Website for Quest Camp: www.questcamps.com/

Re: Quest Camp or Cal Blue Camp for Social Skills
My daughter who has ADHD, LD and social problems has gone to Quest Camp 2 years in a row. I have very mixed feelings about the camp. The counselors are great--very supportive and dedicated young people. The therapists are OK. My daughter does enjoy the camp and I feel extremely comfortable sending her there because the counselors are ready, willing and equipped to deal with her behavior and special needs. The camp has a very positive, fun and inclusive atmosphere. I need summer childcare and given my daughter's problems I would not feel secure sending her to a regular camp with counselors who might not know how to support her. With that said, I feel that the smooth and slick 'huckster' approach would be better suited to sales than to organizing a camp for kids with special needs. The group therapy is not theoretically grounded in a particular social skills approach or with any organized technique (such as Michelle Winner's method). When we met with the director to ask him more about his approach and related books we could use as a resource he was very vague saying that he had 'made it up' and that there was nothing else like it out there (which is not at all true). The camp serves the most shockingly unhealthy snacks which Dr. Field uses as a reward for good behavior. The camp is also very focused on 'store' and 'points' a monetary system where for good behavior kids get to purchase items. Numerous parents have protested the unhealthy snacks and the focus on material rewards as teaching undesirable values but Dr. Field says he needs to provide these things to motivate the kids. I am going to send my daughter to the camp again this summer for a shorter amount of time because Blue and Gold camp seems too sports oriented for her. I do plan to observe Blue and Gold camp to check it out more carefully. I wish there were more choices out there. If you don't need the childcare hours during the summer you might want to look into a social skills group that meets once a week. Also, I thought that Blue and Gold camp was very structured with a different activity each hour? best wishes

Re: East Bay camp for 7-year-old with LD and social skills defect
My son, who is now 11, attended Quest Therapeutic Services summer day camp last year, and has continued in their once- weekly afterschool program this year. He'll attend again this summer.

The summer camp is in Alamo, which is a drag for working parents this side of the tunnel, but I have to say it was absolutely worth all of the driving and schedule juggling. We have since found a family to carpool with (families come from all over the Bay Area), and the afterschool program fortunately has an Oakland site.

They require a minimum 3 week attendance, which is what we did. It's quite expensive, and no financial aid (at least as of last year), and the only way I was able to do it was with significant help from my parents. But again, if it's at all possible, it's worth every penny. My son absolutely blossomed during his time there; the transformation was quite striking. I'm happy to answer any questions you may have about the camp. My son also has social skills deficits, and suffers from depression and some ADHD symptoms. There are children there with a very wide range of issues/disabilities. Emily