ITA with ultramarina -
I think it's important not to put eggs in one basket regarding a friend at camp. Sometimes kids who are close at one place are not close at another. For parent and child both, relying on this can be risky. It is okay if the other boy does not want to play with your son...KWIM? I would want to have a discussion about this, because it will probably happen again.
I'd also suggest thinking about this from the other child's point of view - would you expect your child to be expected to always play with the same friend?
I also think, and this may sound very pessimistic, that depending on your educational plans, you may need to talk to your son about how environments may not provide the kind of challenge or the level and depth he wants and can get at home. It is a lesson gifted kids have to learn unless exclusively homeschooled or in a very unique environment, I think. It's important to be able to enjoy environments despite this.
Realizing that expectations may not equal reality also happens with non-gifted kids and camps too. And fwiw, my kids have had good experiences and a lot of fun over the years in camps that weren't specifically for gifted kids. I've also found that with two of my three kids, when I ask them what they did or how their day went when they were at a camp or in any type of multiple-hour activity, their first inclination is to tell me about what they *didn't* like rather than what was fun or interesting. I think it's important to dig deep enough to find things that a child can look at as positive and really know for sure that the camp either was or wasn't as negative as it sounds.
Another advantage of staying in and trying various programs is that you may meet other parents and kids who you may connect and/or who may be able to tell you where to find a more appropriate experience.
The other thing that may happen is that your child may make a connection with another child. The interesting thing I found over the years watching my kids go through our area's science/outdoors/etc type summer camps was that, even though they weren't "gifted" camps and even though they didn't have admissions requirements etc - there was a basic group of children that my children landed in camps with repeatedly - not all the same children at each camp, but there would be children throughout the years that my children would be in camp with and know from previous camps. Quite a large number of these children turned out to be the same kids who were in gifted classes/etc once they were in school. So I wouldn't assume your child is out there all in his own little lonely land just because he's intellectually gifted and the camp isn't teaching kids high-level stuff.
Best wishes,
polarbear
