The streets may be lined with holiday cheer and snow is falling outside our windows but that isn’t stopping our team from dreaming about summer camp. Today is the big day and registration is officially open for Summer 2018. Last year’s camp season was one for the books with stories we are still reliving. We know that 2018 will be even better as we welcome new and past campers.

To celebrate registration opening and to take all of your minds off the cold we wanted to share just 5 of the many reasons why you and your kids will love our summer camps.

1. There is something for everyone. Whether your child is all about sports, art or STEM, we have inclusive activities for all of them. KING Summer Camp prides itself on providing a well-rounded experience that not only caters to kids’ current likes but also expands their minds to new activities. It would take all day to name every activity that our campers participate in but to name a few:

Sports: Basketball, tennis, wiffle ball, flag football, soccer, and dozens of other unique KING games that will be the talk of the dinner table each night.
Arts and Crafts: We offer age specific projects ranging from tye-dye to bracelet making and beyond.
STEM: campers have the opportunity to learn computer coding, test their chemistry skills making play dough and slime and use their creativity in project design.

2. The opportunity to explore New York City! Each week our campers have the opportunity to go on unique field trips all over New York City. Last year our campers cheered on the Mets and the Yankees, rode the rides at Coney Island and put their scientist hats on at the Hall of Science. This year we will be bringing back field trip favorites and adding new and exciting trips for our campers to enjoy.

3. Our staff rocks! Every time someone asks us what makes our camp different we always say it is our awesome staff! We are unique to other camps because we run programs year around and our coaches work with kids throughout the year, not just in the summer. Our staff includes hundreds of wonderful coaches that are certified teachers, former college athletes, full-time KING staff and are all dedicated to making sure that all campers have the best time ever.

4. Parents, this one is for you: we are super affordable! A quick Google search will tell you that we are well below our competitors. We are dedicated to keeping our prices affordable to give all kids the opportunity to experience the joys of summer camp. We are also offering early bird specials to make camp even more affordable. Sign up before March 1st and enjoy $50 off per week! We also offer pay-in-full and sibling discounts.

5. Swimming! A highlight of last summer was the addition of swim lessons. We are bringing them back this year and are very excited to continue to promote and teach safe swimming. Campers last year not only improved their swimming ability but also had a ton of fun doing so. Lessons are taught in a group setting by professional instructors and are catered to the groups’ existing ability. Lessons are an additional $50 per week.

To be honest, choosing only 5 reasons was tough because there are so many reasons to love KING Summer Camp! Find out more by visiting our website or shooting an email to info@kidsinthegame.com See you this summer!

From New York to California and everywhere in between we asked coaches of all levels to share what it means to be a coachable athlete. This compilation is a unique insight into what coaches want to see from their athletes beyond goals, points, and fast times. As an athlete, ask yourself… are you doing these things? What can you improve upon? And as a parent… are you encouraging these traits? Are you allowing your child to be coached?

Paul O’Connor- KING Hoops Coach/Director and Former DI Coach

“Being coachable to me is all about two things: not taking correction personally and the ability to take critical feedback and then directly applying that feedback into the game. It means being an extension of the coach on the court, being even keeled, never getting too high and never getting too low. To me being coachable is a simple as this Doc Rivers quote, “Good players want to be coached, great players want to be told the truth”.”

Wilson Rose- Kids in the Game Coach of Physical Literacy and School of the Blessed Sacrament Middle School Basketball Team

“Coach-ability at its core is the desire to learn. Working with youth in sports is most rewarding when an athlete learns how to take works and put then into actions. When young athletes show the innate passion for learning how their bodies work and accept the challenge of how to put coaching feedback into movements, coaches jobs are easy. The more malleable and curious the mind, the more coachable the athlete!”

Connor Gandossy- Current DI Baseball Coach – St. Louis University

“A coachable baseball is someone open to advice or criticism in order to develop their craft/skills. Sports are a forever adapting game, players must be sponges in order to better their careers.”

Tatum Boehnke – Former DI Swim Coach- Northern Colorado

“To me being a coachable athlete means no eye rolls, pouty lips or crossed arms. You may think that your coach can’t see these mannerisms or that they don’t matter, but believe me, they do. Body language is one of the easiest indications of which athletes are ready to listen, ready to learn, and ultimately ready to become a better athlete. Be careful of what your expressions and posture are saying because they often say more than words. Coachable athletes make eye contact and react with positive stance.”

Katherine Higuera-Mccoy- KING Spikes Head Volleyball Coach

“There is a big difference when you are “forced” to do a sport and don’t have the drive or passion for it. For my girls playing volleyball, coaching them is a pleasure and easier because they want to be there. They continue to ask questions and look for feedback. Most importantly these athletes try to find ways to improve in the sport. They are coachable athletes because of their positive attitudes and how they work actively together.”

Mats Boehnke – FIS Coach – Mammoth Mountain and USA Western Region Development Coach

“Ski racing, arguably, has the most peaks and valleys of any sport. Athletes can go from the top of the podium one day to literally crashing into a net the next. Some race runs feel fast but turn out to be slow while others feel awful and turn out to be super fast. It’s a mental roller-coaster that can discourage even the most mentally tough. Being a coachable athlete mens someone that can stay positive and even keeled despite the frustrations. An athlete works hard during the low times but harder during the high times. Most importantly, a coachable athlete means respecting the sports, dreaming of success and working as hard as you can to get “there.”

Alicen Fair – Elementary and Middle School Coach – ACES Swim Team

“So much of competitive swimming is centered around perfect technique. If you can commit to perfect technique during a hard practice, it will translate to more effective strokes. This ultimately leads to faster times at meets. To me, being a coachable athlete in the pool is putting effort into bettering your craft. It’s easy to get corrections from a coach but it is much harder to actually apply those corrections. When I see athletes putting in effort to better technique, I know they are a coachable athlete.”

The Kids in the Game coaches derive from varied backgrounds and experiences in sports and fitness. Our diversity allows us to help shape our programs to encourage every individual to succeed. We take great pride in the positive influence our team members have on the community. Therefore, I’m excited to announce the start of Staff Spotlights – a series introducing our coaches to you!

To kick off the series, I sat down with Program Manager Wilson Rose.

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

“I’m from a small town in Central New York called Earlville.  Growing up I played a lot of basketball and being around the game has always been a passion of mine.  I’ve also always enjoyed working with and being around kids. My mom is a school psychologist in the school district that I grew up in so I was always hanging around and fascinated by school culture.  Working in such a collaborative environment was always appealing to me.  I knew going into college that I wanted to major in developmental psychology. In college, I began interning and working at the Mt. Hope Family Center, which is a part of the University of Rochester’s psychology department.  I gained a lot of good-hands on experience in their therapeutic after-school program as well as other research projects including a research based summer camp.  After graduating, I was hired full-time to coordinate the therapeutic after-school program and eventually moved into a coordinator role of various developmental research grants.”

How did you get involved with Kids in the Game?

“Matt Murphy, Co-Founder of Kids in the Game, has been a friend of mine for a long time – we played basketball in college together and he’s always kept me up to date with everything going on with Kids in the Game.  It wasn’t until recently though that I saw myself being a part of it.  It was clear that I could combine all of my interests and strengths into one position by joining the KinG team.  I’m able to spend time with kids in a fun and interactive environment while working with school administrations, personnel and my peers who all share the same passions.”

What programs are you involved in currently?

“As the Program Manager, I have a hand in all of our programs.  Currently, I’m doing a lot of work on our curriculum and lesson planning.  For our recess programs, I’m putting together the games calendars for November and beyond. For the after-school programs>, I’m getting together a series of lesson plans for different sports so our coaches can feel as prepared as possible going into their programs. Summer camp is always on my mind!  As Camp Director at our Inwood location last year, I discovered the tools necessary to make the camp experience the best it can be. That goes hand-in-hand with our other “camp-like” activities –Kids Night Out & our Upper West Side Winter Break Camp. They will be run similarly to summer camp as multi-activity programs that offer a wide variety of activities and well-balanced fun.

One of the best parts of my job is that I get to coach as well.  Currently I’m coaching physical education at the AltSchool in Brooklyn Heights. Being there 3 days a week, I’ve gotten to know the kids and staff very well. I know what each child can do well and what they will or won’t respond to. It’s great to be able to adapt the class to the kids that are in it.  Understanding where each child is developmentally can be very useful for any coach or teacher. In addition to AltSchool, I’m coaching youth basketball clinics and a middle school team on the Upper West Side.”

Thanks, Wilson! Now for some miscellaneous questions to learn more about you…

What’s your favorite sport?

“Basketball”

What’s your favorite team?

“Syracuse Orange (I’m a bigger fan of college basketball than the NBA.  I’ll watch any college basketball game that’s on.  The NBA season is too long and that takes away from the competitive nature and importance of each game, in my opinion.)”

What’s something interesting about you that we don’t already know?

“I built my bike from scratch out of miscellaneous parts.”

Do you have a favorite quote or saying?

“’It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men.’ – Frederick Douglass”

If you could have lunch with any famous person, who would it be?

“Kurt Vonnegut”

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Wilson Rose is the Program Manager for Kids in the Game and contributes his efforts to each of the KinG programs: after-school, summer camp, recess, Kid’s Night Out and Winter Break Camp. Wilson also currently coaches physical education in Brooklyn. To connect with Wilson, you can reach him at Wilson@kidsinthegame.com.