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Day camp counselor skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted experts

Dr. Carla Alphonso,

Kacie Blalock Ph.D.

Below we've compiled a list of the most critical day camp counselor skills. We ranked the top skills for day camp counselors based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 19.7% of day camp counselor resumes contained cpr as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a day camp counselor needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 day camp counselor skills for your resume and career

1. CPR

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation or CPR is a medical procedure that involves chest compression to help a patient breathe. This artificial ventilation helps in keeping the brain function in place and regulates blood throughout the body. CPR is a lifesaving procedure that is used in emergencies.

Here's how day camp counselors use cpr:

Maintained updated CPR certification and Crisis Wave certification.
Earned certification for CPR and First Aid, executed emergency procedures and applied First Aid at a time of need.

2. Kids

Here's how day camp counselors use kids:

Led a successful group of kids by ensuring safety and behavioral expectations were met and providing structured and organized educational activities.
Demonstrated and provided community service experience for roughly twenty teenagers consisting of kids who needed behavioral assessment.

3. Cleanliness

Here's how day camp counselors use cleanliness:

Followed safety and cleanliness standards.
Set a good example for campers in all areas, including cleanliness, punctuality, clean-up chores, and sportsmanship.

4. PET

Here's how day camp counselors use pet:

Talk with guests about pet's behaviors and how they did that day.
Organize playgroups and certain activities for each pet.

5. Leadership

Here's how day camp counselors use leadership:

Provided assistance to camp counselors and administrative leadership by supervising campers at all times to ensure safety and enjoyment.
Engaged and supervised 40 elementary children during summer camp outdoor activities -Encouraged development of leadership and problem solving skills

6. Direct Supervision

Direct supervision is a term used to indicate that a person is supervising a certain task or a certain person while being physically present or in close proximity. It refers to the presence of a person and the availability of their supervision in something if it is needed.

Here's how day camp counselors use direct supervision:

Administered medications to consumer under direct supervision.
Provide direct supervision for multiple Counselors.

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8. Emergency Procedures

Here's how day camp counselors use emergency procedures:

Observe campers behaviors, assess its appropriateness, enforce safety regulations and emergency procedures.
Observe kid behavior, enforce safety and emergency procedures and apply behavior management techniques approved by YMCA.

9. Role Model

A role model is a person with desirable qualities who inspires other people to emulate their example.

Here's how day camp counselors use role model:

Participated in all activities while teaching and role modeling outstanding behavior.
Engage school age children in games based on the week's theme as well as serve as a positive role model.

10. Core Values

The core values are those values we consider as the foundation on which we conduct ourselves and perform tasks. They are the practices we should ideally use while making all decisions. Core leadership values play an important role in steering decision-making processes and operations and they help you grow both personally and professionally. Having a solid core values helps build respect and trust towards a leader.

Here's how day camp counselors use core values:

Planned and implemented program activities that are culturally relevant, developmentally appropriate and consistent with YMCA core values.
Facilitated character development in children with the YMCA core values of honesty, respect, caring and responsibility.

11. Crisis Intervention

Here's how day camp counselors use crisis intervention:

Provided intensive in-home counseling primarily in the home to stabilize families in crisis, intensive individual counseling and 24-hour crisis intervention.
Provide psycho-educational and therapeutic groups, behavior modification, supportive counseling, and crisis intervention services in a classroom/school setting.

12. Behavior Management

Here's how day camp counselors use behavior management:

Facilitated psycho-social rehabilitation groups specific to emotional identity, anger management, problem identification, and behavior management.
Provided school-based intervention services to students focusing on behavior management, academic improvement, and life skill development.

13. Incident Reports

An Incident Report, in a medical facility such as hospitals and nursing homes, is a type of paperwork filled out immediately after and in the case of an incident of some sort, with the goal of describing the incident and its consequences, as well as the measurements taken after or during the incident, as well as any other information relevant to said incident. Such an incident might be a patient acting out or a patient being injured.

Here's how day camp counselors use incident reports:

Maintain accurate program documentation (attendance, sign in/out forms, behavior reports, incident reports, and accident reports).
Assisted in maintaining accurate program records including incident reports, payments and receipts, as well as daily attendance.

14. Substance Abuse

Here's how day camp counselors use substance abuse:

Provided therapeutic services to adults with serious mental illness/ mental retardation and/or substance abuse in both residential and day program settings.
Provided interventions that improved social emotional skills, critical thinking, substance abuse prevention, and anger management.

15. Children AGE

Here's how day camp counselors use children age:

Planned, developed and facilitated daily educational and social activities for approximately twenty children ages 7-9..
Over-looked children ages 5 to 16Sporting activities/ CoachingArts and CraftsHelped supervise swimming

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What skills help Day Camp Counselors find jobs?

Tell us what job you are looking for, we’ll show you what skills employers want.

What skills stand out on day camp counselor resumes?

Dr. Carla Alphonso

Professor of Sociology, Presbyterian College

Skills involving data collection and analysis remain important, and are one of the qualities that help sociology majors to stand out compared to their peers. Communication skills, especially strong writing skills but also confident, effective public speaking, are helpful in today's job market. Sociology students are also well-positioned in terms of problem solving and critical thinking skills. Many jobs that our students enter need applicants who are solutions-focused, and sociology helps students in that area.

What soft skills should all day camp counselors possess?

Kacie Blalock Ph.D.

Associate Professor; Director, Master of Counseling, Louisiana State University at Shreveport

Soft skills that are essential for counselors include emotional intelligence, empathy, multicultural competency, interpersonal abilities, and authenticity.

What hard/technical skills are most important for day camp counselors?

Kacie Blalock Ph.D.

Associate Professor; Director, Master of Counseling, Louisiana State University at Shreveport

It is important that counselors are able to effectively take notes and summarize progress, interpret assessments, memorize and recall information, and keep clear yet concise records.

What day camp counselor skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?

Melissa Boas

Director of Professional School Counseling, Assistant Professor, Lancaster Bible College

I believe the most important skill to enhance if taking a gap year is self-awareness. Understanding oneself and why and how self-awareness directly relates to future career decision making is instrumental in ensuring the right decisions are made. Self-awareness is extremely beneficial in all areas of life not just in choosing a career pathway.

What type of skills will young day camp counselors need?

Chris Hennington Ph.D.

School Counseling Program Coordinator, Lubbock Christian University

School counselors will be tasked with the usual school counseling responsibilities while also encountering trauma that students experience outside of school and in school. Being well versed in trauma response is going to be a vital aspect of being a school counselor. Kids are experiencing more trauma, but we are getting better at recognizing and treating trauma as well.

Do you want to know more?

List of day camp counselor skills to add to your resume

The most important skills for a day camp counselor resume and required skills for a day camp counselor to have include:

CPR
Kids
Cleanliness
PET
Leadership
Direct Supervision
Social Work
Emergency Procedures
Role Model
Core Values
Crisis Intervention
Behavior Management
Incident Reports
Substance Abuse
Children AGE
Direct Care
General Safety

Mental Health Issues
Group Therapy
Community Resources
Behavior Modification
Group Sessions
Developmental Disabilities
Safety Guidelines
Emergency First Aid
Group Games
Conflict Resolution
Therapeutic Interventions
First Aid Training
Eating Disorders
Community Services
Medicaid
Summer Program
Bible

Support Services
Crisis Situations
Skill Achievement
Anger Management
Fine Arts
Community Integration
Intellectual Disabilities
ADHD
Art Projects
Camper Behavior Issues
at-Risk Youth
IEP
Safety Procedures
School Administration
PowerPoint

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

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