Group Focus and Grouping

Roughing It is a group centered program for children and teens. Campers develop group living skills through living, working and having fun together as a camper group. Our group - centered approach is the central tenant of our philosophy and is the reason we offer the two four-week sessions. It takes four weeks to build the dynamics of a positive camper group.

An adult counselor is responsible for each camper group and is always with the group throughout the day. The counselor encourages attitudes of acceptance and friendship for each camper within the group. Campers are grouped according to age, grade they are entering in the fall, social development, and gender (except for Kindergarten and CILTS).

Campers who attend Roughing It range in grade from Kindergarten through High School.

Each camper group is made up of 15 campers with an adult group counselor. Roughing It has an overall 4 to 1 campers to staff ratio when all staff is included. Junior Counselors who are eleventh and twelfth graders also assist with the youngest camper groups.

Group Building

Many of the camper's favorite activities provide opportunities to help them develop the social skills necessary to live, work and enjoy themselves together. The group counselor is trained to lead group building and team leadership activities starting on the first day with name games, mixers, and activities designed to create a strong group. One of our long-standing traditions at Roughing It, secret forts and flags, helps campers build group loyalty and esprit de corps. Campers select their group name and make their group flag. Each group finds a secret fort somewhere around the reservoir and hides their flag in the fort. Campers guard their own fort and flag while trying to find other group's secret forts and flags throughout the summer.

Creating a Community of Respect the Roughing It Way

Respect and personal responsibility are strongly promoted at Roughing It. At the beginning of camp, each group discusses the values of respect and the benefits of following the rules, and after discussion campers come up with a unique "Code of Living" that all members of the group sign and pledge to follow. Campers find the Code of Living to be a great measure of individual growth towards becoming a more effective, contributing group member.  Below, we have included some Codes of Living that have been used by past camper groups: