2018 Curriculum Operation Purple Camps. Welcome Camp Staff!

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1 2018 Curriculum Operation Purple Camps Welcome Camp Staff! The goal of the Operation Purple Camp (OPC) program is to bring military-connected children of wounded, ill, and injured and/or recently deployed service members together for an exciting and memorable camp experience. This experience will provide Operation Purple campers with the tools necessary to overcome the frequent challenges they face. Military children live unique lives. Therefore, Operation Purple camp utilizes a unique approach to help each camper identify and build on their strengths, learn new and useful information, and receive additional support to help manage the stress in their lives. Some children will be new to this military way of life (such as National Guard and Reserve, or children who have recently joined blended families with a military step-parent), and some children will have moved several times or endured several deployments and separations. No matter the experiences, Operation Purple campers build resiliency and establish relationships that last a lifetime. As Operation Purple camp staff, you will be introducing military connected children to camp culture and teaching them that their week at camp can have a profound impact on their lives. We hope you will take pride in your camp knowledge and utilize your strengths to help campers bond and connect with their peers. As OPC staff, it is your mission to make sure that campers have the time of their lives and adopt the message that "Military Kids Serve Too!" The National Military Family Association extends a hearty welcome to you, as you are now a part of the Operation Purple family. To help you become familiar with the unique experience that Operation Purple Camp offers, we have written and provided this curriculum, which is aimed at supporting you in your role as camp staff. Please take time to familiarize yourself with it and of course, please let us know how we can assist you in providing an incredible week of Operation Purple Camp! Sincerley, National Military Family Association 1

2 Operation Purple Camp Curriculum Program Goals, Themes & Activities The Operation Purple Camp model has been built on a proven, three-part strategy of: building social support networks, engaging in physical exercise, and targeted learning. This strategy is the most effective approach to help children cope with stressors they experience and has successfully strengthened nearly 60,000 military children since its launch in Program Goals: Learn new skills, such as resiliency, that set military kids up for success at home, school and in life Make new friends and celebrate that Military Kids Serve Too! Develop a deeper connection with the outdoors and a sense of responsibility for protecting it Theme 1: Resiliency Resiliency is defined as the ability to recover readily from illness, adversity or difficulties. In the military community, resilience is often used to describe military children who are strong or tough and have adapted well in the face of adversity, tragedy, or significant sources of stress. Resiliency is a key theme of the Operation Purple Camp program because this skill is critical to the success of military children and families. The goal of the resiliency theme is to help military children create supportive relationships during their week at camp which will create trust, offer encouragement and reassurance, and build confidence. All military children struggle through a parent s deployment, separation, or transition, especially when those events mean missed holidays, birthdays, and other important events in their life. In addition, children dealing with an injured or ill parent also struggle to understand changes in their family and lifestyle. These children are often under a lot of pressure at home when acting as caregivers for younger siblings, taking care of other household responsibilities, or dealing with worries about the injured or deployed parent. Operation Purple campers build resiliency during their camp week by: Making new friends Having new experiences and learning new skills Receiving encouragement from camp staff and building confidence Theme 2: Military Experience The goal of the military experience theme is to promote familiarity with the military as a career and lifestyle. Although Operation Purple campers are all military-connected kids, not all of them especially National Guard and Reserve children have a good understanding of what their military parent does or did. Exposing campers to different aspects of various military experiences can make their personal or family experience seem less foreign. The military theme provides an opportunity for military children to feel connected to their parent s service in the military and to celebrate the fact that they serve too! Military themed activities: Encourage teamwork Promote understanding of all of the Services Foster pride, camaraderie and communication with peers Military Family Life Counselors (MFLCs) are available onsite to talk with children when they need a little more support or care and concern for the unique challenges they face 2

3 *Please Note: Please do not confuse the concept of connecting military children to their military heritage with conducting a military style environment at camp. If you have questions about this, please let us know. Theme 3: Environmental Education The goal of the environmental education theme is to introduce OPC campers to your camp s unique outdoor education curriculum. Children today spend less time doing physical activities. Operation Purple camp is the perfect place to get outdoors, play, and learn about our environment. Every day at camp is an opportunity for adventure and discovery of the outdoors. Campers should be encouraged to be curious and explore their camp s natural surroundings. The activities you plan should be instructive and helpful for fostering friendships. The camp should be aiding campers with discovering a sense of self in connection to the world around them. After their week at camp, campers should: Feel empowered to become more responsible (a steward) in caring for their natural surroundings wherever they live, work, and play Recognize the impact their behaviors may have on the environment Along with the Operation Purple Camp goals and themes, we ve created six required activities that will be incorporated into your OPC Week. The Six Operation Purple activities are: 1. Operation Purple Opening Ceremony & Orientation 2. Wall of Honor 3. Military Theme Day & Military Speaker 4. Top Ten Activity 5. T-Shirt Signing 6. Outdoor Education Activity (Camp Specific) Implementing Operation Purple Themes & Activities This curriculum provides you with lesson plans to effectively guide this implementation, and except for the required activities identified in this curriculum, your camp should include your normal camp activities as desired. We simply ask that you relate your normal camp activities to one or more of our three themes whenever possible! Above all, we are here to help you with implementing these themes and activities during your Operation Purple Camp Week! Please don t hesitate to contact your NMFA staff for further coaching. MFLCs and Operation Purple Activities: Mental health counselor(s) or MFLCs (Military Family Life Counselors) provided by the Department of Defense, will be joining you at camp to support your Operation Purple camp week! Getting to know your MFLC prior to the beginning of your Operation Purple camp week and integrating him or her into your camp staff will ensure you and your campers make the most of this great resource. Be sure to review your Operation Purple camp schedule and identify times and activities where MFLC support will be especially valuable. 3

4 Opening Ceremony/Orientation LESSON PLAN Arrival Day Activity: 20 mins or less, upon completion of check-in. Facilitator: All camp staff Introduction: In conjunction with your camp s regular check-in day, it will be important to introduce the campers to the Operation Purple camp program. Some will be familiar with the name; others will be new to it. During this time the campers will begin to form a connection with the staff, campers, and their cabin buddies and get excited about their week at camp! Objectives: Campers will walk away with a good understanding of: What Operation Purple Camp is and the goals for the week They are all military connected kids and Military Kids Serve Too! Military kids from all military services are attending camp and share many similarities Camp expectations and rules for the week Activity: Operation Purple Opening Ceremony 1. Introduce all staff to the campers and let each one tell the campers one or two thing(s) about themselves, perhaps in a funny or memorable way 2. Introduce the Military Liaison (if in attendance) and Military Family Life Counselors (MFLCs) and have them say a few things about why they are at Operation Purple Camp 3. Tell the campers their attendance at Operation Purple Camp is brought to them by the generous work and donations of the National Military Family Association and host camp organizations (i.e., your specific camp) 4. Ask the campers whose parents are, or were, in the ARMY (or Army National Guard and Reserve) to stand up and stay standing; next, NAVY (or Navy Reserve); MARINE CORPS (or Marine Corps Reserve); AIR FORCE (or Air National Guard or Air Force Reserve); COAST GUARD (or Coast Guard Reserve); and NOAA (National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration) or USPHS (United States Public Health Service) 5. When all campers are standing, tell them they are part of one camp that will be celebrating their military life, their parents and families sacrifices, and their own sacrifices 6. Now say that at Operation Purple Camp the campers represent all the Services. Ask if anyone can guess why this week is called Operation Purple Camp 7. It is called Operation Purple Camp because when you mix all of the seven uniformed service colors together, they combine to make PURPLE!!! 8. Ask the ARMY campers to say Operation Purple Camp as they sit down, then the AIR FORCE and so on until campers from all Services are sitting down 4

5 9. Next, tell campers you and your staff have learned that military kids have a lot in common and that all Military Kids Serve Too! You might even hold up a large banner that says Military Kids Serve Too! Share with them that this week they will learn about each other, the environment, the military and what service members do, make forever friends, and have FUN 10. Go over your camp rules and expectations for the week (You may choose to go over your camp rules and expectations as a smaller cabin group; please conduct this activity as you feel comfortable.) 11. Incorporate any of your camp Opening Ceremony traditions that fit with the Operation Purple principle Facilitator Notes: 5

6 Military Kid Top Ten List LESSON PLAN Mid-Week Activity: 45 to 60 minutes in two stages with prep time scheduled in between. Facilitator: Camp Director & Military Family Life Counselor (MFLC) Introduction: The Military Kid Top Ten List is an opportunity for military kids to share similar experiences with one another through a family feud style game. Make this activity a memorable experience for the kids. Play music, dress up the host and get creative! Objectives: Encourage campers to interact and share experiences they share as military kids Campers should connect experiences they have as a military child to other campers experiences Enjoy a family feud style fun game that highlights shared military kid experiences Camp will develop a Top Ten List of common military kid experiences among their campers using responses to game questions Materials: One Military Kid Top Ten game sheet per camper Poster board, flip chart or butcher paper for displaying game responses Markers /Pens/Pencils (Use visible colors) *Please Note: This is a great opportunity to provide inside time during what may be a hot day outside! You can set up an inside area through which campers can rotate to meet with your camp MFLC. Activity: You will complete this activity in two stages, as individuals and as a group. Be prepared to allow for prep time in between individual and group stages of this activity, which may mean breaking the two segments into different times on your daily schedule or providing additional camper activity while staff is preparing for the group game. The group game takes approximately minutes, depending on engagement of campers. Step One: Individual Activity 1. Provide each child with a copy of the Operation Purple Military Kid Top Ten game sheet located on page 8 of this curriculum. Questions should be answered with one word or one number and be fun in nature. No descriptions are necessary and worksheets should be completed individually, not in groups. MFLCs should circulate when campers are completing the sheet and provide assistance when needed 6

7 Step 2: Group Activity 2. After campers have completed their worksheets, counselors should collect and begin tallying. Responses from each camper should be included in a camp list. Once all responses are tallied each question s responses should be ranked in a highest to lowest response rate o For Example: Q 10. Write down the number of states you have lived in 3 States 55 Campers 2 States 25 Campers 1 states 20 Campers 3. Once you have ranked responses for all 15 questions, you can play the group game with all campers giving them an opportunity to guess the most popular responses among the Operation Purple camp community 4. Questions should be listed on a piece of butcher paper or poster board with the top three responses placed below each question - in ranked order. Hold this board for the MFLC to use as a post-game discussion 5. When it s time to play the group game, divide campers into groups of about 5-10 campers, varied among ages and genders. Each team should nominate a team leader. Only the team leader can present the team s responses when asked 6. Explain the rules to everyone participating: o o o o o If you remember, we surveyed each of you here at Operation Purple camp taking place here at [INSERT CAMP NAME]. Using your responses we are going to play a game We will repeat one of the survey questions for each team. Your team s job will be to guess the top three most popular responses to that question You will be given 30 seconds to discuss as a team what your three guesses are, before your team leader is responsible for stating your team s guesses Each team has three chances to guess the top three responses before your team is out. Don t forget, you are not guessing YOUR response to the question but what the MOST POPULAR responses were from your fellow campers 7. Camp staff should guide campers through the game by having the first group step up, stating the first question, and then prompt the group to make their guesses 8. Once each group makes their guesses, the moderator (staff member) should tell the team whether they have guessed correctly or incorrectly. If they guessed an incorrect response, the next group should step up to take their turn 9. Repeat the process through all 15 questions. The goal isn t to accumulate points but simply have a fun competitive discussion about the similarities among Operation Purple military kid experiences 10. The MFLC should lead a group discussion reviewing the responses from the game. Explain to the camp community that while they all have unique stories as military kids, they share common experiences by being a part of the military community Response Lists should be returned to NMFA along with After Action Materials upon completion of camp. Facilitator Notes: 7

8 Operation Purple Military Kid Top Ten Game Sheet 1. Name a favorite food: 2. Describe camp in one word: 3. Name one thing campers miss while at camp: 4. Name a way to cure boredom: 5. Name something campers find when they clean under their beds: 6. Name a branch of the seven services: 7. Name a word that describes military families: 8. Write down the number of countries you ve lived in: 9. Name a military word or acronym: 10. Write down the number of states you ve lived in: 11. Name something you ve received from overseas: 12. Write down how many schools you have attended: 13. Use one word to describe military kids: 14. Describe moving in one word : 15. Use one word to describe your military mom or dad: 8

9 Wall of Honor LESSON PLAN Mid-Week Activity: 45 minutes to 1 hour Facilitator: Cabin Counselors and Military Family Life Counselor (MFLC) Introduction: The Wall of Honor activity is used by many organizations and groups to highlight individuals within their organization who have done special things or performed in exemplary ways. At Operation Purple camp, the Wall of Honor provides campers the opportunity to show each other what it means to them to have a parent in uniform. Campers will design a dog tag that represents their parent in uniform and then share out their dog tag in small group. This activity should take place among similar aged cabin groups. However, all dog tags need to be placed on one Wall of Honor. At the conclusion of this activity please ensure that the Wall of Honor is displayed in a highly visible area, such as your dining hall, throughout the week. Objective: To introduce campers to each other and to increase camper's sense of shared experiences as military children Materials: Banner Paper (for the wall) Dog tag printable (see attached) Scissors Glue or tape Crayons, markers, pens, etc. Activity: Step 1: Gather each cabin group in one location. Have them sit in a circle on the floor or at designated tables. The cabin counselor will briefly tell the campers about their next activity, the Wall of Honor. Tell them that today they will create a dog tag of their military parent and then share out. The dog tag should include but is not limited to: Name of Service Member (e.g., mom, dad or another name that child may call their military parent) Branch of Service Rank Shared activities/memories between military parent and child 9

10 Step 2: Have campers introduce themselves (if they may not know each other). After campers have introduced themselves, ask them to create a dog tag of their military parent. Step 3: Once every camper has completed his or her dog tag, ask them to share the following while displaying their dog tag: Who is their military parent(s)? What things do they do when you are together? Where is that person now? As the camper concludes their introduction of their service member parent, have them fasten the dog tag to the poster board. Step 4: After all dog tags are introduced and placed on the poster board, debrief the activity with the cabin group with support of MFLC. Suggested debrief question: How is your military experiences similar to your cabin mates? o How are they different? Facilitator Notes: 10

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12 Military Themed Day/Military Speaker LESSON PLAN Mid-Week Activity: 1 3 HRS. Facilitator: Camp staff, Speaker, etc. Introduction: The Military Theme day provides Operation Purple campers with the opportunity to celebrate that they serve alongside their parent or guardian and to increase their knowledge of their military parent s experience. This day utilizes the support of a local Military Liaison to be successful and should include volunteers from a local military unit, vehicles or gear from that unit, and more. This day also includes a Military Speaker and/or Wounded Warrior Speaker who will spend time sharing his/her experiences with the campers and providing the campers with an opportunity to ask questions. Objectives: Campers will increase their knowledge of the military, various jobs, and equipment associated with the military occupation Campers will increase their knowledge of the military parent s experience while deployed Military Theme Day will connect campers to various uniformed careers and tangible artifacts of the military profession Campers will gain firsthand knowledge of deployment by listening to a military speaker and having a question and answer session with him or her Materials Needed: Connect with Military Liaison & NMFA Staff Representative to secure military speaker and/or activities Possibly a Non-Federal Entity Request Form Best Practice: A successful military day requires advance coordination. Please contact your Operation Purple Program Manager to ensure you receive a military liaison who can support you as you plan your day. In addition, a little creativity helps to make this day great! Inviting military band members, local military or veteran support organizations, and working with your military liaison to create activities for the campers will all go a long way to making it a fantastic day. Facilitator Notes: 12

13 T-Shirt Signing LESSON PLAN Last Day Activity: 30 minutes or less. Facilitator: Cabin Counselor Introduction: After spending an entire week together and belonging to the camp community, so many campers have become good friends. During the last day of camp allow campers to use different colored permanent/fabric markers to sign each other s Operation Purple T-shirts with fun messages and farewells. You may choose to have the kids wear their shirts for signing, or to have them available to pass around. Make sure to put some sort of barrier inside each shirt to prevent the ink from bleeding. Objective: To facilitate a positive closure of camp between newfound friends Materials: Operation Purple Camp T-shirts Fabric or Permanent Markers NOTE: NMFA DOES NOT supply camps with fabric markers Activity Provide a room or outdoor area where campers feel free to walk around and connect with one another Add background music or snacks if possible to provide a festive environment Pass out Operation Purple camp T-shirts to campers Make permanent/fabric markers available in a central location Instruct campers that for the next 30 or so minutes they will have the opportunity to sign each other s T-shirts and have fun Best Practice: To make T-shirt signing even more fun and memorable for both campers and camp staff, consider waiting until the closing day to present Operation Purple shirts to your campers and use this time as part of your closing ceremonies. Once shirt presentations are made, T-shirt signing can begin! Once campers have finished signing each other s shirts, take some time to present awards from camp staff for various accomplishments campers have had throughout the week. Facilitator Notes: 13

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