Roller Coaster Week

On Saturday we took a ride out on the Port Hacking River in the Punt boat. WE went out to the sand bar in the middle of the river and played a game of touch footy! i had watched rugby league a lot but had never played it! Fun but sandy - haha.

More Photos to Come!!

Roller Coaster Week
Sunday November 23, 2008 10:30PM

Current . . .
Physical Status: Slightly Tired, the continual ear situation uggg
Emotional Status: Slightly Lonely yet content
Overall Energy: Mostly Rejuvenated and ready for another week
Music Choice: Dedications by Ellen Messerly :)

Where to begin?
Last week: Two separate year 10 groups – one Monday through Wednesday, the other Wednesday through Friday, making Wednesday quite hectic and feeling like Friday and Monday all at the same time. Such is the life as an outdoor educator here at Shoalhaven!

Only a few minutes after the arrival of the camp on Monday I had decided it was going to be a tough two and a half days, especially compared to the dream group of eight girls last week. However, my opinion was soon changed upon meeting my group and beginning our hike out to Bangalee / Scouts camp. The school overall was a bit tough but my group was great! I was partnered with Tim for this camp just to get one more practice with the hike / canoe to / from Bangalee.

Did the whole out trip camping thing Monday night. It was a bit different from last week as it was just two groups there and the other two leaders were guys. So I was in my own tent and their whole take on things was a bit more laid back then the way the girls ran things. Still being the newbie in this situation I didn’t want to take charge too much but I was up like an hour and a half before them in the morning and took care of making sure the students were up getting packed and getting breakky.

We did abseiling on cliffs at scout camp so that was neat and different scenery. We canoed back in time for lunch and had caving up the hill in the afternoon. Julz came up with us in order to access Tim. Kind of strange that my house mate who is a year younger than me will soon be coming to my sessions to assess me. But it’s not that strange cause she is awesome and when it comes to knowledge and experience in outdoor education and how things are run here she totally has authority!

Caving went well. Julz went in with the first group and I went in with the second. I was glad to get the chance to go through again since I had only been through once before, a month or so a ago, and I would be leading a group through later in the week.

I already eluded to Wednesday as being a crazy, hectic, physically and emotionally draining day; Doing an activity with my first group then being pulled to the new group, which arrived an hour early, to help entertain them on the sports field (oval) until their lunch was ready. Slipping in “goodbyes” to my first group while gearing up for “hellos” to my new group.

Well, if I had a bad feeling on Monday in terms of group difficulty, man oh man was I feeling it on Wednesday. However this time it proved to be truer than it did on Monday. And for this group I was completely on my own. Lets just say the second half of Wednesday was rough. I had just shipped off a group and it sure felt like I was due for a weekend but, quite the opposite to a weekend, I was starting a fresh with a group that was proving to be more difficult than my last!

Before I even met my group the head teacher informed me that I had a “tough group” and that one of my boys had actually been suspended from school that morning but had been spoken to and was being aloud on camp but if I had any troubles to let him know. Oh boy!

Canoeing was our first activity and it was allotted for two hours as opposed to the usual hour and a half. I used this extra time to sit them down in the grass in a circle to do introductions, lay down the ground rules / expectations, and explain our full value contract and challenge by choice. They received it fairly well and the teacher was a helpful support. I also took the opportunity to mention my pet-peeve about inappropriate language and comments. Enough cannot be said for setting out guidelines and expectations from the start. It is so much easier to discipline by enforcing a rule already stated then it is to just discipline off the cuff with no prior grounds / warning . . . Especially with this age group where they are looking for every opportunity to “muck around.”

The canoeing session was stressful but I supposed a fraction improved from my last double canoe session, where neither of us had run a canoe session before. This time the other group leader was Al. We talked before and decided it would be best just to go our separate ways. So we briefed separately and when I set my group in the water we headed the opposite direction to her group. The start of the session was okay as we rafted up and did the stand up sit down drill then all stood and did the YMCA. It was when I set them off for some free paddle that things went out of control and capsizes did not seize.

I think the key to canoeing is having a game plan, keeping it organized and moving. At least with the older groups, the more freedom given, the more likely occurrence of goofing off and capsizing, which takes lots of effort to right. Uggh.

So I left canoeing a bit frustrated and was not looking forward to Billy carting. I had never run a session where they had to construct the billy carts so it didn’t help that I didn’t know what they were doing!! They had instructions so it wasn’t too bad but one group took ages and stripped a screw and Pete had to fix it . . . . It worked out okay but just meant everyone only got one go in the billy carts – which was fine with me.

So after that Wednesday you can imagine I wasn’t too excited for Thursday and was just feeling totally drained and unenthusiastic come Thursday morning. Really a shame for the second group of the week. However, the day turned out to be really great!! We had caving in the morning. PG came to observe me and I got lots of positive feedback from him. The group was actually helping and encouraging each other in the cave. I had a good chat / talk to them in the cave relating to our faith in things unseen and how God is always with us even in the dark when we don’t think he is there or when we aren’t looking for him. Also had a really good debrief at the end with the whole group as we talked about the experience then I read Isaiah 14:2 (I think) about how God will never leave us and guides the blind over rough surfaces, making them smooth . . . Perfect verse for caving debrief!!!

Stayed up the hill to eat our packed lunch before going to abseiling. I briefed on the equipment and Jess, who was up there as abseil extra, did the demo . . . I belayed on the 10m cliff.

Back down for an archery session to end the day. Mel came along and observed. Apparently I’m meant to be observed in every activity before I’m assessed. I felt like I had already been observed in archery several times but I guess it was never official. Whatever – lol. So that went fine. We debriefed by talking about what we were focused on in archery and what are focus is in life, which tied in well with our Christian Discovery from the morning where we discussed priorities; what influences them and how we decide on them . . . Such a good job!! I get to be outside and with kids (or teenagers, which I am slowly coming to appreciate) and talk, teach, discuss with them things that I really believe in and am passionate about and can make a difference in their lives – yay.

So that’s how my week was sort of like a roller coaster – up and down. My teacher was really great. She added good comments to the debriefings and enforced that the group would pray at the end of activity, which thought was overkill at first but came o appreciate and really like! Before they left on Friday she came up to thank me and said how the group was meant to be one of the worst and how none of the teachers wanted to be with it . . . but how it turned out okay and how she thought I had something to do with that – yay!


Weekend was good. Decided at the last minute to go on the young adult weekend away with All Saints Anglican Church, the one I have been going to with Mel. Al, her husband Dave, Josh, Pete, and Jess from work all go there and went on the weekend as well. I was really glad I went! Got to meet more young adults from the church and get to know them. There were there worship / talk sessions with a speaker. He spoke about the resurrection. He had some good points and made me think – I’ll leave it at that – haha. Mainly, how we always focus on Jesus’ death and how he died on the cross but then we commonly fail to mention the resurrection and how he came back . . . . and how our faith is somewhat based on that because anyone can die but it is the fact that he came back that sets him apart. Yeah, idk. But it was a good weekend.

So Mel has been spending the past month or more working to organize a city camp. A private school is going to be staying in hostels in down town Sydney and more or less experiencing poverty. So Julz and Mel are both up there until Wednesday working on that camp. I kind of wish I was up there because I’ve been talking to Mel a lot about it and it sounds like a really neat, different camp! But we are having a year 6 group in down here so that will be a nice refresher!!! Missing my housemates but alright with some down time!! I texted Dan and borrowed his guitar this afternoon after getting back from the retreat. I hadn’t just sat and played since being here so that was really awesome! He had his acoustic with him so it was his electric but he also had the chord to connect it to the amp so it was pretty much acoustic but with a bit of a different sound and the darn G string would not get in tune but oh well!!

All good here! Hope everyone is well at home. <3 <3 :) :)