One day, during an especially demanding group initiative at…

One day, during an especially demanding group initiative at the camp, 16-year-old Chris ran out of the activity, screaming, “I can’t take any more!”  He headed away from the group towards some trees.  You followed.  Over the past few days, you have noticed that Chris is different from the other youth. His journal entries are usually very short, disorganized, hard to read and mostly focus on concrete examples of things that happened during the day (we had fun; we walked in the woods, etc).  In the group activities he is usually the last one to catch on to the rules, and subtle social cues seem to go past him unnoticed.  He often spends unstructured time alone wandering around the periphery of the camp.  You asked him what is going on and he launches into an angry litany telling you that the other kids don’t like him, that he has tried to get along but that he just can’t take anymore and wants to go home right now.  You asked him what he usually does when he feels this way and he told you that at the group home where he lives they let him go outside and wander in the woods.  You told him that you didn’t realize how he was feeling and asked what can be done to help him.  He wants permission to leave the group when he needs to.  You are uncomfortable with just letting him walk out of the group.  The group expectations are for all members to stay with the group the entire day.  This is a radical departure from the group norms. Chris’ request is ______.

Harry was aware that these youth had a lot of room to grow p…

Harry was aware that these youth had a lot of room to grow personally and emotionally.  He also recognized their skill levels in social skills and problem solving, along with their general developmental deficits.  The camping trip would create a new context for youth to be challenged; and they would also be required to respond to those challenges, both individually and as a group.  If implemented successfully, the youth would have fun and experience a broad range of feelings, attitudes, new skills, behaviors and ideas that would offer them new ways of thinking of, and interacting with, themselves and the world they live in.   What option below promotes the most effective approach to enabling the youth to gain from this experience?

One of the girls in your group at the camp, 17-year-old Cami…

One of the girls in your group at the camp, 17-year-old Camilla, emerges as a strong leader.  In most activities she is the first one to try new things, the first to offer solutions and the dominant opinion when there is a decision to make.  She has strong social skills and the other group members acquiesce to her desires.  You notice that others in the group have leadership skills but are hesitant to offer them.  You would also like to allow others to experience the leadership role. One of the best ways you might intervene is: