If there is ever a reminder that a parent's calendar has nothing to do with the date at hand, let me welcome you to camp season. While most kids won't hit the pool before mid-June, their moms and dads are already mulling over which camps to send them to in mid-winter. Just check the Parenting magazine camp sections and camp fairs being run all over your town, if you don't believe it. Certainly, you can hold off on choices for a few weeks or months (depending on the popularity and capacity of the camps under consideration), but the whole selection process is daunting for many people. Here are a few suggestions to make your day-camp choices easier.

1. Ask Your Kids

Camp should be about fun. This is a chance for children to blow off steam, try new things, and do the things they love to do in the great outdoors (or in well-air-conditioned indoor places). So, ask your kid where she wants to go for camp. She may want to go with friends or to a certain camp with the activities that appeal to her. Get the lowdown from your child first, to shape everything else.

2. Ask Around

Of course, your child's request is not the only criteria you need to bear in mind. You still have homework to do, such as asking other parents, even other kids, about where they've gone or will go to camp. You can read brochures and Web sites that will present lots of information, but nothing tells you about social interaction, age-appropriateness of activities, and quality of staff like a fellow parent or your kid's friends. Be sure to get a few opinions since someone may have had a bad experience (or great experience) that was unusual or unrelated to one you may eventually have.

3. Take a Tour

Go see the camp, preferably with your child. Ask the guide (hopefully it's the camp director or assistant director) what the philosophy of the camp is. Ask about the organization of the camp, the costs, how long it's been in business, the camper return rate, and the activities. Pay attention to how your child is reacting to the campus. If they seem miserable, that might tell you something. If they seem thrilled, you've got something. Go ahead and ask your child what they like or dislike even before you leave the tour, so you can get questions answered.

4. Ask About the Staff

Whether you do the tour or not, there are a couple of vital areas of information you need. One is about the staff, including what the staff training is, what the counselor-to-camper ratio is, and what the counselor-return rate is. Regarding the ratio, generally, for younger children, it should be 5-8 kids for every counselor and for kids over 9, it should be 8-10 for every counselor. Also, find out how old the counselors are. A camp with mostly high-school age counselors will offer a different experience than one with college-age counselors. Also, if you want to get really informed, ask what the criteria are for choosing the counselors.

5. Decide on Number of Days

Unless you both work five days a week, consider not sending your child to camp every day. After all, summer is a chance to hang out with your child. Some children may love camp so much that they want to go all the time, but you might still want to hold them out a day or two just to spend some quality time together. Also, many kids thrive on three days of camp per week as opposed to one or two because it offers more consistency. In addition, try spacing the days (such as Monday-Wednesday-Friday) so your child doesn't fall out of the rhythm of the camp experience.

6. Consider Convenience

No matter how great that camp in the hills might be, the bus ride there and back might drain your child of all the fun they might have in the hours they're on their feet. Or, you may have such a long drive or traffic-riddled route that it makes you crazy. If distance is a problem, try to find a camp more conveniently located to your home or work.

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