I've been given a job as a summer long camp counselor. **Update**

If the rules for counselors state, "no knives", follow them. Getting your ass canned is not a good way to start off with a possible career. Their activities could very well be planned out. Ask what you can teach the kids. It could very well be that your job will be baby sitting. But, doing well at this job might get you a better job next year. Let us know what you find out. Oh, and congratulations!
 
Congratulations.
Are you going to be near water? Canoeing is a great skill to learn and one most kids enjoy. I have found planning skills around a game or objective will hold their attention. Teach them basic strokes and create a race, teach them safety and have an obstacle course of righting a tipped canoe in water above head water, portaging from point A to point B while performing fun activities or challenging ones along the way etc. A scavenger hunt based on basic navigation skills, make a whistle from a branch and signal each other. And no knife? Teach them how to knap "knife like tools" or use natural objects.

Ask if they object to you bringing a multi tool. A leatherman wave will get you through the day.

Wild edibles, a night time navigation, some fishing or live trapping are all fun activities that will keep them entertained and learning. If you want more ideas or details just let me know, I enjoy mentoring and teaching outdoor skills and have been privileged to have had the opportunity for a number of years.

Introduce ideas and basic knowledge, let them explore, get dirty and try, and then hone those skills. A good campfire at the end of the night will be the best feedback you get, use that time to find out how the kids are doing and what they want to be doing. Always learn and always adapt, no kid is the same and if you can find something, anything to get them interested in the outdoors-use it and expand on it and allow it to take it's course.

Congratulations again and have fun! The more you enjoy it, the more the kids will.
Just remember that now you are in a position of responsibility and don't take it for granted
 
gadgetgeek said:
A couple of things I learned from several summers doing camps with kids. Policy is often determined by the insurance company. No matter how dumb an idea seems, or over the top protective, that insurance is the only thing that matters. I carried a knife all the time when working at camp. sometimes very ridiculous knives. But everyone knew me, and that was sort of "my" thing, and I had secure storage overnight since I had my own place to stay away from the kids.

I've heard lots of talk about "well 20-30 years ago we used to" and never, never take that at face value. Remember that times have changed. I've worked with gang kids that we were not told had violent backgrounds. I've had kids with FAE go from calm to stabby the moment they got near a pair of scissors (that was not fun when someone found out a box of stanley blades was missing......) One of the big things that I had to work against was older staff saying "we used to do it that way" and even the camps board of directors giving well meaning but foolish ideas based on their experiences in the 70s and 80s. A whole lot of that stuff is just plain not legal anymore, or the kids have no context in which to understand it. Remember, you don't know these kids. You don't know who has the anger control issues, or only has movie bad-asses for adult role models. I had kids get very disappointed that the air guns we used were not styled after video game guns. You also don't know which of you co-workers has the tendency to act like a 13 year old, or forgets which side of a knife is sharp.

Teach all kinds of skills, but be aware that you may be responsible for what those kids do with those skills. Traps are cool, but what is that going to look like in a newspaper? that kid might be totally cool with it, and maybe even their parents. But unless that is okay with the folks running the camp, its too big a nest of bees to mess with.

I'm not saying that its not a good idea to teach. I really enjoy teaching kids skills that are outside of their day to day lives. I've taught kids fire making, and how to use knives, archery and airguns. But I had the cover of my leadership team, and approval under the liability coverage. I've also seen the most innocent comment, or action get taken out of context and good people get blacklisted from working at camps. I know people who have been brought up on charges (ultimately they were dropped) because they stepped outside of the set boundary. If the kids are coming to the camp to learn wilderness skills, and the parents have sent them knowing what kind of skills those are, then thats cool, if its the kind of camp where everyone hangs out in tents for a week and goes on "nature walks" then just be mindful of what might offend someone. Its crappy, but its the world we find ourselves in.


And if the leadership want you to teach skills that are not part of the regular program, ask about the insurance. Because there is always that chance that something can go wrong, and you don't want to be the guy out in the cold on it. I really don't mean to be a spoil-sport. Just be very aware of what you are doing, and how it can be viewed out of context. Document stuff, and make sure you are covered, make sure the leadership are okay with what you are doing. Then have fun, I'm sure you will learn a lot, and it will be a great time.
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That is very good advice!

I probably should have mentioned that our camp is billed as a wilderness camp and we are very clear with parents and the camp what we are planning. We also keep the camp small purposefully. We have two certified EMT's on staff and an area that is small enough to keep relative control. We also do an extensive safety briefing at the beginning and throughout the week. We operate on a 3 strike rule. 1 warning, 1 confiscation, then you're out of camp if caught doing anything dangerous to themselves or others.

I've also worked with kids coming out of bad situations. I was on a camp staff one year where half way through the week we found out that over 50% of our kids were from downtown chicago and haas been given the choice between camp and a stint in juvie. The camp didn't tell us until halfway through the week because they thought we might treat them differently. It explained the mass number of extreme behaviors we were witnessing. We had to treat that camp differently.

Do not do anything outside of normal camp policies without written permission and full backing.
 
gadgetgeek - thanks

sir_mike - the rule was didn't state, but I assume if the counselor's aren't allowed to carry then I doubt the campers can

sideways - I like that

Bo T - the thing is in the application under the "skills" section they give the option to select "wilderness survival"

Sullie - The camp has their own private lake and I like the whistle idea, would've never thought of that.

Here's the website for the camp if you folks want to poke around.

http://www.camptalltimbers.com/

I've been emailing the director and the assistant but he/she hasn't responded back to them yet which is understandable.
 
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You should be careful what you post and linking that with their camp information. You may have violated a between the lines type policy. You need to go carefully in these days because employers look at and search out web activity and presence to see what people really think.
 
Any camp that doesn't want their website posted around is one that you don't want to be involved with. It looks on the surface to be a straight up sort of place.

I will say that these sort of places get into your blood, and you will probably form long lasting friendships with the people you work with there.

Like I think I said earlier, often the no-knives rule is just the blanket and exceptions can be made, the main thing is keeping the kids safe, and securing a knife overnight can be a challenge.


TLR, seems like we are speaking the same language. One camp I worked at got lots of respite cases from foster homes and youth half-way houses. I can understand not labeling kids since they will follow whatever label you give them, but it is nice to know ahead of time which kid to not turn your back on.
 
willseeyalater said:
You should be careful what you post and linking that with their camp information. You may have violated a between the lines type policy. You need to go carefully in these days because employers look at and search out web activity and presence to see what people really think.
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Don't take this lightly. You are an employee so what you say represents them.

Most camps and outdoor programs are in close working relations with respite and disadvantaged youth, thankfully, other wise I would not be who I am today.

Have fun, but don't under estimate your responsibilities. You are in a position to be one of the biggest influences in the life of a child; Don't waste it
 
gadgetgeek said:
Like I think I said earlier, often the no-knives rule is just the blanket and exceptions can be made, the main thing is keeping the kids safe, and securing a knife overnight can be a challenge.
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I've already thought about that, I can either keep them in my tool box on my truck, locked up. Or I could bring a lockbox with me and chain that to my bed.
 
Just go with whatever the leadership is cool with. It could be that everyone is under the rule until they figure out who is trustable. Realistically there will be knives around, at the very least in the kitchen!
 
1 month into camp time for a little update.

So my main job is as a rifle instructor and a archery instructor. I have to say though that being a rifle instructor is incredibly stressful with these kids. I'm constantly watching them making sure that they aren't playing with the rifle or pointing at other people. In fact in the final class of my previous round of campers a girl was pointing a loaded gun at my face, off safety, and with her finger on the trigger. Needless to say I flipped out, started yelling at her, and if it wasn't the last day at camp for her I would've banned her from the range and made sure that her parents would know about her reckless actions. It is completely unacceptable for a thirteen year old to think that is okay, anyways back to the camp as a whole. The camp likes to retain a small camp feel, about 100 kids is the max amount per camp session which there are three sessions per season. They do a great job completely separating the camp from the outside world; no cell phones, wifi, or tv is allowed. That's just for the kids though and not the counselors. If I have one complaint about the camp it is the off time, they are far and few in between. It may be up to a week and a half before I even have a night off depending on events. So the other counselors and I get quite irritable at times. So that's all for now, my campers are coming back to the cabin.
 
I was a 30.06 rifle instructor for three years at Philmont, two of those as Camp Director at the rifle camp. For safety purposes shooting was from prone position only, rifles were single-shot, and only three shooters were on the mats at a time. When we had kids that didn't speak English (lots of Scouts from Japan visit Philmont) I would have only one shooter at a time only to allow one-on-one visual instruction.
Shotgun was more challenging, two years as a .12 gauge instructor, since you can't shoot at clay pigeons from a prone position very well. ;) But also the shotgun range at two instructors and only one shooter at a time.
 
taught shot gun and rifle in a scout camp upstate NY in the summer of 73
I was very formal and firm
 
Neeman, probably right here in the Catskills ! In NYC in the early 1960s we had shooting teams as did my school. There was never a problem .Sadly that all disappeared about 1968 in the insanity ! Taught properly , without the myths , shooting is a fine sport and you can feed yourself as a hunter.
 
It was Curtis Reed Scout Camp in the Adarondacks
I helped build the rifle Range to the 'new' third camp Camp Proposed
I was on an international program Camp America paying for the air ticket from England
Taught 22 and shotgun
Four two-week sets of Scout troops from Westchester County
Got my NRA Expert
 
I've become a much more stern in riflery since that experience. I guess I was just too laid back last session and assumed that everybody would have a respect for rifles as I did when I was their age, but I was clearly wrong. So now I lay down the rules to all the kids and I'm quick to bring down the hammer when those rules are broken. For example, if a camper goes in the gun shed they're going to sit out for the class, if they touch the guns while cold they go last, and if they playfully point a gun at someone they get banned for the session. Three simple rules that a eight year old can follow, which they have for the most part.
 
INFK, I agree--the rules are the rules, and the hammer drops swiftly at the first breach.

As a youth, many moons ago, I learned a lot working as staff on the rifle range at scout camp in AK. Fort Richardson would detail different soldiers to the camp to run the range, and I was the assistant for a summer. The soldiers were good mentors and ran the range by the book.

After that summer, I joined my HS rifle team; lettered three years. A great, challenging sport.
 
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I know that feeling man. I did air-rifles for a few years and you are right, its always best to start out really strict. You will find a way to be strict without seeming like a jerk, but it takes some time. I did have kids point guns at me once and a while, only once did it shake me, but that was the probably the 10th time. I learned to judge the groups, sometimes the line would have 6-8 guns going, sometimes only 2, so I could grab both if needed. You'll learn your style. But from the sounds of it, you are learning, and that's the important part. I can't begin to tell you how rare that is.

As for the time off thing, I get that its rough, but trust me on this, having kids with nothing to do takes far more energy than running an activity! And it took most of the staff I worked with a couple years to learn how to pace themselves. You'll get it. Good luck man
 
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