Staff Training Email Roundtable – Winners

Another miracle at summer camp!​

Another miracle at summer camp!​

We would like to thank everyone that participated in our first ever Staff Training Email Roundtable.  It was a collaboration with CampHacker friend (and sometime podcast co-host) Curt “Moose” Jackson from the Summer Camp Program Director.  Those who shared their ideas have already received their copy of the booklet with over 200 new sessions.

We will be picking our top 10 sessions of the lot and sending them out to our newsletter subscribers this month.   Make sure you are signed up for the newsletter!

Big thanks to our guest judges

It’s a busy time of year for camp people so Curt and I would love to thank Scott Arizala and Chris Pallato.  They are great supporters of the camp community!

Check out the amazing prizes!

Thank you to everyone who so graciously offered prizes for our Roundtable.  Please check out their links below.

1st Place winner received:

  • One year of Premium Access advertising package ($1080 value) provided by CampEasy.com
  • Online Marketing EVO (Evaluating Your Vision Online) Consultation ($500 value) provided by Travis Allison of CampHacker.org
  • 1 Icebreaker Thumball and 1 Move Your Body Thumball provided by Michelle Cummings of Training Wheels
  • 5 Hip Pocket Activity booklets provided by Curt “Moose” Jackson of Recreation Pros
  • 5 Play Pens provided by Chris Pallatto of  Ultimate Camp Resource

2nd Place winner received:

2 Honorable Mentions received:

Go for Whoo! Not Whoah – Representing Yourself Online

Representing Yourself and Your Camp Online

In the modern, connected world responsible summer camp staff understand that what they do online reflects on their summer camp employer AND will reflect on them for years to come.

In this new one-hour session, created for the staff of the day camps of Simcoe County, Ontario, I touch on some examples of people who have been fired for what they have chosen to do online.   But that is only a small part of this session.  The majority of the time is spent showing examples of great things that young adults have created and posted online to have a very positive impact.

Go For Whoo?

Imagine yourself in the camp office nervously searching Google for the name of your new hire.   When you find their YouTube page you are thrilled to see that they write and perform their own music, they have created fun videos for a club at school and they have spoke out against bullying.  THAT is a “Whoo!” moment.   Let’s teach summer camp staff to have more of those.

If you would like me to bring this presentation to your camp staff please send me an email (travis@walkingmaverick.com) or call (519.532.7366).

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Adam's Rib

Adam's Rib: how one man's work defines him. A film by James Arthurs and Cam Roden. Original music by James Arthurs. Connect with us: @pennpanache pennpanache@gmail.com Shot on: Canon 5D MKII Canon 7D Canon 24-105mm 4 Canon 85mm 1.2 Canon 50mm 1.4 Rokinon 35mm 1.4 Tokina 11-16 2.8 The Lively Hood Series - We have set out to tell the stories of unique handmade artists who have made their works, their means. Our goal is to showcase Toronto as the Lively Hood that it is, while reinstating value and understanding in things made-by-hand.

Adam's Rib​

Summer Camp Leader builds canoes

Marc was the program director at Kilcoo Camp.  He turned his camp skills into a business building and restoring cedar strip canoes.

This is a beautiful film.   Take 4 minutes and watch it!​

Things I Wouldn’t Know If I Didn’t Go To Camp Part 7: Saying No

Let me start by saying I can’t believe it has been about 3 weeks since my last post!  Things have been busy!  I have you, the readers to thank for a lot of that!  My book The Cabin Path: Leadership Lessons Learned At Camp launched on April 7th and the support has been exceptional!  Thanks to those who have already purchased their copy.  Now for my blog post…

Camper: Can I go to the waterfront at freetime?

You: Yes.

Camper: Can Sebastien and I grab a drink from the water fountain?

You: Yes.

Staff: Can you please cover my free-time patrol at ropes?

You: Yes.

Staff: Can you be a costumed character in our program tomorrow night?  We’ve already picked the costume.

You: Yes.

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As young leaders, camp staff members, and team players, we are accustomed to saying YES.  As employees of camps or of companies we also want to look good in front of our bosses, and to do this, we often put our answers to questions on autopilot when asked and answer YES.

How far do you go?  How long will it take to burn out if you’re known as the go to person (for everything) in your organization?  If you say yes, does that mean you’re good?  Reliable?  Eager?  Yes.

If you say no, does it mean that you are lazy, not-committed, not achievement oriented, and possess a general lack of care for your job?  NO!

Learning to say no is one of the most powerful leadership tools you can use.  While studying during my MBA, we did a case on Oprah Winfrey, who said that she finally felt in control of her life as a leader when she started saying no to people.  Inherently, we think saying yes is the right thing to do, but it comes at a cost.  Here’s an article from Oprah’s site you might like: Why Saying No Is Saying Yes To Yourself.

As leaders, we have to be able to manage our own commitments and at camp the reality is no different (look at the program board in the picture – it’s filled with things “to-do”!).  We have our cabin groups to take care of, our daytime programming to plan, our evening programs, our overnights/canoe trips, our free-time patrols, etc.  So, when you’re asked to help out with one more task, how do you respond, yes or no?

Even further, how do you gracefully deliver the message if it’s a no to ensure that the asker doesn’t think you’re just being lazy?

When packing for trips, I always saw seven flashlights and seven tubes of toothpaste going into my campers’ packs.  I had to learn to set their expectations by saying no to some of the items they wanted to pack.  The canoe trip is a trip of shared resources.  Plus, with already heavy packs, we didn’t need any extra weight.

So what’s the takeaway here?  We can be super heroes to our campers, but not to everybody.  Be careful about taking on too much and over extending yourself.  Don’t be afraid to say no and back yourself up!

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Summer Camp Staff Training - Email Roundtable and Contest

Where do you get your best summer camp staff training ideas?

summer camp staff trainingWe are excited to partner with Curt “Moose” Jackson from Summer Camp Program Director on a new project just in time for your summer camp staff training preparations.

Summer Camp Staff Training E-Mail Roundtable and Contest

(The last day to submit ideas is Wednesday, May 9)

We invite all readers of this blog to send us in your best ever staff training sessions. We're looking for ideas of training sessions that rocked the socks off of your staff.

Think of the sessions where everyone left happy and energized and excited. Those times when you knew that they understood exactly what you needed them to, and they still had a great time. Send us those!

People who participate in this roundtable (ideas must be submitted to: camp.roundtable@gmail.com) will receive a copy of the PDF booklet of all all of our collected ideas.

Please note: You need to be signed up for the CampHacker and Summer Camp Program Director newsletters to participate. Please click on the link above to sign up for our newsletter and go to Moose's website to sign up for his.

Details from Curt's amazing summer camp resource: Summer Camp Program Director

What is your best staff training idea?

We have all been a part of staff trainings and many of us have led staff trainings. What principles, techniques or ah-ha moments have you done or observed that was amazing? Or perhaps you have created a new idea for this summer’s staff training. Maybe you need a reminder on topics to spur your memory or imagination. So, here is a list of staff training areas. Of course, there are more, but this should help you out if you are struggling with this roundtable. Please keep in mind that you can submit more than one idea.

  • Supervising Staff
  • Camper Behavior and Discipline
  • Working With Varying Age Groups
  • Camp Counselor Tips, Tricks and Best Practices
  • Emergency Procedures
  • Anti-Bullying
  • Communications
  • Policies and Procedures
  • Staff Icebreakers
  • Conflict Resolution
  • Field Trip Procedures
  • Teachable Moments with Campers
  • Working with Co-Workers
  • Debriefing Techniques
  • Working with Children with Disabilities (Physical, Learning, etc.)
  • Dealing with Homesickness

The Prizes

Everyone who participates will receive the final compilation which will also include a few favorite staff training ideas from some experts that have agreed to contribute as well.

Our judges include:

1st Place will receive:

  • One year of Premium Access advertising package ($1080 value) provided by CampEasy.com
  • Online Marketing EVO (Evaluating Your Vision Online) Consultation ($500 value) provided by Travis Allison of CampHacker.org
  • 1 Icebreaker Thumball and 1 Move Your Body Thumball provided by Michelle Cummings of Training Wheels
  • 5 Hip Pocket Activity booklets provided by Curt “Moose” Jackson of Recreation Pros
  • 5 Play Pens provided by Chris Pallatto of  Ultimate Camp Resource

2nd Place will receive:

2 Honorable Mentions will receive:

 

If you have any questions or comments please email me.​