Free · Certificate included
Camp and Retreat Safety
Run overnight camps and retreats with safety dialed in from cabin to campfire.
What you’ll learn
- Set up safe cabin and overnight supervision that stays observable and interruptible
- Apply age-based camper-to-staff ratios and protect bathing and changing privacy
- Collect health forms, store and administer medications, and run headcounts correctly
- Prepare for waterfront, weather, medical, and missing-camper emergencies
Screen your volunteers for $5
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Create a free account →Course outline
- 1
Why camp is a different kind of risk
A weekly youth program ends when the parents pick up.
5 min Quiz Interactive - 2
Ratios and line-of-sight supervision
Supervision starts with a number: how many trained adults per child.
6 min Quiz Interactive - 3
Cabins, overnight & the two-adult rule
Sleeping arrangements are where camp safety is won or lost.
6 min Quiz Interactive - 4
Bathing, changing & privacy
Bathhouses, shower rooms, and changing areas are high-privacy, high-risk spaces.
5 min Quiz Interactive - 5
Health forms, medications & allergies
At camp, volunteers manage what a school nurse normally would: medications, allergies, asthma, diabetes, seizures, and injuries — often miles from a hospital.
5 min Quiz Interactive - 6
Waterfront & aquatic safety
Water is the single most dangerous part of most camps.
6 min Quiz Interactive - 7
Headcounts & the missing-camper drill
The fastest way to keep a camper from going missing is to count constantly — so the gap shows up in seconds, not when you sit down for dinner and realize a child…
5 min Quiz Interactive - 8
Emergency action plans & putting it together
A camp without a written Emergency Action Plan (EAP) is improvising under pressure — the worst time to think.
5 min Quiz Interactive
Sources & further reading
- American Camp Association — Standards at a Glance — supervision, ratios & accreditation
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — Preventing Drowning — water safety & supervision
- American Red Cross — Water Safety & Lifeguarding resources
- U.S. Center for SafeSport — Minor Athlete Abuse Prevention Policies (MAAPP)
- Nonprofit Risk Management Center — Screening Volunteers and Staff
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