A R O U N D C A M P U S
Interdisciplinary Learning in the Poconos
The tradition of the seventh-grade field trip continued with a trip in October to the Pocono Mountains of Eastern Pennsylvania , where the boys and several teachers spent three days at the Pocono Environmental Education Center in the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area .
While there , the boys conducted field work in forest and stream ecology , including wading in streams and collecting water and specimen samples , traversing hiking paths and assessing the forest habitat , and traveling by canoe to monitor pond and stream ecosystems . When not in the field , the boys learned about the geologic and cultural history of the Delaware River region . They also bonded as a class by playing sports , overcoming team challenges , way-finding in the woods , navigating in the dark , roasting marshmallows , and telling spooky stories . The group practiced ‘ leaving no trace ’ while staying on-site : living with as minimal impact as possible , while preserving threatened wildlife and habitats .
Risk and Reward at Frost Valley
The bus transporting our sixth graders back to school after their overnight trip to Frost Valley Camp in the Catskills arrived on 89th Street filled with animated , happy — and , perhaps a bit tired and rumpled — boys who already were sharing stories from their first overnight experience as a class .
Over two days in fall , Frost Valley ’ s “ Challenge with Choice ” philosophy provided the boys the opportunity to challenge themselves by solving problems as a group and individually , while also emphasizing the importance of respecting individual differences . As the boys operated outside their comfort zones in various outdoor activities , including high-ropes courses , they learned to lean on and build trust with each other and to build confidence within themselves .
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