For many young people, there is no better way to spend the summer than being outdoors on the beautiful campus of Colorado State University staying active with new friends and camp counselors. For health and exercise science students like Ariana Bagley, a career as a counselor can create experiential learning opportunities.
This summer, the Department of Health and Exercise Science at CSU hosted the 52nd annual Youth Sports Camp, aimed at children between the ages of 5 and 13. The 2022 camp season was May 31 – August 12, with a variety of camp options available from 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday.
The camps help participating youth build healthy lifestyle knowledge, such as strength, flexibility, and specific skills, in a fun-oriented social setting. The activities promote physical activity and social skills, to build friendships and confidence.
This learning extends to the counselors as well. Bagley, a senior entering her final year at CSU, found that this opportunity not only landed her a great summer job, but also strengthened her leadership skills and solidified her desire to work with people and be active. .
The YSC is a great place for camp counselors, like Bagley, to get a taste of being in the workforce in their field of study. Bagley has a sports medicine focus within the department and has found that “teaching kids the basics of sports they love and why exercise is important is very rewarding.”
Although Bagley is working with children, these experiences can be applied in her future career working with clients of all ages. “I’ve learned a lot of people skills and leadership,” said Bagley, who wants to become a personal trainer.
These rewarding experiences are magnified considering that the YSC has been limited for the past two years due to COVID-19. Bagley admits that while this summer’s camp was more challenging because of the increased capacity, “this really helped the campers socialize and learn how to interact with different kids.”
Bagley and the other YSC counselors have combined their ambitions with an innate desire to help others discover the benefits of a healthy lifestyle, even at a young age. Bagley has found that the YSC children love the games and activities and express a desire to learn every day. YSC allows children to try different activities to find the ones they love, which can set them up for a lifetime of joy in a healthy lifestyle.
“The biggest lesson I’ve taken from working at YSC is that kids learn so much from a young age,” Bagley said.
Bagley was able to apply her knowledge from her health and exercise science major to camp this summer, where she educates the kids about why that is.
important to maintain a level of health and activity.
“Our HES is great, most of our classes are about exercise, healthy lifestyle and nutrition. With this background, we can apply those concepts and teach them to the kids in hopes that they learn that a healthy lifestyle is important in life,” said Bagley.
Throughout the eight-week program, Bagley counselors and the YSC work hard to maintain expectations of fun and learning.
“Every day is always a little different but usually in the morning, we serve and stretch. After that, we do small group drills or games specific to the sport of the camp,” Bagley said. “Then, we’ll have a swim, and before the kids are picked up, we’ll do scrimmages or games in larger groups to help simulate the game itself.”
Bagley’s work as a camp counselor shows dedication and a great love for helping others, teaching children that a healthy lifestyle is important and fun even at a young age.
“I love seeing the smiles on their faces knowing I made a difference,” Bagley said.
The Department of Health and Exercise Science is part of the CSU College of Health and Human Sciences.
