Laura's Master List of Staff Training Links
At Stomping Ground we know that staff training week is hugely important in framing the behaviors and attitudes we’ll exhibit throughout the summer. A lot of times, staff haven’t worked at camp before, so an opportunity to onboard them and set them up for success with the right skills is really useful. But when its day four of staff training and you hear your Director call everyone to the dining hall for another two hour talk about showing up to Water Front on time, you might start to forget that you are on the job right now and that this stuff really matters. In an effort to avoid this feeling at all costs, sometimes at Stomping Ground we outsource some of our learning.
All of these links will be shared with our staff before the summer, and they all have something to do with the “why” of camp. I’m so grateful to work in a space that thinks hard about what it cares about and is intentional about its beliefs. All of the thanks to Laura for compiling this list!
-George
1.) CHANGING EDUCATION PARADIGMS- KEN ROBINSON
Summary: Sir Ken Robinson challenges the way we're educating our children. He champions a radical rethink of our school systems, to cultivate creativity and acknowledge multiple types of intelligence.
Relevance to camp: At camp, we try and build on each other “unbounded creativity” Ken Robinson helps us think about changing traditional ways we work with kids to unlock more creativity.
Video
2.) TED TALK ON VULNERABILITY- BERNE BROWN
Summary: Brené Brown studies human connection -- our ability to empathize, belong, love. In a poignant, funny talk, she shares a deep insight from her research, one that sent her on a personal quest to know herself as well as to understand humanity.
Relevance to camp: At camp out the primary job is to build a connection with others. Berne argues that connection stems from vulnerability.
3.) THE FUTURE OF HEALING, SHIFTING FROM TRAUMA-INFORMED CARE TO HEALING CENTERED ENGAGEMENT- SHAWN GINWRIGHT
Summary: New way to think about building, fostering and recognizing resilience in kids.
Relevance to camp: Every kid that comes through camp this summer will have things in their past that inform the way they act think and relate to others. By recognizing and validating their experiences we help them build resilience.
4.) BLACK AND BROWN BOYS DON’T NEED TO LEARN GRIT- ANDRE PERRY
Summary: Well-meaning educators and policymakers argue that “Grit” and a good attitude are the keys to success for low-income communities. This article argues that the system is what sets kids up for failure and that teaching what justice looks and feels like will prove more advantageous towards lifting up supporting students.
Relevance to camp: How does camp support systems design to benefit some and not others? What can we do to dismantle systems from the outside world that show up at camp?
5.) HIDDEN BRAIN PODCAST ON IMPLICIT BIAS- NPR
Summary: Explore implicit bias. Examine research about prejudices so deeply buried, we often doubt their existence.
Relevance to camp: The more aware of our own perspectives and positionality the more we can engage with others through humble curiosity
6.) WELCOME/RE-ENTRY CIRCLE- OAKLAND SCHOOL DISTRICT
Summary: Oakland School district Restorative re-entry circle. Student welcomed back to school by teachers, parents, administrators and others who are key players and supports in young man’s life.
Relevance to camp: We use circles to solve the conflict and build community at camp. This video is an example of how a community can come together to heal and support each other.
Video
7.) A BLACK PROFESSOR OFFERS ADVICE FOR “WHITE FOLKS WHO TEACH IN THE HOOD”- EMMA BROWN
Summary: This article reviews a book by Christopher Emdin about how to show up respectfully and effectively as a white person in black and brown spaces.
Relevance to camp: We want to figure out how to have uncomfortable but important conversations about race at camp.
8.) WE NEED TO TALK ABOUT INJUSTICE - BRYAN STEVENSON
Summary: Human rights lawyer, Bryan Stevenson shares some hard truths about America's justice system, starting with a massive imbalance along racial lines: a third of the country's black male population has been incarcerated at some point in their lives. These issues, which are wrapped up in America's unexamined history, are rarely talked about with this level of candor, insight, and persuasiveness.
Relevance to camp: By understanding and engaging with social justice issues as staff members we create a solid foundation for campers to be curious and question the things that may impact their lives.
9.) MOTHER NATURE’S PEDAGOGY: INSIGHTS FROM EVOLUTIONARY PSYCHOLOGY - PETER GRAY
Summary: Peter Gray's research shows that the inherent playfulness, curiosity and willfulness of children has been honed by natural selection to permit each individual to educate themselves. So why are we educating our younger generation in a way that so explicitly takes away these faculties and replaces them with standardized testing?
