To Conquer Staff-Training Boredom
In the summer of 2016, the Day Camp Superhero Training Academy faced its biggest nemesis—Summer Boredom. As the recruits arrived for training, surveillance footage revealed the
A Few Of My Favorite Things
To hear is to forget. To see is to remember. To do is to learn. As we travel around the country speaking at conferences and training camp staff, we embrace this adaptation of a famous statement from Confucius.
Conference-Style Staff Training
“This isn’t relevant to me.” “I already know this.” “Do I have to sit through bullying again?” “Sessions were too long and boring.”
Roll Up Your Sleeves, DIYers
Recently, I decided to upgrade the camp’s recruitment website, and since then I’ve not only made recruitment much easier, but found that it has helped me to hire a better caliber of staff members!
Making A Memory
The summer of 2017 was my 25th summer involved in summer day camp. I have worked as a counselor, arts and crafts specialist, nature specialist, unit leader, archery specialist, program
No Manual For Industry Secrets
Camp work should come with a warning label. There are just some industry secrets that never seem to be covered in staff training. From solemn and serious to wild and wacky, here are 88
The Gang’s All Here—Now What?
House parties have become a popular alternative to traditional gala-style soirees and more formal fundraising affairs. An intimate home setting leaves guests relaxed and ready to give
Growing From The Inside
Internal leadership development (ILD) is a program of hiring, training, and promoting front-line staff members and supervisors from the camper ranks. The benefits for day camps, overnight
Too Many Cooks In The Kitchen
Ma-Ka-Ja-Wan Scout Reservation in Pearson, Wis., and Kandle Dining Services entered into a partnership three years ago to provide dining services for two sub-camps and to pack daily
Kids Or Corporations
Summer youth camps are all about the kids, right? Creating friendships, building confidence, learning and improving skills are the ideals that nature-based resident camps foster. And many
Be a Food Hero
Does your camp kitchen menu need some fresh ideas to accommodate campers’ changing dietary needs, reflect new cuisines or food trends, or include a wider variety of healthy items?
Life-Skills Training
This space is often filled with articles about the ways that camps add value to children’s lives, such as providing and identifying skills that stimulate leadership, independence,
Untangling The Web
In February 2016, I helped launch our new website for Longacre Leadership Camp in Pennsylvania. After much analysis of the design and development process, we came up with
Elevate Your Game
Are you just getting a new basketball camp off the ground? Or are you a veteran camp director who is looking for a new approach to boost the motivation of staff members and
The Timber Rattler Run
Back in the 1980s during my college summers, I buried myself in camp culture and soaked up all the nuances it offered. Consistent themes of accepting campers as they came, warding off
Reliable Power Makes Happy Campers
For Anthony Gronski, summer camp is a training ground for life. The executive director at YMCA Camp Woodstock, a summer camp and retreat center in Woodstock Valley, Connecticut
CampDoc Offers Text Message Alert Tool
ANN ARBOR, Michigan--CampDoc.com, an electronic health record system for camps, announced the release of its text message alert tool that allows camps to easily send mass
Zac Brown Fulfills Dream To Launch Camp Southern Ground
Ever wonder what Grammy award-winning singer Zac Brown does in his spare time? He's been busy getting Camp Southern Ground off the ground.
Your Campers Are Safe
Camp professionals conscientiously protect campers’ physical safety and security. However, many of us aren’t trained to think in the same way about the safety and security of the personal information we collect.
Water-Supply Challenge
We all learned in school that two-thirds of the Earth’s surface is covered in water, but only 3 percent of that is fresh water. And of that, only a fraction is available for human use; that is