Connectivity Is Spoiling Camp
The article explores how modern technology and parental surveillance have fundamentally changed the sleepaway camp experience. It argues that constant connectivity prevents children from gaining the independence and distance from parents that previous generations experienced.
Why it matters
It highlights the tension between modern parenting styles, digital surveillance, and the developmental benefits of childhood autonomy.
Kids sent away during the summer used to get true distance from their parents. No longer.
Illustration by Alisa Gao / The Atlantic August 6, 2026, 11:15 AM ET Share Save T he first time I went to sleepaway camp, I was 10 years old. When I returned home, a month later, my mom opened my footlocker to help me unpack. On top was a tray of my belongings—flashlight, lanyard, marksmanship badge, a few items of clothing, and a stack of letters my parents had mailed to me, many unopened. Beneath the tray were the rest of my clothes, neatly folded, undisturbed since the bag had been packed. I had been too busy having fun to change clothes or read letters.
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