The Great Horned Owls Spent the Night at Camp Agape!

Fifth graders had such a fabulous time at Camp Agape. So much was enjoyed while also learning important and valuable life lessons. We worked hard and played hard! My originally goals for Unit 1 came full circle during this trip. The students worked together to accomplish very difficult mental and physical challenges. Without everyone’s participation, none of the tasks they attempted could have been accomplished.

I am very proud of my fifth graders. It was really wonderful to spend such a unique experience with them. As their teacher, I feel that they learned so much during Unit 1 – Building a Community of Kind Learners, and were able to use that knowledge to complete such tough challenges! Each student is special in their own way, and I honestly couldn't be more proud of all of them!

Independence: A lot of the trip was based around building independence among the group. Fifth graders were faced with many opportunities for that at Camp Agape and succeed beautifully. Students took care of themselves and each other as needed. Rooms were cleaned and organized when necessary, the house was well taken care of, the bus ride was taken on as a moment of making good choices to ensure that the ride was a safe and successful one, and fifth graders shared in making smart choices during free time inside and outside of the house.

Building Closer Friendships: Fifth graders shared a wonderful and unique moment after dinner on Wednesday night. Together, beside the candlelight, we had a group discussion to reflect on our Day 1 Challenges. Students shared what they saw as successes during the day, and what they thought would help to achieve all the challenges that lie ahead in Day 2. It was decided that the two major factors in succeeding as a whole group are teamwork and positive communication. It was through questioning and commenting that fifth graders decided to remind themselves that when faced with frustration and excitement, it was still important to choose kind. We talked about how important it is to continue with supportive words and positive reinforcement when someone does not accomplish a task the first time. To culminate the day and reflection, Martina shared with the group Friendship Bracelets. Fifth graders came up with words of encouragement that are represented with each color in the bracelet. Some of the words students shared were: choosing kind, strength, friendship, integrity, hope, happiness, and working together. Afterwards, students each made their own bracelet. Partners were helping each other for those who did not know how to braid. When the bracelets were completed, everyone sat in a circle, and we thanked the whole class for something. The bracelet is a gift to everyone, from everyone for helping each other during these tough challenges. Each student thanked someone for something they did during the day. Everyone received a bracelet someone else had made. We ended the night with hot cocoa, muffins, and a read aloud. I read two of my favorite picture books to students, Weslandia by Paul Fleischman and The Lonely Book, by Kate Bernheimer. 

Successes through Teamwork: The challenges for Day 2 were very tough. Fifth graders were asked to attempt the Never-Ending Gobbstopper Challenge which they did not accomplish in Day 1. It was beautiful to see the encouragement among the group. Students succeeded by using teamwork and positive communication! Next up was the Peanut Butter River Challenge. Once again, students showed such determination and wonderful communication skills for this challenge. It took over an hour, but it was complete! No one gave up on each other or themselves! Everyone had crossed the river using just 2 planks. It was clear that this could not be done alone! For their last challenge, fifth graders attempted the Sailing Ship. They were asked to stand around the perimeter of a big board that was on a pipe. The challenge being that everyone had to be on it while not allowing edges touch the ground. It took the students about 15 minutes to complete! It was obvious that communication skills were getting much better after having successfully completed this task and two others prior this one.

I am very proud of my fifth graders. It was really wonderful to spend such a unique experience with them. As their teacher, I feel that they learned so much during Unit 1 – Building a Community of Kind Learners, and were able to use that knowledge to complete such tough challenges! Each student is special in their own way, and I honestly couldn't be more proud of all of them!