Final Paper – SOCL 492
My internship for SOCL 492 consisted of one hundred and twenty hours, I completed these hours in a matter of about four weeks. I completed my internship through the YMCA, I worked at Camp Thunderbird which is an outdoor summer camp located in Chesterfield, Virginia. Through my internship, I was able to practice being a leader in group settings, and I was able to learn more about my coworkers and mainly the children with which I worked; Soon after starting the internship and working with children, I was able to understand what tactics they use when they are feeling unhappy, I learned how to deal with conflict situations when they arose, etc. Sociology is the study of people; how they function and how they are structured. This internship relates to the field of study in which I am studying by providing me the opportunity to examine how children develop, how they are structured, and how they function.
Working as a camp counselor, at a summer camp, comes with a lot of responsibilities. When working as a camp counselor, you are then a role model for hundreds of children, you are in charge of keeping them happy, safe, and content when they are in your care. My personal duties while working at Camp Thunderbird consisted of opening camp, this means that I was one of the first people to be there in the morning and I would have the duties of grabbing the rosters to place in each huddles slot or I would check in each and every child that was parent drop off. After 8:45 AM, the drop-off window would close and then I would go downstairs to grab my roster and head out back where I would round up the kids that I had for the week. After I had all of my kids, we would all head down to opening counsel. Opening counsel is a place where all of the counselors and kids would meet to go over the rules and have fun activities to start them off on a good note. I had duties of getting on stage at opening counsel where I would do things like talk to the audience and give them a “thought for the day,” the thought for the day oftentimes consisted of a positive quote to start the kids off on a positive foot. Kids had the opportunity to get called onto the stage to then explain what that quote meant to them, I feel as if this is an important and crucial thing to do each day, I believe that kids need that extra encouragement and reminder to think positively in every situation that occurs throughout the day. After opening council is when we would get dismissed with our huddles to follow our schedule for the day. Each huddle gets a schedule at the beginning of the week that consists of the next five days, there is a total of eight blocks which means each group does eight different activities throughout the day; The activities consist of a huddle, board room, Y read, gaga ball, STEM, fishing, archery, field sports, art, nature, aqua zip, court sports, alpine, marksmanship, boating, zipline, and MDD which stands for music, dance, and drama. One of the directors at camp would be the ones to create our schedule so they made sure that each day we had eight of those activities and that we got to do each activity at least once that week. My main duties to the camp itself are being able to get to work on time and being able to run my groups proficiently.
I have learned a lot more than I ever thought I would during an internship. Going into this internship I just thought that it would be a new experience, it would be fun, and I would make a lot of friends. It didn’t really cross my mind how much I would learn about the job and about myself. I, of course, had never worked at a summer camp before and I never went growing up so I had no idea what to expect. I quickly learned the routine of camp and it was a lot easier than I initially thought. When going into something new, it can be nervewracking because of the fact that it is new and you have never done it before but once you start getting into a routine, it becomes much easier. I also have never been in charge and run groups of children by myself before. I had experience with children from babysitting and a service learning class from high school but all of that was just being there to help, I was never fully in charge or had their wellbeing on my hands. I learned a lot about children through this experience: I learned that every child has an extremely different personality, most of the time altercations between students are misunderstandings, and sometimes the most opposite people are the best of friends, it is very important to include the shy kids, and so much more. Kids are super fun but they also have their moments where they do not want to listen or they want to give you a hard time, so it is very important to have patience. I have gained a lot of patience from working in a field where you are with children all day long, sometimes I would get frustrated but I have to remember they are just children and their feelings are more important than mine in this camp. I have also learned that it is very fun and easy running your own groups, you get to make the rules and boundaries and you get to form connections with these kids that they will remember for a lifetime. Kids love summer camp and it is very important for them to create good memories.
Through all of this learning, there is a lot of knowledge that I will take away that I had not known before. Within myself, I have learned that sometimes it is fun to get out of your comfort zone and try new things. I am not a very outgoing person at all but getting around a group of people who push you to do better and push you to get out of your comfort zone is very nice, especially in a work setting. I will take away that children really do not mean to hurt your feelings with the way they are acting, most of the time they are upset and they do not know how to verbally express that to you. You cannot take what children do and how they act too personally because, in reality, they are not trying to hurt you. Children are constantly improving just like we are, children sometimes just need attention and needs than we do since we are older. I will also take a lot away from my supervisors. I have never worked in an environment where I have felt so supported and recognized. There are three supervisors/directors within our camp and they are all always busy. They deal with so much yet they still make sure that all fifty members of their staff are taken care of and felt supported. Despite how busy they are during the day, they are always there for someone when they are needed. I have taken away that being head of a camp, or company in general, is very stressful and busy. The three of them make running a camp look like a breeze and while doing so they make sure their people are taken care of. From this experience, I am taking away that showing people that you care about them and appreciate them will make the work environment have a much stronger connection than those where the employees are not appreciated. To sum that up, I will take away that it is very important to work within a company where you know you are valued. Relating my experience to sociology classes I have taken, I can relate a lot of what I learned through this experience that the roles and statuses within the family and society and I can physically see and experience deviance within children’s actions. From working with kids, I have been able to learn that kids come from a home with a good family or a family who is not very present, this relates to the roles that are performed within the family. If family members are not present then oftentimes the family lacks certain roles which then leads to their kids becoming deviant in some areas of their life.
Working this internship has been one of the best experiences that I have gotten in a work environment. I always wanted to go to summer camp as a little girl and working at a summer camp has let me get that experience I never had gotten growing up. Working this internship has also taught me a lot about what I want in a work environment and the strengths that I can bring to a company. I have learned that I work very well when stressed, I work well when put in a spotlight, I can resolve conflict between people, and most importantly I work really well in an environment where I am valued as much as I value them. I have learned a lot not only about myself but also about other people and companies. The thing that I found that I liked the most when engaging in this internship is getting to run my own groups and creating those connections with children that I know they will remember forever. I believe that I am a good role model for these kids and I like knowing that I have made a positive impact on them. The thing that I liked the least about this internship is getting out of my comfort zone. Getting out of your comfort zone is always difficult but by doing it, a lot can be learned. I am very thankful that I was able to obtain this experience.