We are now a few days into the second session of kids. So far, I've felt really energised, enthusiastic and generally positive about camp. This is compared to the end of the first session, where I felt utterly exhausted. Nothing like a fresh start to kick things into order.
Things are certainly on the up. I've now changed the bunk I'm with, from my current bunk to a slightly older one - The Sheriffs. The kids are great. Touchwood, there has been no issues from most of them. One runs away a lot, which is frustrating when you have to follow him, especially when he tries to run into the water without supervision. There are a few like this in session 2 unfortunately - we call them "runners". The other 5 kids I've had no issues with. All are really friendly, although some are a bit shy. Hopefully, they will stay this well behaved - but I won't hold my breath.
Obviously, my main responsibility is with the waterfront, where things are also on the up. My lessons, I feel, are a lot better than this point in the first session. I believe this is now mainly as a result of my improved ability to relate with each age/gender group. The biggest improvement is with my lower boys class. Recall that I described my first lesson as being run by a really rubbish supply teacher, I'm happy to say that the kids are now far more engaged, enthusiastic and enjoying themselves more than ever.
I've also got another group of borderline blue bands for the upper boys. In the space of 4 lessons, I, along with my co-teacher, have already got 3 of 6 up to blue band standard, with them passing the test at the end of the 3rd lesson.
My upper girls group also deserves a mention. They are a very high ability group, meaning my lessons are closer to coaching than most, with the focus being on improving technique, rather than teaching them to swim. It's great, as I'm far used to coaching. Plus, they are all quite relaxed about the lessons, so we can be flexible about the lessons and do what they want to improve on.
This session, I'll be taking on something new. Each day, we have a section on the program called clubs - where staff members teach something a bit different from the usual program of activities. This includes everything from Irish dancing, to languages, to chess. This session, I'll be leading a club. For the record, no, it isn't the "Economics and Business Management" club as my colleagues suggested (If my lecturers have a hard time enthusing economics students, I'm probably going to struggle enthusing these kids. Sorry Brunel lectures, but some of you are rather dull. How you make the exciting world of economics sound dull, I don't know). Instead of trying to enthuse them with economics, I'll be actually be teaching beach volleyball. Yes, I know very little about volleyball, and have only ever seen how it's played during the 2012 Olympics (who didn't 😉 ), but the kids don't know that. It was something a bit different, but the kids seemed to enjoy it - and I did too in fairness.
A particular highlight of the session so far was something as basic as fishing. One evening, we took our bunk fishing, using nets and proper rods. In the space of 1 hour, they had caught 5 fish. I was like, wow. Something very basic, but seeing how happy and proud of catching those fish they were, made me rather pleased too.
But, the biggest highlight of the session was our 1st special day. Usually, lifeguards are off on special days, but we weren't on this occasion. The theme of the special day was India, meaning the days activities were all themed around India. Activities included learning Hindi, making Henna tattoos and playing "elephant polo". The activity I ran was paint and water. India is famous for its colourful festivals, where people throw waters and powders over each other. Here, it was pretty much the same, meaning my day was spent having paint/water fights with the kids. The kids totally loved this, the other councillors less so. I made a special effort to get the councillors who "didn't want to get their clothes dirty" involved - it's a summer camp, get over it. The day went really well, but with one huge disappointment. Unfortunately, the kitchen didn't put on an Indian themed lunch. I love curry, and was hugely disappointed not to be served this at lunch/dinner. Oh how I'd love a Chicken Madras right now...
It's great to feel this positive again, as I took a real battering at the end of the last session. With luck, it will stay that way. Unfortunately, life on camp never seems to be that simple...