Camp Gross Staff Training

Camp Gross Camp Staff Training Session
July 1, 2009

Four guiding principles for being a camp counselor (and for working with children in all different situations)

Children like to Move and Make Noise – When I first heard Bill Brennan (see Billy “B”) say this in a workshop on song writing, singing and movement for working with children it struck a chord in me. It articulated what I knew from my years of experience in working with children. Children like to move and make noise. As a camp counselor or youth leader my job isn’t to stop children from moving and making noise, it’s to help them move and make noise in the direction needed. As a youth leader am I prepared to do this?

Children Do Not Have A Short Attention Span – Think back to the sage advise given to us by someone (your mom, a teacher, a camp program director) when we first started working with children, “Remember, kids have a short attention span.” Well, this advice is was WRONG (actually not wrong just misdirected). Years ago when I heard a presentation by Michael Brandwein speaking on the attention span of children, he spoke about youth leaders needing to have good attention grabbers. Again, this is something that I had known all along from experience. Saying children have a short attention span doesn’t help me do my job as a youth leader. It lays the problem on the children, when the problem is really what do I have that will help me capture the attention of the children I am working with. Children have an attention span, sometimes short other times long. I need tips, tricks, techniques that will help me keep that child’s attention on the situation at hand instead of on something else.

Just Do It – I wish I had trademarked this phrase when I first started using it while advising and training camp counselors, youth leaders and teachers years before it was made popular by a Nike ad campaign. Too many times we spend too much time talking to children, instead of letting them “Just Do It”. Children don’t need to know everything before they start on something. They learn by doing. As a camp counselor, more doing is much better than more talking.

Everything I Do Teaches – This is a personal philosophy that goes much beyond just being a camp counselor. In today’s world everyone points to all the negative influences – TV, celebrities, the media, politicians, investment bankers – that affect the development of children. Well, where are the positive influences going to come from, from you and me. Hillary Rodham Clinton made this African folk phrase “It takes a village” popular a few years back. What makes up that village? Individuals do. Everything you do teaches those around you. As a camp counselor this is the most important thing to remember, you may say one thing but if you do another your actions will teach much better than your words.

With these four principles in mind what tips, tricks, and techniques will I have at the ready as a youth leader to help me in my work with children. Here is a list of games, activities, challenges, puzzles and presentations that I shared with the Camp Gross staff.


What is it Bag (also known as a Grock Bag)
Rope Circle
Circle Pass Games
Magic Sticks
Suns and Planets
Finger on the Nose Trick
Move That Finger
Sharp Eyes
ESP
Nail Balance Challenge
Fork Balance Challenge
Pick Up the Straws Challenge
Crook of the Elbow
Maze

These activities come from a wide range of resources and experiences. I’ll blog about these later.

If you want to know details of how to do any of the activities e-mail me.