This Safety Camp Manual is designed to help organize a Safety Camp for children ages 8-12. It includes direction on various activities that can be used to teach children and the surrounding community about safety in Agriculture.
How to Involve Your Community
Families living in farming communities experience some real advantages
that others in the United States may miss. Time together is
one of the biggest advantages, even if part of that time together
involves working together. Many farm families picnic near the
fields at lunchtime so the children can have time with their
father. And, as the children grow older, they work along side
family members on the farm. Again, time spent together.
The flip side to time together is farm children get hurt and
killed because they live, work and play around the industry
of farming. What can be done to help your community's children?
Two approaches that have proved successful in other communities
are:
- First,
make the community aware of the childhood injuries and dangers
associated with farming.
- Second,
share with your community information on how to decrease
the dangers of farming for children.
Fortunately,
both of these approaches can be accomplished through a community
sponsored and implemented farm safety day camp. Successful camps
are the result of planning, working together as a community,
and providing accurate information. Frequently, one person starts
the process and, in turn, involves others. The entire community
benefits because the rewards are beyond measurement. If your
camp teaches one child how to avoid an injury, that alone makes
the camp worthwhile!
Communities tend to come together when there is a purpose or
cause that everyone shares. Certainly, childhood safety is such
an issue. Anyone involved in agriculture probably knows of a
child who has been severely injured or worse, killed, as the
result of a farm injury. Agricultural communities frequently
have many people who care and are willing to help, they simply
need someone to invite them and include them. How many people
are needed to offer a community camp? You will probably need
a camp coordinator, clerical assistance, and two groups of volunteers.
First, the volunteers.
-
Sponsor volunteers are important since all camps need
financial backing. Local commercial businesses that depend
on agriculture are often eager to help financially sponsor
and/or participate in a camp. These could include farm implement
dealers, banks, feed and seed stores, agricultural chemical
dealers, AgGeorgia Farm Credit, and Electric Membership
Corporation, to name a few. Community hospitals are also
willing participants and sponsors. Frequently, the emergency
room personnel want to be involved. They see, firsthand,
the tragedies that can result from farm injuries. Local
insurance groups or agencies such as Farm Bureau and State
Farm have an interest in reducing farm injury and are usually
willing participants. Samples of thank you notes to sponsors
are included in the "Forms" section.
- Committees
that many communities find useful include:
- Food
Committee - Snacks, water, and lunch or supper may be
offered at a one-day camp. It is a good idea to have someone
on this committee who is familiar with serving food to crowds.
It is very important to keep hot foods hot, cold foods cold,
and never serve food that has been sitting out more than
2 hours. It is also recommended to avoid caffeine drinks
since many camps are offered during hot weather and caffeine
increases the chance of dehydration. Special needs of campers
must also be considered such as diabetes, food allergies,
etc.
- Marketing
Committee- The local newspaper and local radio programs
are always interested in sharing community news. This committee
can develop and place posters and flyers in local businesses.
Visual displays are a good way to spread the news. (Locations
for posters might include Farm Credit office, Extension,
feed and seed stores, hardware stores, veterinarians' offices,
emergency room waiting areas, and insurance company offices).
The "Publicity" section has examples of public service announcements
and a press release in the "Publicity"
section.
- Facility/Setup
Committee - Selects, well in advance, a location and
verifies the day before camp that the selected facility
is well lighted, garbage cans are strategically placed,
rest rooms are operational, and class rooms are setup correctly.
Committee members need to arrive early for camp to ensure
that directional signs are in place.
- Cleanup
Committee - Usually a good idea to have this committee
separate from the setup committee because the camp day may
get long. A goal for this committee is to ensure that the
facility is at least as clean after camp as it was before
camp.
- Registration
Committee- Need someone to register the campers and
receive mailed in registrations, assure that health forms
and waivers are signed (see Forms section),
and assign children to groups. This group may also be responsible
for coming up with a way to identify the groups through
a specific colored name tag, hat, etc. for each group of
campers.
- Audio-visual/Classroom
Committee- Verify that each faculty member has the equipment
necessary for his/her class. This should be determined in
advance so there is time to borrow any needed audiovisual
equipment from the library or school.
- Faculty/faculty
coordinator - This committee obtains and schedules the
faculty. The classes offered in a day camp should be taught
by people with experience in the field/topic they are asked
to teach. Plus, the classes need to cover specific material
that is age-appropriate, or the campers will not take away
the knowledge and skills they need to reduce injuries. Examples
of faculty could include a first aid or first responder
course taught by an EMT (emergency medical technician) or
an emergency room nurse. Tractor safety might be offered
by an ag teacher or extension agent, water safety by a Red
Cross instructor or physical education teacher, animal safety
by an extension agent or 4-H agent, and skin cancer prevention
by a nurse, doctor, or in Georgia, a specially trained extension
agent. The class outlines included in this manual cover
the recommended subjects in a format designed for children
8-12 years of age and the content is designed to be useful
to a community day camp faculty. A faculty coordinator oversees
contacting and scheduling qualified faculty. If possible,
have a back-up instructor for each class OR a back-up class
offering in the event of a last minute cancellation. Remind
the faculty of "Take Home Information"
in the manual.
- First
aid Committee -This committee should be staffed with
someone who is certified in first aid. A nurse (from local
public health or a community hospital) is a good choice
since there may be children attending camp who require daily
medications. This committee will retain the medical forms
("Forms" section) on each camper
and should have a phone and phone number assigned for emergencies.
They are the contact for emergencies both from within camp
(campers, group leaders, etc.) and outside of camp (parents
or family trying to reach a camper). A vehicle and driver
should be available in case it is necessary to transport
anyone to a medical facility. IT IS ADVISABLE to get health
insurance coverage on the campers. The 4-H group insurance
is very affordable (a few cents per camper) and your county
4-H agent is a good resource to assist with obtaining the
insurance.
- Safety
Committee - This group is responsible for making sure
all demonstrations involving live animals and machinery
with moving parts are roped-off . There should be at least
a ten-foot barrier between children and equipment
with moving parts or live animals. Movable equipment should
have wheels chocked. Demonstration equipment that can be
driven should be parked on level ground, have wheels chocked,
brake applied, and keys removed from ignition. Verify that
fire extinguishers/ alarms/ smoke detectors are in facility
and workable. The safety committee should make sure that
fire exits are marked and accessible and tornado/storm shelter
is available. Traffic and the dangers associated with it
should also be addressed by this committee (such as well-marked
pathways for pedestrians and assistance crossing any streets).
If there is an industry in your area, the safety engineer
or director would be very helpful on this committee.
- Evaluation
Committee- This committee is responsible for determining
what worked at camp and what did not work. Their information
will help in planning future camps. This group can also
be alert to causes of farm injury in your area through newspaper
articles and word of mouth. If a particular problem or piece
of equipment causes several injuries and that topic was
not addressed at camp, this group may recommend including
that topic in next year's camp. Evaluation forms are in
the "Forms" section of the manual.
- Goody
bags/T-shirt Committee - Campers love to receive goodies
and local businesses like the publicity. This group arranges
for and collects the goodies. If possible, it is a reinforcing
tactic to give the campers goodies that support safe behaviors
such as work gloves (made for small hands), first aid kits,
wide-brimmed hats. If the camp wishes to offer a T-shirt,
this committee can handle getting competitive bids, the
design selection for the shirt and ordering the shirts.
A community coloring contest prior to camp is a good way
to determine the T-shirt graphic design. Community sponsors
like to have their names on the shirts!
- Financial
committee - Handles paying the expenses and receiving
the registration fees (if any), as well as the sponsor donations.
Expenses associated with a camp might include facility costs,
T-shirts, goody bags and goodies, food for snacks or meals,
printing costs (for paper, ink, brochures, programs, posters),
postage, advertisement, camp insurance, pictures (film and
film processing), paper products (cups, plates, napkins,
toilet paper, hand towels), sunscreen and first aid kits.
- Group
Leaders Committee - Group leaders are needed to escort
groups of campers. Usually one group leader for every five
(5) campers is sufficient for this age group. The group
leaders accompany the children to the various programs and
activities and make sure, at the end of the day, the children
leave with the adult who brought them to the camp. Think
of the people who work with youth in your community such
as the 4-H agents, Extension Service, church youth leaders,
and teachers. These people all bring expertise and experience
to a farm safety day camp. They know how to encourage children
to follow rules that make group learning fun for everyone.
You
may think of other committees that will be helpful for your
camp or you may want to combine some of the committees,
depending on your community and the wishes and talents of
the volunteers.
Next, a camp needs a coordinator. The coordinator oversees the camp.
This does NOT mean one person is responsible for DOING everything.
It means one person knows what others are responsible for, when
and where activities will occur, and how to contact the staff,
camp faculty, and participants with changes. The coordinator
may or may not be the person who originates the idea of a day
camp in your community. The coordinator's first role may be
to invite volunteers to a planning meeting. Frequently, this
meeting is a good time to discover the interest areas of the
volunteers, if additional recruitment may be helpful, and jointly
develop a timeline (see section on A Group
Plan). A couple of dates for a second meeting can be offered
at the first meeting by the coordinator (or someone appointed).
The second meeting may focus on giving volunteers the opportunity
to discuss any problems or concerns. This is also a good time
to assure that a timeline, developed by the group, has been
and will be followed because most camps require a 6-8 month
planning period.
A volunteer who provides clerical assistance is very valuable.
Correspondence, meeting arrangements, and thank you notes require
time. Usually the camp is made up of volunteers with very busy
lives, so covering this base separately makes everyone's job
a little easier.
In summary, the following volunteers are helpful when planning
a camp:
- Coordinator
- Clerical
assistance
- Sponsors
- Committee
members and committee chair for the following:
Food |
First
aid |
Marketing |
Safety |
Facility/Setup |
Evaluation |
Cleanup |
Goody
bags/T-shirts |
Registration |
Finances |
Audio/visual
classroom |
Group
Leaders |
Faculty
|
|
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