camp

Happy Summer Kid
• Summer Camp • Jeff Carter

Anxious about camp?

Happy Summer Kid Swimming

Going away to camp, particularly to an overnight or sleepaway camp, is a big step for kid. Being separated from parents, meeting loads of new people, and trying lots of new challenging activities— all these can be a little scary. Imagining it all, it’s easy to worry and find yourself asking “What if…?” kinds of questions. In fact, it’s just as common for parents to be scared and worried too. They also can suffer from a certain amount of “separation anxiety.”

There are a couple of things that can help both parents and kids feel better about this. First, realize that this is perfectly normal and all parents feel nervous about being away from their children for extended periods of time. Likewise, all children see their parents as their basic source of comfort and can at first be reluctant to go without it. Being away from each other requires both parents and children to develop a new sense of trust. Parents must trust the camp (its directors and staff, in particular) to take good care of their children, and each child must learn to trust themselves and their abilities away from home.

Fortunately, summer camps are ideal places for this kind of growth. They offer safe, structured environments where each girl finds plenty of fun things to do, but more importantly, caring adults trained to encourage her to make her own decisions, and to be more independent and self-confident. Camps have a lot of experience in this. They know it can take time, but have seen thousands of children succeed at camp and be better prepared for challenges later in life.

If you are considering summer camp for the first time, it can help to practice the kind of healthy separation camps represent. For example, it’s a good idea to schedule sleepovers at friends’ houses or other long weekends away from home.  Even with something this simple, kids learn they can do things on their own.

Camp is a wonderful experience for everyone.  For both parents and kids, it’s a chance to grow up a little.

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Girls Camp Job
• Counselors • rbc

Is Camp Employment for You?

Summer Camp Employment

There are so many things a college student can do in the summer; camp employment is just one option. So why choose to work at a summer camp? Well the most obvious reason is a camp job is way more fun than most other short term jobs. You’re outside a lot, you’re goofing around with kids pretty much all day, and you get to live in a beautiful part of the country. It’s also true that being employed as a camp counselor helps you develop leadership skills, communication and organization skills. As you help the campers grow and learn new activities and personal skills, you do too. Working to make a difference in the lives of children, makes one in your own as well.

But perhaps the best thing about working at a summer camp is joining the tight-knit community of people that makes Rockbrook so special. It’s just so easy to make friends, you end up enjoying everything that much more. Sure, camp is employment and you’ll earn (and save!) some money, but it’s so much more. Rewarding, definitely rewarding, all around.

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Jeff Carter Fun
• Counselors • rbc

Spotlight on Jeff

Summer Camp director Jeff Carter

Jeff Carter began his Rockbrook career in the 1980s. Over the years he has served camp in more capacities than most staff members. Hired by previous owner Jerry Stone, Jeff planned and led hiking and climbing trips in his first summers at camp.

During this time he pursued many education opportunities including his degree in comparative religions from Davidson College, where he was also an All-American high jumper on the track team. Then he received his masters degree from Harvard followed by his doctorate at the University of Chicago. He spent a year living in Nigeria on a Fulbright Fellowship completing his studies.

After marrying Sarah (at Rockbrook!) and teaching at Davidson College, he returned to Brevard to help Jerry start the Castle Rock Institute (a college humanities program run at camp). During this time, Jeff continued to work behind the scenes at camp leading trips, keeping us technologically up-to-date, and fixing everything!

While Rockbrook is in session, Jeff continues to be our “Jack of all Trades.” Combining his outdoor knowledge with his goofy sense of humor, he is always up to something new. During the off-season, he works on key staff hiring, website maintenance, health and ACA standards, camp improvements, and the list goes on. Also, when Jeff isn’t busy with camp director duties, he enjoys being outdoors: biking, hiking, and climbing. Typically he brings his two daughters, Eva and Lily, along for an adventure!

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Sarah Reed Carter
• Counselors • rbc

Spotlight on Sarah

Sarah Reed Carter is the Director of Rockbrook Summer Camp for Girls

Sarah Reed Carter is the Director of Rockbrook. She grew up in Winston-Salem, NC and began her Rockbrook career in 1985. Sarah thought it would be fun to be a CIT (Counselor in Training) while her older sister was a cabin counselor. So at 16, she had her first camp experience not realizing what a big part of her life Rockbrook would be years later.

Sarah returned to camp year after year while attending Trinity College in Connecticut and until starting graduate school at Vanderbilt University for her Masters of Education degree. She taught drama, worked as a lifeguard, and served almost every age group as a cabin counselor. Along the way, she met her future husband Jeff, who at the time worked as a hiking and climbing guide for camp. Sarah and Jeff were married at Rockbrook in 1996.

For the next 8 years, Sarah taught elementary school in Nashville, TN, Concord, NC, and Asheville, NC.  After returning to Brevard, she became the director of a local preschool for 2 years before returning to Rockbrook to be a full-time director with Jeff.

While camp is in session, Sarah oversees camp life and communication with parents.  During the off-season, she works on camper recruitment, communication with Rockbrook’s camp families, and child specific issues.  She also loves spending time with Jeff and her two daughters Eva and Lily.

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Girls gymnastics group
• Gymnastics • rbc

Back Bends in Gymnastics

Gymnastic Camp Back Bend Exercise

There’s always something fun to learn at the gymnastics activity at Rockbrook Camp!

One important exercise we practice at Rockbrook is the “back bend.” Strength and flexibility are naturally the foundations of gymnastics, and here flexibility is the idea.

Work up to this exercise by first spending time warming up your muscles with stretching.  You’ll want to feel limber.  The next thing to try is to make a “bridge” where you lie down and press your hips up while extending your arms, arching your back into a bridge-like curve.  Practice this a lot to build up your strength.

What is a Back Bend?

A back bend is when you form a bridge from a standing position.  With someone spotting you (holding you up under your lower back), lean backwards with your hands extended ready to touch the floor over your head.  After developing the strength and flexibility to do this, you can move on to a “walkover” or, something even more advanced, a “back handspring.”  There is a definite gymnastics progression you can build upon.

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camp lisa songs
• Summer Camp • rbc

Lisa Loeb’s Songs for Camp

Lisa Loeb Camp CD Cover

Lisa Loeb, singer and songwriter best known for her hit song “Stay,” has released a new CD of songs inspired by her time as a kid at summer camp. It’s a fun collection of original compositions and traditional songs all about going away to camp, the friends, the food, the fun, of just being at summer camp. She explains,

“The inspiration was the actual songs based in camp songs. In camp, we have gross-out songs, and ones like the peanut butter and jelly song. One of the things I loved most about camp is that you’re singing all the time. You did sports, and arts and crafts, ate a lot of fun food — you were singing everywhere.”

The CD has some cool guest artists helping out too, people like Steve Martin (who plays banjo) and Jill Sobule. We also like a lot of the great camp lyrics on songs like, “Are You Ready for the Summer?” “It’s not Goodbye,” and “Best Friend.”  If you’ve been to camp, you’ll really enjoy this CD.

You can hear the song “Best Friend” over at Lisa’s website. And then check out all of the great Rockbrook camp songs.

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Children Playing in Camp Lake
• Children • Jeff Carter

Children Learning at Camp

summer camping children

Cory Doctorow wrote a nice post reminding us of the classic book about children and learning by John Holt, “How Children Learn” (originally published in 1967).  The book, which has been revised and reprinted, can still be found on many education course reading lists because it makes a very important point teachers and parents easily and often forget.  His basic claim is that children are natural learners, and that instead of always forcing them to adhere to a generalized curriculum, they should be encouraged to follow their curiosity, engage what they are passionate about, expand their perception and awareness, and experiment with the world around them.  For adults, this means being less of a tyrant (“You have to…”) and more of a partner along for the adventure of growing up.  Holt has observed this kind of adult coercion in the realm of learning to be often more counterproductive than not.  Of course, parents and teachers need to provide some guidance at times and encourage or facilitate certain educational activities (or social behaviors!), but any habit of rigidly adhering to particular learning styles, contexts, or subjects may shape children to the detriment of their strengths and talents.

What does this have to do with camp?  If most of the year is comprised of adults telling children what to do, what to study, what to learn —and you have to agree it is— then having a break from that in the summer is incredibly important and valuable.  After all, that’s what camp provides.  Campers arrive at camp and decide for themselves (without mom, dad, or teacher) which activities to take and how they will spend their time at camp.  With some guidance from the counselors, they make their own experience, explore their own interests, build their own understandings.  The great feelings that come with this freedom is certainly one reason girls love their camp experience.

Camp is so meaningful for them because they are active participants in making it meaningful.

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Weisstronauts play Camp
• Dance • Jeff Carter

Weisstronauts: Live at Rockbrook !!

Weisstronauts CD Instro-tainment

We’ve been meaning to post something about this all summer, but only just now sat down to do it.  Back in June we had the awesome instrumental rock band The Weisstronauts play a show at camp.  Pete Weiss, who fronts the band, and who knew Jeff from his Chicago days (the early 1990s!), had an open tour date, and everything worked out for the Rockbrook girls to have a rockin’ dance party.  Dance contests, limbo competitions, conga lines — it was non-stop action!

The band’s music is a little hard to describe, but you take 3 electric guitars, bass, drums and the occasional “accent” instrument and roll out surf, country, spy, psychedelia and rock styles.  Very danceable, very up-tempo, tight playing, and fun through and through.

Head on over to the Weisstronauts’ Site and you can hear the leading track, “Fisticuffs,” from their new CD Instro-tainment.  You’ll enjoy it.  Promise.

And here’s one more treat.  During the show at Rockbrook, the band recorded some video, and now Pete has put together a music video that uses some of that footage.  Take a look and you’ll see RBC!  The song is “Seven-X’s,” also from the new CD, and the old-looking footage in the video is from the 1939 World’s Fair in New York.  Very Cool.

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rockbrook camp entrance sign
• Summer Camp • rbc

New Rockbrook Camp Sign

Rockbrook Summer Camp in Brevard North Carolina

When you drive down highway 276 south of Brevard, North Carolina, there’s an entrance to a summer camp. You’ve read about it in the most recent RBC newsletter, but what does it look like? Well, here it is, the new Rockbrook Camp sign! The old one couldn’t be repaired, so we asked local Brevard artist Matthew Lee Hoxit to design and build a new sign for the camp entrance. After showing him some vintage Rockbrook catalogs, and selecting one of the old fonts we liked, Matthew put together this design, found the local materials (oak and locust), hand carved the sign, and installed the whole thing. We love it, and think you will too!

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Residential Summer Camp in Brevard North Carolina
• Summer Camp • rbc

Dog Trot Summer Camp Cabin

Residential Summer Camp in Brevard North Carolina

Where do you stay when you to come to camp?

Rockbrook is a summer residential camp where campers stay in simple wooden cabins. Set with wooden-framed bunk beds, and divided into two sides, most hold 8 campers and 2 counselors. Between the two sides is an area called the “dog trot.” This comes from an early domestic architectural style common in the south where a simple one-room cabin is joined to another small cabin with open space between them, a place for the dogs to trot through. Later this space between the two cabins could be enclosed, given a wooden floor, and an adjoining roof, essentially making one big cabin with two rooms, one to the left and right of a center door.

The cabins at Rockbrook are enclosed like this. The dog trot area is a place for the campers to hang wet clothes and store things. You’ll always find the cabin broom there for example. It’s neat to think that since the earliest days, Rockbrook girls have been experiencing this little bit of southern tradition.

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