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What’s Special About Camp Augusta?
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There are over 12,000 camps in the United States. There are a dozen camps in Northern California that are “like” Camp Augusta. We are different in many specific ways, and below are some of them, which is one reason we believe we were the only camp in California we could find that was full in 2009.
Child development
Partnering with parents efforts
Although camp can be an important part of a child’s development, we certainly realize that the family is critical as well. To help parents raise healthy children – to partner with parents, Camp Augusta is doing three things. One, we are providing a safe, healthy, community environment where kids can have fun, and learn a little while they’re here. Two, counselors write letters to the parents about their child’s experience so that there can be some continuity. Three, we have a component to our web site entitled “Partnering with Parents.” Just a few topics you will find there are: behavior guidance, 40 developmental assets, homesickness, and self-esteem.
Parent letters
Counselors write a two-plus page letter (usually typed) about your camper’s experience. The letter has the individual flair of the counselor, and are personal letters to the parents. They often include a bit about the cabin, the camper’s activity choices and how they did with them, descriptions of cabin activities, discussion about how the camper interacted with the other cabin mates and campers in general, the counselor’s impressions of the camper, generally how their time at camp was, and more. We don’t know of another camp that makes this effort. Campers also receive hand-painted “wood cookies” that include their name on one side and something that highlights, playfully, something enduring and notable about their personality (presented at closing campfire).
Wonderful location
When you think of camp, you probably think of a lake, forest, simplicity, fun, and stunning beauty. Camp Augusta has all of that, and its own waterfall, with the amazing Yuba River just around the corner.
Classic camp
Camp Augusta is not high tech, glitzy, or full of hype and the latest toy trends. Kids’ lives are full of that already. We provide an environment where a kid can see and watch the butterfly, kick a stone and see how it really bounces, and have a conversation with a friend without needing anything that whistles, buzzes, hums, or makes an electronic connection with anything. Life is reduced to rustic simplicity, and we are once again reminded of the pleasures that come from simply being with one another and spending time with ourselves. At Camp Augusta, we create wonderful simplicity, amazing simplicity, ecstatic simplicity . . . it’s simple to us!
Unique activities
Oh sure, we’ve got activities such as a climbing tower, ropes course, canoeing, archery, overnight trips, berry picking, horses, riflery, arts and crafts, mountain biking, mountain boarding, and lots more. However, we specialize in opportunities and challenges that children and families can’t normally or easily (or at all) find near home. Atlatl, archery clout, mud pit, ninja, broad-sword fighting, fire spinning, aerial silks, low ropes, native flute, Celtic arts, balloon sculpture, paper marbling, Quidditch, primitive skills, parkour, kalimba, and many, many more!
Activity levels
Some of our activities have levels, such as Archery or Horses. Basically, they are graduated skill groupings, which campers advance through in their time at Augusta. With higher skills come different opportunities, which require the skill in order to participate, such as challenging archery games or advanced equestrian techniques. This system allows for faster progression, greater safety, further opportunities, and higher attention and motivation, among other benefits.
Camp Augusta “Playstation”
We’ve also got activities that were played 50 -- 2000 years ago, and that most kids have either forgotten, or were never exposed to, except at Camp Augusta. We’ve got activities such as PDQ, Kabaddi, Zoogle, Candle Duel, 9 Square, Balero, Juggling, Bocce Ball, Koob, Horseshoes, Indian Rope Balance, and over 200 more. Check out more about our Camp Augusta Playstation.
Small size
Our sessions have 90 campers. There isn’t a sea of campers and staff to get lost in. When kids eat inside (outside at Augusta), there isn’t a rumble when people are just talking normally. The director and staff get to know the kids and chat. Many camps have 200 - 400 kids plus staff, but we like it small and friendly. After about 150 people total, the human mind can’t keep track of the social connections . . . the humanity of one another and the whole.
Ratios
The majority of our clinic activities have about a 1:5 ratio, with many less than that. Every activity clinic block, there are usually 2-6 activities that have a 1:2 ratio. The maximum in a class is 10 campers, and class size is limited for best effect, such as Pod A having a cap of 4 campers and 2 staff. Playstations may have 10+ campers, but they would also have more staff present. Not including kitchen, maintenance, and other non-camper focussed roles, Camp Augusta has 43 staff for 90 campers. And, that does NOT include Junior Counselors, who have successfully completed the CIRCLE program.
Meaningful individual attention
With our small size, comes meaningful individual attention. You’re not going to get a bureaucracy; you’re going to get a personal response.
Staff quality, personality, and character
Everyone promises a quality staff. We invite you to check out our staff selection process, which includes writing multiple essays, reading dozens of pages before the interview, and a 4+ hour interview by a doctor of psychology (not intimidating at all!). The interview is usually done over 3 sessions. Staff are usually older on average than most camps. 29 hours of videos on child, culture, and human development are viewed before staff arrive at camp. Over 200 pages of staff manuals are read before staff training, and each staff member takes a 1 1/2 - 2 hour oral exam on the content. Our residential staff training is three weeks long, making it the longest in the nation we know of, and more than double the length of most other camps.
Staff biographies
We are the only camp in California, and one of a very small handful nationally, to include extensive biographies on our web site of all of our staff.
Director with Ph.D. in developmental, social, and organizational psychology and over 20 years in camping
Camp Augusta is fortunate to have Dr. Randall Grayson as our director. He maintains a separate web site where he consults with other camps around the country helping them to improve.
True community
We live in an age where neighborhood block parties are rare, people go from isolation at home, to an isolated car, to activities that are done either alone or in small groups. Only about 60% of the country votes. At Camp Augusta, we strive to create a real community. There is shared effort as kids help clean their cabins, dishes, the camp, and help with meals. People belong and we work hard to prevent cliques. Kids and staff have a real voice in how things run at camp (consensus). Camp Augusta has core values that we strive to make real daily -- “We are a creative, trustworthy, fun, community of servants focused on the mission.” Our hope is that children and staff appreciate living in a real community, and that they’ll take that knowledge and appreciation with them to make the world outside of Camp Augusta just a little bit stronger of a community.
Intentionality
Empty phrases and marketing lingo sprinkle the web, and sometimes reflect what happens in the organization itself as well. At Camp Augusta, we have deep intentionality about what and why we do things. For example, we have guidelines/philosophies on music, skits, stories, food, behavior guidance, CAP projects, partnering with parents materials, competition, clinics and their role at camp, challenge by choice, how we begin the day (special wake ups), how we end the day (evening embers), and more. Ask us, and we can likely send you an intention document for what you’re curious about.
To make sure we don’t nurse “sacred cows,” we operate via consensus and flat hierarchy, so change is available to everyone. Tradition is a guide and a compass point instead of a jailer.
Evaluation and improvement
To prevent guidelines/documents from becoming rigid and “rule bound,” we operate with rigorous, continuous evaluation. When campers or families are here, we seek their feedback. Parents of campers evaluate camp via an on-line form. During the summer, Camp Augusta staff travel to two or more camps for benchmarking visits. Most nights during the summer, non-counseling staff meet for “knowledge management,” which turns into “OWL.” At the end of the summer, the Camp Augusta staff create a year-end report that is literally hundreds of pages long. We also hold a Camp Augusta Symposium after the summer for topics that require considerable reflection and discussion.
Cabin activities
Cabin activities are a hybrid of the creativity and randomness of Playstation coupled with the structure of regular programming clinics. They are an opportunity to do something special as a group that facilitates bonding, teamwork and togetherness. Campers are greeted with the question on the first day “If you could do anything . . . anything you could imagine while at camp that is not a regular clinic activity, what would that be?” From there, creativity and imagination are engaged and incredible experiences are spawned. Because of that openness and “we can do it” attitude, cabin activities number in the hundreds by way of examples. Learn more on the cabin activity page.
Evening programs
After dinner, the whole camp participates in activities together known as evening programs (EP). Camp Augusta’s unique evening programs come in many forms, such as (2009) “Everyday Olympics,” “Nature’s Wrath,” “H20-No!,” “Shakespeare,” “Super Heroes,” “Jokers and Aces Wild,” “Nightfall,” as well as traditional campfires with songs, skits, and traditions. We change the evening programs every year, so campers always experience an original evening program. All campers and almost all of the staff take part in EPs (sometimes the kitchen staff even join in the fun!). An EP is designed as a themed adventure consisting of an opening skit, a middle task to be completed by the campers and an ending skit. Evening programs are full of characters, dialog, skits, stations, heroes, villains, smoke, flags, gunk, water, epic challenges and so much more. While many camps play a big group game in the evening (game shows, big games of dodge ball, Vegas night, MTV night, Dating game), our evening programs don’t just say “hey kids lets play this game it’ll be fun,” they say “come with me on a journey of adventure.”
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Our Vision
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To reclaim and foster the beauty, wonder, awe, potential, and innocence of childhood
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Intended Benefits of a Camp Augusta Experience
Independence & self-confidence
Fun
Appreciation for community
Creativity
- Experimenting with all of the clinic activities
- Evening programs -- new every summer
- Cabin activities -- “if you could do anything, what would that be?”
- CAPP -- Camp Augusta Pride Projects for creative, optional community service
- Playstation
- Special wakeups
- No digital forms of expression (except for photography)
- Things done repetitively are done in fresh ways with brainstorming
- Being around creative staff who love to experiment
- Whether in arts and crafts, archery, or horsemanship, children are encouraged to try new things. Camp is a safe place to fail and succeed.
Social skills / Emotional Intelligence
Activity skills
- Lesson plans and competent instructors -- see activity areas, ask to see our detailed lesson plans
- Time to learn activities if the campers choose to (especially over two weeks)
Build friendships
Whether chatting in the cabin, walking to activity areas, hanging out at meals, chilling at rest hour, or participating in activities together, camp is a social place to build friendships. This is especially true for campers who stay two weeks.
Empathy
- Satisfy the child’s own emotional needs, without encouraging excessive self-concern
- Encouraging children to identify, experience, and express a wide range of emotions
- Provide frequent opportunities to observe other people’s emotional responsiveness (modeling)
Environmental awareness and appreciation
- Provide a beautiful, natural surrounding
- Nature education
- Camping in a minimally-invasive manner
- Be outside as much as possible
- Measuring the food waste at each meal and composting
- Outdoor living skills
Character enhancement
Healthy lifestyle – exercise, good nutrition, & knowledge of healthy lifestyle
- Nutritious meals
- Healthy snacks
- Lack of television, video games, movies, and other digital entertainment
- Frequent exercise through play (the best kind)
- Cleanliness: showers, clothes, teeth, etc.
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Camp Augusta is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization
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What about testimonials and quotes?
We have them, tons. We don’t post them. Why? Let’s say a camp has had 10,000+ campers (maybe 50,000) over its life. Posting a dozen or more cherry-picked satisfaction quotes, to us, doesn’t mean anything. Even in the last year or two, a dozen happy campers out of all campers is likely at any camp. Still, they are comforting to some, so click below to read a few.
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Our Vision
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To reclaim and foster the beauty, wonder, awe, potential, and innocence of childhood
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