We're getting pretty good at paper crafts around here! Today we had the opportunity to visit the Pine County Historical Museum in Askov, MN. We were able to spend some time exploring the exhibits before heading to a presentation about the Holocaust. We heard from a Jewish survivor's daughter about her mother's story and we also heard from an artist/photographer who was presenting an exhibit about the lives of survivors in MN after the Holocaust. After the presentation, we were able to view his exhibit and engage in a question and answer session with the artist. The students were very engaged, experienced emotions, and learned new things. We were enjoying our time so much, we didn't even pause to take many photos. How well do you communicate? How well do you listen? Can you accurately send a message and description when you have to relay it through multiple channels? What does the end result look like? Today we played around with that idea through a more detail-oriented activity based off of the traditional game "telephone". The students spent today at Changing Gaits learning team-building, life skills, and interaction with horses. They met and connected with some amazing individuals and were able to enter into a mutually beneficial and healing mentor/mentee relationship for a few hours. Some of them were able to ride a horse for the first time! Ask a student about their experience!
More information about Changing Gaits' as stated on their website (www.chainginggaits.org): "Changing Gaits, Inc. is a... diversified Equine Assisted Addiction Services (EAAS) and is committed to teaching, guiding, and encouraging positive attitudes, behavior modification, and life skills by using a powerful, therapeutic approach though the healing bond with horses, not only for substance abuse, but also for individuals needing social interaction, problems with verbal and non-verbal communication, repetitive actions, etc. This also works well for teams to learn better ways to communicate. EAAS is based on OK Corral techniques, and is effective for all ages (children, teenagers, adults, families, groups) to learn: Creative thinking, Assertiveness, Relationship building, Self-esteem, Problem solving, Leadership, Teamwork, Positive attitude, Verbal and non-verbal communication, Social interaction, and Repetitive actions. Briefly, EAAS is an emerging field in which horses are used to assist for emotional growth and learning to address issues related to substance abuse, along with problems in communication, relationships, behavior, and all Life Skill issues."
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