Parents?What is a home boot camp?How do you do it?Has anyone ever done it?

Question

One of my bestfriends in school is always getting in trouble for his bad attitude to school. His parents are always called into see the principle and form teacher. He is a good kid I guess he just doesn't really like school n he finds it real difficult.
He always tries to impress older bad kids n he got caught stealing cigerettes for them in a seven eleven.
He told me he was in real big trouble n that i wouldnt understand,im alway gettin narked at by my parentals so i didnt think much of it.
i asked him to come sufing with me afer school last week but he said he was getting a home boot camp,when i asked he was real vague about what went on n now im curious,is it normal for parents to do this?

Answer 1

I personally haven't done this (my kids are much too young), but I had a friend with a very unruly, disrespectful 14 year old. His wife and him asked a few of us from the platoon to come over and work with him. It worked great, especially since there were a couple of us who were former Marine Corps drill instructors. There were no physical punishments besides a few pushups, but it was basically being stripped of all priveledges, to include speaking without being told to. He could use the restroom whenever, but always had to ask for it. This happened during the summer so he wasn't at school. Every minute of every day was scheduled strictly. A typical day went as such. He was up at 0530 every morning for a run and PT session, then 20 min to shower and change clothes, breakfast, house cleaning and laundry to inspection standards. Then he would have lunch, then have chores outside such as edging, mowing, raking, etc. Sometimes we would go to the park or similar area for police call (trash pickup), anything boring and time consuming and generally miserable. Then dinner, 1 hour of free time which consisted of getting clothes ready for next day, shower, brush teeth, clean up room, and after inspecting both him and his room for cleanliness, lights out at exactly 8 p.m. Any time he didn't do exactly as he was told or was disrespectful, he did pushups or run in place, etc. He was not allowed any tv, computer, playstation, books, soda's, or junk food. It lasted for about a week, and there was a definite improvement. When he realized that he had brought it on himself by his actions, he came around, apologized to his parents and has been a very good kid since. He still calls us "Sir" when he sees us at work or when we come over. After the ordeal, we all told him how proud we were of him and that we would be disappointed if he started acting up again. He thanked us and thanked his parents for stepping in to keep him out of further, possibly more dangerous trouble. He is 17 now and all he talks about is turning 18 so he can join the Marines. It really makes a difference if used right without hitting and such. And it had a secondary effect on some of his friends when their parents found out about it and threatened to have us come over and start bootcamp for them.

Answer 2

A home boot camp is when a parent or guardian transforms a child's room/life into a prison/prison regime.
They are stripped of all their belongings and left with a room with a bed a blanket and a pillow and NOTHING else. the child only leaves their room to go to the toilet,do chores or to do exercise.
They are given three very basic meals a day that they eat in their room. After dinner they are put into lock down,their bedroom door is locked, the lights are turned off and they are instructed to sleep,they are provided with a bucket in case they need to pee during the night.
During the home boot camp tere are a number of rules that they must adhere to;they must only spek when spoken to. they must do a minimum of 2hrs of chores/day&40mins exercise. They stand when told to stand they sit when told to sit and use the toilet when they are told to. There are consequences for every breach of the rules......if they speak without being asked to speak,they may be given more exercise,more chores or the boot camp may be extended.
Although they are provided with a bucket at night for emergency toilet breaks they are expected to only use the toilet during the designated times or when the parent instructs them too.therefore if the bucket has been used in the morning there are consequences.less dinner more chores etc.
It is set up by parents to regain control over an uppity teen or preteen. It helps to combat bad attitude and general bad behaviour. It is an extremely draining experience for both the child and the adult so often an outisder is brought in to conduct the home camp.
I have done it to my 14yr old before when he was 12,he was lying and stealing and i knew if I didn't step in he would end up in jail. One week was sufficient and it worked wonders but it is something I hope never to have to do again.
the rules and routine may very from person to person. When the week is up the teen must earn back each belonging and priveledge bit by bit this includes speaking when they want, using the toilet freely or eating with the family. So be careful and behave because once those things that you take for granted our removed it may be a long time before you are back to normal.
It took my son two months to get all of his clothes back, his music system and all of that.
The last priveledge to be returned was that of the toilet priveledge...meaning he was over two months asking could he go to the toilet. That was degrading and pathetic for a 12yr old but he had the control to get the right back quicker,his father&I really made him work for it as it was obviously an imprtant one.
Most importantly he had the control not to allow any of it happen in the first place if he had only behaved.
He is now fully in control of his own life and he appreciates it,he also knows that he can loose control very quickly.
Hope this helps. Bottom line your friend is not having fun!

Answer 3

Yes ! It is very normal for parents to want the best for their child !! Doesn't boot camp mean that you are in training? ( With a few things thrown in ,... like ,hair cut, new wardrobe, strict scheduling ,... His parents probably feel that he needs to learn now, because the consequences of bad choices could be a lot more severe , in the future. What better way to learn, than home boot camp? He is lucky they care enough to take an active role!!

Answer 4

I'm only guessing here but, It's just probably being grounded and having to do all the odd jobs about the house that he doesn't like doing as punishment for getting into trouble all the time..