Partnering with Parents

Congratulations! You’ve reached a magical place.

With the information here you will significantly build upon your connection with your children and/or
partner, and give them tools that last a lifetime.

Partnering with Parents (parentingtuneup.org) is a sibling website of campaugusta.org which we’ve devoted to the deep philosophies of child development that we study and follow at Camp Augusta.

You can keep reading below for relevant links and breakdown, or just go ahead to ParentingTuneUp.org

Although camp can be an important part of a child’s development, obviously families are central and critical as well, especially if the peer group is not more central than the parents.  To help parents raise healthy children – to partner with parents, Camp Augusta is doing three things.  One, we are providing a healthy, safe community environment where kids can have fun, and learn a little while they’re here (see Augusta Difference).  Two, counselors write extensive letters to the parents about their child’s experience so that there can be some continuity between camp and home.  Three, we have this component to our website with topics we hope you’ll find useful and fun.  We use these resources, and MANY others, to train our mature (most out of college) staff.

Coaching Children's Behavior and Emotions

Curbing minor behavioral issues quickly and effectively
There are many times when the child’s behavior does not really require “The Talk.” In less serious moments, there are a few tools that work better than others to get the situation back on track, without coercion or guilt.
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5 Approaches to Discipline
How does one correct maladaptive behavior without using punishment, guilt, rewards, or sidling up friendly like?
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Success Counseling
Sequel to the “5 Approaches” article above. Gain a better understanding of how to coach children toward an internally desired, positive, future state. Plus, numerous pages out of the “how-to” section of the Augustan staff manual.
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Picking up the Rope
“No!” “You can’t make me!” “But why?!”
These are the beginning of a “game” of tug-of-war. Learn how to recognize rope throwing, and deal with it positively and powerfully.
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Play is Serious Business 🙂

Embers (Family Time)
Around the dinner table, on a longer car ride, before bedtime, at bedtime, with extended family, and scores of other times . . . create connection, understanding, awareness, character, laughter, history, a sense of family, and a host of other positive ends by being together with these topics, adventures, challenges, and experiences.
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Games Without Electricity
Games for a bit of time here and there . . . we’ve seen literally thousands, and here are a couple dozen of our favorites, nicely categorized for your convenience. We don’t list most games, as there is a catch, or it is much easier to see it, rather than read & play it.
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101 Things Every Child ``Should`` Do
Lists such as this are of course completely arbitrary, but they can still be fun, insightful, and useful as inspiration. From a book by the same title.
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Special Wakeups
Imagine you wake your child up in a way that engenders Wish, Wonder, and Surprise, as well as joy and play and connection! And, see below for a thorough understanding of Wish, Wonder, and Surprise – have your life become more magical.
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Play
Articles and information about why play is crucial to children’s development, and the state of play in childhood now. Also, beyond the obvious joy of play, what are a few of the mental advantages of more specific kinds of play?
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Stories!!!
fter reading more than 7000 short stories of all descriptions, here are some of my favorites that are no longer copyrighted. In addition, a catalog of stories by theme is included – ask me for one you’re curious about. Short video here too. And, send me stories you love!!
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Media and Children

Research Centers on Media
From Pew to Kaiser to others, there are both useful and diverse perspectives on media in, particularly, children’s lives. Some surprises and comforts here for all.
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Media: School Presence and Effect
How does media influence children and teens at school, both in their experience and mental and emotional lives? Thoughts from a couple viewpoints.
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Media Consumption Levels
The centers above have loads on this, yet, the articles and information included here offer some nuances and perspectives not readily included elsewhere
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Media and Women
Body image, beauty, sense of self, sense of culture and place . . . explored here.
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Interactive Media/Devices
From smart phones to Facebook, a few articles and thoughts for your consideration on the wise and unwise use of these tools.
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Video Games and Children
Passionate perspectives on both sides of the issue. Read a bit here.
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Media Shaping Who We Are
What’s happening to the brain, our social connections, our imaginations, our memories, and our passions? Ponderings for the journey all of us are on.
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Can't Get Enough? More on Media
How about males and media and a few other choice articles to meditate on?
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More on Children's Development

40 Developmental Assets
They are positive experiences, opportunities, and personal qualities that all children and adolescents from many cultural backgrounds need to be responsible, successful, and caring. Learn what they are and how camp can help to foster some of them.
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Character Insight
What works and what doesn’t in raising people of character? Find out some best practices here. And, numerous ways to make those concepts concrete and real.
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Helicopter Parenting
Webster definition: a parent who is overly involved in the life of his or her child. Yup, a Wikipedia page on it too. Find here six articles that explore this concept for good and for ill. And, no, such parents are not “bad” or “wrong.``
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Self-Esteem
Learn what self-esteem is and is not. Common misconceptions are also addressed. If you haven’t seen the very short 20/20 piece on self-esteem, watch it here!
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Wall of Cool
Cool kills. Stops a person from living. From following their heart and their passions in a given moment. In teens, and even younger, (and counselors and other adults too!) this destructive impulse caused by Cool is frequently presented as a “Wall of Cool.”
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Nature and Children
Duh, right? You know being in nature is valuable for children, and adults. Some pieces you likely didn’t know about the benefits, prevalence, and urban living are found here from numerous sources. Fun quotes too.
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Wish, Wonder, and Surprise
Creators of any ilk entreat Wish, open to Wonder, and are readily tickled by Surprise. Learn what they are, how they are experienced in normal life by children and adults, how children experience them at camp, what is different about Wish, Wonder, and Surprise at camp, and how to enrich daily family life with Wish, Wonder, and Surprise.
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Competition
A one-page philosophy on competition. Competition has its place, and its misplace, and its healthy, and unhealthy, orientation. A 15-page version is available on request.
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Videos for Enlightenment
These videos shed light on areas of American culture that many people are not fully aware of. It is important to understand the culture, the sea we’re swimming in, in order to effect and direct it.
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Sleep!
Learn how much sleep is enough, what happens with a little and lots less sleep, pharmaceutical orientations toward sleep, mystical orientations, and sleep articles and tidbits that will make you the life of the party as you regale people with your knowledge!
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Communication to Improve your World and Relationships

Clean communication
One hallmark of a healthy environment inside or outside of a camp is “clean communication.” Learn the six faces of dirty communication, and how to avoid them. Critical information for all interpersonal relationships. Dr. Grayson created the website.
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Three Words to Breathe Easier
These three words changed my life and the lives of those around me. Invest 5 minutes and see how they might change yours as well.
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5 Leadership Styles
This useful framework quickly identifies five common approaches toward leading others. Leadership is largely an Emotional Intelligence (EQ) – see www.visionrealization.com for a quick PowerPoint with audio annotation of EQ.
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Difficult Conversations Made Easier
Learn how you can say to yourself “I’m confident that I can bring up a difficult issue and have us both walk away happy, and with clear intentions for change.”
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Intentional Speech
With the above three words under your belt, you’re ready for more! Dive down the rabbit hole toward more powerful, intentional, and compassionate speech.
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Communicating Emotion Intelligently
Learn several tools that will enable you to take aggressive and unhelpful statements/conversations and turn them toward positive and constructive ends. Turns daggers into flowers
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Four-ish Letter Words
Good, nice, mean, cool, fine, like, sure, okay, alright, awesome, whatever, yeah . . . these words can be pretty empty. Learn more about them and how to speak with more clarity and depth.
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Compassionate Communication
A body of work by Dr. Marshall Rosenberg shapes our every word and conversation at camp, as well as our thoughts. In essence, it is about powerfully working with needs and feelings to create connection and shared understandings . . . Emotional intelligence
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Educational Praise
“Good job” and “that was great!” are often heard coming from adults when speaking to children. Learn how to be more specific and effective with your praise. And, check out the video under “Self-esteem” above.
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Camp Specific

The Heart of Camping
Physical and mental elements of camps are often considered, but the heart of a camp is where the power, meaning, and connection often happen. Learn the benefits of finding a camp with heart, as well as how to pick out such a camp.
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Nature and children
Duh, right? You know being in nature is valuable for children, and adults. Some pieces you likely didn’t know about the benefits, prevalence, and urban living are found here from numerous sources. Fun quotes too.
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Homesickness
95% of campers report some feelings of missing home. This is natural and normal. Learn more about homesickness and how to deal with it.
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Serious Fun
Fun is also the byproduct of learning, whether it be a physical ability or an emotional one. Serious fun is fun too.
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Other Websites by Randall and his Team

Clean Communicate .org
Dedicated to creating awareness and understanding around one’s words and actions, especially interpersonally. Having your words and actions reflect your mind and heart . . . simple, yet very nuanced and challenging. Learn the 6 faces here.
Go There!
Functional Consensus .org
Designs for efficient, intentional, and powerful decisions. A clear blueprint to powerfully overcome the logistical and social challenges of consensus decisions, making it practical, efficient, and effective in today’s world.
Go There!
Vision Realization .org
Camp information website for other youth development professionals, which also includes a few resources of interest to parents, including: Emotional Intelligence and The Art and Science of Mistakes.
Go There!

Golden Bits and Bobs

College
Perspectives on a college degree, the price of college, college life, college rankings, preparing for college, life after college, and more.
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Email and Text Guidelines
E-mail/texting is pervasive, and more so with children and teens, yet etiquette and guidelines around it are sparse. The results can be pleasing or toxic. What we find useful is summarized here.
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Integrity
Whole. Complete. People of integrity act consistently across many situations and among many different people. They are maskless. Three components of integrity-as-wholeness are: 1) Honor Agreements; 2) Act in Accordance with Principles and Values; and 3) Word as Self. Explore this concept in organized depth here.
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Special Pages
Over the decades, Dr. Grayson has gathered numerous little inspirational passages, musings, and tidbits, some of which also educate, while others briefly instruct. You’re sure to find something here you will appreciate. Enjoy!
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Children and Physical Health
This budding section includes snippets that aim to inform you about the physical health of your children (and yourself). Some of which you’ll certainly know, but there are likely some useful surprises in here for you as well. To the health of your children and yourselves!
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Pot, Prescriptions, and Other Drugs
A few interesting articles on the subject as food for thought.
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