My Outdoor Ed. Trip

By: Margaret Hughes

My Outdoor Ed Adventure Introduction

My Outdoor Education trip was so much fun. This year we got to go to a different place than any other class so it was exciting to experience a different place than where the class had gone. The camp, dorms, and food were really good. The bus rides were okay but I would have preferred to fly. But that was not really an option. I loved my team group and my cabin. They were great. The teachers packed a lot into only two days. We went rockclimbing, zip lining, did the high ropes coarse, and played lots of carpet ball. We also learned about compasses, archery, insects, nature, and basic survival. All in all it was really fun.  I wish that we would have stayed for a longer time but I was still ready to go home after two nights. I wish that I could go back next year though. So here is the story of my Outdoor Education Adventure.

Outdoor Ed.

On the Bus

May 2,2011

Dear Journal,

Today has been so busy. We arrived at school at 7:50 and had to get bags packed, medicine checked, attendance taken, and kids loaded onto the buses before we could leave for camp. When we arrived at school we looked on the side of the school where our cabins were posted. My cabin consisted of nine different girls including Marina Z., Anna H. (my twin), Jackie M., Maya K., Danielle V., Annie R., Maayan H., and Jessica E., which was a really good group of girls for my cabin. Once all that was done kids got onto there buses which was the bus that we would be riding back on. Then we set off for the 1hr. and 15min. bus ride. On the bus ride down I sat with Danielle V. and we did lots of activities to keep ourselves entertained during the long bus ride. We listened to music, drew, talked played card games, wrote in our journals, talked about sleeping arrangements, and best of all decorated our bus seats. Once we finally arrived we had to unpack the bus and listen to the director tell us the rules about camp. Once our luggage was in our room we began our team course activity.

Outdoor Ed.

Team Course

May 2, 2011

Dear Journal,

After unpacking the truck and putting our luggage into our cabins we set out for our first activity. Our first activity was team course. In this activity we played a lot of really fun games. The first game was Brawl Ball. In this game we picked partners and then got numbered off. My partner was Danielle. Danielle’s and my number was 27. After that one person went to one side and the other person went to the other side and there, we had two teams to play. To play this game the person in charge called two numbers and those two partnerships went out and tried to kick the ball  (that had been placed in the middle of the two teams) through the opponent’s team’s hands. The team that scored the most points won. My team won. The second game that we played was Bear, Hunter, and Princess. In this game you played Rock, Paper, Scissors except you used Hunter for Rock, Bear for Paper, and Princess for Scissors. Hunter beat Bear, Bear beat Princess, and Princess beat Hunter. I lost that game in the first round. I did not try very hard in this game because it was not all that fun. The third game was Blob Tag. This game was just a different version of Tag. There was someone who was “it”. And if “it” tagged you, you had to link arms with them and go off to tag another person this game went on and on until everyone was part of the “blob” or linked chain. We did not play this game to the end so I never got out. Te last game we played before lunch was every bodies it. This game is played just like the way it sounds. Everyone was “it” so you played until everyone as out. This was another game that we did not play until the end because it would have taken too long. So, I never got out.

Outdoor Ed.

Journal Time

May 2,2011

Dear Journal,

Right before Lunch we returned to our cabins to Journal. Most of my cabin members played games or talked but I wanted to journal so that I could make sure that I would not leave out or forget any details. So I wrote in my journal.

Outdoor Ed.

Lunch

May 2, 2011

Dear Journal,

After Team Course we had lunch. For lunch we had salad, grilled cheese sandwiches, tomato soup, chicken noodle soup, and cookies. To drink we had juice and milk. At meals before we eat we have to have a full glass of water. I hated this rule because I absolutely hate water. I drank the water anyway though because I was so thirsty from playing all of those games.

Outdoor Ed.

Low Ropes Course

May 2, 2011

Dear Journal,

After lunch we did our low ropes course. First we found our groups and then we were paired up with a counselor. Our counselor was Stacey. The first task we had to accomplish was the name game. The way you play this game is we had to spread out in a circle then we had to pass around a Minnie bear. Stacey started off with the bear and she asked us which strategy we wanted to use to pass the bear around the circle without it touching the ground. We decided to pass it to every other person. We were not able to do it the first three times so we decided to start calling peoples name before we passed the teddy bear to the next person we would say there name. This worked and the next time we did it, it worked. The second game that we played was a ropes challenge. For this game we were standing on a platform and 8ft away thee was a platform. In the middle of us was a rope. We had to get the rope and swing across all the way to the second platform.  The hardest part was getting the rope because we could not leave the platform. After trying to throw sticks and shoes at it to get it to swing back to us we finally found a way to get the rope using Kory’s shoelace. We developed a system to get the rope to come to use by looping it around with Kory’s shoelace. It was hard to get every one off the platform and over to the rope but we did it. Then we did are third game. For this game we had to be blindfolded and then teachers led us to a maze that we followed by rope. We did not know this at first but the maze went around in a circle. The teacher kept telling us that if we needed help we should ask for it. So, after walking the maze a couple of times I finally raised my hands and asked where I should go to get to the end. Then she took me to the end and say that I had finished. Once everyone had finished we learned that when you need help you should ask for it. Then we did our last game. For this once she took us to a place where there was a square that was filled with many other squares and we had to somehow have at least 1 person step on every square, by staying connected. We also were not allowed to touch the strings. After trying a lot of ideas we finally found an idea that by having one group of three in the front and then making a line behind the person on the right we would be able to get across. And after a lot of tough moments we were able to get all the way across. From all of these activities we followed a 5-finger conduct. The pinkie stood for being protective, the ring finger stood for commitment, the middle finger stood for disrespect, the pointer finger stood for blaming, and the thumb finger stood for good job. By following all this we were able to work together to accomplish the tasks. I also learned not to get made and scream but to understand.

Outdoor Ed.

Group Games

May 2, 2011

Dear Journal,

Next was a group game. We started off with getting into our teams and playing a game called balloon relay. For this game each team got a balloon and without using your hands we had to get the ball to the other side of the field and back but since my team had not listened to the directions we failed. I learned during this game that I should have listened to directions better.

Outdoor Ed.

Dinner

May 2, 2011

Dear Journal,

After that activity we had dinner. For dinner we had pasta, sauce, salad, soup, cake, veggies, bread sticks, juice, and milk. Their dinner was good. Then came time for the races.

Outdoor Ed.

Races

May 2, 2011

Dear Journal,

After Dinner we did relay races in the gym. Our teams we the same groups that we had been assigned with since day one. The races we did were waiter waiter, lifesaver, three steps, chicken dash, and no-handed Frisbee. The waiter waiter game was when we had to carry a plate that had a ping-pong ball on it like a waiter down and back and then hand it to the next person. We lost. Then lifesaver was when one person from your team went down to the end and another person had to run down with the lifesaver and hand it off. Then they stayed there while the person went back down etcetera. We won. The third races was three-steps which was a race with three steps. You had to crabwalk halfway, then lay on your back and shout help 3 times, run down the rest of the way, jump rope 3 times, then run back. We lost again but it was still fun. The fourth race was chicken dash and it is played like it sounds, we had to run down and back with a chicken in our hands. We won. The last race we did was no-handed Frisbee and we had to put the Frisbee between our legs and either waddling or hopping we had to do down and back. We got disqualified for holding the Frisbee.  Then we want back to our cabins, showered, got ready for bed, wrote in our journals, hung out, and the at 10:00 we went to bed.

Here is our grade on the first day of camp doing Team Course activities.

Outdoor Ed.

The Next Morning

May 3, 2011

Dear Journal,

Today we woke up at 6 even though we did not have to get up until 7:15. Once we were up we got ready, packed our daypacks, and set out for breakfast. Once we walked outside it was really cold so we had to bundle up. Today for breakfast we had oatmeal, cereal, bagels, bacon, eggs, pastries, juice, fruit, hot chocolate, and milk. Boy, It was really good.

Outdoor Ed.

Archery

May 3, 2011

Dear Journal,

My first class today was archery. It was really fun. Our instructor was Andrew. At first he tested our listening skills with a riddle. Apparently my listening skills are not that great because I got the question wrong. We learned about parts of the bow and arrow plus some history about archery before we began. We also learned how to shoot a bow and arrow. You put the arrow into the little Arrow pocket on the side of the bow. Then you take your fingers and pull the string back, aim at your target, and REALISE! I was in the first group and so I loaded my bow and tried to shoot the animal but I ended up only shooting the hay instead. I learned that I do not like archery very much because I read once the class was finished because I found it boring. I also found out that I shoot a bow righty and lefty.

Outdoor Ed.

Nature

May 3, 2011

Dear Journal,

After Archery we had Nature. Our teacher was Ms. Wright. She was also my cabin counselor. In Nature we learned that you have to use your five senses touch, taste, see, hear, and smell. First in Nature we closed our eyes and Ms. Wright put something from the outdoors into our hand. We had to feel it then hand it back. After that had to pick out what she put in our hand. My object was a rock. That activity was using our feeling sense. Then we pretended we were squirrels. We tapped our thumbs together then Ms. Wright through candy into the air and we had to pretend to harvest it like the squirrels harvest their nuts. The last activity was a scavenger hunt. For this Ms. Wright hid candy in the woods and using smell and sight we had to locate the candy. There were six spots and in each spot we would find paper leading us to the next spot. We could use sight by looking for the paper and we could use smell because Ms. Wright sprayed the papers with a peppermint spray.

Outdoor Ed.

Entomology

May 3,2011

Dear Journal,

The last activity was the study of insects that is also known as entomology. Our teacher for this was Donna. We started off the class getting a picture of a bug tapped to our back. It “bugged” me! We then had to walk around the room asking yes or no questions to people about the picture on our back. We also had to answer questions that other people asked. I only had to ask three questions before I asked if mine was a dragonfly and I was right. I learned some new information about bugs as well. The second thing we did was we talked about what we already knew about bugs. Our class talked about lots of stuff from there legs. I learned some new information about bugs as well to their head. After that Donna showed us some of the cool bug shells, pictures, and other interesting bug stuff that she had on her table. Then we made our own bug out of candy. My bug was called the “Leg Killer” because it could kill other bugs with the venom in its legs. Pretty creative right.

Outdoor Ed.

Journal Time and Lunch

May 3, 2011

Dear Journal,

After we had our three mourning classes we went down by the lake to journal. By this time I had 5 pages of notes. I was hoping that we could go back to our cabins to journal because I was really cold. But we could not so I just wrote in my journal by the lake. Then we had lunch. For lunch we had Pizza, soup, dessert. Along with lemonade, juice, milk, and hot chocolate. By the time my table got to go up there was no more cheese left so we had to eat pepperoni. I hate pepperoni but I ate it anyway.

Outdoor Ed.

Basic Survival

May 3, 2011

Dear journal,

Are second activity in the afternoon was basic survival. I thought that it was pretty fun for the most part. We started off the class by talking about how long you can go without food, water, and a shelter. You can go 3 weeks without food, 3 days without water, and 3 hours without shelter. Once we finished that we found a group of 3 or 4 then we built a shelter out of natural resources. My group was Annie, Marina, and Jackie. We made a shelter out of a place that was sheltered by a couple of logs. All we had to do was cover the sides. Since we only had 15min we did not finish but we were able to make a decent shelter. After that we came back to the little place where we were sitting and we discussed with a partner that if we could bring three objects on a hike what would they be. I chose a phone, food, and water. I loved survival skills. It was a really fun class even though it was cold outside.

Outdoor Ed.

Orienteering

May 3, 2011

Dear Journal,

Our second afternoon activity was orienteering. I this class we were going to learn how to use a compass. Our teacher was Mr. Ogden. We started off the class by talking about when we would need a compass. We said that you would need a compass if you got lost. Then Mr. Ogden told us how to use a compass by turning the dial to your degrees. Then you have to turn your self until the red arrow is pointing north. After a couple test runs we Mr. Ogden gave us a paper with directions and sent us off into the woods to find them. I did not get to the first one. So I learned I am not very good at orienteering.

Outdoor Ed.

New Games

May 3, 2011

Dear Journal,

After survival skills we had our last class of the day that was new games. Our teacher for this game was Mrs. Mazur. I enjoyed this one for the most parts because even though we got to play games, the games were a little boring. The first game we played was Keep Away. In this game there were two teams and when one team had the ball they had to keep it away from their opponents. The team that got the ball to the goal line on the opponent’s side won the game. My team won. Yah! The next game we played was Ultimate Nerf. This game is like Ultimate Frisbee except with a Nerf ball instead of a Frisbee. This game was played like keep away because you had two teams and a goal line but your goal of the game was not to keep the ball away. The goal was to throw the ball to other people and get it across the goal line. My team won that game too. The last game we played was Monarch. This game was like blob tag except just minus. There were two people and by using one ball to throw at people and get them out the 2 people had to tag everyone out. There was no winner. The games got a little boring towards the end but they were fun otherwise. After that everyone joined up in the gym and we talked about are favorite activities. W also played games.

Outdoor Ed.

Dinner and Open Gym

May 3, 2011

Dear Journal,

After the activities we had dinner. For dinner we had chicken nuggets, salad, soup, juice, and milk. And once again there food scored a 100% from me. After dinner we headed over to the gym where we had open gym time to hangout and play games. I played carpet ball. This game is played on a long boxed in board that is held up by legs. Then you get four balls and you set them up anyway you want too. Then your opponent will try to though a ball and try to knock your balls down and you do the same to his/hers.

Outdoor Ed.

The campfire

May 3, 2011

Dear Journal,

After the open gym time we did a campfire. The campfire almost got rained out but in the end we had it anyway. Mr. Ogden had fourteen marsh-mellow roasting sticks and so when we were done roasting our two marsh-mellows we passed on the sticks to someone else that was waiting. The marsh-mellows were really good and I had a fun time roasting them and hanging out with my friends. After that Mr. Thirsten told ghost stories about his haunted cabin door. They were really spooky but I did not believe them at all.

Here is our grade on the second day doing Archery

Outdoor Ed.

Day 3 Adventures

May 4, 2011

Dear Journal,

After we had breakfast we headed over to the climbing tower and high ropes course for our last activity. The high ropes course had 5 different sections including the tires, beam, tightrope, swings, and steps. All the sections were high up in the air and the only way to access them was by climbing up a ladder. Climbing up was the hardest part but once you got up there you were okay. I did all of the courses except for the swings and tires because the lines were so long. Then when we did the climbing wall. I really wanted to do the zip-line off of the tower but I did not want to climb up so I got pulled up instead.

Outdoor Ed.

The Ending Moments

May 4, 2011

Dear Journal,

After the climbing stuff we had a good lunch of tacos and then we packed up the trunk. Once that was all done we loaded onto the buses and headed home. Once we reached the school we helped unload the bus. Then I got my luggage and meant my mom. Then we left and headed home.

Conclusion

Outdoor Ed. was a really fun experience. I had a really fun time and I wish we could have stayed longer. I had a lot of fun learning outside and becoming more independent. From this experience I learned that I should be a little bit more independent. I hade a really fun time on Outdoor Ed and I learned a lot. Outdoor Ed. was the best!

Here our grade posing for one last picture.