Oh, English Camps! They make some happy, and they make some scared and frustrated. The latter typically happens to new volunteers due to unfamiliarity with the purpose or best practices of English camps. Let's try to make some sense of this strange Thai phenomenon of English Camps.

Purposes

The two main reasons people cite for doing an English Camp are:

1. for the students to learn more English and to practice it
2. for the students to get over their anxiety of speaking English and to gain a desire for learning English

While both of the goals are important in English education, the second goal of inspiring desire is uniquely attainable in an English Camp setting. It is unique, because desire is a hard sell in the classroom. The attainability of goal 2 is an important contrast from that of goal 1, because Camps are usually only 2 days, which is hardly enough time to teach and practice new skills that will stick.

In conclusion, English Camps can and should be both educational and fun, but you should consider giving the fun a prominent focus, especially if the campers are average or below-average in their motivation for English.

Anatomy of an English Camp

Themes and duration of English camps can vary, but there is a fundamental structure to an English Camp that is essential for a successful English Camp.

Essential Components
These parts of an English camp may appear in different arrangements and lengths, but an omission of any of these parts could be as fatal as the stork forgetting to give the baby a heart.

• Big group activities -These activities serve to warm the campers up in the morning or after breaks, and they serve as a transition between small-group activities. They tend to be songs, dances, or games. The emphasis is strong on fun.
• Rotation activities -Rotations are small-group activities. If there are five rotations, then there must be five trainers, and the students are broken into five groups. Each particular rotation stays the same for the five times, but the groups of students rotate through. The smaller group sizes allow for more educational-focused activities, although don't forget to still disguise it as fun!
• Snack/Meal Breaks -This one's a no-brainer. You gotta eat, and your staff has to regroup.

Schedule Basics
The basic pattern each day is a couple rotations in the morning and a couple in the afternoon, with big group activities and breaks sprinkled in. If your camp is an overnight one, then you have to add in a special evening activity. The easy way to do this is to assign a role play (or something that similarly fosters creativity). You assign it late afternoon, then give the students time to work on it before and after dinner. Then you get everyone together for a couple songs and games before the students present their role plays. See example schedule below.

Theme Ideas

While not completely necessary to have a coherent theme, it can help. Check out this page for tried and true Camp Theme ideas.

Rotation Ideas

Check out this page for tried and true Rotation activities/lessons.

Big Group Activities

Check out this page for tried and true Big Group Activities.

Articles & Web Sites about English Camps

English camps are such a big phenomenon in Thailand, they make it into major Thai newspapers and onto the web:

• English Crazy Club - a non-profit group of Thai university students and international volunteers do inspirational English camps in Isan. Learn more about them on the Great English Teachers page, search for other ways PCVs have interacted with them, or go to their camp blog or Yahoo group.
  
• Dragonfly English Camps - camps have become a national business for Dragonfly
• English Wow - another company that runs immersion English camps
  
• Bangkok Post article (21 July '09): "English Camp as testing ground for teachers" -- link:http://www.bangkokpost.com/life/education/20669/english-camp-as-testing-ground-for-teachers

Example Schedule

Day 1 9:00 AM – 9:30 AM Opening Ceremony 9:30 AM – 10:20 AM Ice Breaker 10:20 AM – 10:35 AM Snack Break 10:35 AM – 11:20 AM Rotation 1 11:20 AM – 11:50 AM Group Activity A 11:50 AM – 12:50 PM Lunch 12:50 PM – 1:20 PM Group Activity B 1:20 PM – 2:05 PM Rotation 2 2:05 PM – 2:20 PM Snack Break 2:20 PM – 3:05 PM Rotation 3 3:05 PM – 3:30 PM Group Activity C

Day 2 9:00 AM – 9:30 AM Group Activity D 9:30 AM – 10:15 AM Rotation 4 10:15 AM – 10:30 AM Snack Break 10:30 AM – 11:15 AM Rotation 5 11:15 AM – 12:00 PM Rotation 6 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM Lunch 1:00 PM – 1:15 PM Prepare Treasure Hunt 1:15 PM – 2:00 PM Treasure Hunt 2:00 PM – 2:15 PM Snack Break 2:15 PM – 3:00 PM Awards and Feedback 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM Closing Ceremony