The International Camp Counselor

May is a great time of year – finishing off all of the things you need to do at home and then getting ready for an #EPIC summer at camp!

‘The International Camp Counselor Book’ will;

• get you even more excited about your upcoming summer
• give you the tools you need to have a great summer working with kids
• guide you through loads of top ideas for after camp travel

If you have any questions – tweet me! @ICampC

And.. if you buy the book today I’ll get it straight in the post first class.

Safe travels!

Michael helps people to understand camp from a child’s perspective, and he is widely perceived as one of the top camp counselor educators in the industry.

Over the past few years I have seen him speak lots of times, and he has had a huge positive influence on my work as a camp counselor.

About a week ago he dropped me an email! I could not believe it;

Dear Mark,

I just wanted to thank you again for sharing your book for international counselors. These staff can be such an important part of the camp experience and it’s wonderful that you have devoted yourself to helping them be more prepared. Thanks!

Warm wishes,
Michael

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Please visit http://www.michaelbrandwein.com

Michael Brandwein
5 Coventry Lane
Lincolnshire, IL  60069

As camp counselors, we all have great ideas about how we can help the campers in our care develop skills that will help them succeed during the summer, and more importantly, away from camp and in the wider world.

We may focus on building self-confidence, we may help build in resilience to failure or even teach value of being humble.

However – if we are not effectively communicating, all the good will and great ideas can be wasted!

So, what do we need to do?

Communication is a two way process, we need to take responsibility for both what we input, and as much as possible how this is understood. This includes our words, body language and even our energy.

It gets even more complicated with feelings, emotion and opinion added in there, plus environmental factors!

But fear not, the workshop covers all of this and boils every thing down to a simple set of principles, that help counselors and staff deliver great communication. Ultimately, the workshop helps deliver your camps values to your campers.

If you have questions – let me know!

Click here for the Prep Day option of buying the book for £9.99 with no shipping fee.

Last week, I went to Texas to a summer camp conference. I met dozens of camp directors from all over the USA, and attended lots of educational sessions about all things camp and on the Thursday afternoon I ran a workshop called ‘Communicating with Children’.

The idea of the session was to get people to think about how what we do is interpreted, and how a strong foundation can help us to get our messages across. It went very well, and I also headed to other workshops about leadership, how to deal with bullying and ideas about homesickness.

After the conference, I rented a Dodge Challenger (the car in Duke of Hazard and the new car in Knight Rider!) with one of the guys and we road tripped to Austin, Texas. It was EPIC! We stopped at ‘Whattaburger’ for a bacon cheeseburger beast, went to a B

I recently watched a fantastic video on ‘Ted’ that discussed selfish giving. The point was that when we give, the rewards we personally receive, that intrinsic feel good factor far out ways the effort we put in.

With this in mind, the phrase ‘you get back what you put in’ is fully justified, and camp is a GREAT example of this.

Investment of your time and energy in to your camps philosophy and working to positively impact the campers in your care will pay off immensely.

You will have places to be, and a job to do. You will have specific responsibilities, like you do in any job, and you will work hard at doing a good job. That is the first part.

Your job will even include getting to know the kids, keeping them safe and ensuring that the kids have a fun time. By fulfilling this, you are starting to become a camp counselor, rather than an instructor.

The next level, means upping your game. It is listening in the time between activities, it is finding out what is really bothering your camper, it is listening when you want to leave for your day off, those extra little bits, that sets you on the path to be a GREAT camp counselor.

Once you up your game, the possibilities are endless. Every one has the potential to be great, and camp covers everything from where your next meal is coming from to what you need to do next, giving you the opportunity to be succeed.

Now, if you are ready, here is how to be epic. You need to work with your fellow camp counselors, and help them to be great. You need to figure out how you can use the camp experience to develop each individual campers character. You need to use your camps values day in, and day out, and get everyone around you to buy in and do the same, by leading from within and by example.

If you can do this, and I truly believe each camp counselor can, then you are in for a FANTASTIC summer – game on!

Buy the book for only £9.99, saving £2.00 on p&p and get your e-copy of ‘the road trip guide to the USA‘ worth £2.99 (to be published pre-camp) for free!

TO PRE-ORDER, SAVE AND PICK UP YOUR COPY AT EITHER MANCHESTER OR LONDON, CLICK HERE!

The Camp Leaders Job Fairs are coming up, with 100′s of jobs available, here my top pointers to make sure you make the most of the day;

1. Know your skills and how they fit with each camp.
2. Show how you can be a GREAT camp counselor.
3. Make the most of the event.
As well as following all of the issued advice by Camp Leaders, here is the inside scoop on you can up your game!

1. Know your skills and how they fit with each camp.
You will be heading in to a day of mini interviews, for a job. If you are lining up to speak to a Camp Director get your phone out and google the camp. Figure out what they do well, check out there recent news page, find out what their values are and discuss this with the Camp Director. The camp may well have former staff helping out and chatting as you line up – make sure you gather lots of info about the camp here too – especially regarding areas that match your skills. Are you likely to be teaching Arts and Crafts? Ask about the camps facilities and utilise this info in your interview, talk about your skills in a way that you know will fit with each individual camp!

2. Show how you can be a GREAT camp counselor.
Camp Directors are forever searching for GREAT camp counselors, you need to be able to tell a Camp Director why you want to work with kids and what you have to offer.

Summer camp is a sector firmly routed in youth development, if you can show that you are skilled in nurturing young people and developing character then you will be on to a winner. The International Camp Counselor Book gives a great outline on how you can achieve your potential at camp!

Camp Directors need to know that the children in your care will have a fantastic time, that you will keep them safe and that you will gel well with the other staff at camp, keep all of this in mind when talking to a camp.

3. Make the most of the event.
You are going to meet lots of Camp Directors, lots of summer camp staff and lots of the Camp Leaders staff. Camp Directors will be looking for people with specific skills and with attitudes that will help their camps summer be successful. If you don’t get hired by a Camp Director, ask them why! Speak to the Camp Leaders National Team, the full time staff and as many people as possible for tips on getting hired, and make sure that even if you do not get a job that you learn form the experience and help the Fairs get you a job for the summer.

The fairs will be busy, and people will new queuing outside, so dress up warm, bring your game face and don’t forget to grab your copy of the the book!

Anything from £150 ($250) (to get you from the airport to camp and buy any thing to get you set up) to £3’000+ ($5’000+) (if you plan on hitting up ‘Vegas and visiting every tourist attraction you can in a 3 week mega tour) will be good for your summer.

I think that the biggest cost of the summer is whatever you plan to do after camp, whilst you are in the USA. At camp, food and accommodation is covered so your outgoings are pretty much limited to your time off.

One key thing is to NOT BLOW YOUR CASH on evenings off when at camp – save your pennies for an adventure at the end of the summer.

My favourite two trips to the USA had opposite financial situations:

One road trip about 5 years ago consisted of me buying a 10 day greyhound bus pass, sleeping on couches at friends houses, eating off dollar menus and partying at Frat and Sorority houses in Minneapolis, Oxford Ohio, Vanderbilt Uni in Tennessee, at Kansas State Uni and finally to Scottsdale Arizona. The bus rides where long, I soon got fed up of the dollar menu at Mac Ds/Burger King however I saw a huge amount of the country and only spent about £280 ($450). That trip was made possible by taking the tougher road, and by kind friends I had met at camp. It was a fantastic trip.

The other extreme was a trip out to Maine in 2009. We flew in to Boston, and picked up a rental car. The guy behind the counter offered us any upgrade for $15 per day – we chose the new 2010 Mustang model, the engine was about 6 liters, it had satellite radio and was an absolute beast!

We headed straight north and hit every seaside town, eating at great restaurants feasting on steak and lobster. We went whale watching in Bar Harbor and spent the afternoon with a pair of humpback whales. We rented a cabin that had a huge glass front and was sat in a inlet, allowing us to watch the sunset on the dead calm sheltered bay. It was incredibly beautiful.

Next, we headed in land to Bangor to a huge music festival, full of bands we had never heard of and had a really good time.

We spent our last night in a hotel in Boston, before sadly dropping off the car and flying home. We easily spent £2000 in 10 days, and it was worth every cent.

Soo… to cut a long(ish) story short it really is up to you and your plans as to how much money you will need for the summer.

Here is a quick brainstorm of the things that you will probably spend your cash on over the summer;

Whilst at camp;

-       Transport from the airport to camp

-       Food for your journey to camp

-       Your first trip to Walmart

• Stuff to wash your clothes
• Did you bring enough towels?
• A mat for next to your bed – epic tip for keeping you bed sand free!
• Some kind of knife, you are at camp and carrying one is ok, you have to do it!
• An alarm clock
• Some kind of silly fancy dress

-       Camp merchandise (hoodies, t-shirts etc)

-       A phone card to call home

-       Will you get a hotel on your days off?

-       Will you go to a restaurant on your days off?

The best thing to do to find out more about spending whilst at your camp is jump on Facebook and speak to other international staff who have been to your camp in the past to get specific answers.

When on the road;

-       Your vehicle/mode of transport

-       Fuel?

-       Accommodation

-       2 meals a day (most hotels have free breakfast)

-       Awfully tacky/awesome mementos of the road – t-shirts, hats etc

-       Entrance in to touristy places, like National Parks, theme parks etc

-       Are you 21+ and will you party?

-       Energy drinks so you can keep driving!

-       Maps

-       Sun glasses for those desert trips

-       Will you camp – tent and sleeping bags (although hotels are cheap if you pile people in!)

-       Post cards to send home

-       Presents for your family!

-       Clothes for you? Outlet villages can be 80% or more off!

So there you have it – an answer for you to figure out rather than having it on a plate, but at least it is a good start!