Navigating Pronouns: Supporting Your Gender-Nonconforming Teen with Love and Acceptance
Odyssey Teen Camp Blog
by Odyssey Teen Camp
3d ago
For parents of gender non-conforming teens, understanding and using new preferred pronouns can be an incredibly important gesture of love and acceptance. For some parents, this can be quite challenging. Making the switch from “he” to “she” or “she” to “they” may bring up feelings of grief, confusion, or even inadequacy. We want to provide… The post Navigating Pronouns: Supporting Your Gender-Nonconforming Teen with Love and Acceptance appeared first on Odyssey Teen Camp ..read more
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What Makes Teens Really Happy?
Odyssey Teen Camp Blog
by Lauren Muriello, LPC
1M ago
“Things are never quite as scary when you’ve got a best friend.” — Bill Watterson The longest study of human development revealed what makes people truly happy. It’s not getting straight As, it’s not the college you attend, it’s not how much money is in your bank account, and it’s not even getting a gold… The post What Makes Teens Really Happy? appeared first on Odyssey Teen Camp ..read more
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Asking for Money is Harder Than I Thought it Would Be
Odyssey Teen Camp Blog
by Adam Simon
3M ago
At least, it feels hard to me. I guess it opens you (I mean me) to rejection, and that’s never fun. I started this camp 22 years ago. I was in my mid 40’s and needed something to commit to. I have some ideas about where that idea for a teen camp came from, but… The post Asking for Money is Harder Than I Thought it Would Be appeared first on Odyssey Teen Camp ..read more
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Bullying at Camp: One Summer Camp’s Recipe for a Bully-Free Zone
Odyssey Teen Camp Blog
by Adam Simon
6M ago
When I started Odyssey Teen Camp 20 years ago, I wanted it to be a place free of bullying because I knew the damage bullies could do firsthand. Unsurprisingly, teenagers thrive in an environment where they feel safe enough to try new things without worrying about success, failure, or humiliation. I know from my own… The post Bullying at Camp: One Summer Camp’s Recipe for a Bully-Free Zone appeared first on Odyssey Teen Camp ..read more
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Building Confidence and Resilience in Teens
Odyssey Teen Camp Blog
by Adam Simon
7M ago
I’m not an expert on confidence building or on how to increase resilience in teenagers, but I’ve been surrounded by teenagers enough over the last two decades to gain some insights of my own. I can tell you from personal experience I’ve seen teens have transformational experiences while living in a community with their peers. … The post Building Confidence and Resilience in Teens appeared first on Odyssey Teen Camp ..read more
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Packing For Summer Camp: An Insider’s Guide to Packing Smart
Odyssey Teen Camp Blog
by Odyssey Teen Camp
2y ago
The countdown before camp has begun, and, while excited, you may be less than enthusiastic about packing. Whether you’re speed packing after diligent procrastination or slow packing far in advance, we’d like to share some tips and tricks for a smoother experience.  First Things First: Something not to pack: electronics! From Zoom to Netflix, the past 2 years have been marked by screen time. Camp’s a great opportunity to disconnect from tech, reconnect with yourself, and connect with incredible new friends from across the country. Tips and Tricks If you are bringing a costume, pack the f ..read more
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Gender Diverse Housing at Odyssey Teen Camp
Odyssey Teen Camp Blog
by Er Raff
2y ago
  Our biggest question One of the biggest questions we get all year is how we assign campers to their cabins at OTC.  Unlike many other camps that decide housing based on the binary genders of “boys” and “girls,” we at OTC have chosen a different approach. We have listened to counselors and campers over the years to develop a housing system that works for everyone.   The evolution of OTC’s housing As a staff member, I have gotten to witness the evolution of OTC’s housing and gender policies on a personal level. When I first started working at OTC, I identified as a female. I e ..read more
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Are You Neurodivergent?
Odyssey Teen Camp Blog
by Jordan Dick
3y ago
When we’re not at camp, the people that love Odyssey Teen Camp spend a lot of time trying to connect with teenagers that might wanna come to our spot in the Berkshires. Though I think almost all teens benefit from being immersed in a camp culture that prioritizes compassion and discourages judgment, it helps to be more specific. So, we often ask ourselves “what kind of teen is the best fit for us?”, which is where we came up with that long list you see on our website home page: artists, dreamers, activists, LGBTQ+, punks, goths, gamers, etc. The missing adjective One adjective missing from ou ..read more
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The Gift of Being A Non Profit Summer Camp
Odyssey Teen Camp Blog
by Adam Simon
3y ago
I asked my wife while we were walking our dogs the other day, why I didn’t make OTC a non-profit years ago, and she said “you were always so busy planning for summer.” I thought, “oh, yeah, I remember that,” but if I knew then what I know now, I would have focused more on becoming a 501cs organization to reach more teens and make more of an impact. For twenty years OTC has changed lives. Now as a non-profit, donations are helping us make camp available to more teenagers, provide additional programming and create an even more diverse and fully inclusive population. We are excited about the o ..read more
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What Social Justice Looks Like at Odyssey Teen Camp
Odyssey Teen Camp Blog
by Chloe Fitzpatrick
3y ago
“What are the ideas that will liberate all of us? Science fiction is simply a way to practice the future together…practicing futures together, practicing justice together, living into new stories. It is our right and responsibility to create a new world.” -adrienne marie brown, Emergent Strategies: Shaping Change, Shaping Worlds In the summer of 2020, when OTC had been running virtual programming for months and Black Lives Matter protests had been taking place all over the country (and the world), I hosted a “Radical Imagination” class with two of my co-counselors.  At the time, I wa ..read more
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