Background: I work as an ALT in central Japan for a company that seems to be on the decline. I’ve worked for this company for years and have always done side work to make extra money. I have previously done some work related summer English camps, for pay, around the Tokai area. They are usually at a school or cultural center, not actual camping. I really enjoy them as they are a way to make a little extra money and travel for free. That was 3 years ago and now they are back again. My company is now requiring ALT’s to do more work per year and offering, unpaid, summer camps as a way to meet those requirements. Of course I don’t want to do this extra/unpaid work and it gave me an idea.
One of my friends had a small Eikawa, that I teach at sometimes. I know that some, not my friends, Eikawa’s offer summer English camps. I talked with my friend about starting at camp at his school during some holidays so that we can make some money, do English activities we don’t usually do, and it might be something that Japanese parents appreciate for their kids. Also, I have a child in elementary school so I could bring my child to a homemade English camp. Because I have attended a few camps, they do not seem particularly difficult but just require a bit of work to get started. Are there any good resources on starting an English camp at Eikawa? Thank for any advice/ recommendations.
4 comments
How many years have you been doing the dispatch gig for? If you’re experienced enough, you should look for BOE direct hire positions, or direct hire at private schools. The pay would be better and you wouldn’t be working for a company that forces you to work for free.
Sorry this doesn’t answer your question in any way.
We used to do one day summer excursions for our school. They were a lot of fun for kids, but exhausting for teachers and staff and the potential liability issues were a dark cloud hanging over things (fortunately we didn’t have any incidents but there seemed to be a lot of potential downside for not much upside). They were also a bit of a loss leader for us in that we pretty much charged students the cost of running them as a kind of benefit of attending our school.
Covid gave us an excuse to stop doing them and I haven’t missed them much.
Be sure you have a good idea of all the costs compared to what you’ll be able to charge and the potential market. Good luck!
Step one: Own an [island.](https://www.nokonoshimacamp.jp/)
For those who lack island, I’d focus more on seasonal one-day events. Build it around a series of games/activities that build toward a stretch of longer production which can be shared with the parents after the fact. Or, for lower levels or mixed groups, a fun sample pack of meaningful tasks.
If we’re being cynical, a lot of the parents just want to unload their kids for a day. But they’re going to feel much better about it when the kids **and** school are like “look at all the cool stuff we did… *in English*” when they come to pick them up.
Ideally, the kids will have fun, want to come back, and be natural leaders for the newcomers the following year(s).
Here is an example of an English camp.
https://youtu.be/8VjkMDNHQqQ