Friday, July 17

Our last day! We began by discussing what we learned this week, and listing these on the board. Then Mrs. Conway read from Call it Courage by Armstrong Sperry in which Mafatu saves his dog, Uri, from a shark by diving down into the sea and using a knife he carved himself. We went outside and shot more arrows using our handmade bows. Then we hiked through the woods again and worked for the last time on our shelters. After taking our shelters down, we came back for a snack. Then -- surprise! -- a treasure hunt!

Thursday, July 16

Today we discussed primitive survival tools. Mrs. Conway read from The Island of the Blue Dolphins in which Karana makes a bow and arrow to fend off wild dogs. Then we watched some short videos that provided step-by-step explanations of how to make a simple working bow and arrow, and how to make an atlatl (a spear-thrower that pre-dates the bow and arrow). The videos can be found here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-w6LGFv78SE and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-VlOpwsj09c . After receiving many safety warnings, campers went into the woods to find suitable bow and arrow sticks. We met back at the tepee and carefully whittled our arrows and strung our bows. When they were ready, the campers took their tools to the soccer field to test their skills. They worked remarkably well!

Wednesday, July 15

Today we veered a bit from survival stories. We talked about modes of transportation, and how traveling itself can be adventurous. Mrs. Conway read a chapter from The Twenty-One Balloons in which Professor Sherman's attempt to fly in a hot air balloon for a full year ends abruptly over the Pacific island of Krakatoa. We talked about how a hot air balloon works. Then we went to the gym to launch a hot air balloon of our own! We used a thin plastic balloon and hairdryer, and it worked GREAT! It flew to the ceiling of the gym, and returned to the floor about a minute later. We sent it up again, this time weighted down with a small rock. It still rose, but stayed up only for a short time. We then went outside to our shelters for some finishing touches. After coming inside for a snack, we went back outside once again to demonstrate more air travel -- kite flying!

Tuesday, July 14

We began by discussing what one needs to consider when building a shelter. We talked about location, weather conditions, protection from predators and warmth. Mrs. Conway then read from the book The Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell. In the book, a girl who was abandoned by her tribe must learn to survive on an isolated Pacific island. The chapter focused on how the girl painstakingly made a hut for herself. We then watched a short video on how to make a debris shelter, and read about several other types of wilderness shelters. We went outside and erected a tepee shelter. Then Mrs. Conway divided the class into three groups. Each group got a tarp and some rope and we set off for the woods to build a shelter of our own! After 40 minutes of cooperative building, we returned inside for a snack and listened to a chapter from Robinson Crusoe--the part where he built his own shelter (of course)!

Monday, July 13

Monday, July 13

Students arrived and we introduced ourselves. We talked about what makes for a good adventure story, and filled the white board with our responses. Then Mrs. Conway read a chapter from My Side of the Mountain, in which Sam Gribley sets off on his quest to live alone on his Grandfathers' land in the Catskill Mountains. We discussed Sam's resourcefulness; how he confidently explored the woods, caught fish to eat and and made his own fire. Then we began our own adventure--hiking through the woods by Trinty School! You won't find a nice trail in these woods -- we had to bushwhack our way through! After coming inside for a snack, we headed back out again to (safely!!) attempt make a fire, first using flint and steel and then using a magnifying glass. The flint and steel caught quickly, but we never did get the magnifying glass to do anything besides smoke!