This morning we learned the “This Is It” key of Excellence. It was an inspiring way to start the day and help us all make the most of this incredible SuperCamp experience. I was impressed with some of the goals these young students have.

SuperCamp LMU Junior Forum Image: This Is It! Key Of Excellence

THIS IS IT! – Make the most of every moment. Focus your attention on the present moment. Keep a positive attitude.

My ‘This Is It’ Notes:

How you show up is a choice! Make the most of every moment and opportunity.

Every day you are given 86,400 seconds to spend. How do you make the most of every single one?

What this means to some of our SperCamp LMU Junior Forum campers:

Take everything we can back home with us, apply at home, in school.

‘This Is It’ means keeping your chin up, knowing that ‘This Is it’ and making the most of each moment.

Set your goals and work to achieve them. This was a great motivational, personal development session.

We took a little break and then went into our academics. I started with the “Memory Upgrade” session where we learned the narrative chain and 10-24-7 memory strategies. Very cool!

Now it’s on to another academic session and then lunch and then play time! Um, what was I thinking not wanting to come to SuperCamp?!

I’m in Math Mastery now, learning that Math is “Mmmmm mmmmm Good!” Hmmmm… must learn how math is mmm, mmm good!

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Later…

In our afternoon academic session, we learned how to focus deeply by getting into Alpha State and using the SLANT technique which is all about how to use our bodies to tell our brains that it’s time to learn and show our teachers that we are listening.

SuperCamp Junior Forum Image: Personal Development Skills

After dinner we learned about our comfort zones and all the endless possibilities that are beyond our comfort zone, in our “Learning Zone.” We shared some of our dreams and what we need to do to achieve those goals. So, with the dream and a plan in hand, why are we not achieving these dreams? We learned that we have the potential to achieve anything we want and then we discovered what’s stopping us: FIMAGE!!! This is our Fear about our IMAGE (what others might think of us). To overcome this FIMAGE, we must Face our Fimage and Develop our Image into what we want it to be. This principle is true for everyone, regardless of our age or stage in life.

SuperCamp Junior Forum Image: Personal Development Skills

This picture is funny. Lead Facilitator Karen said “Raise your hand! Raise your other hand! Now thank your neighbor for showering today!!!” She was illustrating that a tiny bit of FIMAGE is healthy to help us function in society (like taking showers so we’re not the stinky kid). So awesome! The students got a kick out of it, and got the point, for sure. A little FIMAGE is good, but a lot is not. This is just one reason SuperCamp is an excellent summer enrichment program for teens. 

Tonight we learned ‘Speak with Good Purpose.’ It was a really inspiring, kind of intense session. You could really feel the effects on these kids of their experiences with not speaking with good purpose. It was sobering to hear the things these students have heard or said about themselves. I like that we learned some good vocabulary to help deal with situations and communicate effectively.

SPEAK WITH GOOD PURPOSE – Speak honestly and kindly
Think before you speak. Make sure your intention is positive and your words are sincere.

Following our Speak with Good Purpose key talk, we learned OTFD. This is a “potent and powerful communication technique to express feelings in a positive manner.”

OTFD:

Observations — Facts only, not emotions.

Thoughts — Explain what you thought.

Feelings — Explain what you felt.

Desires — Express your desires for the future.

This can be used to express positive OR negative feelings.

SuperCamp Junior Forum Image: Communication Skills

Then, we learned the 4-part Apology or ‘AAMR’:

Acknowledge — what you did wrong

Apologize — (“I Apologize for _____” – not ‘sorry’)

Make it Right? — “What can I do to make it right?” It is a question because the other person needs to tell you how to make it right for them.

Recommit to _______________ [whatever they requested to make it right].

I love that our Facilitators use the term “What questions can I answer?” rather than “Are there any questions?” and other positive languaging through all of their conversations. Our Facilitators and Team Leads provide such wonderful modeling for everyone around them all the time. It’s amazing to me that so many people can be so consistently great.

I now understand why this is among the best academic summer programs anywhere.