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"It was fun, smart, and a good way to learn about courage."
7th Grader, Courage Retreat

Respect Retreat Prep Pack

WHAT TO DO FOR A SUCCESSFUL RETREAT

Now that your retreat date is set, please complete each item on the checklist below and read the Retreat Overview to ensure the success of your retreat. If you have any questions, please call Youth Frontiers at 1.888.992.0222

1. READ RETREAT OVERVIEW

2. BOOK A FACILITY

  • Reserve an offsite facility, like a community center, church, or synagogue. Try to find a carpeted room.
  • Arrange transportation to and from retreat.

3. SELECT LEADERS

Remember: Leaders have a huge impact on the quality of your retreat.

  • Contact your school's PTO/PTA or other parent group and invite them to join you for the retreat as small-group leaders
  • Contact a high school in your district to secure leaders for your retreat.
  • Be sure there is 1 leader for every 6-8 students.
  • Leaders must be at least 2 years older than the students at the retreat, and be in 9th-12th grade.
  • Instruct leaders to arrive 30 minutes before the retreat begins to meet with the Youth Frontiers staff.

4. CREATE SMALL GROUPS

  • Before the retreat, divide students into groups of six and assign a number to each group.
  • Make student nametags that include their first name only and group number.
  • Distribute nametags to students before they arrive at the retreat.

5. PLAN FOR FOOD AND SNACK

  • Plan to provide lunch and a snack (snack is optional). Brown bag lunch is preferable.
  • Plan for lunch time to be flexible.

6. INFORM TEACHERS, STAFF AND PARENTS

  • Inform teachers and staff that they will be expected to actively participate during the retreat.
  • Communicate expectations of participation to teachers and staff prior to retreat (see sample letter at the bottom of this page).
  • Inform parents (see sample letter at the bottom of this page).
  • Ask the school counselor and/or school psychologist to attend the retreat to help students process the day's experience after the retreat is over.
  • Look into inviting YF out to provide a Parent Talk, to help understand and follow-up on their child's experience.

7. COMPLETE PRIORITY ONE FORM

  • Complete the form online at Priority One Form or fax a completed hard copy to Youth Frontiers at 952.922.2122.

Retreat Overview

Retreat Length

The Respect retreat is five and a half to six hours long. Lunch is included in this time frame.

Student Numbers

The Respect Retreat is designed for a maximum of 200 students. If your class size exceeds this number, please contact Emily Pitkin, Retreat Coordinator, at 952.922.0222 or 1.888.992.0222 so we may plan appropriately.

Leader Briefing

Leaders must arrive 30 minutes before the retreat begins. If this is not possible, we will take the first 10 to 15 minutes of the retreat to meet with the leaders. Connecting with them at the start of the day is crucial to the success of the retreat.

Opening and Games

As soon as the students arrive, we engage them in interactive games. We've found that these games help to break the ice and build a sense of community among the students. We consider this time "earning the right to be heard" on the part of our staff. We know that in order for students to get the most out of the day, they need to first get a feel for who we are and what the day has in store for them.

Retreat Talks

Retreat members will give two talks during the Respect Retreat. The first talk focuses on the need for students to respect themselves. The second talk focuses on respecting others and standing up for respect.

Small Groups

Three times during the day, the students will meet in pre-assigned small groups for discussion. Each discussion is facilitated by a leader and allows students to talk more in-depth about the level of respect in their school and what they can do to improve it. It also gives students an opportunity to get to know others in their class better.

Closing

For many students, the highlight of the day is the closing activity called the Campfire. During the Campfire, students, leaders, and school staff members are asked to fill out a Respect card and will have the opportunity to share how they will act with respect to make their school a better place.

Booking a Facility

Location Selection

We strongly recommend that you book your retreat at an offsite facility away from your school campus. Retreats at a neutral location are more effective and free from distractions. An ideal location is a nearby community center, church, or synagogue.

Location Logistics

The size and flooring of the room is an important factor when choosing a retreat location. The minimum size room for a group of 100 students is 1600 square feet (allow 16 square feet per participant). Throughout the day, the room will be used for a variety of high-energy, large group games as well as for small group interaction that requires adequate space for students to spread out. The room must be totally empty and free of chairs, pillars, bookshelves, etc. However, please arrange to have one eight-foot table and one chair in the room.

Students will spend significant amounts of time sitting on the floor. If possible, book a location with a carpeted floor. If the retreat location is uncarpeted, try to make arrangements for carpet squares to be available for students to sit on.

Retreat Specifics

Please notify the staff at the facility that the sound at the retreat will be very loud. Since music is an important element of our retreats, we use a sound system to play live and recorded music throughout the day.

Please arrange to have the facility opened at least 45 minutes before the students arrive to allow the Youth Frontiers staff to set up.

Transportation

When holding your retreat off-site, please arrange transportation to and from the facility and notify Youth Frontiers of your exact arrival and departure times. We also need to know if students are arriving in shifts, as the retreat will not begin until all participants are present.

Please remember that transportation costs are paid by the school and are not included in the Youth Frontiers retreat fee.

Leaders

Leaders have a huge impact on the quality of your retreat. Leading small groups and being present throughout the retreat, they have a major influence on the behavior of the students and the success of the retreat. Strong leaders can keep a difficult group in control and focused on the messages of the retreat. As we tell the leaders, whatever the leaders do--good or bad--the students are likely to follow.

How to Get Leaders

You may use either parent leaders, or student leaders from the local high school.

Contact your school's parent or volunteer group, or your local high school to secure leaders for your retreat. Often, schools use students who participate in a high school leadership program (Student Council, NHS, etc.). Student leaders must be at least two years older than the participants. We recommend that they be in 9th grade or above.

Student leaders must be at least two years older than the participants. There should be one student leader for every six students. There should be a balance of male and female leaders and the diversity of the leaders should be similar to that of the students. Parents or community members may also serve as leaders, though we have found that older high school students work best.

An ideal student leader candidate would be a:

  • Energetic
  • Good leader
  • Positive role model
  • Strong communicator
  • Willing to participate in activities

If you'd like to award your leaders with a certificate of recognition, we've prepared this certificate for your use. This is a great way to commend the leaders for giving their time, and is appreciated by the student leaders as a way to document their service hours for school credit.

Training Leaders

It is important to communicate to leaders what is expected from them.

Leaders will:

  1. Arrive 30 minutes before the retreat begins and stay for the entire retreat (it is very disruptive when leaders leave early).

  2. Lead small groups: this is their biggest responsibility of the day.
  3. Help control the crowd: during the large group activities and talks, leaders need to spread out and sit with the students, not with each other.
  4. Bring their own bag lunch, unless your school is able to provide it for them.
  5. Participate, have fun and get the students to participate.
  6. This is a high-energy, active, and meaningful day. They should come ready to participate, have fun, and encourage the students to do the same.

In order to train leaders to serve on the retreat, our staff will meet with them 30 minutes before the start of the retreat. If you would like to provide them with additional training, contact Youth Frontiers at 1.888.992.0222. We can provide you with material for your own leader training session or, for a minimal charge, a YF staff member can facilitate a one-hour training session.

Leader T-Shirts

To help leaders stand out at the retreat, it is helpful, though not required, if they wear the same color shirt. Youth Frontiers Leader T-shirts are available for $10 each, and may be ordered on your Priority One Form.

Small Groups

One of the most important elements of our retreats is the small group discussion. Three times during the day, the students will meet in pre-assigned small groups for discussion. Each discussion is facilitated by a leader and allows students to talk more in-depth about the level of respect in their school and what they can do to improve it. It also gives students an opportunity to get to know others in their class better.

Before your retreat day, divide the students into groups of six students (small groups must not be larger than eight students). It is important that students are not in small groups with their friends, since one of the goals of the retreat is to build community and get students to get to know others outside of their normal group of friends.  Be sure that the small groups have a reasonable gender balance.

Assign a number to each group, and make a nametag for each student using their first name and group number (please use group numbers and not letters or symbols). Be sure nametags are at least 48 point type.

Please distribute nametags to the students prior to arrival at the retreat location. When students are wearing nametags as they walk in the door, the Youth Frontiers staff can begin connecting with the students immediately.

Food

All Youth Frontiers retreats have a built-in time for both a snack and lunch. You (the coordinator) will need to confirm the lunch time with the Youth Frontiers Retreat Director the morning of the retreat.

Snack

You have the option of providing your students with a snack, such as a cookie and juice. Snack break is usually held mid-morning. Teachers will distribute the snacks during the first small group.

Lunch

As a general rule, lunch will take place about 2.5 to 3 hours into the day, but we ask that lunch time remain flexible.

Although pizza or sub sandwiches work for lunch, problems can often arise due to meals not arriving on time or not being ready for the scheduled lunch break; therefore, we recommend asking your students to bring a brown-bag lunch. A bag lunch allows the Youth Frontiers staff to stop for lunch at a natural break in the day.

Remember to tell leaders to bring a lunch as well. Students and leaders will not be allowed to leave the retreat site for lunch, even if you have an open lunch policy at your school. If you do ask the students and leaders to bring their own lunches, you may want to bring a loaf of bread and some peanut butter for those students who will inevitably forget their lunch.

End of Day Sharing and Disclosure Information

A Youth Frontiers retreat provides many opportunities for dialogue both in large group and in small group discussions.

During both small group conversations and large group sharing, students will be asked to refer to their own experience at school. Before the retreat, small group leaders will be instructed to be mindful of maintaining appropriate boundaries for the students in their small group conversations and to redirect the conversation if a student is sharing personal information inappropriate for a peer setting.

In our large group sharing at the end of the retreat, our staff will also create expectations for your students regarding what is appropriate to share during that time. The students will be asked to focus on what they want to do personally to improve the climate of their school and to be sensitive to blaming or embarrassing classmates.

If a YF staff member is made aware of a student referring to wanting to hurt themselves or someone else during any part of the retreat, the Youth Frontiers Retreat Director on your retreat will document the incident and relay it to one of your staff, ideally a counselor or school psychologist, if present. Small group leaders will also be asked to be aware of similar comments and to relay that information to one of the Youth Frontiers staff.

Counselor/Mental Health Professional Recommendation

At the end of our Respect Retreat there will be time for students to share some of their thoughts and reflections from the day. Our staff will set expectations for the students that this should be a time to speak positively about how they would like to respect themselves or others more. Occasionally, students may bring up emotional personal experiences. Our staff will redirect students, when necessary, to stay within appropriate boundaries. Because we are encouraging students to reflect on their own personal experience, it can sometimes elicit a strong emotional response in students. We recommend that you have a counselor or mental health professional present at the retreat in the event that a student requires further support following the retreat experience.

Teacher and Staff Participation

We understand how busy educators are, and the desire for staff to complete work outside the retreat. However, we encourage teachers/staff to be present the entire retreat to observe and experience for themselves the power of these programs. The retreat offers unique perspective and insight for both teachers and students about the school's climate, and gives teachers touch points of language to continue the impacct of the retreat in the classroom.

We expect teachers to:

  1. Attend the teacher meeting with the Retreat Director after the goal of the day is announced.
  2. Form a teacher/staff small group in the middle of the room. This group gathers during small group discussion time and participates in the small group questions..
  3. Sit with students during the large group activities and talks.
  4. Help distribute snack, lunch, or materials as needed.
  5. Participate in the activities as they feel comfortable.
  6. Assist with disciplinary problems by working with our staff.
  7. Participate in the closing activity.

Benefits of teacher and staff participation:

  1. Teachers and staff will better understand the messages of the retreat and can reinforce those lessons in the classroom. This can help lengthen the impact of the retreat.
  2. The experience builds community by allowing teachers and staff to interact with students outside of the classroom. Teachers have told us that the retreat gave them a chance to see students in a different light, and many students say the same about their teachers.
  3. The values being taught are timeless, and adults can benefit from thinking about them as well.

Sample Memo to Staff

Dear Staff,

We are excited about the upcoming Respect Retreat to be presented by Youth Frontiers, Inc. of Minneapolis. Youth Frontiers is a nonprofit organization that has been delivering programs that improve school climate and strengthen student character for over 20 years. Their vision is to change the way young people treat each other in every hallway, lunch line, and classroom of every school in America by teaching such timeless values as kindness, courage, and respect. During the 2006-2007 school year, Youth Frontiers worked with nearly 90,000 students and educators throughout the nation.

On the day of our retreat, you are asked to fully participate in the retreat experience. Youth Frontiers staff members recognize how busy educators are, and that you may want to complete work outside the retreat room. We encourage teachers/staff to be present the entire retreat to observe and share in the community experience.

Your participation is important, both to understand and be able to reinforce the importance of respect in the classroom and to help build a greater sense of community in our school.

Youth Frontiers expects teachers and staff to:

  • Attend the teacher meeting with the retreat director.
  • Form a teacher/staff small group in the middle of the room, which gathers during small group discussions.
  • Sit with students during the large group activities and talks.
  • Help distribute a snack, lunch, or materials as needed.
  • Participate in the activities as you feel comfortable.
  • Assist with disciplinary problems by working with the retreat staff.
  • Participate in the closing activity.

The retreat is scheduled for _____________ for the ______ grade class and located at ____________________ as the site for this high-energy high-energy and interactive day.

Thanks in advance for your support and participation at this important event.

 

Sincerely,

Sample Letter to Parents

Dear Parent:

We are excited about a special day at ______________ School. We are hosting a daylong retreat for the students that will focus on the value of respect.

Youth Frontiers, Inc. of Minneapolis will present the retreat. This nonprofit, nonpartisan organization has been delivering programs that improve school climate and strengthen student character for over 20 years. Their vision is to change the way young people treat each other in every hallway, lunch line, and classroom of every school in America by teaching such timeless values as kindness, courage, and respect. During the 2006-2007 school year, Youth Frontiers worked with nearly 90,000 students and educators throughout the nation by delivering nearly 600 retreats. WeĠre looking forward to a wonderful day of learning and building our school community.

On the Respect Retreat, the Youth Frontiers Staff will focus on creatinga more positive school climate by compelling students to respect themselves, respect others, and stand up for the value of respect.

This high-energy retreat is scheduled for _____________________________ for the ________ grade class and will be held at ____________________________.

We encourage parents and caregivers to inquire about the retreat experience once the student returns home.

Sincerely,