Reflective Essay: A Career As A Camp Counselor

Throughout high school, I did not have much direction in regards to what I wanted to do with my life. I had bounced around ideas of possible careers, but nothing seemed to fit. I knew that I loved my summer job as a camp counselor. However, that is not a profession I could maintain after high school. What made that job so rewarding were the experiences I shared with my campers when they accomplished their goals. I would celebrate with campers after they finally made it to the top of the climbing wall, I witnessed the amazement that would fill another camper’s face when they shot a bull’s-eye for the first time at the archery hut, and I experienced their joy and camaraderie while everyone sang old camp songs around the weekly campfire. When I became the drum major of my high school band and gained more opportunities to teach music and lead rehearsals than I had as a section leader, I began seeing parallels between my band members and my summer camp experiences. When a student I worked with finally played a passage she struggled with …show more content…
While I was working with a clarinet section in a high school band during their band camp, I noticed that my frustrations often transferred to the students and ended up affecting their attitudes. The students were then less motivated to learn and had trouble focusing. To help them feel better about what they had accomplished and to possibly improve their attitudes, I decided to end rehearsal on a positive note by reflecting with them on all the progress they made that day. I immediately saw their attitudes turn around once I reminded them how much hard work they put in and how much they improved. As a result, the students ended up leaving the rehearsal happy and excited for the next day. When I become a teacher, I hope this lesson of keeping a positive attitude with my students will stay with me as I constantly strive to become a better