Private Lessons or Camps?

My preference is private lessons...for two reason.

One, is you'll get individual attention and won't get lost in the shuffle of a large camp.

Secondly, if you can find someone you like and trust, they can teach your son and work with him as he advances. I worry about going to several different teachers/camps and have them teach you seven different ways to do the same thing. They may all be right, but you have to find what works and work with that.

Private lessons are great for the reasons stated above but don't discount different ways of doing things. You never know when that one coach will teach them something that just "clicks" and that tidbit goes with them to help make them a stronger ball player. That to me, may be worth the price of the camp. It could be a new way to throw a pitch, a little hint about running or whatever, but little things make a difference as they get older. Just my $.02 which is hardly worth even that.

Group lessons also have a couple advantages. They are less expensive and you get to see others make mistakes that you might not be making at the time and you will know not to do that .
We had both and they both help to educate yourself. One class had 20+ in it and it was probably the most informative one of all. You got to see the instructor show a guy what he was doing wrong and what he should be doing. Pitchers need constant monitoring even at a high level. They develope glitches and need to be told.

Lessons are a must but as the guys age and know the fundementals I think the camps push our guys - they see the competition outside of thier area. Lets say your son is the ace SS in his league - great right. Is he the best in the county, the state, etc. Good camps show him the level of competion and subsequently improve his game.

My son went to a camp last year and one of the catchers was signed by Georgia Tech. Just by watching him and the competitive nature of my son, my son's game improved at least 20%. He understood thats where I need to be.

JMHO

I agree with catcher09 and biggerpapi and would lean more to the private lessons. Both camps and lessons are good but for maximum improvement of most baseball skills private lessons has my vote. Private lessons allows the coach/instructor to focus on your son and his particular strengths and weaknesses. I would look at it much like a having a private tutor vs. classroom instructions. Cost per hour is the big downside to private lessons. BBfam is right (worth much more than .02 cents) in that you never know where or when something could be said or done that could have a real positive influence your son.
Camps are good in they do bring out the competitiveness and are usually more enjoyable to the player. At camps there is usually some slack time to socialize with the other players.
Another aspect not mentioned is the semi-private lessons where two players reserve back to back times with the instructor. This is where two players travel together and share both the travel and instruction fees. This also allows one player to catch his breath and listen to what the coach is saying while the other player is going through his drills. In my opinion this is a perfect set-up for hitting and pitching. We did a lot of the semi private lessons and it almost seems as if you’re getting the lessons at half price.
Are speed and agility camps good? They are good but I would only spend money on them if they would impact your son's baseball future. If my son were an outfielder that either had blazing speed or needed just a little boost to allow him to compete at the next level then I would be serious about them. Since my son was a catcher/pitcher we spent our my money on hitting and pitching. How far do most drive for lessons/camps? That touches a nerve with me. We had to drive 180 miles round trip for most private lessons --- never thought about it before but those long ride to lessons could be part of the big picture --- maybe that's why my son and his "lesson partner" both say they don't mind the long bus rides in the minors.
Fungo

These are great responses. Now I wonder something since I advocated only private lessons.

Based on what Catcher09 said, would camps become more important as the boys get older? My son will be 14 in 07 and up to now, camps were filled with kids who had no fundamentals.

I'd love to go to a camp as we get older where my son would be surrounded by players of his ability or higher.

Competition is good.

My thinking was 180 degrees from what catcher09 suggest although I do see the merit in what he says. The way I looked at it was I thought the camps would be more “fun” and would hold the interest of a young player while the private lessons would be more instructional and player specific and would be more applicable to the older players. Some camps do have a great reputation and some are by invite only so I would seperate those form the "happy camper camps". There seems to be no simple answers for anything any more ----
Fungo

I have noticed the biggest part of switching hitting instructors seems to be that everyone wants to change the stance. To me I thought it wasn't the way you stand it's what you do once you start your stride.

Assuming your son is not a pitcher only, I would recommend a regular speed and agility training program rather than just a camp. Some good facilities are springing up that provide a regular speed/agility/strength training program. If there is one in your area, it can be extremely beneficial. Just make sure any strength training is baseball oriented.

There will be, IMHO, limited benefit from a speed & agility camp unless your son is able to continue at home the drills he learns in the camp.

Since I have instructed in both camps and private lessons, I can say they both have some benefits. As suggested by cather09 and Fungo, the camp atmosphere can allow the young player a chance to see other talent and a gauge for what it will take to advance. The social atmosphere also has importance. The down side is that I've had 65 kids under me at once at one camp.
The private lessons are definitely more beneficial fundamentally. The actual time I spend with a player in 1 hour and what we can go over is more than most kids would get at an 8 hour camp. I also like to schedule 2 or more kids together so that they can share costs and one can listen while the other works.
When I have 3 pitchers and 1 catcher it works great as the catcher is getting lots of pen time, then I'll have the pitchers take throws from him.
I also recommend camps to some of my players as a sure way to test and showcase their abilities.

biggest benefit of lessons is the individualized attention. i have a kid, sophomore, who just started lessons. he told me it was frustrating because everything he was taught he had been told as a freshman, but in the one on one setting, he understood better. i give lessons and coach, and think constantly trying to find a way to work more with smaller groups and my kids.

All the group leeons my son took were 4 on 1 ratios. You got lots of personal attention.
When my son was 15 he had a group 4 week session.The coaches were all MLB coaches home for the off season and they were excellent. The head guy would instruct each phase of the course and then the pitchers would go through the motion and the coaches would mingle with the guys they were assigned and check each one. I thought it was the best camp we went to. We parents were allowed to watch and I was even allowed to video tape the whole thing. Coaches wanted us to know what to look for and be able to understand the pitching motion. These guys were not doing this for the money. They loved coaching kids before they headed back to spring training.

Can't speak for a pitcher, but for a fielder...our fielder....private lessons....with the right instructor. Son was with the same hitting instructor for 6 years....every Sunday morning....7am sharp....in all of our baseball expenses; camps, travel, tournaments....this was the best money spent....

....and in high school....he never sat the bench....because he could hit....at the high school level....if he started to struggle he had immediate feedback/correction come Sunday morning...