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Since 2nd Session Visiting Day, campers have been left clues around camp with a letter and a number corresponding to what Color War it was. Starting with “I-49-E”, meaning: Industrial Red, the 49th Color War, Eco White, which just happened during the 1st Session of this summer – the campers continued to watch history unfold one clue after another. This all led up to a ‘rewind’ video which was played for the entire camp which displayed all 100 banners from over the last 25 years here at West.

The first Color War had the teams of Red California vs. White New York. In honor of the very first Color War here at camp, we proudly announced the teams for the 50th Color War as LA RED VS. NYC WHITE. Throughout the week, campers also enjoyed numerous fake-outs (what campers thought was Color War Break-out, but were faked-out instead!) all around camp including a “sighting” of the lake monster, an early morning siren which woke everyone up, and a flash mob after the camp play.

http://youtu.be/aqAbEN1zS1M

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FAMILY CONNECT’S MARCH FEATURE Reel Sports Productions

Jennifer DeSpagna — Mon, 28 Mar 2016 00:39:20 +0000

Timber Lake West parent, Jeff Ross, had every teenage sports fanatic’s dream job – producer for major sports networks. With over 20 years of experience at ESPN and NBC Golf Channel, Jeff had been at the helm of productions like Stanley Cup Final, Daytona 500, Olympics, and Super Bowl – with 3 Emmy® awards to boot!

But last year Jeff said goodbye to network sports – and also to great tickets for major sporting events – for which his two sons Paul and Jonny, a 3rd year West counselor and Teen 2 camper, respectively, are still mourning. Instead, Jeff opted to try his hand at a labor of love.

Jeff’s new venture is Reel Sports Productions – a production company that creates video resume reels for prospective prep school and college athletes. He believes student athletes are so much more than the sum of their academic grades, stats, and team records. That is why Jeff loves working with these young athletes to help put a face on the stats and let their individual character and performance shine through.

Reel Sports combines home videos with video Jeff shoots himself, and then has the athlete ‘host’ their own reels. The result is a small, convenient package that can be electronically blasted off to recruiters and coaches.

Check out Jeff’s videos or want to learn more!

And if you have a child who is interested in pursuing a career in sports broadcasting, feel free to have them reach out to Jeff for any questions or advice. You can contact him through his website or LinkedIn page.

TLC FAMILY OF CAMPS:
*Timber Lake Camp * Timber Lake West * Tyler Hill Camp
*North Shore Day Camp * North Shore Day School
*Hampton Country Day Camp * Southampton Camp & Club

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8 Lessons About Leading Kids From Derek Jeter’s Dad

TLW Western Union — Wed, 24 Feb 2016 21:28:44 +0000

As this year’s baseball season is winding down, we thought it would be nice to take a look at Tim Elmore’s October 2014 article on lessons Derek Jeter learned from his Dad.

The sports world was consumed this summer with Derek Jeter’s farewell to the New York Yankees (and baseball fans everywhere). He got applause from every ballpark because Jeter played the game with class. He ended his career at Yankee stadium with a walk-off single that won the game. He worked hard, kept a great attitude, was a great teammate, and was very competitive—but never once, in 2,903 games of major league baseball, did he get ejected from a game. Yep, he is different.

When asked how and where he learned to play the game—he refers to his father. From his own lips, here are eight lessons we learn about leading kids from Derek Jeter’s dad:

Never let anyone outwork you.

Derek said he watched his dad work relentlessly as a substance abuse counselor. He never claimed to have the biggest talent, but he taught his kids to “work hard and never let anyone outwork you.” That way, it’s not about giftedness but work ethic.

Inspire your followers by doing what you want done.

Derek’s dad modeled the way in everything from optimism to passion to fun around the house. Derek said his proclamation that he’d play shortstop for the Yankees came from his dad who played college baseball: “I wanted to be like him.”

Don’t project on kids, but push them when it’s time.

His dad never once pushed him into baseball, but once he showed a passion for it, Jeter’s parents helped fuel it. Many an evening, Jeter and his sister Sharlee could be seen fielding grounders or taking swings in the yard with dad.

Be tough, but fair.

Like most teens, Derek had clashes with his dad, but he said later, “While he was tough, he was always fair.” Dad would explain the reasons why he’d set up the rules and boundaries in the house. It provided emotional security for the kids.

Agreements are better than rules.

Every August, Jeter was presented with a contract drawn up by his Dad on a legal pad, permitting him to play sports only if he complied with a series of expectations that included posting high grades, participating in extracurricular activities and avoiding drugs or alcohol. Derek never once violated that contract.

Explain your leadership values.

Derek remembers, “There were a lot of times when you clash with your parents, but they were pretty good at explaining things. When you’re a kid, you don’t always agree, but my parents were always good at explaining, ‘Why.’” This helps kids follow.

Err on the side of optimism.

Derek says the greatest lesson he learned from dad was to stay positive. Even in his 32-game slump in 2004, Derek put his uniform on, expecting to get a hit. He’d talk to his dad every day about the potential of that new day. He knew slumps would pass.

Constantly express appreciation.

Derek tells us, “My parents have always been supportive—daily.” So on Father’s Day, he expects that he’ll tell his Dad, ‘Thanks,’ but that is not anything unusual—Jeter thinks that is an appreciative sentiment that should be relayed more than once every 365 days.

When you lead kids well, the relationship evolves from supervisor to consultant to friend. Their relationship has matured over the years, but Derek Jeter says that he knows with any pressing issue, Dad is still one of the two people he’d turn to first. “We’re more friends than anything,” Jeter said. “I think as I’ve gotten older, you still have the father-son relationship, but we’ve become closer friends. He’s still my Dad, but more so, a friend. I’d definitely go to him first with anything.”

How could a parent or coach want anything more?

P.S. Derek Jeter just wrote a children’s book that has 10 values and life lessons. Here’s the link: http://derekjeterpublishing.com

– See more at: https://growingleaders.com/blog/eight-lessons-leading-kids-derek-jeters-dad/#sthash.GlheDJ1G.3jV9OyBA.dpuf

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The 8 life skills all 18-year-olds should have: A checklist for parents

TLW Western Union — Thu, 28 Jan 2016 17:43:54 +0000

If we want our kids to have a shot at making it in the world as 18-year-olds, without the umbilical cord of the cell phone being their go-to solution in all manner of things, they’re going to need a set of basic life skills. Based upon her observations as the former dean of freshmen at Stanford University, and the advice of parents and educators around the country, Julie Lythcot-Haims, shares some examples of practical things students will need to know how to do before they go to college — and here are the crutches that are currently hindering them from standing up on their own two feet:

1. An 18-year-old must be able to talk to strangers — faculty, deans, advisers, landlords, store clerks, human resource managers, coworkers, bank tellers, health care providers, bus drivers, mechanics—in the real world.

The crutch: We teach kids not to talk to strangers instead of teaching the more nuanced skill of how to discern the few bad strangers from the mostly good ones. Thus, kids end up not knowing how to approach strangers — respectfully and with eye contact — for the help, guidance, and direction they will need out in the world.

2. An 18-year-old must be able to find his way around a campus, the town in which her summer internship is located, or the city where he is working or studying abroad.

The crutch: We drive or accompany our children everywhere, even when a bus, their bicycle, or their own feet could get them there; thus, kids don’t know the route for getting from here to there, how to cope with transportation options and snafus, when and how to fill the car with gas, or how to make and execute transportation plans.

3. An eighteen-year-old must be able to manage his assignments, workload, and deadlines.

The crutch: We remind kids when their homework is due and when to do it— sometimes helping them do it, sometimes doing it for them; thus, kids don’t know how to prioritize tasks, manage workload, or meet deadlines, without regular reminders.

4. An 18-year-old must be able to contribute to the running of a house hold.

The crutch: We don’t ask them to help much around the house because the checklisted childhood leaves little time in the day for anything aside from academic and extracurricular work; thus, kids don’t know how to look after their own needs, respect the needs of others, or do their fair share for the good of the whole.

5. An 18-year-old must be able to handle interpersonal problems.

The crutch: We step in to solve misunderstandings and soothe hurt feelings for them; thus, kids don’t know how to cope with and resolve conflicts without our intervention.

6. An 18-year-old must be able to cope with ups and downs of courses and workloads, college- level work, competition, tough teachers, bosses, and others.

The crutch: We step in when things get hard, finish the task, extend the deadline, and talk to the adults; thus, kids don’t know that in the normal course of life things won’t always go their way, and that they’ll be okay regardless.

7. An 18-year-old must be able to earn and manage money.

The crutch: They don’t hold part-time jobs; they receive money from us for what ever they want or need; thus, kids don’t develop a sense of responsibility for completing job tasks, accountability to a boss who doesn’t inherently love them, or an appreciation for the cost of things and how to manage money.

8. An 18-year-old must be able to take risks.

The crutch: We’ve laid out their entire path for them and have avoided all pitfalls or prevented all stumbles for them; thus, kids don’t develop the wise understanding that success comes only after trying and failing and trying again (a.k.a. “grit”) or the thick skin (a.k.a. “resilience”) that comes from coping when things have gone wrong.

Remember: our kids must be able to do all of these things without resorting to calling a parent on the phone. If they’re calling us to ask how, they do not have the life skill.

Watch Julie Lythcot-Hains interview on The Today Show.

Julie Lythcot-Haims is the former Dean of Freshmen at Stanford University and the author of “How to Raise an Adult.”

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Fast Fundamentals

TLW Western Union — Fri, 13 Feb 2015 16:11:15 +0000

One of the many things we look forward to each summer is watching our campers participate in our athletic program. There’s just something special about seeing our campers not only improve their sport-specific skills throughout the summer, but also witnessing how positive coaching can skyrocket self-esteem and confidence in less than four weeks.

We are always looking for new ways to improve every aspect of our camp program – that’s the only way we get better! As it relates to sports, we are excited to introduce our campers to FAST Fundamentals athletic training this summer. FAST (Fitness & Athletic Skills Training) is a brand new youth athletic development program that focuses on strengthening overall athleticism by improving coordination, speed, agility, balance, core strength, reaction and more! It does not matter where each child starts out athletically – FAST is for everyone. This summer, our coaches will be weaving aspects of the FAST curriculum into our existing athletic instruction for sports like basketball, baseball, football and lacrosse. Best part yet – FAST was founded by a couple of “camp guys” from the TLC Family so its program is designed with drill-based games, skill challenges and mini-contests, so campers of all skill levels are always having fun while participating.

With that in mind, we are excited to introduce our Timber Lake West family to Dave Skolnik, Director of Hampton Country Day Camp, and Jason Mercado, Associate Director of North Shore Day Camp, founders of the FAST Fundamentals athletic development program. We recently sat down with them to talk about how parents can work with their children to improve overall athleticism, the state of youth athletics and their advice for children interested in participating in athletics.

Why did you guys create FAST Fundamentals?
For years, we have been working towards building a customized athletic training program designed to maximize a child’s athletic potential while also developing their self-esteem, self-confidence and a lifelong love for physical activity. Most youth athletic programs hold group classes with a preset curriculum that children have to fit into. These classes often will not slow down or speed up for an individual child’s needs, as they must cater to an entire group of children. The problem is that every child is different in terms of their athletic strengths, weaknesses and stages of development which is why it is so important to be able to personalize the instruction. That was the idea behind FAST Fundamentals.
We created FAST with the goal of developing a program that would individually meet the needs of all types of growing youth athletes and even children who do not consider themselves “athletes”. Whether a child is just beginning to develop the coordination skills necessary for future athletic success or is a competitive, budding athlete seeking an edge in performance, or is just an active child who needs a boost in confidence as it relates to his or her ability to participate successfully in athletic activities – FAST Fundamentals helps to develop, strengthen and maximize a child’s overall athleticism, potential and confidence.

What do you feel is the best way to develop a child’s overall athleticism?
Think about it this way – children don’t learn to read before first being taught the ABCs. Similarly, children don’t learn algebra before first being taught basic arithmetic. When it comes to young and growing athletes, we strongly believe that children need to “master the fundamentals”. Before children can develop or improve sport-specific skills, it is critical that they first develop the core physical movement patterns that serve as the necessary building blocks for future athletic success.
Coordination, agility, reaction, balance, speed, core strength and conditioning form the foundation of all sport-specific movements – improving any or all of these building blocks will help a child become a more complete, confident and productive athlete in EVERY sport! We truly believe that “competence leads to confidence” and an overall proficiency in the fundamental skills of athletics is important for a child’s evolving self-esteem, especially as it relates to their participation in sports.

What advice can you give parents who are interested in helping their child improve athletically?
1- Make sure your child participates in a variety of sports – there has been a movement towards “single sport specialization” at a young age and this is a worrisome trend. There is an unbelievable amount of research that consistently establishes that “single sport specialization” has a negative impact on a child’s physical (more injuries), emotional (quitting earlier) and social (more pressure = less happiness) development. Not only that, but cross-training in a variety of sports will actually help your child become a better player in each sport by making them a better ATHLETE!

2- Set aside a minimum of 30 minutes each day for your child to participate in physical activity – and it should be different each day! There are numerous “drill-based games and contests” which children absolutely love participating in that can be done indoors and outdoors and with minimal equipment. John Wooden, one of the most famous basketball coaches of all-time once said, “When you improve a little each day, eventually big things occur…Don’t look for big, quick improvement. Seek small improvements one day at a time. That’s the only way it happens – and when it happens, it lasts.” We love that quote and we think it sums up our philosophy of athletic development very well.

3- Find programs whose coaches are positive role models. Let’s not forget what kids love doing more than anything else – having fun! Coaches need to create a positive environment throughout their classes/sessions as this will help motivate your child to try new activities without a fear of failure. Athletic performance and a love for physical activity is tied directly to self-esteem and self-confidence – children should look forward to participating in sports because it’s fun and makes them feel good—that’s when real improvement happens!

Dave and Jason have been longtime members of the TLC Family, so it is no surprise that their philosophy on coaching children and providing a proactively positive environment aligns closely with our STARFISH values program and the type of environment we create at camp.

We believe what Dave and Jason are doing is great, and we are excited to implement aspects of FAST into our athletics program this summer. If you would like to learn more about FAST Fundamentals, we encourage you to visit www.fastfundamentals.com or call 516-629-5878.

Watch fast fundamental drill videos here: www.facebook.com/fastfundamentals/videos

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