News

Ask Questions

August 17, 2023

[embed]https://youtu.be/jFPBEXokX40[/embed] At camp, we spend a lot of time getting to know each other around the campfire, at meals, and while walking around camp. Many campers who were strangers to each other when they arrived at camp report feeling even closer to the cabin mates they've only known for a few weeks than they feel to school friends they've known for years. Why is that? One of the reasons is that they've had a lot of time to talk with each other. All those conversations help campers build strong friendships. One friendship skill we practice at camp is learning to ask questions, to listen well using active listening skills, and to ask follow up questions rather than interjecting our stories and ideas right away. Questions help keep a conversation flowing and help us get to know others better. Here's Sunshine talking about why this is an important social skill our kids need to practice:   Download our camp posters to use at home!

What do people most like to talk about?

You may think the answer is something very specific - like sports or a favorite video game or TV show. It's likely that when I asked that question you thought about what you most like to talk about. It's true that people really enjoy talking about things they're interested in. And what they're most interested in ... Read more

Today’s Friendship Tip: Find Your Best Calm Down Strategy

Today at Morning Assembly, we talked about the important skill of learning to "unflip our lids" by figuring out our go-to calm down strategies for when we're feeling irritated, frustrated, annoyed, or angry with our friends. We talked about how it's important to learn how to "unflip our lids" when we're upset.

Flipping Your Lid

We talked with campers about how sometimes we "Flip our Lids" and how being a good friend to others means learning good strategies for calming ourselves down so that we can interact with our friends in ways that build up - not tear down - our friendships. We talked about how when our lids are flipped, our thinking brain isn't in charge and we're being led by our big feelings. When our lids are flipped, we often say or do things that make our friends feel bad and that we later regret. We shared our brief summary of Dr. Dan Siegel's Hand Brain Model with campers: And we've shared this poster with campers so they can see a visual about a flipped verses unflipped brain.

Calm Down Strategies

We then had campers share their favorite calm-down strategies, and they had so many! We also shared this poster with more ideas:    

Summer 2024 Registration Now Open for Returning GAC Families!

August 1, 2023

[embed]https://youtu.be/k7JT5cFazBc[/embed] Hello GAC Families! Registration for Summer 2024 is now open for returning GAC campers (and siblings) and families who were wait-listed for 2023. We cannot guarantee or hold space for your camper and registrations will be processed on a first-come first-served basis. We recommend enrolling as close to August 1 as possible and before September 16 when we open enrollment for new camp families. Some age groups in our two and three-week sessions are wait list only so be sure to check out the 2024 Dates & Rates, 2024 Availability, and contact us if you have any questions. Please enroll your camper through your My GAC Login or the Campanion app.  

Apologizing Well

July 18, 2023

Because all of us make mistakes in our relationships, an important friendship skill is learning how to apologize sincerely and effectively. Apologizing well when we hurt a friend with our words or actions is a skill we're working on growing this summer at GAC. In just about every conflict, the disagreement or issue is never ALL one person’s fault. Usually both people did or said something that hurt the other person. With campers, we brainstorm examples of conflicts they get into with friends - often minor things like disputes over card games or using an item that belongs to someone else without asking. Sometimes, we unintentionally hurt a friend. Apologizing well includes owning up to mistakes and apologizing for words or actions that hurt another person. A sincere and thoughtful apology is the most effective way to resolve conflicts with friends & family members. Conflicts are a normal part of all relationships, so we are normalizing for campers that all of us - at times - need to apologize to our friends.  These are the simple steps to making a meaningful apology when we’ve done or said something we regret or that has hurt our friend.

6 Steps to a Good Apology

1. Use the words, "I'm sorry."

2. Acknowledge exactly how you messed up.

   "I used unkind words that hurt your feelings."

3. Tell how you were feeling and why you think you did the thing.

   "I was feeling jealous of how well you did at wake boarding, so I made an ... Read more
   Tags: conflict resolution, friendship skill, gold arrow camp, how to apologize well, I'm sorry, teaching kids to apologize well
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