The Problem
Some camps are shifting to online programming, engaging with children in virtual environments.
Other camps are opening, engaging with children just emerging from months of quarantine.
Regardless of how you’re engaging with your campers, it’s vital that your counselors and mentors be prepared to recognize abuse, handle disclosures and help children transition to the new normal. The traditional child abuse trainings for youth-serving professionals do not address recognizing child abuse through a webcam and may not fully capture the trauma an abused child has lived through while in quarantine.
The Solution
In response to the crisis, the Beau Biden Foundation for the Protection of Children developed a series of online workshops to help camp directors, administrators, and staff protect children in these uncertain times.
We believe protecting children from abuse starts with clear policies and created a workshop called Protecting Children in Virtual Learning Environments. This workshop explains how a new camp policy can help staff, mentors, and support staff establish healthy boundaries in an online environment and how to recognize child abuse through a webcam.
We also recognize many camp counselors and directors will be among the first to see children emerging from quarantine. There will be an increased number of disclosures of abuse and neglect. Our Recognizing and Reporting Child Abuse and Neglect workshop will prepare staff, mentors and counselors to be the trusted adult a child needs – whether interacting through a webcam or face-to-face.
It’s vital that children engaging in virtual learning environments understand the rules of the road. Our Internet Safety & Cyberbullying workshop, when paired with a workshop on Sexting, help young adults navigate the ever changing virtual world they’re living in.
More information about each workshop is below.
Workshops for Summer Camps
Workshop pricing starts at $500.
Workshops for Students:
Internet Safety & Cyberbullying
This 45 minute interactive student workshop is geared toward children grades 4-12. The workshop covers age appropriate scenarios and possible strategies on navigating the digital world. During this workshop students will also learn how to recognize cyberbullying and what to do about it. The presentation includes video segments and scenario-based discussions children and teens are bound to encounter online- often when they are alone.
Sexting
Especially with more times on devices, adolescents and teenagers may find themselves more willing to participate in sexting with their significant other or online connection. Sexting is a 45 minute interactive presentation with video segments and scenario-based discussions. This training covers progressively mature, age appropriate scenarios to help students recognize the signs and learn strategies to address this complicated topic adolescents and teens are faced with on a daily basis. This workshop is for only grades 7-12.
Workshops for Adults:
Protecting Children in a Virtual Learning Environment
During this 60-minute workshop for administrators and directors of schools, camps, and youth-serving organizations, we discuss how policy can help professionals establish healthy boundaries in an online environment with the students they serve. Attendees will learn how to communicate with students in an online environment that maintains observable and interruptible interactions, and how to recognize abuse and neglect through a webcam.
Recognizing and Reporting Child Abuse and Neglect
During this 75-minute workshop for adults on the front lines of child protection (your faculty and staff), participants will learn about the different forms of abuse and neglect, how to recognize the signs of abuse and neglect in virtual learning environments, how and when to make a report and policies to consider while working in a virtual learning environment. We’ll also cover how faculty and staff can address cyberbullying and promote good digital citizenship among your students.