What does a summer camp counselor do?
Summer camps are programs with different themes organized for children or teenagers during the summer months. Summer camp counselors are responsible for the overall supervision of campers and the planning and implementation of the different programs to give children a memorable experience. It is their responsibility to create a fun, safe, and rewarding environment for each camper. They provide counsel, support, and monitor each camper's individual development. A good summer camp counselor is reliable, honest, and has strong leadership skills.
Summer camp counselor responsibilities
Here are examples of responsibilities from real summer camp counselor resumes:
- Lead kids through daily activities and encourage their creativity
- Create activities for children k-5.
- Create PowerPoint games to enhance social skills.
- Assist after school children pre-k through 5th grade with homework or school projects.
- Organize and run programming to connect students with their Jewish life to the outside world.
- Monitor children at all times, being constantly aware of children's medical conditions and food allergies.
- Receive CPR and emergency behavioral and safety training.
- Complete childcare educational courses and obtain CPR certification.
- Administer medicine for participants with allergies as needed.
- Foster positive communication and collaboration between all staff and kids.
- Develop and implement camp curriculum, including a character-base leadership workbook focuse on daily small group exercises and think experiments.
- Prepare, maintain and submit daily progress notes and quarterly documentation to supervisor in accordance with Medicaid guidelines.
- Provide supervision to paraprofessionals to ensure Medicaid compliance, timely completion of paperwork, quality assurance and attendance.
- Attend manifestation and IEP meetings whenever necessary.
Summer camp counselor skills and personality traits
We calculated that 22% of Summer Camp Counselors are proficient in Child Care, Kids, and CPR. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Flexibility, and Leadership skills.
We break down the percentage of Summer Camp Counselors that have these skills listed on their resume here:
- Child Care, 22%
Provide child care and educational goals with recreational activities and provide supportive and nurturing interactions and instruction to children.
- Kids, 22%
Led kids through daily activities and encouraged their creativity
- CPR, 12%
Received CPR and emergency behavioral and safety training.
- Customer Service, 10%
Provided excellent customer service and aided students in developing awareness of education as a personal enrichment.
- Work Ethic, 8%
Received recognition for professionalism and work ethic.
- Summer Camps, 5%
Assist disable children w/their participation in summer camps activities
Most summer camp counselors use their skills in "child care," "kids," and "cpr" to do their jobs. You can find more detail on essential summer camp counselor responsibilities here:
Communication skills. One of the key soft skills for a summer camp counselor to have is communication skills. You can see how this relates to what summer camp counselors do because "recreation workers must be able to communicate well." Additionally, a summer camp counselor resume shows how summer camp counselors use communication skills: "serve as a role model to younger camp members who dealt with communication issues. "
Flexibility. Another soft skill that's essential for fulfilling summer camp counselor duties is flexibility. The role rewards competence in this skill because "recreation workers must be flexible when planning activities." According to a summer camp counselor resume, here's how summer camp counselors can utilize flexibility in their job responsibilities: "provide strategies for conflict resolution, self-regulation, flexibility, anxiety and problem solving. "
Leadership skills. This is an important skill for summer camp counselors to perform their duties. For an example of how summer camp counselor responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "recreation workers should be able to lead both large and small groups." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of a summer camp counselor: "demonstrated leadership skills by managing and overseeing the work ethic of the aquatics department when director was on maternity leave. ".
Physical strength. summer camp counselor responsibilities often require "physical strength." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "most recreation workers should be physically fit." This resume example shows what summer camp counselors do with physical strength on a typical day: "interacted with mentally and physically challenged kids. "
Problem-solving skills. Another common skill required for summer camp counselor responsibilities is "problem-solving skills." This skill comes up in the duties of summer camp counselors all the time, as "recreation workers need strong problem-solving skills." An excerpt from a real summer camp counselor resume shows how this skill is central to what a summer camp counselor does: "supervised and taught forty 1st -5th grade children reading, writing, and mathematics facilitated activities resolved conflicts between children"
The three companies that hire the most summer camp counselors are:
- Galileo58 summer camp counselors jobs
- Ymca Of Metropolitan Atlanta30 summer camp counselors jobs
- CARE19 summer camp counselors jobs
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Compare different summer camp counselors
Summer camp counselor vs. Orientation leader
An orientation leader helps new students adjust to life in universities or colleges. They are primarily responsible for sharing campus advice, facilitating campus tours, assisting incoming students in class and organization registrations, introducing university opportunities, and discussing essential matters with students and their families. Furthermore, an orientation leader usually works with faculty members and staff, coordinating with them, especially when handling students' programs. Aside from serving as a role model, an orientation leader must also share various academic and social resources to help the freshmen.
While similarities exist, there are also some differences between summer camp counselors and orientation leader. For instance, summer camp counselor responsibilities require skills such as "child care," "kids," "cpr," and "customer service." Whereas a orientation leader is skilled in "group discussions," "orientation program," "public speaking," and "student life." This is part of what separates the two careers.
The education levels that orientation leaders earn slightly differ from summer camp counselors. In particular, orientation leaders are 1.0% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than a summer camp counselor. Additionally, they're 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Summer camp counselor vs. Recreation leader
The primary role of recreation leaders is to encourage recreational and sporting activities in various settings such as schools, parks, and youth centers. Their job requires them to motivate others to work as a team member while also promoting good morals and sportsmanship. They develop recreational and sports programs best suited for their company's client base. Other duties also include advertising the availability of recreational activities, securing funding for special events and projects, and adhering to safety practices.
Each career also uses different skills, according to real summer camp counselor resumes. While summer camp counselor responsibilities can utilize skills like "child care," "kids," "work ethic," and "provide emotional support," recreation leaders use skills like "recreation programs," "youth sports," "homework assistance," and "front desk."
On average, recreation leaders earn a higher salary than summer camp counselors. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, recreation leaders earn the most pay in the government industry with an average salary of $28,465. Whereas summer camp counselors have higher pay in the education industry, with an average salary of $30,707.In general, recreation leaders achieve similar levels of education than summer camp counselors. They're 0.4% less likely to obtain a Master's Degree while being 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for summer camp counselors in the next 3-5 years?
Tom Rosenberg
President and CEO, The American Camp Association’s
Environmental Health, Industrial Hygiene, medical technology and public health research science helped in the development of the ACA Field Guide for summer camp operations - available to all!
Computer programmers and tech professionals for virtual camps (especially among camps who serve immunity compromised camper populations). Between sessions of camps, we see camps continuing to offer supervised connected online programming for camp friends to enjoy together during the off-season. We expect to see considerable improvements in safety and security components of these platforms, as well as program innovations. Just today, I was on the phone with a VR technologist who is interested in helping camps creating VR experiences to help prospective campers taste camp activity experiences.
We have seen our camps who needed to operate their programs online or in a virtual format really make impressive innovations. Zoom, YouTube, social media and more, were just a few of the ways that camps were able to interact with their camper communities in unique ways. This was especially the case for camps in states and localities where their in-person camp programs were not permitted to operate due to public health official ruling OR for camps who served immune compromised camper populations. While most camps will likely shift back to in-person programs (albeit covid-19 adapted) in summer 2021, we see camps continuing to employ various online connectivity platforms to engage campers, families, and staff members in additive, year-round community building and learning through the use of these technologies for years to come.
Summer camp counselor vs. Activities leader
An activity leader's main duty is to offer sports programs and exercises that are riveting in a positive manner. The activities typically assigned to leaders are the ones they understand for the smooth promotion and planning of events. Usually, hotel resorts and summer camps seasonally employ activity leaders to make time for different exercises throughout the year. Working as an activities leader can also be viewed as a way to practically enhance a person's teaching or coaching skills, leadership and communication skills, and marketing skills when it comes to publicizing upcoming events.
There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, a summer camp counselor is likely to be skilled in "child care," "kids," "customer service," and "work ethic," while a typical activities leader is skilled in "direct supervision," "homework assistance," "physical stamina," and "developmental disabilities."
Activities leaders earn the best pay in the health care industry, where they command an average salary of $28,776. Summer camp counselors earn the highest pay from the education industry, with an average salary of $30,707.activities leaders typically earn similar educational levels compared to summer camp counselors. Specifically, they're 1.4% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree, and 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.Summer camp counselor vs. Unit leader
A unit leader is responsible for managing logistics and route efficiency to increase territory profits. Responsibilities include leading operational projects in manufacturing, coordinating daily cash reconciliation, and reviewing analytical reports before submission to QA. Additionally, you will be responsible for compiling reports for management and developing department communication strategies. As a unit leader, you will be assessing clients for a variety of entitlement programs and performing vendor management and administrative duties related to facilitation, special projects, and web-based training.
Even though a few skill sets overlap between summer camp counselors and unit leaders, there are some differences that are important to note. For one, a summer camp counselor might have more use for skills like "child care," "work ethic," "summer camps," and "provide emotional support." Meanwhile, some responsibilities of unit leaders require skills like "cash handling," "staff training," "patients," and "culinary. "
The average resume of unit leaders showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to summer camp counselors. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 4.5% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.2%.Types of summer camp counselor
Updated January 8, 2025
