I'm a bit discombobulated this week. I'm more tired than usual, behind on my evaluation deadlines for school and my AQs, and prone to forgetting booked appointments. I have a good reason for not quite being at 100%. I was asked on Saturday night if I could fill in and help supervise the 3-day, 2-night intermediate division trip to the Etobicoke Outdoor Education Center that was scheduled to start that coming Monday. Knowing how much fun and how much learning happens in these places, because I went in 2023 and 2018, I agreed. I covered for Lisa Daley, who was unable to attend, and spent time alongside the wonderful Farah Wadia and remarkable Dean Roberts, who represented the school supervisory group. Here is a quick overview of our calendar of events.
Monday Morning
There was a lot of bustling around as I dropped off supply teaching plans, collected bus seating plans and other important documents, and kept an eye on the excited 45 students in the gym as we waited for the bus. I was a little worried that I'd have to deal with vomit, as I was told that many of the students on the Grade 7 bus where I was to be suffered from motion sickness. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, it seems, as I passed out many bags to use "just in case" and didn't have any puke to handle. We arrived without incident and had the required fire drill rehearsal and tour of the premises.
Monday Afternoon
We were very lucky that the conditions were still suitable for cross country skiing and snowshoeing. The students were allowed to choose which activity to try. Dean and I went with the ski group. I did not ski because I needed to be more mobile to provide assistance and support to students who needed it. I admired how plucky the students were; for many of them, it was their first time on skis. Other than some spills and a nose bleed, it was a fun and injury-free activity. After the skiing and snowshoeing, the pre-teens could either go tubing or feed the wild chickadees. I supervised the bird feeders.
Monday Evening
After a lasagna dinner and some free time in the common room, the entire group assembled to play Find Frank. The students maneuvered in the dark to find a stuffed dummy who was hidden in the woods. Teachers with flashlights would try to "catch" hunters; if they moved while the beam of light was on them, they had to forfeit their "life stick" and claim another one near a central location. I didn't get to spend as much time participating in Find Frank, because I had to help a student just before the game began and one mid-way through the activity; both students had "bathroom issues". They recovered without any further incidents. We timed their showers to keep it under 5 minutes for water conservation, and most of the female students, after some socializing in the girls' dorm hallway, were in bed by 10:30 pm. I attempted to assess some social studies projects on my laptop, but gave up around 11:00 pm. I needed sleep more.
Tuesday Morning
We awoke at 6:45 am, enjoyed our breakfast of oatmeal and pancakes, and after some more common room free time, split into three groups for our Survival Skills activity. I went with Kristiana, aka Ms. T and her group of about 15 students. She did a great job connecting their prior knowledge about what it's like getting lost to strategies for staying calm and managing the crisis (with the acronym STOP: Stay Put, Think, Observe, Plan). The students built shelters, learned how to start a fire, made bannock, and boiled water for hemlock tea.
Tuesday Afternoon
After a lunch of grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup (I think - I didn't keep careful track of when we ate which of the meals), we engaged in a whole group activity called Trappers and Traders. The concept was clever; students were split into small groups representing Indigenous trappers and European traders. They had to travel along certain trails to collect information that, when reported at headquarters, would earn them pelt points. They turned in their points at their respective centers for materials that their group would access. After the time was up for earning points and purchasing items, then everyone gathered in the common room and tried to trade for goods. They had explanation cards which showed them which goods were worth most and tips on how to try and get the most out of the trade. The negotiations were heated and strategic. It was a great way to get a glimpse of the economic mainstay of early Canadian history.
Tuesday Evening
We dined on Swedish meatballs, roasted potatoes and corn for supper. The evening activity was a camp fire. We walked to the site, and sat around the fire together. Students took turns telling riddles and "EOEC Steve" showed visual riddles for the students to guess. Everyone roasted a marshmallow over the open flames and wrapped their gooey treat in a chocolate cookie for a yummy s'more alternative. After we returned from our campfire, we gathered in the common room for a Macphail tradition: short skits by each room group. As usual, they were amusing. Even the teachers take part. After the plays, everyone returned to their sleeping areas. The hall continued to be a fun place to hang out. There were many funny and fascinating conversations that had many of us giggling. The students went to bed and the teachers chewed the fat until midnight.
Wednesday Morning
Some students who were on table duty for the final day asked if they could be awoken early, so Farah and I were up at 6:00 am. (Usually I get 9 hours of sleep each night, from 10:00 pm 'til 7:00 am, so I was functioning on less time than normal.) Boiled eggs and bagels were our breakfast meal. Our final activity was a hike. We could choose to do a "sky raisin" (pausing to take things in, aka a bit easier physically), a medium-intensity, or a "spicy sky raisin" version of the hike. I'm in decent physical shape but my stamina stinks, so I was grateful that the student group I was going to supervise chose the easiest version. "EOEC Steve" led the easy version, "EOEC Dallas" led the medium version, and "EOEC Dean" led the hard version. The group I was with were enchanted by the chickens and really enjoyed the absolute quiet that only the woods in winter can bring. We sat silent, soaking it all in, for over 5 minutes by a serene creek. We engaged all our senses, from smelling cedar to hearing chattering squirrels, to feeling moss on fallen trees.
Wednesday Afternoon
Macaroni and cheese (I think) was our final meal. Farah, Dean and I were very pleased with the students' eco-challenge results. There were several days where we had 0g of food waste. They always remembered to turn off the lights in their rooms and our water consumption was lower than average (thanks to a mix of short showers and students opting out and preferring to wait until they were home to bathe). We packed up and made it back to school earlier than anticipated. As you can imagine, a lot of students slept on the bus ride back.
Big thanks to all the people who organized the trip (Farah and Lisa), worked at EOEC to let our students learn and have fun (Abby, Dean, Steve, Kristiana, Makayla, Avery), supervised students (Farah and Dean), covered for the teachers who were away in Bolton / Caledon, and the students themselves. One of the students called out to the EOEC staff as we left, "See you next year!" Hopefully, that'll be the case.
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