If you haven't returned your forms, please do so by absolutely no later than Tuesday, April 18th.
We have to confirm the number of students we will be taking with us at that time.
If you do not intend to send your child to outdoor school, please send a note or an email and let me know, otherwise I will be calling to confirm.
Several students have been asking for the packing list for camp. It was sent home back in February, but in case you lost it, I have inserted the participant manual below.
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Hector Spring School
Participant Manual
Camp
Chief Hector YMCA
Outdoor
Schools
Spring
2017
CCHY Phone: 1 (403) 673-3858
CCHY Fax: 1 (403) 673-2179
CCHY Calgary Office Phone: (403) 269-6156
www.ymcacalgary.org
Site address:
Camp Chief Hector YMCA
PO Box 250
Exshaw, Alberta T0L 2C0
City office address:
Camp Chief Hector YMCA
101 3rd Street SW
Calgary, Alberta T2P 4G6
Welcome to Camp Chief
Hector YMCA
For over thirty years, Camp Chief Hector YMCA has been
running residential outdoor school experiences that provide unique
opportunities for enhancing curriculum objectives, building communication and
cooperative group skills, and providing a shared experience for students of
different backgrounds. All of our
programs are centered on the four core values of the YMCA: Caring, Honesty, Responsibility, and Respect.
I have worked with many school groups over the years, and I
am aware of how difficult it can be for students to spend time away from home. However, I am also reminded daily of the
long-term benefits that result from getting kids back into nature and building
close connections with their classmates and teachers. Please let me help you with your questions,
planning and packing for Outdoor School – do not hesitate to be in touch. I look forward to working with you and your child.
Cheers,
Christopher Schmid
Important Contacts
Christopher Schmid
Outdoor Schools Manager
Ph: 1-403-673-3858 ext. 201
(403) 650-4559
Mayra Regan
Food Services Director
Ph: 1-403-673-3858 ext. 208
Email: mayra.regan@calgary.ymca.ca
Brandon Boltz
Hector Spring School coordinator
Ph: 403-609-1722
Email: bboltz@calgary.ymca.ca
Directions
Camp Chief Hector YMCA is located approximately one hour west
of Calgary. Travel west on the
Trans-Canada Highway towards Canmore and Banff. Exit to the right at the sign
for the "Rocky Mountain YMCA" (Exit
114A – after the bridge) about 8
minutes after the turn-off to Kananaskis Highway 40. At the stop sign, turn
right and follow the road for four kilometres to the first parking lot on your
right. Park in this lot and cross the
street into Bowfort Lodge.
Accommodation &
Dining
Students live in tipis for
their stay at Outdoor School. Tipis are
gender-specific, are supervised by counsellors and a central firepit provides
light and warmth. Shower facilities are
provided for all clients. Students eat
three meals a day, and will have a snack in the afternoon and evening. Our food services department is able to
accommodate for a wide variety of dietary needs as long as we have this
information in advance. Please contact
our Food Services Director if your child has a severe allergy to wheat, dairy
or eggs. Outdoor School is a nut-safe
environment. Camp Chief Hector is not
able to serve halal or kosher foods, but we are able to provide vegetarian or
vegan meal options.
Fees & Refunds
The
per-student cost for is $_________plus GST for a total of $________. This includes accommodation, meals and snacks,
program supplies, staffing, and transportation for Calgary-area students. Schools may choose to add an additional fee
for craft supplies or other items. Due
to food and staffing costs, we cannot offer refunds or reduced fees for
students who must arrive late or leave early during a week of program. Fees are to be paid directly to your child’s
school.
Financial Assistance
YMCA Calgary will assist students
from families who need financial support to attend Outdoor Schools programs at
the Camp Chief Hector YMCA. YMCA Calgary
does not provide 100% subsidy. Parent or guardians are asked to contribute what
they can towards their child’s Outdoor School experience. Please see your child’s teacher if you would
like to access this funding for your child.
They will provide you with a one-page form that should be filled out and
handed back in prior to your child’s Outdoor School experience. Some families may also wish to contribute funds
to families in need. Prospective donors
should contact their child’s teacher or the Outdoor Schools Manager.
Transportation
First
Student buses will depart from the school at 9:15 am. Please ensure that your
student is on time and that they have been checked in with their teacher. Buses will return your student to their
school at 1:45 pm. Please try and make
arrangements to pick up your child at this time as they will be very tired and
excited to see you as soon as possible.
Health and Safety
Student Care
The first priority of our staff is ensuring the physical and
emotional safety of our young clients.
Student care is a collaborative effort between YMCA staff, teachers,
parent/guardians, and the students themselves.
Like at school, teachers act in loco parentis (in the place of a parent)
and are ultimately responsible for their students while they are attending
Outdoor School. YMCA staff, who have a
duty to care for clients at the Outdoor School, will consult with your child’s
teacher about any concerns. Similarly,
you should keep the YMCA informed of any changing circumstances in regards to
your child.
YMCA Staff Requirements
All YMCA staff are required to have
current Standard First Aid and CPR certification. Canoeing is supervised by a Paddle Alberta
Waterfront Instructor. At our Higher
Ground area, there is always a certified Challenge Course Instructor. There is
a week of staff training at the beginning of every Outdoor School season and we
continue to work on staff and program development throughout the season. In order to be employed by YMCA Calgary, all
staff also need a clean and current criminal record check including a
vulnerable sector search.
First Aid
Communication
with you is very important should your son/daughter become ill or injured. YMCA
staff are trained in emergency procedures and will act alongside your child’s
teacher in the case of a first-aid situation or other incident. If
required, a teacher will call you to talk about transportation options. In most non-emergencies, if it is decided
that your child should see a doctor they will be taken to the Canmore Hospital
in a vehicle provided by one of your child’s teachers. In the event that your student needs
immediate medical support, an ambulance will be dispatched from the Kananaskis
Emergency Centre a few minutes away.
Our goal is for students to either return quickly to program,
or access the support they need to feel safe and be comfortable. We do not have a nurse or doctor employed on
site, but we do have some staff members with Advanced First Aid Training. YMCA Staff members carry first aid kits, and
we have an automatic external defibrillator, spinal board, thermometers,
splints, crutches and ice packs on site.
We try our best to accommodate the physical needs of students
who are feeling unwell or who have limited mobility. The best decisions and plans are made between
parents, physicians,teachers and YMCA staff memners. In many cases, students
who are ill can only recover at home.
Medication
The
dispensing of any medication is the sole responsibility of the teachers who
visit our site. Students who carry “take-when-needed” medications such as inhalers
or Epi-pens may still do so at Outdoor School, but all other medications should
be labeled placed in a zip lock bag, labeled with your child’s name and handed
in to their teacher on the first day of Outdoor School. Please leave
medications in their original containers to avoid confusion. If possible, provide duplicates of all
prescriptions so a back-up is always available.
For policy reasons, Outdoor School does not provide any medications
including Tylenol, so if your child is prone to the occasional ache, pain or
sore throat please send an appropriate over-the-counter medication with them to
Outdoor School
Contact
If you need to reach your child at Outdoor School, please
call your child’s school or their teacher’s cell phone first. If you do not have a cell phone number for
your child’s teacher, we encourage you to call or email the Outdoor Schools
Coordinator or Manager at their office landline numbers listed on the first
page of this manual. If called, will take down all the information and pass the message
on to your child’s teacher and you will get a call back. Please note that this may be the following
morning. In an emergency, the emergency/after-hours
cell phone number is (403) 650-4559. If homesickness or religious beliefs are a concern, it
can be arranged for students to call home before bed to check-in or say
good-night. Please note that Camp Chief
Hector YMCA is long-distance from Calgary.
Supervision
Students are supervised by YMCA staff members and their
classroom teachers and parent volunteers. If students need to move from one
area to another, for example, from an activity area to the washroom, they
travel in partners. YMCA staff carry
cell phones and/or radios to maintain contact with the Outdoor Schools Manager
as needed.
Activity Risks
In general, injuries at the Camp Chief Hector YMCA are
similar to the types of injuries that occur in gym class, during organized
sports or playing out in the backyard.
Because our activities take place outside, there is a risk of falls,
joint injury, and scrapes as students move from area to area or as they run
during wide-games. Every year we have a
few students who visit the hospital in Canmore for a few stitches or to assess
an injured arm or leg. Some areas, such
as the low-ropes, have potential for short falls, so students are trained as
spotters to support their peers under staff supervision. Staff carry first aid kits at all times when
they are working with a group of students.
Environmental Risks
The Bow Valley is an area prone to rapid and drastic weather
changes. All students should be prepared
for wind, snow, rain, and scorching sun all in the same week. The packing list should be followed as
closely as possible so students have the warm layers, extra socks, and
sunscreen that are required for a comfortable stay. It is better to come over-prepared than to
have a wet/cold or hot/burnt student. Our outdoor activities continue in most
weather conditions.
We share our Bow Valley home with a number of wild creatures
and there is the possibility that students could cross paths with a bear,
cougar, elk or coyote during their stay at Outdoor School. Students travel in groups when moving around our site and participating
in activities and counsellors carry bear spray. We are very mindful of our waste management
system and work closely with the local conservation officers to monitor animal
activity on our site.
The Outdoor School Program
The
goal of the students’ week is to enhance multiple objectives from various
Alberta Education Programs of Study in environmental education, outdoor
education and physical education. Our
approach to teaching these objectives has proven to successfully reach our
students, including those with learning and behavioural exceptionalities that
may experience difficulties in traditional classroom settings. Activities that may be run by YMCA staff in the program are:
Initiatives and Team-building Activities - Students will spend time getting to know each other in
their groups while participating in various initiative and team-building
activities.
Challenge Course - This
activity focuses on the development of communication and leadership styles by
using obstacle-course challenge elements and facilitation to develop group
goals.
High Ropes and Climbing
Tower -
Students will push the limits of their comfort zones while making use of
climbing technology to complete group and individual tasks on our aerial
challenge courses. A Challenges
Unlimited trained staff member supervises our Higher Ground area and staff are
trained and monitored in our policies and procedures. Our equipment is inspected regularly and high
quality helmets, harnesses, ropes and hardware are used on our course. This area is challenge-by-choice and students
are able to provide support for their class-mates from the ground if they are
not keen climbers.
Canoeing
- Students
may get the opportunity to visit our lake and explore the area by boat in
tandem or Voyageur canoes. A certified
Waterfront Instructor supervises groups on our pond and all students, staff
members and teachers are required to wear PFDs at all times.
Archery - Students will get a chance to try for
a Bull’s-eye at our archery range.
Hiking – Students will
explore the area around our site and learn about local flora and fauna.
Campfire - A campfire
concludes every day at Outdoor School and gives students, teachers and staff
members a chance to share songs, skits and stories.
The safety of each individual is of
the utmost importance to us. In order to ensure the safety and well-being of
all participants, the Camp Chief Hector YMCA reserves the right to alter the
program at any time without compensation to participants, parents or guardians.
Special Needs
If
your child may need some extra support and reassurance in order to attend
Outdoor School, please contact your child’s classroom teacher and/or the
Outdoor Schools Manager. Tours of our
site are available for students who are feeling nervous about attending camp
(and for parents who are nervous about having their child attend!)
Lost and Found
We do our best to send Lost and Found back to your child’s school
and to have students take a look before they depart. If your child is missing an item that they
think they might have forgotten at Outdoor School, please have them take a look
through their school’s lost and found.
If they do not find the item, the Outdoor School Coordinator should be
contacted and will take a look through what we have. If the item is found, it can be picked up at
our site or we will have it brought in to Calgary the next time someone is heading
in and it can be picked up at one of our YMCA branches or at another specified
location. After items have been at camp
for five days, we donate them in to a local shelter.
Outdoor School Student Packing List
Your child will be outside immediately upon their arrival at
Outdoor School. Please ensure they have
the appropriate items with them in their backpack on the bus as they will not
be able to access their suitcases and duffels right away as luggage is being
unloaded. It is ideal if your child is
able to carry all their own gear, however there are friends and adults
available to help if needed. The dorms are
a short hike from the parking lot where the students are dropped off. It is recommended to pack your child’s item
in 1-2 suitcases, hiking backpacks, duffel bags or a hockey bag. Please
do not pack items in garbage bags.
Outdoor Gear
|
o Raincoat/Rain pants
o Mittens
o 2 pairs of runners/hiking
shoes/boots
o Thermal underwear
bottoms and top
o Warm layer (ie. fleece)
o Warm socks (ie. wool)
o Toque
o Back pack/day pack
o Water bottle
o Boots/Hiking Shoes
(stable footwear)
Clothing
o 1 pair of Pajamas
o 2-3 sweaters/shirts
o 2-3 pairs of pants/shorts
o 2-3 t-shirts
o 6-8 pairs of socks
o 4-6 undies
o Extra socks
Fun
Stuff (optional)
o
Musical instrument
o
Books/Journal
o
Camera
o
Pencil case
o
Playing cards
|
Personal
Articles
o Towel(s)
o Toothbrush &
Toothpaste
o Lip Balm
o Sunscreen
o Sunglasses
o Soap/Shampoo
o Deodorant
o Comb or Brush
o Sleeping bag/Blanket
o Sheets
o Pillow and pillow case
o Blanket
o Flashlight/Headlamp
o Personal Medications
o Tylenol, Advil, etc.
|
Please leave the
following items at home. These items
will be confiscated if they are seen at Outdoor School and then returned to
your child back at school.
-
Money
-
Knives,
hatchets, matches and lighters
-
All
electronics including cell phones, Ipods, DSs, Gameboys and laptops (exceptions
are cameras, wristwatches, alarm clocks and flashlights)
-
Food
and snacks
-
Make-up,
curling irons/straighteners
-
Aerosol
perfumes and body sprays (ie. Axe)
