A Roundup – 10 of the Best Camp Resources

Yesterday I was chatting with a camping colleague over at Summer Camp Secrets and I realized that I should share some of the amazing resources I’ve curated over time (ohhh…. makes me sound so fancy doesn’t it? Fancy Pants Camp Nerd. That’s what they call me. And by they, I mean me… just now.)

Annnyway, here are 10 truly awesome summer camp resources you need to check out now. (and by check out, I mean read every single word and watch every single video, if you’re anything like me. They’re that good.)

In no particular order, (drumroll please)

Supporting your staff – Part 4 – Secret Friend

Every season for the final week of camp we do a little activity called Secret Friend. It’s like Secret Santa – but in the summer!

It’s a great way to re-energize staff and celebrate the end of the summer while you’re at it. Here’s how it works (at my camp at least)

Timeline:

Choosing Names
On the last day of the second last session (week 7 for us) you ask the staff to pick names out of a hat (obviously if they get their own they choose another)

Shopping/ Prep
They then spend the break preparing for the week. That might include shopping, crafts, note writing, etc. (more on that later)

Leaving Goodies
The actual activity starts on the first day of the last session. (We start on day 1, the day campers arrive. Not day 0 – which is the day before campers arrive)

Picture this… Registration Woes to Registration Whoa’s!

Ohhh la la!

We just switched over (after 3 years of me begging, pleading, and stomping my feet in frustration) from paper applications to an electronic registration system and it’s pretty much life changing.

The two photos above are what my first day of registration looked like last year vs this year. Wowza right?

Quotable Camp – We could be heroes…

OK, Here’s the thing. I work at a camp for children, youth, and adults with disabilities and people tell me and my camp colleagues all the time that we’re “heroes” for doing what we do.

Nope.

We’re not.

We’re just people. Working with other people. It’s that simple.
Working at my camp doesn’t make my staff special – they get the job because they’re already special and wonderful, and the campers benefit from that, but there’s nothing heroic about doing the job. In fact, everyone who has worked at my camp would tell you it’s a privilege to work with our group of campers, not any kind of sacrifice or heroic act.

Know what else?