First Class Counselors

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!

Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/first-class-counsellors/working-with-pandemic-kids

This episode is for the first summer you are back to in-person programming after/during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Matt and Oliver are here to share their experiences hanging out with kids during the pandemic to give you the inside scoop on what you, as a camp counselor, can expect this summer. Its’ going to be different but we are here to tell you it will be ok.

Matt and Oliver speak from their perspective here so let’s talk about where they’re coming from.

• Matt
  • Boys at an elementary school (kindergarten to grade 8)
  • His 4-year-old nephew
• Oliver
  • I worked up in CT in a substitute location for virtual schools and an after-school program with kids in the 5th to 8th grade. 
  • Now I am running an overnight camp in Florida. We just hosted a mini-camp weekend with campers 6 to 17. 

Do you have any “pro-tips” from your experience working with kids during the pandemic? Please share!
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Oliver - Take some time to learn about the nature around you. Especially if you move to a new area! You can use the Seek augmented reality app to help with this. Just point your phone’s camera a learn away!

Matt - Zoo-Keepers-Game - Listen to this episode to hear more!

(more great socially distant games from Asphalt Green)

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• Oliver Gregan, Summer Camp Professional
• Matt Honsberger, Executive Producer of Podcasting at Go Camp Pro

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Camp Directors, this Podcast isn’t for you. It’s time to delegate! First Class Counsellors is for your counselling staff, the ones who are on the ground, playing with kids and changing lives.

Each week, we’ll cover practical and accessible tips that will level up your camp counsellor skills. These are things every counsellor should know, but that you may not have time to teach in staff training.

Our two hosts, Oliver Gregan, Summer and Families Camp Director at YMCA Camp Jewell and Matt Honsberger from Go Camp Pro are excited to be able to provide this resource to camp counsellors and up and coming staff, who they believe, have the most important job at camp.

This is free professional development for your counsellors! We would love your feedback. Please leave your comments below, or, send Matt an email! Thank you!

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!

Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/first-class-counsellors/avengers-camp-games

We’re here to answer the big questions.

This episode, we team up with William Glasser and the Substantiate Podcast to take our teams of Avengers and put them to the test in some unique Color Games events.

Tune in to this episode to hear about some unique events you can add to your camp programs this summer.

Part one of this conversation - where we drafted and justified our teams - is over on the Substantiate feed, so check it out there!

Back Next Episode!

• Oliver Gregan, Summer Camp Professional
• Matt Honsberger, Executive Producer of Podcasting at Go Camp Pro

Camp Directors, this Podcast isn’t for you. It’s time to delegate! First Class Counsellors is for your counselling staff, the ones who are on the ground, playing with kids and changing lives.

Each week, we’ll cover practical and accessible tips that will level up your camp counsellor skills. These are things every counsellor should know, but that you may not have time to teach in staff training.

Our two hosts, Oliver Gregan, Summer and Families Camp Director at YMCA Camp Jewell and Matt Honsberger from Go Camp Pro are excited to be able to provide this resource to camp counsellors and up and coming staff, who they believe, have the most important job at camp.

This is free professional development for your counsellors! We would love your feedback. Please leave your comments below, or, send Matt an email! Thank you!

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!

Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/first-class-counsellors/supporting-new-staff

We have a 2 for 1 episode for you!

First up, we bring you an exclusive interview with one of the newest and youngest Executive directors of a YMCA camp in North America - exclusive for you! Tune in to hear about how he went from a counsellor just like you to reaching one of his biggest camp dreams out there.

As well, we have a real topic today and it's close to the heart for Oliver. How do you welcome new staff? Camps every year introduce new staff from all over, internationals, never been to camp domestics and first year counselors who were once CITs.

How do you as an experienced staff help them feel as welcomed, included and informed as possible?

It’s not just up to your directors to welcome new staff!

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Games, songs, and other super-practical tips that you can use at camp next summer.

Matt: The 4 chord progression for most pop songs - 
Guitar - Em - C - G - D  |   Ukulele - Am - F - C - G

Oliver: The pinecone game! Help your facility staff while playing a game with campers!

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• Oliver Gregan, Summer Camp Professional
• Matt Honsberger, Executive Producer of Podcasting at Go Camp Pro

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Camp Directors, this Podcast isn’t for you. It’s time to delegate! First Class Counsellors is for your counselling staff, the ones who are on the ground, playing with kids and changing lives.

Each week, we’ll cover practical and accessible tips that will level up your camp counsellor skills. These are things every counsellor should know, but that you may not have time to teach in staff training.

Our two hosts, Oliver Gregan, Summer and Families Camp Director at YMCA Camp Jewell and Matt Honsberger from Go Camp Pro are excited to be able to provide this resource to camp counsellors and up and coming staff, who they believe, have the most important job at camp.

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!

Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/first-class-counsellors/fill-5-minutes

10 ways to spend 5 minutes with your campers. You need these as a counselor. The days are structured but there will forever be break times and they are vitally important to camper development that we take advantage of those moments. Let’s break down when to pop what activities at what times. Thus improving intentionality and awareness.

It’s not about filling those 5 minutes for the sake of filling 5 minutes either, it’s about engaging your campers intentionally. Even though we give you some games - it’s not just games that you can do in this extra time - think about what your group may need - and program accordingly.

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Rita Pierson’s TED Talk - https://www.ted.com/talks/rita_pierson_every_kid_needs_a_champion?language=en

Conversation Starters - https://conversationstartersworld.com/ 

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• Oliver Gregan, Summer Camp Professional
• Matt Honsberger, Executive Producer of Podcasting at Go Camp Pro

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Camp Directors, this Podcast isn’t for you. It’s time to delegate! First Class Counsellors is for your counselling staff, the ones who are on the ground, playing with kids and changing lives.

Each week, we’ll cover practical and accessible tips that will level up your camp counsellor skills. These are things every counsellor should know, but that you may not have time to teach in staff training.

Our two hosts, Oliver Gregan, Summer and Families Camp Director at YMCA Camp Jewell and Matt Honsberger from Go Camp Pro are excited to be able to provide this resource to camp counsellors and up-and-coming staff, who they believe, have the most important job at camp.

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!

Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/first-class-counsellors/6-camp-myths

The mythos of camp is one filled with legends and mystery. While much of it falls in the realms of you just need to be there to understand or it’s locked away in the secrecy of never can tell games there are a few things we can bust for you today. What is true and untrue about some myths you have heard about camp?

Our Podcasts are usually specifically geared towards camp counsellors, and are usually pretty skill-based, but we’re doing this for Camp Directors and Camp staff who want to recruit other staff to work at camp.

If you’re listening to this because a Camp Director or friend told you to listen to this - welcome! It’s great to have you.

We’re excited to help share some way to tell people what camp is really all about.

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First Class Counselors Podcast Episode: Camp IS a Real Job! With Kim Aycock

First Class Counselors Podcast Episode: Camp Counselor Financials

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Games, songs, and other super-practical tips that you can use at camp next summer.

Oliver: Campfire Cooking. The Campfire Cookbook: 80 Imaginative Recipes for Cooking Outdoors

Matt: Finger Calculator Game (Add’em up)

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• Oliver Gregan, Summer Camp Professional
• Matt Honsberger, Executive Producer of Podcasting at Go Camp Pro

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Camp Directors, this Podcast isn’t for you. It’s time to delegate! First Class Counsellors is for your counselling staff, the ones who are on the ground, playing with kids and changing lives.

Each week, we’ll cover practical and accessible tips that will level up your camp counsellor skills. These are things every counsellor should know, but that you may not have time to teach in staff training.

Our two hosts, Oliver Gregan, Summer and Families Camp Director at YMCA Camp Jewell and Matt Honsberger from Go Camp Pro are excited to be able to provide this resource to camp counsellors and up and coming staff, who they believe, have the most important job at camp.

This is free professional development for your counsellors! We would love your feedback. Please leave your comments below, or, send Matt an email! Thank you!

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!

Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/first-class-counsellors/better-camp-programmer

Programs. 

At most camps you are going to end up leading a program. It could be guitar, swim lessons or archery There are honestly hundreds of programs camps can offer. Some require special training or are an established skill you should already know how to do. But for many counselors it is your first time teaching, leading or instructing. 

Being an incredible athlete or artist will not guarantee greatness in your program period. But these simple skills, tricks and techniques might. Today we are specifically covering programs campers sign up for and repeat throughout the week or are coming to for an extended period of time. 

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Games, songs, and other super-practical tips that you can use at camp next summer.

Oliver: Theme your days. Start a group text with your camp friends and link a calendar. On that calendar put a bunch of random themes that you would normally have at camp and send each other pictures of the day. 

Matt: Use a role-playing game 20-sided dice to gamify your camp experiences!

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• Oliver Gregan, Summer Camp Professional
• Matt Honsberger, Executive Producer of Podcasting at Go Camp Pro

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Camp Directors, this Podcast isn’t for you. It’s time to delegate! First Class Counsellors is for your counselling staff, the ones who are on the ground, playing with kids and changing lives.

Each week, we’ll cover practical and accessible tips that will level up your camp counsellor skills. These are things every counsellor should know, but that you may not have time to teach in staff training.

Our two hosts, Oliver Gregan, Summer and Families Camp Director at YMCA Camp Jewell and Matt Honsberger from Go Camp Pro are excited to be able to provide this resource to camp counsellors and up and coming staff, who they believe, have the most important job at camp.

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This is free professional development for your counsellors! We would love your feedback. Please leave your comments below, or, send Matt an email! Thank you!

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!

Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/first-class-counsellors/camper-friendly-language

You are a hero to your campers.

Whether you like it or not, those kids are going to think you’re the coolest thing since sliced bread and want to be just like you. This means that we always need to make sure that through our words and actions, we’re teaching them, by example, that what we say and do matter.

This episode, Matt and Oliver cover the words part. They put their heads together and break down how the language we use with campers can lead them, comfort them, correct them and inspire them.

So untwist those tongues and put on your thinking caps, because this episode is a good one!

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• Book About Resiliency - Feel the Fear and Do it Anyway
• Book About Negotiation - Never Split the Difference

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Games, songs, and other super-practical tips that you can use at camp next summer.

Oliver: The Plant Project - Take a plant, smash it, and bring it back to life with a new pot. Great nurturing practice for camp!

Matt: Team Body Project Workouts

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• Oliver Gregan, Summer Camp Professional
• Matt Honsberger, Executive Producer of Podcasting at Go Camp Pro

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Camp Directors, this Podcast isn’t for you. It’s time to delegate! First Class Counsellors is for your counselling staff, the ones who are on the ground, playing with kids and changing lives.

Each week, we’ll cover practical and accessible tips that will level up your camp counsellor skills. These are things every counsellor should know, but that you may not have time to teach in staff training.

Our two hosts, Oliver Gregan, Summer and Families Camp Director at YMCA Camp Jewell and Matt Honsberger from Go Camp Pro are excited to be able to provide this resource to camp counsellors and up and coming staff, who they believe, have the most important job at camp.

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!

Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/first-class-counsellors/humble-brags-2020

We’re posting this as 2020 comes to a close.

If you’re viewing this from the future, congrats, you’re still here!

2020 was a weird year, but COVID certainly didn’t stop the learning, growing and changing that would happen any other year.

So for this episode, the last of the year, Oliver and Matt reflect on the 2020 year, look forward to 2021 and talk a little about goal-setting through the eyes of a camp counselor.

Tune in to hear about:

• Oliver and Matt’s personal and professional wins of the year
• Their resolutions going forward
• Some big, ambitious goals for camp staff in 2021
• What goes into creating a successful resolution.

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• Go Camp Pro’s USELetter Sign-Up
• Oliver’s Goal-Setting Worksheet for Camp Staff

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Games, songs, and other super-practical tips that you can use at camp next summer.

Oliver: Use The Pomodoro Method to GET STUFF DONE.

Matt: Make it a new year’s resolution to learn how to play Ukulele! 

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• Oliver Gregan, Summer Camp Professional
• Matt Honsberger, Executive Producer of Podcasting at Go Camp Pro

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Camp Directors, this Podcast isn’t for you. It’s time to delegate! First Class Counsellors is for your counselling staff, the ones who are on the ground, playing with kids and changing lives.

Each week, we’ll cover practical and accessible tips that will level up your camp counsellor skills. These are things every counsellor should know, but that you may not have time to teach in staff training.

Our two hosts, Oliver Gregan, Summer and Families Camp Director at YMCA Camp Jewell and Matt Honsberger from Go Camp Pro are excited to be able to provide this resource to camp counsellors and up and coming staff, who they believe, have the most important job at camp.

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!

Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/first-class-counsellors/10-counsellor-jobs

“Other duties as required”. It's a short sentence at the end of a job description that means an awful lot. Today we are going to share some of our stories that fall into this jurisdiction. These are the stories where it is the job that just has to get done, the weird tasks we have had to perform and the unexpected flexibility needed from counselors who are doing their best. 

We hope for first-time counselors this may identify the responsibilities of being a counselor. For those who have a few summers under their belt these are some great stories that may help you down the line. 

• 350 Water Balloons in One Minute
• Planning Perfect Programs - First Class Counsellors #1

Games, songs, and other super-practical tips that you can use at camp next summer.

Oliver: 

Simple bets- small and don’t let it escalate. Be a good judge of if your cabin can handle it, but it can be a lot of fun. 

Things you can bet

• A push up (at any time)
• A bouquet of grass
• Door manager for the day
• 10 tree hugs
• A list of names for my future children
• A portrait of me
• 5 compliments before bed

Matt: Nature game - Find a Tree

• Oliver Gregan, Summer Camp Professional
• Matt Honsberger, Executive Producer of Podcasting at Go Camp Pro

Camp Directors, this Podcast isn’t for you. It’s time to delegate! First Class Counsellors is for your counselling staff, the ones who are on the ground, playing with kids and changing lives.

Each week, we’ll cover practical and accessible tips that will level up your camp counsellor skills. These are things every counsellor should know, but that you may not have time to teach in staff training.

Our two hosts, Oliver Gregan, Summer and Families Camp Director at YMCA Camp Jewell and Matt Honsberger from Go Camp Pro are excited to be able to provide this resource to camp counsellors and up and coming staff, who they believe, have the most important job at camp.

Have some feedback? A topic suggestion? Text us!

Find full show notes and links at: https://camphacker.tv/first-class-counsellors/ally-to-women

The camp industry, as a whole, participates in structural inequality. Period.

It’s easy to get caught in the trap of believing that because we create the separate, magical and intentional community at camp, that we are too insulated from the crap of the outside world. In some ways, we definitely exist in a bubble, but that is not the case when it comes to structural racism, sexism and other forms of inequality.

In this episode of First Class Counsellors, we begin a series on using our privilege, power, and knowledge of the camp industry to look at issues of inequality from the ground up - and that means starting with camp counsellors.

To start, Oliver and Matt are joined by Go Camp Pro podcast pros Ruby Compton (of Camp Code fame) and Rachel Kent (of Beyond Camp fame). Together they talk about their experiences being on both sides of sexism and how our young, male counsellors can better support their female-identifying co-workers.

Finally, Rachel and Ruby share about their involvement with the Women in Camp Summit and the work the conference and movement does to empower, educate and foster the growth of women in the camping industry.

Together, our four hosts cover:

• Their counselling experience and how their genders impacted their time at camp.
• From a counsellor's scope, where do / have we seen inequality between men and women at camp exist?
• What can male camp counsellors do to be better allies to their female co-staff? 
• How the Women in Camp Summit began and what this year’s summit will look like
• Why were the “allies event” and “allies fund” created for this year?
• Much, much more!

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Games, songs, and other super-practical tips that you can use at camp next summer.

Oliver: Fairy Letters (check out the video for this one to see it)

Matt: Heads or Tails, 2 minute elimination game

Ruby: Fairy House turned into mini ninja training ground

Rachel: Eco Police - Giving campers the task of looking out for camp’s environmental impact.

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• Oliver Gregan, Summer Camp Professional
• Matt Honsberger, Executive Producer of Podcasting at Go Camp Pro
• Rachel Kent, Coordinator, Member Risk - Girl Guides of Canada
• Ruby Compton, Chief Exploration Officer - Ruby Outdoors

Camp Directors, this Podcast isn’t for you. It’s time to delegate! First Class Counsellors is for your counselling staff, the ones who are on the ground, playing with kids and changing lives.

Each week, we’ll cover practical and accessible tips that will level up your camp counsellor skills. These are things every counsellor should know, but that you may not have time to teach in staff training.

Our two hosts, Oliver Gregan, Summer and Families Camp Director at YMCA Camp Jewell and Matt Honsberger from Go Camp Pro are excited to be able to provide this resource to camp counsellors and up and coming staff, who they believe, have the most important job at camp.