Archive for the 'Program Ideas' Category

It is a really fun idea to give all the staff at your camp staff nicknames. Doing this can help remove some of the formalness of life and just help create a relaxed atmosphere. If you have the luxury of doing this in ideal conditions where the campers have no clue what the real name of the staff is, then it becomes a game for the campers to try to find out the real names and the for the staff to try to not call the staff by their real name. Just another little game for the campers and the staff to play.

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One thing that I have learned over the years that I have worked at camp is that the best thing for the campers is if the staff can get along, or at least look like they get along. Any time that there is a problem with the staff in front of the campers it makes the staff members lose credibility. The campers can pick up on the feelings of the staff, so the answer is to make sure your staff all get along because a unified staff is a happier and more fun environment for everyone, the director, other staff and most important the campers. A unified staff does not mean that there are no disagreements and everyone is best friends but that if there are differences they are dealt with maturely and appropriately, and everyone is heading for the common goal. There are several ways to do this, here are a few ideas:
-Spend time during counselor training talking about the common goals of the camp for the summer
-Have a specific person on staff that the staff can come that talk with to help deal with the issues
-Every so often on a day off, plan a camp staff activity at the camp that is optional the attend, do these will create shared experiences where the staff will then have something in common and a connecting point to talk about and remember later, like:
— a pool party
— a BBQ camp out
— burning of on old outhouse
— a canoe trip and picnic on the other side of the lake
— a staff trail ride if you have horses
— movie night (a drive in style)
— if you have a city nearby, plan a staff trip go to the park for the night and play games in the park and have a picnic there or something
— anything to have an experience that is shared by all and look back and laugh at later
-Have staff help plan activities, get them involved in minor decisions. Let them have a say they could have a good idea that the leader never thought of
-To have a happy worker try to find places were the leader can give the staff member ownership of something, either it be how their skill is taught, how they run the cabin and activity time, or cabin devo’s. Anything where they have control and the say. This does not mean that they run wild and unsupervised, but that their ideas my work better for them or their situation. This will help them feel like a team player
-one area where people disagree, is on theology. It is good to focus on the similarities and the base beliefs, but whether cats go to heaven is something that they can discuss on their own time off. it is not appropriate to discuss/fight about in front of campers

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Take all the campers and tie there hands together as a table creating a circle of all their hands around the table. Then they must all eat, figuring out the best and most efficient way to eat while being all tied together. A few objects that can be used to tie hands together:
-String
-Thin rope
-A cut up 6 pack can holder (3 pairs of 2)
-Tape

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SPP = Secret Prayer Partner or SEP = Secret Encouragement Partner

This is a chance for the staff to build unity together as they encourage and pray for the other staff. The way that it works is that every person on staff is written on a sheet of paper. It is cut up and all the names are put in a hat. The staff members pick a name out of the hat. For the next week they pray and encourage that staff member by writing them letters and praying for them. They can buy each other candy or small gifts, but be sure that you keep watch on it, as people end up buying instead of encouraging. At the end of the week get the staff to see if they can guess who had them and then do it all again for the next week. As people need to pray for each other they need to get to know them without them finding out it is them, doing this could create a better staff bond.

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