A CLASSROOM WITHOUT WALLS: EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING WEEK

We did so many fun things. On Monday we went to Oak Hammock Marsh. It was a little cold but we did not mind. We met our great tour guides for the day. They all knew so much about the wetlands and the creatures that lived there.

 

The first activity we did was “critter dipping.” We found many bugs, insects, snails, tadpoles and other living things. Once we had dipped for a while we brought our buckets inside to the theatre and took a look at what we had found. Andrew, one of our tour guides put different animals under the projector so we could take a closer look, and to point out the different parts of the critters.

 

After lunch, we went on a nature walk through the marsh and saw birds, geese, groundhogs and many other animals and plants too. Andrew gave us some berries and mint to try. The berries were really sour and the mint was really strong. After our hike we had some free time. We got to look around the building, but soon it was time to go home. We had a great time at Oak Hammock Marsh.

 

On Tuesday, we did art inspired by Norval Morrisseau. We had a great time learning about the techniques and patterns he used. Then we got to make our own painting inspired by him. Some animals we chose were a monkey, a bunny, and an owl. On painting day some of us got inspired to mix different colours to have more selection. The works of art turned out really well. We are very proud of them!

 

Later that day we did two different activities. One of the activities was making bannock from scratch and the other was learning about microscopes and looking at objects under them.

 

The microscope activity was great, as we learned all the different parts of the microscope. It was very educational. With a bit of help from teachers we successfully made delicious bannock but suffered a thickness issue which forced us to cook it longer. It was still delicious. We got together at the end of the day and had a bannock party!

 

 

Wednesday, in dance class, we put together a dramatic scene about how the world started. Some were very unique and some were very realistic. We had some time to put them together, and when we were ready we presented them outside in front of our peers.

 

 

The next few days we had a great stay at Camp Arnes. We got to take a very cool bus. When we first got there we looked at our cabin. Some chose a bunk bed while others chose the floor of the loft. We got to do many fun activities. One of the hardest activities that we did was fire and bannock. In this activity we had to construct a fire from scratch and once we had the fire made we cooked bannock on top of it. Another activity that was challenging was archery. There were two targets that you had to aim at and after a little while our instructor brought out a fake bear. In the afternoon we played a survival game. You were either a herbivore, omnivore, or carnivore. You had to have a good game strategy. Some teams lied and said they were carnivores so they would not get eaten. Another activity we loved was swimming. We had a great time bonding as a class. That was a great first day!

 

 

The next day we enjoyed many activities. In the morning, we faced our fears at the climbing wall. Many of us rang the bell at the top! The afternoon was filled with excitement, too. The high ropes course showed us that anything is possible if you are willing to try. Many of us climbed the telephone pole and we all cheered as our classmates "flew" down. We loved doing all these thrilling activities! At the end of an already great time, we tried out the exciting zip line.