jusamom-

If your daughter is a rising sophomore, I would suggest the A1 camp this year and then college camps after that. My daughter did it that way and it helped her in two ways:

1. Exposure. Not the way you'd probably think...

- She worked out with girls at her skill level from all over the country - it forced her to look at her game more objectively.
- She made friends from all over and had some friendly faces at later qualifiers.
- She got to work with some good coaches who exposed her to different ideas and goals for herself.

2. It gave her confidence that the hard work she put in to her sport got her recognized at some sort of a "national level."

That same year, she did include a local university's camp - but not one she ended up being interested in - thanks to attending the camp.

The following years were all about camps where she would be a potential recruit. Staying on campus, working with the coaches, and getting to know the team is so helpful for them in their decision process. Watching the teams play in season was also very helpful and enlightening.

In her case, waiting to attend college camps until being a rising Junior gave her ideas about what she wanted in a college a chance to develop. It also gave her and her game the chance to mature so she could go in to the camps with the confidence and determination to go where she was really interested, make a good impression and know what she wanted to take away from the experience. As a rising Sophomore, college was "so far away" she wouldn't have accomplished the same things in the experience.

In reality, both are worthwhile options for the summer - the way we did it really worked for us - someone else might have a different and equally valid suggestion. Just another one of those wonderful decisions we get to make being the grown up! Oh the joys of parenthood.