Karen Grane and her son and daughter have traveled from the Chicago
suburbs to attend Celebrate the Children’s Summer Camp. The family
has been utilizing DIR/Floortime to meet the needs of Matthew Grane,
who attends a public school. And his neurotypical sister is also attending
the camp as a peer model. Karen tells us both kids are having a blast
and are wiped out after the half-day of programming. The camp is
located in rural New Jersey. Karen, her son and daughter drove to
CTC camp and are staying at a suites hotel during the month
the camp runs.

She is happy to answer parent questions and you can find out more about the Celebrate the Children School and Camp by visiting their website http://www.ctccenter.com/

Postcard #3

Hi Chicago Floortime Families- My name is Karen and I live in Elmhurst.
My son and daughter and I have been in New Jersey attending the
"Celebrate the Children"summer camp. You may have heard of the
school from the cover of the TIME or Oprah. It has been a GREAT
experience. I am so hopeful when Soaring Eagle opens they will
be able to provide just as wonderful of a setting.

Camp is set up like an ordinary half day school program. From
what I have seen, there are no more than 10 children in a
classroom. During the summer, they mainstream typical
children (usually a sibling-as in our case) to serve as
peer models. Each child that attends who has some
sensory/language/social/regulatory challenges has a
one on one aide. Each aide has been trained in DIR and
knows how to capitalize on social opportunities. There are
many non verbal children at camp and the aide then will
work on shared attention or purely regulation. There is one
teacher in class. All IEP goals will be addressed at camp.

I am an EXTREMELY harsh critic of all therapists we encounter.
Our son is very high functioning which makes him an easy
candidate to fall through the cracks. I am so very happy with
the team's(consisting of the teacher, aide, and assistant director
of the school)assessment and their assertiveness of supporting
him. We are not being treated as a summer camp student they
will never see again- they are dedicated and feel a month is enough
time to make changes in a child's profile.

Each day starts with Yoga and circle time. There is age appropriate
school work, group social opportunities and lots of fun. Every Friday
there is a special event. We have had a massive carnival-petting zoo,
pony rides, air jump, face painting, grilled lunch, etc. There was a
magic show and a puppet show as well. The kids eat lunch each
day at camp. They set it up so lunch is a social experience. We are
responsible for packing the lunches since many of the kids are on
special diets. They customize everything to meet the needs of each
child. This is possible because of the one on one each child gets.

Both of my children, one with needs and one without, are having a
wonderful experience. My 5 year old daughter said "New Jersey is
the best place in the entire world!!". This is coming from a child
who has been to Disney multiple time and many other wonderful
places. My 8 year old son said "I want to go to school here FOREVER".
The staff works their tail off no matter how minor or major a child's
challenges.

Being away from home for the month has been both challenging
and enjoyable. While the kids are at camp (9am-1pm) I have shopped,
I joined a health club for the month. I have exercised more this month
than the last 8 years-since I do not have any of my typical responsibilities.
Sometimes I hang out at the local libraryand sometimes I go to a
nearby driving range. I have taken the kidsraspberry picking, the beach,
parks, library, etc. I find during theweek, both kids are quite tired after camp.
We typically go back to the hotel for "quiet time" and end the day with
swimming in the indoor hotel pool.

We are staying at the Residence Inn in Mt.Olive, NJ. We are a 4 minute
drive to the camp. The hotel hasstudios, one and two bedroom options.
Each room has a kitchen and they serve a dinner Mon through Thurs.
There is no charge for the dinner. Sometimes we eat what the hotel is
serving, sometimes I cook and we go out to eat a couple times a week.
It jostly depends on how stir crazy I am feeling.

It is difficult to be away from my husband. The kids miss dad, but they are
so distracted with sooooo many new experiences. We "see" him every
night on the webcam.

I think it would be a WONDERFUL experience if families who already
know each other take this journey together!! I feel a bit like an island
out here, although I have met some great people.

Now the down side--the cost of this summer. Camp tuition for a child
with an IEP is $2,680. A neuro-typical child is only $300. How I rationalized
the cost is I added up all the services we would not be doing back in
Illinois. That is for camp alone. Speech, OT, PT, DIR,and social groups
are available for additional cost. The hotel is the jost expensive part.
There are less expensive options. Here at the Residence Inn, a two
bedroom is about $190/ea night. That does include a kitchen-so
dining can be less expensive. It also includes breakfast everyday
and possible dinner 4 nights. It also includes the POOL-which has
been awesome to burn off energies.

I am happy to answer specific questions. OVerall, if we can budget for
this--I would do it again. I would PREFER if Soaring Eagle has a
local option, but it has been invaluable to have such a trained staff
ready to facilitate interaction with 10 children at a similar developmental
level as our guy. Any questions feel free to email me at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .


Postcard #2



Camp continues to be a great experience. As far as the care and
attention paid to each child--they are superb!!!! If you have any f
riends who are interested in attending, I am happy to chat with
them on how to best familiarize themselves in this community-
which has been my jost frustrating part. I guess I had such
high expectations on all levels for the camp.

I am seeing some changes in Matt-as are our family members at home. I am seeing a much wider range of emotions. Matt is expressing anger and sadness (99% of the time due to me not buying something he wants, letting him eat certain junk foods or limiting his computer usage). Although these things upset him in the past, he did not express his dissatisfaction to the point he has been over the last 2 1/2 weeks. Both my husband and parents have been calling us on the phone. Matt has been able to complete 10 circles of communication over the phone-which is quite good for him. I can't say it is a permanent change, but he has been pretty consistent over the last week. Above all else-both Matt and my daughter (who is a peer model for the five and six year old class LOVE going to camp. They have amazing activities every Friday-the carnival last week, had everything from a petting zoo, pony rides, grilled lunch (yes they even had CFGF foods for those who are on the diet). I really believe this experience is even more powerful for Matt since we had to leave our life/comfort zone behind and he had to adapt to all new experiences.

There are so many extra services in addition to the camp. They have OT, PT, SP, of course Floortime, social groups and parent lessons. I think they all average about $125/hour. Matt is WIPED OUT after the four hours at camp. We are not doing anything additional.

Postcard #1

Just had my first meeting with the staff at Celebrate the Children. THEY ARE GREAT!!!! They have an accurate assessment of Matt's profile-both the strengths and challenges. Today was only the 8th day of camp and they are both methodical and assertive in their approach. Typically, parents are not granted weekly conferences, but due to my nagging and distance traveled to attend, they are happy to meet with me.

Camp is set up like a typical classroom. There are roughly 10 kids per room and each child has a one on one aide!! Matt's aide is a certified teacher about 20 minutes from where the camp is located. Many of the nearby teachers want the experience Celebrate the Children provides and will be an aide during the summers. The reason each child gets an aide is they want to capitalize on all social encounters. I am thrilled Matt's helper is a teacher in a "typical" classroom, her input to Matt's 3rd grade teacher will be invaluable.

I have to say, I have experienced the entire range of emotions about being here. It is such a financial and emotional expense. After my meeting today, and hearing both the dedication and sincere feelings they have for Matt. I have a renewed excitement for our decision to attend. It is very difficult to be away from my husband, but time is going fast. I have another meeting with them on Thursday - we are doing two meetings this week to make up for last week's cancellation. They are quite professional!