Spark Phrases: Training Staff on Play

Staff TrainingLeadership & Staff Development

Feb 19

Last week I was talking with Emma Kaapana, the new director of YMCA Camp Lake Helena. She works for my old boss and we are trading time helping each other. I help Emma think through new aspects of her role and Diane Jackson, the marketing and fundraising director at their association mentors Ray, our director of community engagement. You can read more about that set up here.

Camp Lake Helena is a brand new camp. YMCA Camp Seymour took over the property and is running a region Y day camp there. A huge part of Emma’s job is developing a culture and helping the staff be successful. Emma and the team are hoping to create a nice mix of camper driven play times with more conventional staff lead activities. We talked for about an hour and it got me thinking.

I think most people that come to work at camps want to do a good job. The overwhelming majority like working with kids, like being outside, and want to make a difference in campers lives. Sure they will make mistakes, get tired, and not always live up to that, but I think they mostly want to. Where I think new staff fall short is more that they are confused than then are lazy.

Think about it, camp is weird. When do we yell? Just before meals but not during them? And you want me to let kids play from 10-11am but then from 11am-12pm you want me, in the same place with no outside signal, to lead a game? And the game is some weird idea I hadn’t heard of a week ago? Plus all these other 18 year olds I don’t know are probably judging me? On top of that it is a long day, every day, and a long summer. How do I know as a staff member when to bring the energy and when is a good time to slow it down so I can bring it later?

It is hard. To get the most out of our staff and set them up for the most success we need to help them understand how to navigate camp. My friend Sylvia van Meerten calls this Illuminating the Hidden Curriculum or helping people understand the insider knowledge. Learn more about the Hidden Curriculum.

One way I think we do this is through language or creating spark phrases. These short phrases give us common language without having to fully explain an idea. I am sure you have them at your camps. By intentionally creating them and making sure we explain them to new folks we build culture and then give people the tools to navigate our hidden curriculum.

Red Lining - A Spark Phrase Example

One example we stole from Camp Augusta is what they call Red Lining. At our camp, and maybe yours, we play a lot of games. Sports, gaga, capture the flag, other made up stuff, but lots of games. The thing about playing games is people have different understandings of what the point of a game is. Is it to win? Laugh? Have fun? Learn something? Do you play differently with 6 year olds than your friends? I think that can be confusing.

At Stomping Ground, the point of playing games is for the people playing to have fun. If you are a staff member playing the game it is your job to figure out the best way to do that. Sometimes with the super athletic 13 year olds that means playing as hard as you can. Sometimes with the nervous new kids it is to chill and let them win.

But that’s confusing and you can imagine it is pretty easy to mess that up or miss read the situation or maybe get caught up in the game and start to think the point of the game is for you to win. Lots of people get salty with people in that situation, but if you play basketball almost any other time the point is to win. So it is kind of an easy mistake to make. Anyway, we call this trying too hard to win for your sake Red Lining. If another staff member, or now even kids do it, think I am taking the winning too seriously for the situation they might say, “Yo Jack, you Red Lining?” Then I can check myself. It is a lot easier and faster than pulling someone aside and having a long conversation about competition and the point of games.

You probably have similar Spark Phrases at your camps. By creating these and then making sure people know what they mean we are illuminating the insider knowledge of the place and helping to create an intentional culture.

Spark Phrases and Kid Driven Play

There is a huge opportunity for Spark Phrases with camper driven play. This is what Emma and I started talking about as we dove into her opportunities at Lake Helena. One of the big problems with kid driven play time, some people call this unstructured play or free play, is that the counselors don’t know what to do. They often end up either taking over or sitting back and talking to their friends. I think many times this is a lack of understanding.

Here is our basic idea. What if we labeled different areas or times as different colors. Those colors would correspond with what we, as the supervisors, expected from staff. I imagine kids would start to know these colors as well and it would trickle down for them too.

GREEN

Green zones are for times when it is camper driven play time. This might be free swim, fort building, the makerspace, free time, etc. During these times staff are expected to either, simply supervise, like a lifeguard at the pool, or supervise and engage. This might look like helping a group of kids build a fort while also keeping your head on a swivel supervising the whole group. The way green zones work is as the staff person leading the group you set the boundaries and expectations when you arrive with your campers then turn them loose. If you feel like things are getting out of hand you can either address the whole group, individuals, or a specific area. It is still your job to supervise during green times.

BLUE

Blue zones are more classic staff driven activities. You are to lead the group, make sure they are engaged and supervised. In these spaces you are much more involved in each step of the process for the entire group. Examples: archery, high ropes, swim lessons.

TEAL

These areas are a little more complicated and might change. When you are back at your cabin before bed is that a blue or green zone? A little bit of both. You probably lead the kids in getting ready for bed (blue) and then give them some time to hang out (green) before maybe doing a closing activity (blue) and going to sleep. Let’s call these teal zones, a combo of blue and green.

I think a lot of what I just described seems super basic for people who get camp, but for new folks it is super confusing and hard to talk about. By creating shared language and illuminating the hidden curriculum around what is expected in different areas we make it easier for new staff to be successful. Maybe even more importantly we give our new supervisors the language to coach people through challenges.

“So Jack, at free time today I noticed you just standing back and watching. You were probably focused totally on supervision, but in green zones like that it is a great time to engage with kids and keep your head on a swivel in your zone.”

“Jack, last night your kids were wileying out and didn’t seem to know what the deal with bed times. I know the teal zones can be confusing. The key there is to know when it is your turn and when it is your co’s turn to take the lead and really create a blue time before giving kids freedom to hang out before bed in a green time.”

I hope you have the best summer! If you are interested in more thoughts on the Hidden Curriculum check this out.