Summer camp words, in plain English.

Camp sites have their own vocabulary: sessions, deposits, waitlists, CITs. Here’s what the words on a camp’s page usually mean. Every camp sets its own rules, so check the camp’s site for the details.

ACA accreditation: A voluntary review by the American Camp Association. An accredited camp has been checked against hundreds of standards for health, safety and staffing.
Activity period: A block of the camp day spent on one activity, like swim, archery or arts. Many camps let campers choose some periods as electives.
Age cutoff: The date a camper’s age or grade is measured on, often June 1 or the first day of camp. It decides which sessions and groups a child can join.
Balance due: What’s left of the tuition after the deposit. Camps usually set a date for it, often weeks before the session starts.
Before and after care: Paid extra hours at a day camp, before the regular start or after pickup time, for families who work.
Bunk: A camper’s bed, and often the group of campers who share a cabin. "Bunkmates" live together for the session.
Bunk request: A request to room with a friend. Camps often accept one or two mutual requests, but few can promise them.
Cabin: The building campers sleep in at an overnight camp, usually with a counselor. Some camps use tents, yurts or lodges instead.
Camp director: The person who runs the camp, its staff and its season. Usually the best contact for questions a website doesn’t answer.
Camp physical: A health form signed by a doctor, often required before an overnight session. Many camps want one dated within the last 12 months.
Campership: A scholarship that pays some or all of a camper’s tuition, based on need. Funds are limited, so applications often close early.
Cancellation policy: The camp’s rules for what you get back if you withdraw, and by when. It usually changes as the session gets closer.
Capacity: The most campers a session or age group can take, set by beds, staff and space. When it’s reached, the session shows as full.
Care package: A box sent from home to a camper at an overnight camp. Many camps limit what’s allowed, especially food.
Check-in day: The first day of a session, when campers arrive, meet their counselors and hand in medications and forms. Also called opening day.
CIT (counselor in training): An older teen, often 15 to 17, learning to be a counselor. CIT programs often cost tuition rather than pay a wage.
Closing day: The last day of a session, when families pick up campers. Some camps hold a show or ceremony.
Co-ed camp: A camp for both boys and girls. Cabins are usually still separated.
Counselor-to-camper ratio: How many campers each staff member looks after. Younger groups usually have more staff per child.
Day camp: A camp where children go home each evening. Days usually run about 9 to 3 or 4, with extra care sometimes offered.
Deposit: The payment that holds a camper’s place when you register. It’s often non-refundable, or refundable only until a set date.
Drop-off and pickup: The daily handoff at a day camp, often through a car line. Most camps need a list of the adults allowed to pick up.
Early bird pricing: A lower price for families who register before a set date, often in fall or winter.
Elective: An activity a camper chooses for part of the day, rather than one the whole group does together.
Enrollment: Being signed up and confirmed for a session. Usually the camp’s word for registering.
First-time camper: A child in their first summer at a camp. Many camps offer shorter sessions or extra support for them.
Full: No spots left in a session or age group. Spots can open again when families cancel or plans change.
Half session: Half the length of a camp’s full session, such as two weeks of a four-week term. Often offered to younger or first-time campers.
Health center: The camp’s on-site clinic, usually staffed by a nurse, where medications are kept and given. Also called the infirmary.
Homesickness: Missing home while away. Common and usually short-lived, especially in the first few days.
Inclusion camp: A camp that supports campers with disabilities or extra needs alongside other campers, often with added staff.
Lottery: A way some camps fill popular sessions: families apply during a window, then places are drawn at random instead of first come, first served.
Medication form: A form listing a camper’s medicines and doses, often signed by a doctor. Staff use it to give medications during the session.
Mini session: A short stay, often three to six nights, to try overnight camp. Sometimes called a taster or rookie session.
No-phone policy: A rule that campers leave phones and devices at home. Most overnight camps keep in touch through letters, photos or the office instead.
Non-refundable: Money you won’t get back if you cancel, such as a deposit or registration fee.
Open enrollment: The period when registration is open to everyone, after any priority window for returning families.
Open house: A day to tour the camp, meet staff and ask questions, often held in spring or during the season.
Overnight camp: A camp where children sleep there for the session, from a few nights to several weeks. Also called sleepaway or resident camp.
Packing list: What a camper should bring, sent by the camp. It usually also lists what’s not allowed.
Payment plan: Paying tuition in installments over months instead of all at once.
Priority registration: An early window for returning campers, siblings or members before open enrollment. Popular sessions can fill during it.
Refund deadline: The last date to cancel and get money back. After it, the camp usually keeps some or all of the tuition.
Registration: Signing a camper up for a session on the camp’s site, usually with a deposit and forms.
Registration opens: The date and time a camp starts taking sign-ups. For popular camps, sessions can fill within hours.
Rest hour: A quiet break after lunch at many overnight camps, for reading, letters or napping.
Returning camper: A child who attended the camp before. Many camps give them first chance to register.
Rolling admission: Registrations are accepted in the order they arrive until a session is full, with no single deadline.
Session: A set block of camp with a start and end date, like one week or four. Each session usually has its own price and capacity.
Sibling discount: Money off when two or more children from one family attend.
Sold out: Another way camps say full: no spots left right now.
Specialty camp: A camp built around one focus, like soccer, coding, theater or horseback riding, rather than a mix of activities.
Spot: One camper’s place in a session. When someone cancels, a spot opens.
Staff screening: Background checks, references and training a camp does before hiring counselors. Accredited camps follow set standards for it.
Swim test: A check on the first day that decides where a camper can swim and which boats they can use.
Traditional camp: A camp offering a broad mix of activities, like swimming, sports, arts and campfires, rather than one specialty.
Travel camp: A program that moves between places, often for older teens, with hiking, touring or service along the way. Also called a trip camp.
Tuition: The price of a session. Some camps add separate fees for transportation, the camp store or special trips.
Visiting day: A set day when families can visit a camper during a long overnight session. Many camps allow no other visits.
Waitlist: A list of families waiting for a spot in a full session. When a spot opens, the camp contacts the next family, often with a short time to accept.
Waitlist offer: A message from the camp that a spot has opened for you. It often expires within a day or two if you don’t reply or pay.
Waiver: A form a parent signs accepting the risks of activities and allowing emergency care.
Week-by-week: Registration where you pick individual weeks rather than a whole session. Common at day camps.