing dodge ball. They’re not just doing one thing all day long. It’s important to everyone to stay healthy.”

A camp counselor works with a group of youngsters each day. The camp has 25 counselors on staff; most are college students. Daigle said the camp looks for “responsible, hardworking individuals” to fill the counselor position; individuals “that understand how to work with children and understand safety.”

Counselor Lindsey Crosey, a sophomore at Missouri State University, was busy instructing campers in dodge ball.

“I love being around the kids,” Crosey said. “It’s important for them to have something to do beside sitting around the house. They also learn how to work with a group.”

Campers in the activities section spend the entire day with one counselor. Each day includes a variety of inside activities: toga,a form of dodge ball, mat ball, a type of kick ball as well as swimming and tag.  Outside activities include: kickball and zoo keeper, a type of tag. Social interaction with other campers is a big part of the camp.

“Every Monday morning we stress to the counselors that they do games with the kids so they can get to know each other’s names,” Daigle said. “We need to get everyone involved. Even if someone is shy the counselors are aware of that.”        

The sports camps include instruction for baseball, flag football, hockey, figure skating, basketball, volleyball, and soccer. Each day of the camp focuses on a specific skill.

For basketball this would include a day on dribbling, passing, rebounding and defense, and shooting. The morning is purely instructional, but in the afternoon campers incorporate what they know into scrimmage games.  All of the counselors in the sports camps have experience at the varsity level.

“What makes our camp such a great experience for our kids is access to our facilities, an Olympic size swimming pool, a recreation pool with a slide, diving boards and lap lanes,” Daigle said. “They also have two multi-purpose basketball gyms and ice rinks for hockey.”  

Interested parties can call the Rec-Plex at 636-939-2386 ext. 1400.