Imagine a world without YouTube, Snapchat, or Instagram. Given that, according to Statistics Canada, 74% of youth spend more than the recommended two hours of screen time per day, this may be hard to envision. Okay — if a world without social media platforms seems too far fetched, what about a summer?
For young people whose lives have grown increasingly wired, camp provides that rare break from texting, scrolling, and blue-lit screens. And to be honest — summer is the perfect time for kids to explore the outdoors, practice new skills, make new friends, and develop some independence.
Olympia Sports Camp, which was founded in 1974 as a one-week basketball program, now offers over 90 different sports and activities to choose from including football, artistic gymnastics, leadership, and self-discovery.
Located in the heart of Muskoka with a beautiful waterfront where you can sail, windsurf, canoe, and kayak. The over 40-acre scenic campground also has a high ropes course, three zip lines, a new climbing tower and giant swing. It also has 45,000 square feet of indoor space including six indoor courts equipped with everything campers need to continue their training on rainy days.
While all Olympia’s programs seek to develop skills, their personalized instruction includes five to six hours of skills and games, incorporating an optimal training environment based on each campers’ developmental age.
Moreover, all camps are led by a roster of passionate adult coaches who have had the experience coaching at the rep, high school, university, college, or national level. As an additional plus, professional athletes such as Toronto Raptors’ Danny Green also spend time helping campers to perfect their skills.
Where drills and skills are taught
Over the years, Green has seen his coaching role grow from offering the fundamentals of the game to providing real-life advice. He often shares the story of his own difficult start in the NBA, hoping that kids heed the message that hard work wins over talent.
Helping campers feel comfortable with learning new things is the core of Olympia.
Helping campers feel comfortable with learning new things is the core of Olympia. The Hero’s Journey program allows campers to learn (with the help of mentors) and set individual goals accompanied with an action plan. In addition, they will meet challenges and obstacles that they will learn to see as opportunities or steps needed to be conquered in order to achieve their goals.
For many campers, Olympia is an opportunity to step outside their comfort zone, as much as it builds on existing skills. The focus throughout is on building confidence, independence, and interpersonal skills, while encouraging campers to meet new people the old-fashioned way — face-to-face.
