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Basics:
- Camp Rules/Policies
- Boundaries
- Philosophy/mission/goals/history/Core values (every camper matters/respecting the camping environment)
- Site tour (About the site and facilities)
- Traditions
- Camp songs
- Typical day/week/summer
- Camp terminology (i.e. electives/rest period/theme day…)
- Awards
- Camp logistical details (i.e. (phones/visitors/mail laundry/$/lining up for meals/flagpole/the play)
- Family camps (working with parents…)
- Year round programs
- Rules around continuing contact with campers in the off season
- Social Media protocol.
- Fundraising (visitors)
- Schedules
- Daily
- Week
- Summer (Theme days and special program implementation)
- Meeting Schedules (Cabin Mtg’s, Unit Mtg’s, Staff Mtg’s,)
- Privacy laws
- Requisitions/supply shopping
Overview of the staff position:
- Staff Job Descriptions (in general/head/activity heads/support/specialists/counselors/group leaders)
- Camp hierarchy
- Code of conduct (elaborate things like tolerance/confidentiality/media)
- Go over contract
- Days off/time off/town nights
- Expectations
- Role modeling
- Taking the initiative
- What does supervision look like at this camp
- Logistics (phones/visitors/mail/laundry/paychecks/maintenance/office/messages/requisitions/in&out procedures/garbage)
- Staff evaluation/feedback (cheat sheet)
- Role during all camp gatherings (i.e. sing-songs/meals/theater/services/announcements)
- Hands up and quiet (including yours!)
- Spreading staff among kids
- Check all campers are there (attendance)
Staff Wellness
- Staff support
- Taking time off/rest
- If your feeling sick.
- Voicing grievances
- Besides the love of the campers…other staff motivation (financial bonuses, special perks, recognition, directors taking over for cabins)
Group dynamics
- Trust and support
- Decision making
- Challenge and conflict
- How to be approached
- Goal setting
- Communication
- How your extended family fits together (i.e. activity heads, C.I.T.s , support staff…)
Feedback from previous year (staff and surveys)
The Camper Pop
- CIT’s
- LIT’s
- Kids:
- Behavior management (1=prevention 2=dealing with behavior 3=when to pass the buck to someone in a more senior position)
- Parent Panel
- Camper Rules (i.e. cabin hopping, food in cabins, cell phones, supervision etc.)
- Bullying
- How to answer the sticky questions (i.e. sex, divorce, religion…)
- The basics of counseling (usually presented creatively in a 15-20 min rotation lead by a head staff):
- Special needs – modifying to each individual childs needs (i.e. ear infections/ADHD/divorce…)
- Homesickness
- How we can help build camper’s self esteem
- Making the boring fun
- Watches (O.D.-Night watch /General swim/rest period)
- Fighting/stealing/lying
- Cliques / inclusiveness
- Cleanliness/clean-up (bed making/shelves)
- Sensitive issues (shaving/menstruation/sex talk/bed wetting/lice/crushes on staff)
- Bed time/wake-up
- Letter writing/tuck
- Camper relationships
- Cabin team building opportunities (i.e. rose and thorn/cabin nick names…)
Cancer:
- Psychosocial:
- How to listen (it’s a skill)
- Death, Dying, bereavement
- Remembering ceremonies (perhaps run one for the staff)
- Funerals
- Medical:
- What is cancer?
- Types of childhood cancer
- The good news about survival
- Treatments
- Chemo/radiation/spinal tapes/isolation/Hickmans/ports/topical anesthetic/prosthesis
- Long term effects of:
- Hair loss/amputations/brain damage/sterility/sexuality/growth
- Our Camper Population:
- The child with cancer (loss of friends, missed school/ compromised immune system/what they know/financial/guilt…)
- The “cured” child: (Fear of returning/long term effects…)
- The palliative child
- Siblings (guilt/latch key/jealousy/bereavement/growing up fast…)
- Parents ($/time off work/marital relationship/guilt about other children…)
Child protection:
- Children’s aid society
- Situations you don’t want to find yourself in
- Privacy (showers/cabin changing)
- How to listen through a disclosure
- Method of least intrusive
General Programming (instruction & programming time)
- The No No’s with the oncology population to make things fun equally for all…
- No running (different ways to play games like capture the flag-with rock paper scissors)
- No wrestling (protect ports/hickmans/low platelets)
- No programs surrounding death or afterlife (i.e. ouigi boards)
- All accessibility programming (Cover many challenges: Oncology related/amputations/sight/hearing/behavior…)
- Duck tape modification game
- How to program:
- The “Sieve” (Program Viability!)
- Reading the audience (knowing when to abandon!)
- Recording programs
- Technical stuff (i.e. sound system…)
- Requisitioning
- Types of programs:
- Opening Day/Welcome!
- Electives/Free 4 All
- Rainy day/windy day/hot day backups
- Campfires
- Evening programs
- Special programs (Olympics/fashion show/idol)
- Theme days
- Theme meals
- Staff programming
- Dances
- Talent shows
- Banquet/Camp Closing
- Basic First Aid training (just the life and death … immediate):
- R.E.D.
- C.P.R.
- Choking
- Anaphylaxis (epi pen training)
- Heat stroke
- Potential spinals
- Infirmary/Med Shed/Body Shop/Heath Center
- Meet the med team
- Tour and procedures (i.e. sick call/ if someone’s not well)
- Storing of medications (campers and staff)
- Camper care:
- Infectious diseases/universal precautions
- Lice management
- Mosquito protection (West Nile virus)
- Impetigo (de-stigmatize and inform…treatment strategy!)
- Sun protection/hydration
- Nutrition (i.e. discouraging dieting/role modeling)
- Hygiene (teeth, showers, rashes, fingernails, purell dispensers before meals)
Safety
- Risk management
- Emergency procedures
- All camp assembly
- Searches (land/water/trip/night)
- Fire (if happen upon one to the all camp gathering)
- Fire extinguisher training
- Night fire
- High wind/lightening
- Hazards (i.e. whimis/toxic stuff)
- Accident/incident reporting
- Reporting hazards (i.e broken equipment)
- Safety checklists (challenge them to update checklist)
Dining hall procedures
- Rules (i.e. food fights/table visiting/kitchen)
- Peanut Butter protocol
- Manners
- Hand washing
- Fire/exiting fast
- Protocol
- Blessing/grace
- Food/seconds/alternative
- Meet the kitchen and pantry staff (appreciation)
- Kids first
- Special diets
- Kosher stuff (when applicable)
- Station Duty
- Morning song
- Clean up (leftovers/ Recycling program?)
- Dinner on the Green (BBQs)
- Staff fridge
- Breakfast in Bed
- Snacks
- Announcements
Time with unit heads on age specific stuff.
i.e. younger units- making sure they are dressed weather appropriatelyWaterfront training
- Swim testing
- Guarding
- Emergency (day/night) (if at swim/if not)
- Role at instructional/general swim
- General Swim
- Buddy system
- Shallow water spinal
- boating
Activity Area 101 (For group leaders
- Area Rules
- Staff use of areas
- How to be a helper
- Clean up
- Supervision of campers
- Being prepared
- Moving kids to activities
- Working together with volunteers
- Different roles/responsibilities/appropriate dress at the different areas
- Basic skill training
- Goals of Pre-camp
- Learning:
- Leading an activity in general
- Typical day
- Role in cabin
- Risk management (assessment/supervision)
- Equipment (taking and maintaining inventory / reporting unsafe&/or broken
- How to Program
- Rainy/windy day procedures
- No-shows
- Spares
- Extra periods (i.e. general swim)
- Staff use of area
- Award system (formal recognition, i.e. dining hall announcements/raising flagpole)
- Area Binders (Camper lists/ daily logs / area outlines / summer calendars)
- Time to:
- Set up area
- Programming…
- rainy/windy back-ups
- regular activity time (levels?)
- Special clinics
- weekly themes/projects
- obtain supplies
- schedule special events
- make awards
Trippers:
- menu with kitchen
- routes and evacuations with the directors
- training from the head tripper- emergencies …fire on trip/missing camper/ medical emergency
- animal control
- weather protocol
- packing (clothes/food packing and order of consumption)
- sleeping arrangements
- programming the fun and learning
- no trace camping
- rules on trips
- medications
- water purification
- bathrooms
- campfire safety and cooking
- sanitation
- Car moving/registering with key
- Staff special diets
- Name tag making
- Paper work (contracts/health forms/tax forms/other admin)
- 1st night watch schedule (Head staff- rotating)
In prep for first day:
- Camper profiles
- Unpacking
- Opening day logistics
- Welcome prep (cabin signs/name tag making/banners/cabin wheels/schedules)
- Unhappy cabin placement procedures
- Name games/ice breakers/tours/infirmary-health checks/go over rules
- Unit cheer learning
- “I want to go home”
- Confiscating food/contraband
- First day/night schedule (very detailed play by play)
- What should be covered in cabin meeting (i.e. emergency meeting spot for fire/ cabin contract/rules/our family)
Other (time specific or not for everybody)
- Visitors day (pre/during/post)
- Bus monitoring
- Changeover (packing/day of/welcoming/those who want to stay longer)
- Inter-camp games
- Boat/vehicle training
- Clinic Visits (Chemo)