LEWIS week 11

The past two days I have been on an overnight field trip with my fourth graders! We went to a YMCA camp, Camp Duncan, to spend the night and to work on team building.  It was a blast!

            We all loaded up the bus and left Pershing West at 8am yesterday morning.  All our kids were so excited to go and were more awake yesterday morning than I have ever seen! Our trip took about an hour and a half (thanks Chicago traffic) and when we finally arrived the kids were itching to get off the bus.

We started our experience off with team building activities that were placed throughout the woods.  The kids had to work together to balance on a board, swing across a “river”, help one another into a squeeze box, and climb through ropes without touching them.  The students realized in order to succeed they had to be patient, work together, listen to each other, and be encouraging.  It was a great start to the day and it was inspiring to see them come together and problem solve. 

Throughout the day we rock climbed, completed rope activities, and went to a sky lab. At the end of the day we gathered around a campfire, sang songs, played drums, and made s’mores. It was wonderful to spend time with my students outside of the classroom.  I got to know them on a different level and I loved hanging out.

Today we woke up bright and early at 6:30 am to pack and get ready for the day.  The students were eager to continue the fun! We went to archery, played more team games, tie-dyed, and played soccer! By the time we left camp at 1:30 we were all exhausted.  As much as I was ready for a nap, I wish I could have stayed longer! Many of the kids stated they could have stayed for a week! I was happy to hear how many of them enjoyed the experience.

I never imagined spending more than 24 hours straight with my students.  It was interesting to see how the students interacted with each other outside of school.  I was happiest to see how well everyone got along.  No one seemed to have problems with being excluded or bullied.  The team building at the beginning of camp really set the tone for a positive and encouraging environment.  Everyone was there to have a good time and there was little issue with behavior.  I am thankful for a fabulous group of students and the opportunity we had to spend time and grow as a class and team!