My first two days at Shaw nature reserve were spent at the Dana Brown Overnight Center (DBOC). My main focus was shadowing the class leaders. Unfortunately, due to the rain, we had to change our original lesson plan to one that had an indoor aspect. It was supposed to be a series of classes about living off the land and forest ecology. The themes were still there, but it was dry. We had a class on cordage, which was the making of cords from plant fibers. We also had a wagon packing class. This was an idea where the students were given a sheet of paper with a list of supplies, and they then had to limit their “wagon” to 400 pounds of stuff. This class was to show the students how easy they have it today, and how the settlers had to know how to do everything they needed to in order to survive.
The second day consisted of the original outdoor classes. These included woodworking and candle making. I spent the day at the woodworking station where the students split rails, smoothed shingles and used a two-handed saw. My main job was to make sure that no one hurt themselves. In the afternoon, we (the staff and interns) split up with separate groups and helped lead them on a GPS scavenger hunt. I greatly enjoyed my first two days and I can’t wait to continue this project more.
What sort of students are you teaching (ages, types of class, etc.)
Im mainly teaching younger students. we have had 2nd, 5th, and 8th graders come out. No Highschoolers as of yet, but the environmental science class at TFS is actually coming out on may 8th and I get to teach them!