Posts Tagged ‘Benefits of Summer Camp’

Camp Photographer at Camp Starlight

Thursday, May 30th, 2019

We are thrilled to be welcoming Courtney back as our camp photographer for her second summer at Camp Starlight! Read below to see some of her favorite photos from summer 2018.  

As the excitement builds for our upcoming trek to Camp Starlight,  here it is…a kind of BEST OF SUMMER 2018.    I ain’t gonna lie, I could look at camp pictures all day.    So this was a fun project to work on throughout the past 10 months.   And honestly, this doesn’t even scratch the surface of images that take my breath away.  But this tells the story, and hopefully stokes the excitement in you for the summer ahead.

In less than a month, I’ll be back to do it again.  This time some of those smiling faces that come bouncing off the bus on arrival day, may actually be that excited to see “me”.  And that makes me feel pretty special.   Something really incredible happens during those 7 weeks.  My experience was unique in that I got to experience ALL of camp.  Not just isolated with one age group, gender, or activity.  I was with every age group, every gender, every sport, every activity…EVERY DAY.  I saw it all.  Incredible and exhausting all at the same time.

See you soon,

courtney

Best of Camp Starlight 2018

Camp Starlight Memories

Tuesday, May 7th, 2019

Camp Memories 2018

  1. Making brand new friends in the bunk
  2. Having cool counselors from all over the world
  3. Tubing around the lake
  4. Having two awesome camp sisters
  5. Funny times in the bunk
  6. Being a music kitten in the play Aristocats
  7. Trying the star jump for the first time ever
  8. Going to the best camp ever!
  • Sydney G1

Some of my favorite camp memories were…

  1. Winning MTV Night divisionals
  2. Getting pizza for dinner on Junior day
  3. Having the best time ever with my amazing counselors and my awesome CA.
  4. Having a water fight after our parent left on visiting day. Even though I was crying the water fight cheered my right up.
  5. The best Olympic breakout!
  6. We saw the movie Coco after Olympics and we got popcorn

This year was a great year.

  • Andie G6

Camp Memories

It was raining so hard outside so our counselor Sydney started singing “Singing in the Rain”. So we all went outside and started singing with her. We all got soaked. It was so much fun.

  • Claudia G10

Appreciation at Camp Starlight

Friday, March 29th, 2019

Written by Tessa (Lakehouse B)

The word “appreciate” is simply one of the many that would come to my mind when thinking of this beautiful place. If someone were to ask me, “what did you appreciate overall during your upper junior summer?”, the answer would probably be the 10 Dena gave us on inspection that day, or maybe the canteen we would get 3 times a week. Coming upon my following summers here, my division leaders have been the ones who impacted me the most. Tracie teaching us to always walk around with our heads high. Janelle’s infectious attitude always relating back to being kind. Megan teaching me how to be a good person or better triceratops, upon entering my first year in upper camp. Then came my upper deb summer in 2016. Let me just say one word. Eagles. I could never appreciate something more than that summer blessing me with the relationships formed with the 35 girls in my division who I proudly call my sisters. When I say sisters, I truly mean family. Lower Senior summer with Shelby taught me that I cannot sweat the small things, and that it is beyond important to cherish every second in this place. Shelby has never failed to teach me that when we’re in this place, there is no other option to be anything but yourself. It is now my seventh summer, and being an Upper Senior who has now carried each tradition to every division below has really shown me how to appreciate every little thing and moment. Looking back, I wouldn’t change one moment, I wouldn’t even trade it for an extra canteen! Reflecting on my past summer I realize that my favorite place has given me my best friends, memories, opportunities and everything in between. Appreciation doesn’t necessarily have to be a “where”. The “how” is something that touches me the most. They say that home is where your heart is. Camp Starlight has my heart.

Interpersonal Skills at Camp Starlight

Monday, January 28th, 2019

In a world where third graders have cell phones and middle school students are striving to be “Insta-famous,” it’s no wonder teachers, and parents are noticing that students lack basic interpersonal skills needed to be successful in the real world. This is why more and more adults are actively looking for ways for young people in their lives to connect with others and improve their communication skills. Camp Starlight is a great option for students not only to spend the summer having fun and trying new things but also provides a safe space for them to work on their interpersonal skills, meet new people and build relationships organically.

Listening

Being successful at camp means being able to listen to rules and expectations, follow directions and adhere to a schedule. Campers have a lot of freedom to make their own choices, but there are times when their safety, health, and wellbeing are dependent on listening to counselors and staff. Counselors make it a point to ensure all campers feel heard and demonstrate active listening strategies when campers are talking. Eye contact, body language, and asking questions are all way counselors show campers they are listening, and campers follow their example.

Campers are expected to listen to each other and avoid interruptions or distracting behaviors while fellow campers are talking. Learning to be a good listener will help campers be successful students during the school year and prepare them to be successful leaders as they enter the workforce.

Decision Making

Good leaders can make important decisions in a short amount of time. They understand how to use all the information that they have, consider their past experiences, common sense, and intuition, and decide with confidence. Campers are given hundreds of chances over their sleep away camp experience to work in their decision-making skills. From which activities they want to try each day to what they want for lunch, campers are trusted to make healthy, safe and smart decisions to customize their camp experience.

Problem Solving

While camp will easily be the most fun campers will have all year, not every moment is rainbows and butterflies. Campers will face challenges during their time away from home, and it may be the first time they are charged with solving big problems without their parents by their side. Counselors are always on hand to guide campers through obstacles and challenges, but encourage campers to find solutions on their own. After a summer at camp, campers are equipped with problem-solving strategies to help them become more effective leaders.

Verbal and Non-verbal Communication

In a world where children and teens do most of their communication from their phones or computers, it’s no surprise that many are lacking opportunities to practice good ol’ fashion face-to-face communication. Since screen time is minimal at camp, campers spend most of their time talking and listening to others, developing things like self-awareness, empathy, patience, conflict management and listening. They learn to read cues given off by other campers, and how to be aware of the way they interact with others, both one-on-one and in a group setting.

Camp helps campers bridge the gap when it comes to the critical interpersonal skills they need to be successful in life. And, as is most of the life skills that campers learn while they swim, fish, act, dance, hike, play, sing and explore, they usually have no idea they’re actually learning something. Every day, campers work on character building disguised as fun and leave camp more well-rounded than they came.

 

 

Snail Mail – Sending and receiving handwritten letters is much more personal

Thursday, January 17th, 2019

When was the last time you wrote a handwritten letter? When was the last time you went out to the mailbox to find a handwritten letter addressed to you? If you are like most people, receiving a letter in the mailbox instead of an inbox is a special treat to be treasured. The idea that someone took the time to sit down and put their thoughts to you on paper, find an envelope, a stamp and get it out into the mailbox is something to be admired in this fast-paced world, which is what makes receiving mail so special.

At Camp Starlight, campers look forward to filling their friends and family back home in on the details of their camp experience through a series of handwritten notes. But participating in the ancient art of “snail mail” is about more than just touching base with friends and family back home. Writing and receiving letters benefits campers in many ways.

During their break away from school, students typically have fewer chances to practice their basic reading and writing skills. Writing letters helps campers fine-tune this skill in a way that is fun and personal. There is no pressure to get all of the spelling right or indent properly, just an opportunity for campers to practice their penmanship and creative writing skills. Receiving letters from home also gives them a chance to brush up on their reading skills.

For campers who are growing up in a technology-driven world, a letter from home while at camp may be their first experience in getting something personal in the mail. There is an anticipation that comes with waiting for the recipient to receive their letter, and then excitement in receiving the response. This experience could foster a love and appreciation for handwritten notes in campers, and encourage them to continue the tradition throughout their lives.

A letter from home can be just the thing a homesick camper needs to feel better. A letter is a tangible treasure campers can hold onto and look back on whenever they want. It is a tangible reminder of their life back home and a connection to their loved ones.

Campers can write as many handwritten letters home as they wish. They are encouraged to use their quiet times to reflect on their day and write about their experiences and adventure to share with people back home.

A summer at sleepaway camp introduces campers to some of life’s most simple pleasures, such as songs around a campfire, enjoying a sunset and appreciating the art of snail mail. Just another way Camp Starlight gives campers experiences that they may not have had anywhere else!

 

 

10 Ways to Connect with Campers: Camp Starlight Counselors

Thursday, December 27th, 2018

To have a summer of fun and happiness as a counselor, you need to ensure that your campers are having just as much fun and are just as happy. The best way to make sure both you and your campers are having an amazing summer is to connect with them. Here are ten ways to connect with campers that will help everyone have a summer to remember.

  1. Get To Know Them: Find out what your camper is passionate about or what makes them excited to be at Camp Starlight. Figuring out who they are and what they want out of their summer experience will help you ensure they have a great summer.
  2. Attend Their Activities: When you see them participate in sports and activities you see them achieve goals or you see how you can help them overcome a challenge. Watching your campers have fun shows that you’re interested in their happiness.
  3. Laugh With Them: Laughing with your campers at a joke or funny event helps you connect with them and make memories. Always finding a time in your day to laugh with your campers shows them you want to be with them.
  4. Use Your Imagination: Don’t be afraid to be silly with your campers or use your imagination to make a day more fun with them. Using your imagination allows your campers to see how much fun you can have together.
  5. Eat Meals Together: Meal time is an important time of the day that allows for campers to talk about their day, what made them happy or what made them not so happy. Spending that quality time together ensures a deeper connection as the summer goes on.
  6. Smile: When you smile more it is proven to improve your mood and therefore you are more approachable to your camper. Smiling helps you show to your campers that you are happy to be at camp with them.
  7. Ask Questions: Sometimes campers aren’t so vocal about their feelings or experiences so make sure you always ask them lots of questions and get to know how they are doing. Asking questions shows you’re interested in their wellbeing and your happiness at camp.
  8. Participate in Activities: Show your enthusiasm by participating in an evening activity with them or getting involved in their daily activities. Your participation shows you care and allows you to bond together.
  9. Show Support: Always cheer them on during games, celebrate their success and help them when they’ve fallen down. Showing support is how you connect with your camper and help them have an amazing summer.
  10. Take a Challenge Together: Whether it’s helping them overcome their fear of the water or helping them choreograph an amazing dance for an evening activity, taking a challenge with your camper allows you to bond with them whether you succeed or not.

Why Campers are Thankful for Thanksgiving

Tuesday, November 20th, 2018

Thanksgiving is a time to reflect and think about all the amazing opportunities and qualities in your life you are grateful for and appreciate. A time spent with family, Thanksgiving reminds everyone to say what they are thankful for and to thank others for positively impacting their life. To celebrate this holiday, here are a few reasons campers are thankful for Camp Starlight.

  1. The Friendships: Camp Starlight is an environment that helps friendships that last longer than the summer bloom for campers. Camp friends are people you can truly rely on and think back fondly on. Camp friends are always there for you no matter what time of year which we are truly thankful for.
  2. The Counselors: The counselors at Camp Starlight push all the campers to go outside of their comfort zone. Whether it’s encouragement to make a new friend, instruction at activities, or the advice that’s given when needed, campers are thankful for the love and care our counselors provide
  3. The Fun: The campers are consistently thankful for the crazy fun they get to experience all summer long. From Evening Activities, to Krispy Kreme S-Days, and cheering for blue or white during Olympics, the campers really get to bond during special events. Campers are thankful for the memories these event creates.
  4. The Beauty: The lake at Camp Starlight hosts a myriad of activities and provides campers with a simultaneously exciting and relaxing space. The sunsets every evening at the lake are breathtaking and reminds campers how Starlight’s scenery is beautiful.
  5. The Memories: Thankful for all the amazing memories created summer after summer. From laughing hysterically with bunkmates, making a new friend, the opportunity to be the main character of the musical or nail a bulls eye in archery, campers are grateful for all the special memories each summer.

 

 

Camp Starlight Appreciation

Monday, November 12th, 2018

Written by Peyton (Lakehouse C)

7 years ago, I started attending Camp Starlight. Coming from Florida, I didn’t know anyone here, and I was definitely scared and nervous about making friends. I remember my first day so vividly. I was on the last bus to get to camp, and when I stepped foot on the clinic field, I was surrounded by the group of girls in my bunk who all already knew each other. They had been here lower junior, and I was a new camper in their bunk. I wondered how I would ever get close to these 7 girls who didn’t know how to even pronounce my name correctly, and were already the best of friends. Looking back on this now, I should have noticed that if the rest of my bunk were so close from only spending 7 weeks together, there had to be something truly magical about Camp Starlight.

After only a few hours into my first summer, my bunk and I knew each other better than anyone else in the world. That is the magic of this place that I definitely appreciate because I would have never gotten to know such amazing people, who live thousands of miles away from me. Over the course of the next summers, I got closer to my entire division and many others around camp. This created a huge family from near and far that I know I will have forever. I appreciate Camp Starlight because it turned a group of strangers into a tight-knit community and family.

My appreciation for this camp extends beyond the ability to create an extended family. During the months following camp, I missed some of the small things here that I never focused on. When I tried new extra-curricular activities that year at school, I realized how helpful it is to have friends to stand by your side while trying new things like I did at camp. I missed having friends on the sidelines wanting you to succeed at any challenge. Once school started, I missed the sounds of reveille as my wake up call shifted to my alarm clock. I missed going to the health center instead of the nurse, and the singing and cheering in the dining hall instead of a school cafeteria. I missed recall blowing instead of the bell, and I missed super six instead of my boring sixth period. It was these little things that I never came to appreciate and miss until camp ended.

After every summer, I go back to Florida, and my parents ask me how camp was and ask what happened. However, the thing about explaining something you appreciate is that there is no way to fully encapsulate it. You cannot learn to appreciate something unless it is gone. When I was a junior, all I wanted was to have later bedtimes, longer shower hours, and higher bunk number. Now that I am an upper senior, all I want is to start the ticking clock of camp over again, and truly appreciate the magic and power of this special place, Camp Starlight.

Camp Now More Than Ever

Tuesday, November 6th, 2018

There is something about spending the summer at a sleepaway camp that allows kids and teens to connect in a way they just can’t at school. Maybe it’s the extended time they spend together or the fact that selfies and Instagram and the social media comparison epidemic is taken out of the equation at camp. Whatever the reason, campers are able to interact and build relationships on a deeper level at camp than they can at school or on sports teams at home.

One of the major reasons campers can form such strong bonds in such a short amount of time at camp is because they’re unplugged. They are not distracted by putting filters on their Instagram pictures or obsessively tracking how many likes their status update receives. Instead, they’re having real conversations and real experiences that trump scrolling through social media any day. Since their faces aren’t glued to a screen, campers can actually look at each other and talk to each other, and it re-enforces the power of human connection.

Another reason campers connect on a deeper level with other campers is because of the extended time they spend together. While kids spend a majority of their day at school, most of it is spent in the classroom, with pockets of time throughout the day where they can freely interact with their peers and work on building relationships. At summer camp, communicating and building relationships is all campers do. From the moment they wake up until “lights out” campers have two jobs: have fun and make new friends. This is why camp relationships are so strong from the get-go because campers have nothing but time to work on establishing trust and friendships with their peers.

Many campers who attend Camp Starlight are active in sports teams and clubs at home. But at home, when the game or practice is over, the team goes their separate ways. At camp, you walk off the field with your team AND your opponent and make s’mores around a campfire together. This time spent together strengthens relationships of teammates and helps establish healthy attitudes towards competition and sportsmanship.

Camp builds community because camp is a community. At school, students are usually focused on trying to find the little group that they can fit into. At camp, everyone is in the same group. Of course, individuals find their own smaller circle of friends, but at the end of the day, around the campfire, everyone is a camper. Everyone is there for the summer of their lives. Lifelong friendships are started at Camp Starlight because of the traditions, memories, and experiences they share.

It is common for campers to comment on the differences between their school friends and their camp friends. There always seems to be something a little more intimate, a little more solid in their circle of camp friends. Probably because these friendships are based on shared experiences, honest communication and quality time instead of Instagram followers and Facebook likes.

What’s Your Favorite Part of Camp?

Wednesday, October 24th, 2018

When asked the question, “What’s your favorite part of camp,” I am sure many campers would say everything. Personally when I get asked the same question my response is everything as well. But what does everything really mean? Is it the sunsets on the lake every night? Is it the reveille that wakes me up every morning? Is it the laughter that I share with my friends every day? Or is it all of the small moments that count just as much as the big ones? Over the previous summers here at camp I have finally found the meaning of everything, which is a combination of each and every laugh, smile and memory made at this place. Sometimes small moments can go unnoticed, however appreciating special moments here can go a long way. When I was younger the walk to alumni field from my bunk was a long and tiring experience. The struggle of putting on shin guards then the socks and finally the cleats was a difficult process as an 8 year old. Now, as an upper senior the time spent putting on the equipment and walking to the field is all worth it. Searching for my shin guards, doing cartwheels to alumni, and the little thrill you get when you walk down the steep hill leading you to the rocks or being greeted by Whatley greeting us on the field are all the little things at camp that I appreciate. So, the next time you are asked about your favorite part about camp, take a moment to think about the times you’ve cherished and appreciated no matter how big or small the memory may be because, the underestimated moments are what make you appreciate everything that this camp has to offer.

Written by Chloe (Lakehouse C)