Middle school kids learn survival skills by doing
Old Bridge students find out firsthand some
rules of the wild
MARIE ORTIZ Bruce Olendorf discusses the lives of the Leni-Lenape Indians with a group from the Order of the Arrow Boy Scouts at Cheesequake State Park Interpretive Center in Old Bridge on Sunday.
OLD BRIDGE — Knowledge and teamwork, are the key to survival — and that is just one of the lessons learned by students at Jonas Salk Middle School.
Thirteen eighth-graders recently participated in the Outward Bound Experience, a pilot program designed to teach students to survive in the wilderness, respect their peers and adults, get along in a social environment and share responsibility.
The motivational program was tailored to specifically meet the needs of Salk students.
"We want all kids to succeed; we don’t want one kid to fall through the cracks," said Joe Keegan, a special education teacher at Salk who designed the program, along with Vice Principal Charles Gordon.
Gordon, Keegan and Paul Salonis, the school’s student resource officer, recently took 13 boys to Turkey Swamp Park in Freehold, where they participated in the program, the first of its kind in the district.
"We learned how to survive in the wild, how to get along with classmates and how to listen to other people’s ideas in order to come to one solution," said Matthew Small, 14, an eighth-grader who participated in the program.
Before the trip, the students chosen to participate in the program met with Keegan for 15 minutes everyday during their lunch period for three weeks.
"The boys would come in and shake hands, take a seat and discuss what we would do on the trip," said Keegan. "They planned what we would eat, who would purchase food, how much it would cost, and who would bring what equipment."
The group also discussed responsibility and how one can communicate successfully with others and with authority figures, explained Gordon.
"The program is designed to develop respect," said Keegan. "They learned everyone has ideas and to listen. They’ve learned to respect each other’s opinions."
Once the group reached the park, the boys broke up into four groups and began to tackle their responsibilities.
A portion of the boys embarked on a nature trail with Gordon while the remainder stayed at the campsite with Keegan and began preparing food, explained Small.
Once on the nature trail, the boys called upon their survival skills to accomplish their predetermined goals.
"We had to remember what our four basic needs are — air, water, food and clothing," said Small. "We also identified which mushrooms were poisonous and which were not."
Students were also given a list of 42 items they were to retrieve on a scavenger hunt. Some of the items included finding a sign of man’s existence in the wilderness, finding uniquely shaped leaves, caterpillars and y-shaped twigs.
Back at the camp, students were preparing hot dogs and baked potatoes. After a break, students were allowed to participate in recreational activities, which included touch football and fishing, before the groups switched places, allowing those who stayed behind to trek down the nature trail.
"After the trip, I received a lot of positive feedback from parents; they said their kids loved it," said Gordon.
The program did not end there. Keegan said he interacts with the students on a daily basis.
"Some of the students’ grades have increased since participating in the program," said Keegan.
Small has since joined the school’s wrestling team.
"We enjoyed the program," said Small. "I hope we have the opportunity to do it again in the future."
Gordon and Keegan said they are working on additional activities planned for the upcoming winter. Future groups will most likely include girls as well as boys, explained Gordon.
Gordon has been communicating with instructors at Fairview Lakes, an environmental camp in Newton, where each year sixth-graders travel to for an overnight trip.
"They may send as an instructor to help with future Outward Bound Experiences," said Gordon.
The camp previously forwarded survival curriculums and materials to the school, which were helpful to Gordon and Keegan when they were developing the program.
Additional activity may also include a trip to a sporting event, where students would be able to participate in a type of tailgating activity before the event, explained Gordon.
"We want to make our schools work for all kids," said Gordon. "We want them to be successful in school, life and the community."