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 Picture Success. That’s how we like to frame things for campers. “Self-talk” is how we see ourselves, what we call ourselves. Our program is threaded with encouragement to picture success and to engage in positive self-talk. We want kids to get rid of some of the labels — the words used by themselves and others to describe them — and substitute the positive labels for what we call ourselves. We set high goals at camp — and we almost always reach them! Self-respect is the core objective we help every camper to reach; it goes way beyond just feeling good about yourself. One way we accomplish this is our Discovery Through Doing approach. We encourage kids to problem-solve and think things through, expand their brains, and ask questions to help them make the best decisions. We call this Intentionality. Instructors receive specific training to lead kids through discovery and strategy for doing things that seem really hard or impossible. Kids are guided to develop persistence, figure out how to learn things from watching others, and learn how to take hard tasks and break them down into little steps.
Ultimately, our focus is on celebrating effort – not just achievement. Campers feel comfortable trying new things because there are no grades, no comparisons, and no reputations. Success is secondary to exploration, so campers can find out what they like, and they don’t have to just like to do what they are good at. In fact, we want our campers to try everything! That’s how they learn where they shine, what they like and what they may need to practice. Every day we work hard to ensure that campers are discovering their talents, living their dreams, and deciding what they want to be. There are no limits to what can happen at Camp Echo – anything is possible!
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