Garden Camp Counselor
About The Position
San Francisco Botanical Garden’s Garden Camp program primarily serves children in grades K-5 with all outdoor programming that focuses on educational and positive social-emotional development with peers in nature. Garden Camp connects children to plants through a combination of structured, themed activities and open-ended time to develop curiosity, initiative, imagination, and creativity. Curriculum will revolve around four main themes: gardening, art, wellness, and ecology. Counselors will be responsible for the care, comfort, and safety of participants. Counselors’ primary objectives are to provide an engaging, fun, educational, age-appropriate, and safe experience for participants; provide excellent customer service to parents and caregivers; work collaboratively within the Learning and Engagement team; lead by example; and inform the development of the Camp programs in seasons to come. Counselors are members of the Programs and Partnerships Department and report to the Garden Camp Director. In this role, they are expected to adhere to the program’s COVID-19 Health and Safety Plan and all other safety protocols, including completion of Mandated Reporter and First Aid/CPR training.
Requirements
- Coursework in Early childhood Education OR equivalent experience.
- Experience teaching or working with preschool and/or elementary school-aged children.
- Demonstrate a passion and respect for the natural world. Be willing to get dirty, teach through play, and engage deeply.
- Will need to complete CPR Training and Mandated Reporter training by June 26th, 2026.
- Commitment to full-time work either June 22nd through August 7th OR August 14th, 2026.
- Ability to meet the physical demands of working with children in an all-outdoor setting. Like lifting at least 50 pounds, ability to run short distances and walk extensively, transition from sit to stand easily, and sit on the ground with campers, and occasionally working in varying weather conditions.
- Social-emotional competencies are highly valued.
Nice To Haves
- Coursework in environmental education, botany, ecology, or other life sciences is highly desirable.
- Fluency in a secondary language (especially Spanish, Mandarin, Tagalog, or Russian) highly favored.
- Social-emotional competencies are highly valued.
Responsibilities
- Provide in-person care for children with a co-counselor in a public setting.
- Build and nourish positive relationships with campers while promoting a sense of nature connection among the participants.
- Enforce camp rules, policies, and safety guidelines consistently, ensuring a safe and secure camp environment.
- Foster a community that values relationships, thrives on empathy, sees opportunity before challenge, uses positive reinforcement, and anticipates joy around every turn. Promote character development and model positive and inclusive culture.
- Always ensure the physical and emotional safety of all campers through routine safety and wellness checks.
- Communicate with participant families to foster a warm camp community, and ensure a positive, open dialogue about health, safety, and other issues as they arise.
- Collaborate within the camp team and across departments to ensure both the Garden and campers thrive.
- Provide play and learning experiences which foster engagement with the natural world, develop empathy for all living things, and increase understanding and appreciation of plants and our relationship to them.
- Contribute to curriculum with additional, appropriate, thematic content and activities that align with curricular framework.
- Stock and manage camp materials and supplies.
- Lead a group size of 10-12 participants in partnership with a co-Counselor.
- Attend weekly staff meetings.
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Entry Level
Education Level
No Education Listed
