In late May, I will be taking eighteen students on a camping retreat, themed around the martial arts, as part of a program at the high school called Week Without Walls (WWW). All of the teachers at the school design experiential trips in order to provide students with unique hands-on learning opportunities. Some are science-based trips, others are cultural or historical trips, some use this time to volunteer in the community, and a few are purely for enrichment. I consider mine to be a life-centered trip.
Most of the students in my group have some martial arts experience, almost all of them with me; however, while many of the lessons of the week are similar to what I say in the classroom, the impact is different because they have the opportunity to live with simplicity, develop genuine connections with each other, and think deeply about themselves and their place in the world. I believe that placing them in new surroundings facilitates this because they place themselves in a mindset of discovery, instead of routine. It opens their minds and a great deal can be accomplished during this time.
WWW also appears to be a microcosm of the year that I will be experiencing with the "Live" project. It's an interesting quasi-reversal of roles, since instead of relating to my students only as their teacher, I will be both student and teacher with them. It's a unique chance for me to lead by example, and show them not only the skills that I have mastered, but how I approach my own training, learning, victories, and setbacks.
I'll include more on this as the trip approaches, including some of their results.
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