The Flow of the Camp Day - with Ruby Compton - CampHacker #125

Where can you find some creativity in your daily schedule? (and where shouldn’t you?)

As camp people, it’s in our nature to innovate. We are great at looking at routine or program and think, “Hey, wouldn’t this be better if we did this!?”. This is even something that we praise staff for. How many of your evaluation forms list “creative thinking” as a trait that is seen as desirable?

The problem can come when our creative ambitions give us the desire to tweak something that has been intentionally done, without considering or consulting those intentions.

It’s a tricky line to tow. We need to balance our creativity with the fact that routines are important for campers, staff and families. Things that affect our camper’s circadian rhythms, dietary schedules and some of their other Maslow’s needs should be strongly considered before we make a big change.

To help you tow that line between magic and monotony, Travis, Joe and Dan are once again joined by Camp Code Co-Host, Ruby Compton. Ruby’s many years in and around the camp industry have given her a unique perspective on what is up for changing and what should stay sacred this summer.

Tune in to this episode to hear more about:

  • How routines affect campers and their families

  • How camps walk the line between routine and ritual

  • How to set boundaries for staff on what is and isn’t fair-game to change

  • What are the important parts of the day that are absolutely necessary to include

  • How to inject some creativity into the necessary and the in-between times

  • Many, many more great ideas!

What is something special about the flow of your Camp Day? Tell us about it in the comments!

Tool of the Week – Make Yourself a Better Camp Director

Travis: Fireflies.ai

Joe: https://hibid.com/ - Auctions for Camp Stuff

Ruby: The Non-Profit Leadership Team by Fisher Howe

Dan: The Power of Showing Up by Tina Bryson & Dan Siegel


Your Hosts:

Thanks to our sponsor!

Radtagz - Be and Be Known

COVID-19 and Summer Camp - with Dr. Amy Greer - A CampHacker Podcast Interview

As of March 6th, 2020, What you need to know about COVID-19 and Summer Camp

This special edition of the CampHacker Podcast is an interview with Dr. Amy Greer surrounding COVID-19 and what we know, as of March 6th, 2020 and summer camp.

Dr. Amy Greer is one of Canada's top infectious disease specialists and researchers, Dr. Amy Greer and a summer camp alumnus. You can follow her on twitter here - https://twitter.com/AmyGreerKalisz.

There’s a lot of great information here, and it’s definitely worth the listen.

Some quick takeaways (many more in the recording):

  • Amy asked that we not share this video with our families - the information will become out of date quickly. It was recorded on Friday, March 6th

  • You need to be consulting your local Health Department (I assume you're doing this already) for 2 things: what to be preparing now for your medical procedures this summer and making a call closer to this summer about whether/how camp will run

  • you should prepare a new procedure this summer to get all families to confirm, no more than 48-hours before camp, that their camper is not symptomatic

  • you should be ready with new cleaning/disinfecting procedures this summer.

We hope you find this interview helpful. If you have any follow-up questions, please forward them to travis@gocamp.pro

Disclaimer: This is not legal advice, nor does it act as a substitute for keeping yourself up to code with your governmental health regulations. Please act with an informed and current perspective.

Re-Post - Combating Communicable Diseases at Summer Camp - CampHacker #56

2020 Re-post - Preventing Spread of Norwalk and Other Infections at Camp

Podcast: Subscribe in iTunes | Stitcher App  (search for CampHacker)

Hey Camp Pros, with concerns about the coronavirus and COVID-19, we’re going off-schedule and digging this show out of the CampHacker archives.

Shortly, we’ll be releasing a new episode that specifically focuses on what camp pros should be thinking about when it comes to camp, coronavirus and COVID-19.

Sign-up for the Go Camp Pro newsletter and we’ll send the episode right to your inbox.

-

I have often said that camp would be an amazing place for a public health researcher to take a look at the ways that diseases are spread throughout communities.   I have watched little things like pink eye or head lice (traumatic, but not life-threatening) run through camp in less than a day.

In this episode of the CampHacker Podcast Gab and I were thrilled to bring in Marty Ferguson from YMCA Camp Chief Ouray in Colorado.  Camp Chief Ouray has developed some very smart protocols to protect their camper and staff from diseases that can spread at camp.

We also had John MacDonald, my step-dad, who is a retired Health Inspector from Ontario, Canada.   John has had a long career in the public health field and was always a great resource to Beth and I.     

Thank you to both of them for being on the show! 

Download our Camp Kitchen Compliance Record

We hope you get lots from our discussion.   

If you have any questions about communicable diseases at camp please leave them in the comments below or send us a tweet to @CampHacker using the #CampPros hashtag.


 

Tool of the Week – Make yourself a better Camp Director

Travis: FocusatWill.com
Gab: Twitter for your desktop
Marty: Season of Life by Jeffery Marx
John: HACCP training 


Your Hosts:

Thanks for the evening, friends.


Setting Expectations with your Summer Camp Staff - with Ruby Compton - CampHacker #124

If you don’t make your expectations clear, it’s your fault when people don’t meet them.

Harsh, right? Well, it’s true!

As Camp Directors, one of the biggest disservices that we can do to our staff is to be unclear about our expectations of them. From the application to the exit interview, we need to be clear not only about our expectations but also about what they can expect from the job.

This isn’t to say that you need to lay out every single expectation for every single program at camp. That would be obnoxious and would stifle creativity. The expectations that you should give to staff are the higher-level ones like the quality of work you expect, the work culture, timeliness, communication and other important policies.

Being clear about your expectations is the best way for staff to know instantly where they stand in terms of their performance. If your expectations are clear enough, your staff evaluations become less focused on telling them where they did or didn’t meet expectations, but why they did or didn’t meet them.

Lastly. We need to remember that we are hiring kids and youth to work with us. This may be their first time experiencing the work-force. Let’s all do our best to treat them with respect and grace. You can set and communicate your high expectations without being a jerk.

To help you firmly, yet caringly communicate expectations this summer, Travis, Joe and Dan are joined by Camp Code Co-Host, Ruby Compton! Ruby’s many years in and around the camp industry have given her a unique perspective on how to, and how not to be a great expectation setter.

Tune in to this episode to hear more about:

  • Setting the standard of clear expectations throughout the hiring process

  • How to clearly communicate your expectations to staff

  • Why we, as an industry can be better expectation setters

  • How to support staff when they are not meeting expectations

What is something that you do to clearly communicate your expectations? Tell us about it in the comments!

Tool of the Week – Make Yourself a Better Camp Director

Travis: Brené Brown on the Tim Ferriss podcast: Striving versus Self-Acceptance, Saving Marriages, and More 

Joe: Open Source Ecology - Free Plans for creating things for a comfortable society - machines, printers, etc. - Summer Program 2020 - https://www.opensourceecology.org/summer-x-2020/  BONUS - KEEN Pro Program: https://www.keenfootwear.com/en-ca/pro, US link: keenfootwear.com/pro

Ruby: PeakVisor app

Dan: The Coffee Bean - Jon Gordon

Your Hosts:

Thanks to our sponsor!

Radtagz - Be and Be Known