The Different Things I Did As A Counselor That Are The Reason My Alignment Includes “chaotic”:

Thins I Learned at Camp

Have a copy of OH! The Places You’ll Go wherever you go

If you have a voice after a game, your doing it wrong

The people you meet at camp are the greatest in the world

Be open to everything, don’t knock it till you try it

Always have a water bottle with you

Keep a small notebook with you at all times

Duct tape and WD40 fix everything

Dance like you’re at camp wherever you go. People will look at you funny, but you will be having more fun

It’s ok to cry at what seems like even stupid things

Everyone is different, and those differences should be celebrated

Take 15 mins every day and sit somewhere beautiful and get lost in your thoughts

Promises can be made and kept with a pinky

Everyone deserves a chance

Take camp with you wherever you go

A guitar is like the holy grail of music

Camp is the greatest place on earth. Anyone who says otherwise has never been to one.

Submit your own “Things I Learned at Camp” :)

Emotional Labor and Camp

I did a lot of research for this post, mostly because emotional labor is a concept I’ve only heard about in the past 2-3 years, but I’ve heard so many different things. However, a lot of things I’ve heard resonated with my experience working at camp. I also think that it’s a topic we need to talk about.

What is emotional labor?

This needs to be the starting place. Arlie Hochschild originally defined emotional labor in 1983. It has evolved since then in many ways and there are a bazillion tumblr posts and articles on the internet with varying definitions. For this post, we’ll stick to the original definition, which is the additional work required by someone in a paid position that requires regulation of emotions for the benefit of others, both clients and other staff. It is prevalent in “caring” positions and highly applicable in many jobs including waitresses, teachers, retail workers, child care workers, and flight attendants. (Interview with Arlie about evolution of the term here; article with a more thorough/detailed definition here). I will not be arguing about the various definitions of emotional labor.

How does emotional labor apply to camp?

As mentioned, emotional labor is often applied to childcare workers, which would include camp staff. Some examples of emotional labor might include:

Managing emotions in front of kids (being fun/energetic, not getting frustrated or disappointed)

Hiding the emotions involved in whatever is going on in your personal life

Not panicking in front of a child when they tell you something intense (abuse, self-harm, parent’s ugly divorce)

Parents - so many things

Now, these duties come fairly standard with being a camp counselor. And I’m not saying that you should be an upbeat counselor who is kind despite challenges. But what you do need to do is to cope with the stress of that emotional labor.

Consequences and coping

A big consequence of emotional labor is burnout. I previously published this post on burnout a few months ago and it summarizes symptoms/warning signs and some suggested coping skills. Large amounts of emotional labor may exacerbate existing mental health conditions or contribute to their development.

While you might be able to reduce your emotional labor somewhat, there will always be some. There was an interesting sounding article exploring whether emotional labor could be fun but it was behind a paywall because academic publishing is a sham (source: I went to grad school). But what I did find suggested some of the following techniques:

Emphasizing authenticity when possible. Obviously you don’t want to have a complete breakdown in front of kids. But perhaps acknowledging to your unit leader or leadership team that you’re struggling or something is going on for you personally would be good. They can either help themselves or refer you to someone such as an EAP or a hotline.

Engage in long-term coping skills. I separate coping skills into two categories: short and long term, which may broadly overlap. Long term coping skills are similar to lifestyle changes. They’re repeated activities that you use to maintain your health. Some examples from me:

Eating healthy. This looks different from person to person, but essentially enough food of a variety that makes you feel good and fuels your body and mind. Also drinking water.

Exercise and activity routines.

Engaging in hobbies.

Taking steps to manage chronic conditions, mental and physical.

Use your break times for whatever kind of rest and relaxation you need. Maybe you need a nap. Maybe you need to snack on something different than camp food. Maybe you need a hug.

Avoiding negative coping skills. I don’t want to trigger anyone so I won’t list them, but this is activities that are harmful to you or others, either physically or mentally. 

For more coping skills, check the Mental Health Queue and Camp Wellness Queue for a variety of self-care ideas.

Additional note for campers/CITs: I know that some of my followers are youth who attend camp as campers or as CITs. This post is in no way saying that you can’t rely on your counselors or other camp staff for emotional support. They are there to support and care for you, and they should want to. This post is meant to emphasize proper self-care for staff so that they are better able to support and care for their campers. 

Sources: x, x, x, x

Tl;dr: Emotional labor is common in being a camp counselor so watch for signs of burnout (a consequence) and practice good self care.

CBM Essentials

Our list of popular items that aren’t on the main packing list!

Chaco’s- this is by far the most important item on the list. Chaco’s are worn all day, every day by almost everyone aside from that one weird staff member with a pair of Teva’s. Why? They’re the most comfortable and versatile shoes out there. Just make sure that you give yourself a few weeks before camp to break them in to avoid blisters.

Flannels- Flannels are also very important to bring because of their many uses. They’re perfect for when it gets cold at night and in the morning, and for a wide variety of dress up days. The possibilities are endless.

Knee socks- Perfect to wear with your Chaco’s in the morning and make any dress up day outfit stand out in a crowd. Make sure that you have them in different colors for color war!

Nike Shorts- Jean shorts and fancy clothes are not necessary at camp besides services. You’ll need double what you think you need when it comes to nike shorts. You go through them super quickly since the dirtiness of camp doesn’t make re-wearing clothes too easy.

A decked out Nalgene- One of the marks of a super cool camper or staff member is a Nalgene covered in stickers. It just is. The more, the most different the better.

Long Sleeve Shirts- Perfect for nighttime activities and mornings. Always worn with nike shorts, never anything else. Theres nothing comfier than an old long sleeve shirt to keep you stylish and cozy.

Bandanas- Bring bandanas and bring lots of different colors. Having a variety of colors and patterns makes everything easier when it comes to color war and dress up days.

Patriotic attire- In the world of summer sleep away camp, patriotic and red white and blue is certainly not just for the fourth of July. An ENO- This is the second most important item on the list. No explanation needed whatsoever.

small things to add to a hand written letter:

a teabag of your favourite tea

heart shaped note with cute drawings

stickers on the outside of the letter, and inside

handmade paper doll

small print or postcard

a sketch or a little painting or a poem

glitter or sequins or pearls or buttons

small candies or bubblegum

cut out magazine pictures or articles

folded paper, like origami

textile like small ribbons or clothing patches

coins or flat things found in a souvenir shop

pressed flower or leaf

Ways to teach a skill

Just as there are many ways to learn, there are many ways to teach. Here are some ways to teach skills at camp:

Say it. Tell the kids what the skill is, describe it.

Show it. Show pictures, diagrams, or other visual aids.

Model it. Do the activity yourself, such as tying a knot.

Learn by doing. Have the kids do the skill, alongside you or after you (or both). This is a great way to engage kids on multiple levels, as you often also need to incorporate some of the earlier techniques (say, show, etc) and this engages multiple learning styles.

Learn through play. An example of this is a simulation game, such as that deer game where you simulate resources (called Deer, Deer, Deer in Ultimate Camp Resource). This can be existing games, or one you made up. Another example is that I made up a simulation of holding hands in different formations to explain how colligative properties work in ice cream in a bag.

Engages the senses. This works well in conjunction with other techniques, but basically bringing in as many of the senses as you can, especially touch/kinestetic.

Since kids learn differently, ideally teach with multiple methods. Teaching is a learned skill that you develop as a camp staff, and everyone does it with their own flair. But these are some suggestions to get you started as you develop your own way of teaching.

what to do when everything’s a mess

Wash your hair. Don’t worry about all those articles online about the best haircare products of 2019 and whatnot, get in, wash it like you usually do, get out. Leave it to air dry, it’s less work for you.

Brush your teeth. Even if you brushed them this morning and are probably going to brush it tonight, do it anyway. Especially if it’s exam time, all that tea or coffee you’re most likely downing (props to you if you only study with water) probably makes them feel kind of gross.

I know most of these lists tell you to run a bath, but let’s face it, for those of you who even have a bath in the first place, the thought of filling that tub and sitting there in complete silence for a couple hours seems like a trek. And ironically exhausting. So instead, just brush your hair, take a nap (set a nice soothing alarm) and once you’ve gotten out of bed, wash your face or at least splash cold water on your face.

CLEAN clean clean clean CLEAN. Easier said than done, but at least start by clearing one messy component of your area; it could be your floor, your desk or your bed. You don’t need to clean and re-organise your entire room marie condo-style for you to actually have a reason to take the time to clean in the first place. A little goes a long way, and you don’t ALWAYS need to do the hard yards ya know.

I would say read a book, but sometimes your brain is melting or buzzing so it can’t really focus on anything lengthy. So instead, find someone reciting a poem online, and just listen to it. I recommend Jeremy Irons and his voicing of tons of T.S Eliot poetry, or Allen Ginsberg reciting his own poetry (Howl is a classic).

If you’re one of those people who drowns their sorrows by listening to music, don’t listen to music!! Don’t reinforce your pain!! So to that I say, listen to a podcast. If the classic podcast genre of true crime is a little too stressful and you’ve already cried twice today, listen to interviews with actors, screenwriters and directors. It can be really refreshing to listen to people you already enjoy the content of talk about their work. I recommend Awards Chatter and Happy Sad Confused.

Stop staring at screens! Just physically sit outside for a bit, you don’t need to go for a jog or do a general workout, just…sit. People-watch, try and memorise the exact scene in front of you, from the mis-en-scene to all the colours and sounds and the way the sunlight feels on your eyelashes. Write it down if you want to, you could even denote a single notebook to your little outdoor descriptions. Or just write on a napkin. To each their own.

Have you eaten today? And I mean something hearty, something that isn’t primarily made out of air and salt. Something that falls under the umbrella of snack does not count; meal is more like it. If not, eat. Preparing food might feel exhausting, but so’s going a relatively long amount of time without something nutritionally substantial.

If you’re feeling emotionally heavily, get out a notebook or even just a scrap of paper, a pen and cry until your eyes are as blurry as can be. With tears down your cheeks, scribble out how you’re feeling. Don’t bother with how neat or messy it is, whether the sentences even stay on the lines, it’s not about being aesthetic. In fact, it’s about being as messy as possible. Let all of it out, and let is act as a physical manifestation of what’s going on in your head. Don’t fight it or deny it, relieve yourself by both constructing and understanding yourself. 

Some Ilvermorny headcanons

First and foremost, every day is cranberry pie day

While students do have robes, the clothes they wear underneath the robes are not uniforms. There is an eclectic mix of tastes, from the very serious horned serpent who wears button-downs and ties every day, to the wampus who has enchanted their graphic t-shirt to move, to the thunderbirds and pukwudgies who mutually exist solely for sweater weather.

Every year on James Steward’s birthday, there is a school-sponsored cranberry pie bake-off. Pukwudgie house nearly always wins. Once, thunderbird won and good lord you would think it was the civil war all over again

There are a lot of local professors, of course, so you get some really thick Boston accents, but there are also professors with southern belle accents who serve iced tea in class, professors with Canadian accents, professors with midwest accents, several Native American professors with smooth, lulling accents, and some Mexican professors who slip into Spanish when they get super excited about their subject. There was a visiting professor from Ireland once, and 96% of female students (and some male students) had major crushes on him.

Wampus house is where you go to get body-crushing, soul-lifting hugs

Horned serpents may be scholars, but they are also some of the keenest observers. They watch the whole school from afar and quietly play matchmaker to all of their friends. No one suspects them because - what, horned serpent? No. They don’t know about emotions. Meanwhile, the house president makes a killing on the bet she made to predict the homecoming king/queen. 

Thanksgiving at Ilvermorny is a spectacle that has to be seen to be believed. It’s almost bigger than Christmas. The thanksgiving feasts at Ilvermorny put Hogwarts to shame. Turkey, ham, real cranberry sauce, pies - oh my god so many pies. They’ve got cider, and tea, and cocoa like you wouldn’t believe. There are New English dishes and Southern dishes and Native dishes and Mexican dishes and Canadian dishes and West Coast dishes - essentially it’s a gigantic continental potluck, and it goes on all day long. Also, their pumpkin juice tastes 1000 times better.

While things like dueling and fighting with wands may be frowned upon at Hogwarts, at Ilvermorny it’s kind of just assumed that stuff happens, and the profs are very chill about it. “Just don’t kill each other okay” “just take it outside” “no casting destruction spells indoors” “bring some band-aids with you” “if you break your nose don’t bleed on your homework”

Pukwudgies are a pretty agreeable house over all, if not a bit salty and surly around the edges, they’ll still help you with your homework and bring you soup when you’ve got a cold. But all bets are off when they step onto the lacrosse field. Maybe its a pride thing, but pukwudgies are frikkin animals when playing lacrosse.

Wampus beats pukwudgie at lacrosse fairly often. They don’t actually practice that much, they just kind of win.

This fact has fueled a sports rivalry - friendly in wampus’ eyes, bloodthirsty in pukwudgie’s eyes. 

At wampus/pukwudgie games, horned serpents sell special blends of popcorn. Thunderbirds purchase, hoard, and eat 89% of this popcorn.

Horned serpents and pukwudgies often, though not always, end up having an unspoken rivalry in potions class.

Contrary to popular belief, wampus is not full of athletic jocks. However, they are the most body-positive of all of the schools, and, somewhat ironically to the stereotype, will never judge anyone for their athletic ability. They want everyone to be able to enjoy athleticism and bravery and adventure in the ways they are most able and gifted.

That being said, they do have the kind of student body who, if called upon, could become a minute militia.

When there is a freak hurricane or tornado headed headed for the school, it will be a wampus student who is patrolling the halls and telling students where to go for safety. If there is a bully in school, you had better bet your bottom dollar that s/he will be beaten to a pulp by the next day, and it will be a wampus student sporting mysteriously bloody knuckles.

Pukwudgies are the ones who patch up the bully; they might accidentally wind the bandages a little too tight.

Thunderbirds love a good game of hide-and-seek. They have a tradition of, every halloween, playing hide-and-seek in the dark in the woods.

Horned serpents are the students least often caught for sneaking in contraband into school. Caught being the key word. Most students learn at some point in their education that if you want a nice stiff drink, you go to horned serpent. During secret designated holidays, horned serpent common room turns into a speakeasy. 

Unexpectedly, it is pukwudgies who carry the most weapons and dangerous materials on their person at any given time. If a group of Ilvermorny students were going through a security check, it would be the pukwudgies held at the line while they emptied their pockets (bigger on the inside, of course) of various poisons and weapons. When asked, they would just shrug and say “just in case”.

The town around Ilvermorny is home to several franchised chain restaurants that, although they are no-maj brands, have been taken over by Ilvermorny alumni and thus serve predominantly wizarding patrons. Cups levitate to customers in the Starbucks, there are magic-only options on the menu; the chik-fil-a floor sweeps itself; at dominos the pizzas assemble themselves while the one clerk waits, bored, at the register. There are in-house cues for magic patrons whenever a no-maj walks in. The clerk rings a bell or taps loudly on the counter, or yells out an order than is actually a code word for stop doing magic stuff. It’s like red light green light.

There are some old service tunnels beneath the school left over from WWII and the Cold War. They’re like a labyrinth, and Thunderbird has a monopoly on the maps to the tunnels. Some of the more obscure tunnels have large rooms that are perfect for parties and impromptu speakeasies (lookin at you, horned serpent). Thunderbirds will rent out these rooms to fellow students at a fair and competitive rate.

Unlike hogwarts, Ilvermorny students are more apt to use modern technology. Electrics can be weird around witches and wizards, but they still enjoy a lot of no-maj programming. They use computers instead of quills (but still have to print off their essays, ugh,) and listen to music, and watch TV.

Star Trek has long been a school cult favorite. Pukwudgies have adopted Bones as their pop culture mascot; Kirk is Thunderbird’s, Spock, horned serpent. Wampus vacillates on which of these three they like most, though it must be said, when they start watching Next Gen, many wampus students find themselves enamored with Worf,

There has only been one no-maj to ever make it past the magic shields of Ilvermorny unaided. This instance was in 1985. His name was Chad, who at the time was 1) stoned out of his mind and 2) delivering chinese takeout to a horned serpent pulling an all-nighter. School admin found out later, and there was hell to pay. They never did track down Chad to wipe his memory.

Pukwudgie house does have more than its fair share of healers, so they are definitely the ones to go to for cold remedies, home made soup, the best cures for menstrual cramps, and really good back rubs.

However, they are also the ones to go to for less medical remedies: the best hot cocoa, the most gourmet teas, and home made food.

Each house has a class president who is elected for a two-year term (unless they’re a final year student, in which case they will serve one before being taken over by their VP). They have some influence within their houses, but never as much as they’d like. For instance, the thunderbird president once attempted to institute mid-day dancing parties, but school admin said no.

Pukwudgies are usually not super athletic, but are often very good at things like darts, archery, and waterbaloon fights.

Wampus takes ultimate frisbee very, very seriously.

Thunderbird hosts an ongoing scavenger hunt throughout the semester.

The women of horned serpent blow off steam and the stuffy acadmic pressures of their house by making pillow forts and watching rom coms with each other.

Back in the eighties some wizard created a magic version of D&D, and it has become a weekend favorite of many students across all of the houses.

After graduation, instead of having a class ring, it has become tradition for Ilvermorny students to make a pendant out of their golden cloak buttons.

Ilvermorny may be separated by inter-house squabbles much like at Hogwarts, but at the end of the day, they all leave school wearing the same blue and cranberry robes, sporting the same skill with a wand, raised to the same scrappy, witty, mod-podge tenacity that American witches and wizards embody so well.

Hey! So I just got hired as leadership director at a new camp and I feel super anxious and unqualified for it. I’ve been a uc and a ul but I’m still very nervous to have this new leadership position. Do you have any advice/wisdom/literally anything pls help

Hello anon! Sorry it’s been a bit, I’ve been on a 2200 mile road trip with my best friend. 

First, congratulations! My summer as leadership director was my favorite summer ever and I look back on it fondly. I do remember feeling overwhelmed and underqualified when I started too. I had only ever been a UC at a day camp, so this was a big change. 

I think my biggest piece of advice is to take time and bond with your kids. Learn more about them than their names and where they’re from. And encourage them to bond with each other. Your goal should be to make a community, and you should be part of it. And the friendships they make with each other will last for years. 

One of your jobs is to be a mentor. You’re teaching them things, yes, but they are also learning by your example. They’re going to pick up on the things you do, good and bad. They will know when you are happy, when you are stressed, when you are excited to be somewhere, when you would rather be curled in your sleeping bag instead of chugging coffee in the vain hopes of waking up. So be conscious of that.

CITs are older, so they want to be seen as mature. So being honest with them is really important. Like my year we were all very clear with the CITs that being a counselor, while very rewarding, is stressful. And they learned that first hand, but we didn’t sugar coat it much if at all. When they decided to prank me by making me think one of them cut their hand open (like bad), we had a very frank discussion about why that wasn’t a good choice and what it really feels like when you think one of your campers is seriously injured. When we did night debriefs and they inevitably turned the question back on me, I answered. And when they saw that my eyes were puffy because I had been crying on my break and they asked about it, we talked about that too. Obviously I did not tell them all of the things that happened at camp or were happening with me, but I did try to be as honest as possible with them.

Part of your job that you might not have thought about is that it is now your job to protect your CITs. I love all the counselors at camp and they are absolutely, 110% wonderful. But their priority is their own campers, not necessarily the CITs. So it’s your job to make sure that they don’t get thrown in over their heads because that can happen. We as counselors get thrown into all sorts of situations, but we have admin to help out. That’s your responsibility to your CITs. 

I love the CITs so much and I hope that you will have as great an experience as leadership director as I did. You’re always welcome to message me too. I wish you the best of summers.

Packing List 2.0, Part 2

Previously we covered what clothes to bring to camp. Here is a suggestion of what else to bring:

A rubbermaid tub - to keep all of this and your clothes in

A sturdy medium to large backpack. Not a sinch-sack (the square ones with string straps), they will wear into your shoulders towards the end of a long day and they don’t hold much.

2 or more water bottles, 20 ounces or bigger. I actually suggest 1 liter bottles like Nalgenes, especially if you do a lot of sports activities or go on longer hikes. I generally have 3 water bottles at camp.

A bandanna/headbands/hair ties

Personal hygiene items - toothbrush, toothpaste, hairbrush/comb, shampoo, conditioner, lotion (trust me on the lotion) 

Clipboard - I personally like my opening clipboard, which has been thoroughly decorated.

Mess kit - I use one of those clamshell-esque plain aluminum

Hat - wear what you like. Most staff wear baseball caps. I wear a bucket hat covered in SWAPS.

Headlamp and flashlight

2 towels - one for showers, one for waterfront

Bed kit - sleeping bag, sheet to go under it (twin fitted sheets are like $5-8 at Walmart), blanket, pillow. Trust me, bring a real pillow. 

Sunglasses, with UV protection

Laundry bag

Multitool - like a larger scale Swiss army knife

Kleenex pocket packs

Journal

Sharpies

A watch and battery-operated alarm clock

As with the clothes, you don’t need to get the fancy, top of the line stuff from REI. Walmart has pretty much everything on this list. Kroger and Target are also great options. 

The only thing you may want to step up on is the backpack. I used to have an old Jansport, which was fine, but then I got a sweet Osprey in 2017 with a Camelback and I LOVE it. It is my favorite backpack and I use it in my personal life as well. Many camp staff are also outdoorsy and therefore already have a good hiking backpack. But a lot of people just use their old school backpack, like the no frills kind canvas not the laptop kind. Which can usually be found at Walmart/Target. Also thrift stores.

Post about theme day accessories to follow.

A Complete Guide for Packing for Camp

Step 1: Figure out your camp. At my camp, counselors move cabins every week, so we try not to bring TOO much stuff. If this is similar to your camp, plan on packing in something you are able to carry/roll/etc. 

Step 2: Clear you schedule for at least a couple hours. This is gonna take longer than you thought. You might want to bring a snack and some water to your room too. 

Step 3: Clean up your room and clear some space. You’re gonna have stuff laying around all over as you try to sort through what you are bringing and attempt to organize it all. 

Step 4: Have a organization plan. I personally pack my big backpacking pack with bedding, sleeping bag, cabin junk, shoes, toiletries and other random things. Then I have a duffel bag for clothes, and towels. And I pack my day pack in advance too. (I also keep a backpack with my laptop that will rotate between staff lounge and my car). 

Step 5: Make a list. Not necessarily for specific clothes, but rather for all the other little things that are lying around your room and house that you may have to go searching for. 

Step 6: Pack. 

Step 7: Double check your list. Put everything in a pile or in your car. Don’t leave anything unpacked lying around your room/car so you don’t forget it and not realize it until later. 

TIPS: 

a. Bring lots of tampons/pads. Campers may need them. 

b. If you are going to want a comforting item (blanket, stuffed animal, boyfriend’s sweatshirt, etc.) BRING IT. You will not regret it. Find a way to fit it into your luggage. 

c. I don’t care what your camp’s generic packing list says, bring A BILLION PAIRS OF SOCKS.

d. Bring a cute outfit or two. It’s nice to shower after campers leave and look cute for if only a few hours. 

e. Have a shower/bathhouse bag. 

f. Tie shoes to the straps of bags if you are running out of space. 

g. You’re probably gonna wear the same few pairs of shoes all summer. (I have 2 pairs of sneakers, a pair of chacos (we can’t wear them when campers are here) and my barn boots. Don’t overestimate how many pairs you will wear. 

h. I like to keep my car clean and organized as well, so I can keep extra stuff in there instead of the cabin. 

i. Pack some silly clothes. Pack some big t-shirts. Pack a baggy sweater.