Last week, the grade 8 students loaded the bus and headed off on their much anticipated graduation trip to Muskoka Woods. This trip is always a highlight of the year for our graduating class, and this year was no exception. When we arrived at Muskoka Woods, the students were excited to get settled into their accommodations in the CEO Lodge. We then enjoyed a jam-packed three day schedule which included activities such as volleyball, basketball, low ropes, driving range, frisbee golf, the giant swing, and high ropes.
Our time together also included team-building and leadership development. Students enjoyed collaborating during our S’mores and Storytelling activity, where, in small groups, students created a new marshmallow-based campfire snack and a story about it. During the Configurations activity, students learned the importance of communication when working as a team. The highlight of our leadership development was definitely the NASCAR Challenge. In teams, students worked as pit crews of a stock car. Each pit crew assigned roles, developed a plan to change the tires of the car and fuel up, and set goals for how much time they believed it would take them to complete the task. After completing the tire change and fuel up, students took time to debrief and talked about how to refine their plan to improve their teams’ times. They then had the opportunity to work with the stock car twice more to implement their new team plan.
Some of the most special times were our free time in the Great Room of the CEO Lodge and our campfire on our second evening. In the Great Room, students enjoyed playing board games together and spending time together. During our time around the campfire, after some time playing games, singing campfire songs, and telling stories, we had the opportunity to share a devotional song, sing worship songs together, and spend time in prayer as a graduating class.
