If you want an awesome summer camp experience for your child, it’s an absolute must to check out the Concordia College language program.
Concordia College based out of Moorhead, Minnesota, runs language camps throughout the summer in several different locations. Some of the languages include Finnish, French, Swedish, Chinese as well as English, Japanese and German. The majority of them are located on a peaceful lake in Turtle River, Minnesota.
The concept behind the program is a “full immersion” camp, you are granted a passport just as if you were entering another country. It is required that you present your passport to enter the camp, where English is unheard of, unless there is a medical issue. Sports, eating, and even credit courses teach you a wide range of different conversational languages to cover all aspects of life, if you were to visit the host country.
They offer different lengths of stays, from one week, recommended for younger “villagers,” two-week programs for slightly older children or returning villagers, or even a one-month credit program, which, in most high schools, can count for a foreign language credit, by offering the required hours. Throughout the year, they also host family weekends, so you can attend as a family and learn the heritage, language and customs of the host country. Ages from the summer campers range from 7 years old to 18 years old.
At the actual camp, there are different “stations” and the set up is as a regular town or village might be. There is a bank, where you can deposit your money or withdraw and it’s converted into a foreign coin, and a store where you can purchase different items, directly imported from your host country. In the Scandinavian camps, there is even a sauna to get the full experience of living! Cabins are set up by age and ability, and there is a full time nurse on duty at all times to take care of medications or health issues.
It’s truly a unique educational experience; your children can learn a foreign language and become quite fluent by the end of their stay. It’s also a great experience to have fun, and not seem like an educational camp. After all, we don’t want to have to admit they’re actually learning something, right?! My children have been attending for 6 years, and look forward to the trip every year.
The price is a little steep. I do have to vouch for it though and say it’s worth every penny. There are different scholarships you can apply for, and financial aid is available on a limited basis. The downside would be that the price seems to increase every year, and unless you’re local, the cost of travel needs to be factored in. Turtle River, Minnesota is a very rural area, so it’s not easily accessible to public transportation. The Language camps do offer transportation to both the Minneapolis-St. Paul airports as well as the Bemidji, Minnesota airport, which is the closest “large town” to Turtle River. They also offer an overnight accommodation for those villagers that arrive a day early due to flight availability to the area.
For two teenage boys to look forward to summer camp speaks volumes about this program and is really a testament to what this camp offers. It’s definitely worth checking out, you won’t be disappointed. Plan on budgeting if you want to return, it can take you the full year to come up with the tuition!
