Overcoming Logistical Challenges

Cathy Harron, 4th grade teacher at Ressie Jeffries Elementary School in Warren County, VA. 

Outside, outdoors has always been a favorite part of my life.  Up until a little while ago, I took for granted that the great outdoors would always be there for me.  Oh, I understood we needed to take care of it.  I can remember my dad looking on in bemusement at a 7 year old picking up trash when our family went for a walk and staying with friends who scattered coins on the ground because they observed my friend and I cleaning up our campsite area.  But for the most part, I thought that people had learned from the past and knew how to take care of our world.  This summer in West Virginia has taught me that I should take nothing for granted.  That I, as a teacher, should understand more than anyone that these values and ideals have to be instilled early on.

During the summer institute the concept of place based service learning along with the outdoor classroom and integrating core subjects seemed like such a logical way of reaching each of the students not only academically, but also with the values, goals, and problem solving skills that reaches into all areas of their lives, in their home, school, neighborhood, and community while making the most of their different learning styles.   Real problems needing real solutions.

 I came away from the summer institute inspired and excited, but, I have to admit, frustrated.  While I am ready to jump in with both feet I am hampered by logistics.  Our county has just purchased a brand new basal series and a brand new math program and we are required to use each in the manner they were intended.  How can I fit in all of these wonderful place based service ideas floating around in my head with a curriculum that requires me to teach each subject in an isolated manner?

Meeting with Sonja Carlborg, our local AT rep gave me some very good ideas for place based service learning.  Those ideas are represented in the picture below.  I hope that I will be able to utilize them.

Our Own Backyard

Post by Nancy Stevens, Gifted Teacher, Harmony Middle School, Loudoun County, VA

Where we pick up the pace…

When Lori Demark and I started our TTEC project, a hiking club at Harmony Middle School, we sat down and brainstormed ideas and expectations. We were in total agreement that every club meeting needed to have some time set side for an outdoor experience. While Harmony is close to the Appalachian Trail, it is not within walking distance nor is it feasible to get a bus for each meeting to get us there. We were going to have to find a way to get the outdoor experience we wanted for each meeting a little closer to home. Given these constraints, Lori and I strapped on our hiking shoes and took our brainstorming outside. It was decided that a 15-minute loop was the “just right” amount of time to spend outside each meeting as we began walking towards Harmony’s outdoor track.

Where we have a quiet place…

Just two years old, our track supports our PE department and their physical fitness needs. For our purposes, it would be an excellent place to “pick up the pace”. On the track, we would be able to assess the fitness of our hikers and give them a chance to converse while strolling leisurely on even ground. We next made our way north over a slight rise and down a hill where we discovered a “quiet place” where our hikers could sit and reflect…a place hidden from the school world and visible to no one.
We decided to use this place in our first meeting to conduct a quiet listening exercise.

Where we have left a trace…

Continuing on, we rounded a corner and passed by a group of trees. We could just make out the beginnings of our school baseball field and basketball courts. It was easy to see where we had ”left a trace” and made an impact on what used to be a farm called “Harmony”. This spot would be an ideal segue into a discussion on the “Leave No Trace” concept and the impact of man on his environment.
Our fifteen-minute walk came to an end at the back door entrance to the school. As we walked inside, we realized that to bring the culture of the AT to Harmony we did indeed need look no further then “Our Own Backyard”!

Youth Speak Out!

 Mechanical weathering- tree roots on a rock

 Post by: Rebecca Kyle, James River High School Buchanan, Virginia

The summit! Roaring Run Falls

YOVASO, Youth of Virginia Speak Out, had our first club “YOVAGO” outing to Roaring Run this past Saturday.  Highs of the Outing:  It was a beautiful day!  Everyone was enthusiastic and well prepared for the trip.  We were able to make trail kits and use some ideas from the “hip-pocket” activities to reflect on recent events.  Hikers made connections to earth science class as we observed examples of mechanical weathering and rock formations.  The Roaring Run loop hike in Eagle Rock is ideal for student trips.  It is about a mile and a half round trip and has easy access from the road.  It is interesting because there is an old iron furnace and a waterfall!   No one was injured or unhappy.  Lows of the Outing: Although I was much more organized in planning this outing we had a low student turn out.  Due to scheduling conflicts there was a band competition on the same morning as our hike!  Several other students were planning to attend but were already committed to band.

Trail safety poster

Blue Ridge Middle School: Get Up! Get Out! Get Moving!

Adventures in Learning bulletin board
displays unit connections to the outdoors.

Students at Blue Ridge Middle School are on the move in Spectrum and getting a double dose of the great outdoors! The bulletin board outside our classroom depicts our mascot (bulldog) zipping his way throughout this year’s curricular line-up and the vast opportunities to connect with nature. Since attending the TTEC sessions, I have enhanced the units I teach by incorporating hands-on, engaging activities into each unit of study to get the students I teach outside.  I want to send a shout-out to Sara Bolen, who is also busy across the hall (Health & PE) getting the same students outside.

Questing island tourists combing the green sand beaches 

A  Quest for Treasure on Paradise Island! September arrived, and the students in 6^th and 7^th grade Spectrum embarked on their first outdoor adventure known as, A Quest for Treasure on Paradise Island. Students, portraying tourists on a fictitious island (school campus), were divided into small groups and provided with a map of Island Management Crew to supervise and assist our tourists along the way. Our tourists, donned in grass skirts, hats, and sunglasses, had a great time combing the green sand beaches (grass), collaborating as a team to decipher each rhyming riddle to help them locate the treasure, and documenting what they discovered before heading off in search of the next item. The journal reflections from the students clearly revealed their enthusiasm for this activity and their unanimous desire to get back outside for another activity. I think they are hooked!
the island (school campus) and the first of many challenging riddles to take them out of the hut (school) and onto the island. Parent volunteers were eager to play along as our

 “A Quest for Treasure on Paradise Island!”

Tourists “walk the planks” on their island

adventure to locate the next treasure. 

“I’ve never been so excited for a school year”

In my 9th grade class, I started off with a brand new unit this year - a unit centered around place. Why does place matter? Through field trips, writing assignments, presentation opportunities and literature of our area, my hope is that students realize that place is important and teaches about history and ourselves, while also encouraging them to become “responsible global citizens.” The work we are doing will also prepare my students for a service learning opportunity in the spring, a trail maintenance day in collaboration with the Appalachian Mountain Club. My colleague, Kristy Duris, and I are also planning a 9th grade hike on the A.T. for our students and their parents.

Field trip to The Frost Place, once the home of famous poet, Robert Frost

Our field trips have been to The Frost Place in Franconia, NH, along with several historical sites such as the First Ski School of America in Sugar Hill. My students reflected on this experience:

“From our visit to The Frost Place I think I have developed a different perspective about poetry. Seeing how this was just a hobby at first but became his way of life was intriguing. He turned his passion into his job. I think that it is important for everyone to strive for this. Doing what you love is the only option if you strive for happiness.” -Carter

“I felt somehow connected to Robert Frost as I was walking through his house. I liked that in one spot there was a picture of him hanging on the wall, and where you would stand to look at the photo is where he is physically standing in the photo itself. Being in the house made me feel more connected history.” -Jayci

Place-based field trip to historical marker, "The Iron Furnace"

“The trip to the historical sites impacted the way that I look at where I live. I used to think that there was nothing to do around here, but this trip showed me just how much there is to do if you want to be in the wilderness and do different kinds of actives. It definitely showed me how cool this place can be.”  -Brandon

These responses only prove the importance of getting students outside, and connecting to their community. While surrounding the First Ski School historical marker, our class was writing in our journals when a photographer from our local paper took our picture and asked what we were doing. She thought it was great that students were being exposed to these landmarks.

Hike and nature journal field trip

The TTEC program has fostered collaboration amongst my colleagues, schools in different states and my community. I’ve been working with a member of my department to create rubrics for a research presentation (this will be a summative assessment for my 9th graders) that other people in our school will be able to use. The 9th grade Science teacher will incorporate a mini unit centered around place to tie into my curriculum. Kristy and I are working with the AMC for our trail maintenance day. We also presented about service learning and reflection to our colleagues at a staff meeting to share resources and encourage others to create service learning opportunities.

Thanks to Sue Garcia and Rebecca Neet (from the TTEC program) for the opportunity, my husband and I presented our “Thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail” lecture to their 4th and 5th grade students at Undermountain School in MA. What a fun experience for me going into an elementary school. I found it entertaining that most students “questions” turned into them telling us stories about a time they went hiking…My hubby and I never tire of sharing our experience. We want students to be prepared and safe when hiking, realize that hiking with a dog is a big responsibility, reflect upon what material things you really need in life (since everything you need when you are hiking is in your pack), living with the rhythms of nature is a life changing experience and a simple way of life, and it is the journey that matters the most.  My husband and I also share our A.T. lecture several times a year at the AMC (for the last 5 years), so hopefully we will continue to inspire more people to get outside and give back to the A.T. hiker community (volunteer work, trail magic, etc).

Place-based assignments that have worked well so far are:

• My A.T. Reads project: for every extra choice book a student reads, they need to write a reflection/critique and then they earn 100 miles on the A.T. - if they read an extra 22 books a year, they make it all the way to Maine. I have a chart that hangs in the back of my room that monitors the progress
• Literature Circle for A.T. choice book - my students are reading a book about the A.T. Some of the titles they chose are: A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson, Called Again by Jennifer Pharr Davis, Blind Courage by Bill Erwin, Walking with Spring by Earl Shaffer, and Just Passin Thru by Winton Porter. We will have a class literature circle to discuss a summary, connections, themes, emotional responses, quotes and critiques of the books. This will prepare my students for their hike on the A.T.
• Writing marathon at historical sites (See Plymouth State University’s guide)
• I also used this for an A.T. writing marathon by showing students a slideshow of pictures from the A.T.
• Using George Ella Lyon’s “Where I am From” poem. After creating a list of favorites from childhood, students created their own poem using the same structure and repetition. Then each student shared their favorite line and we combined these for a class “Where we are From” poem. We organized and punctuated this (this was an effective poetry lesson!).
• Reading stories, especially haunted ones about our area in NH.
• Reading trailjournals.com and discussing why people write.
• Listening to “Granite State of Mind”, the Jay-Z parody and analyzing biases.

Like Sue Garcia said at our summer institute, “I’ve never been so excited for a school year.” Not only am I passionate about what I am teaching, but I have supportive administration and colleagues to encourage and help me.  I feel really lucky, like my students, “to live in such a beautiful area” (from a student reflection) and have access to the A.T. and other amazing places right out my door.

My husband and I presenting our Appalachian Trail lecture to our TTEC colleagues, Sue Garcia and Rebecca Neet's 4th and 5th grade classes at Undermountain School in MA

Small Steps

Inspired by the Trail To Every Classroom workshops, I decided to start incorporating the outdoors into my lessons.  Students are always asking to have class outside, so why not grant their wish. The lesson seemed simple:  Take some time to walk around and find something inspiring.  The outdoors is filled with amazing sights, sounds, smells, and sensations.  Take a few pictures of what you have found.  Use different angles to really capture what has caught your attention.  Then, write a descriptive paragraph (or two) that describes what you have found.

It was a beautiful day in late September.  I opened the door next to my classroom, and sent my students out into the world of place-based learning.  Unfortunately, like a house cat that steps on grass for the first time, my students stepped outside and froze.  The majority of them took three quick pictures of the first tree they saw.  The tree right next to the school.  Then, they sat down leaning against the school to write their paragraphs.

Apparently, I needed to explain the the outdoor classroom is a bit bigger than just the shadow of the school building.

Being determined to make this work and be a meaningful experience for my students, I made a simple modification to the assignment.  The next class, we went outside again.  This time I led them out past the school lawn toward the woods.  On the way, I had them take a picture of the tall grass in the field.  Then, we entered the woods.  They were told to look around.  Just look around.  We found a birdhouse on the side of a tree.  We took a picture of it.  Now we had two different pictures to write about for this assignment.  Finally, instead of going back to the school, we sat a picnic table at the edge of the woods.  They just needed a little guidance and to be pointed in the right direction.

There were a few complaints about how hot it was out, but overall the second time was more what I was hoping.  Also, the paragraphs were better and more inspired.  Will I take kids outside again? Yes.  Will I take kids on a hike? Yes.  Will it be tomorrow?  No.  Introducing students to outdoor education will take some time.  However, with determination, this can and will work.  All with small steps...


Zack Reinstein
Buckfield High School

Carolyn Hits the Trail!

Carolyn McCarthy Jackson (teacher in GA) and Murphy Margaret paying a visit to Benton MacKaye!

The Springer Mountain summit was gorgeous today (10-13-13).

My husband got funny looks today since I had the heavy pack. I need a shirt that says BACKPACKER IN TRAINING!

Thanks TTEC for helping me work on being more brave!