Today we were able to get out to Changing Gaits for about an hour and spend some time with the gentlemen of the house and the horses. It was a quick little teaser-trip for our bigger outing in a few weeks. (More information about Changing Gaits coming in that post; check back in on Nov. 4th!)
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For this Expedition Friday we visited the Audubon Center of the North Woods to do some community service and to help them prepare for their Fall Open House. We worked on skirting their newly-built Yurt (a yurt is a portable, bent dwelling structure traditionally used by nomads in the steppes of Central Asia as their home). We also helped to expand their volleyball court to regulation size by weeding out the grass and roots. We were also able to enjoy a delicious home-cooked meatloaf dinner for our efforts! Our first Expedition Friday kicked off the year with a Canoe Trip down the beautiful St. Croix River. To prepare for our trip, the students researched the geography of the St. Croix River in the area we were set to travel. They then used that information to create their own geographical maps for our trip. We were able to use those maps and that knowledge to point out landmarks along the route as we paddled, and even to find our stop for lunch on the river! It was a beautiful day to canoe down the swollen and flooded St. Croix River from Danbury, Wi to the WI/MN border. 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: "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." On Thursday, the ALP re-visited the Audubon Center. The first part of the day was spent learning about different the different types of energy that power the world around us. The students held a great discussion about all of the types of energy it takes to get a glass of milk to your table. They were also able to build their own windmills. It was a great competition. The afternoon was spent learning about the process of maple-syruping. (Did you know that only a small portion of the northeast United States provides the whole world with it's maple syrup?) They were able to blind taste-test all different kinds of syrup. The natural maple syrup beat out all of the store brands by everyone's standards! After the classroom, the students were able to head outside and experience firsthand, the process of gathering sap and cooking maple syrup. The weather was beautiful and fun was had by all. Students and staff had a great time today on our trip to the Audubon Center of the North Woods where we learned about the Native American art of porcupine quillwork and were able to make our own quill projects. We also met Spike, the Audubon Center's resident 14lb porcupine! A few students thought he was cute enough for a pet. |
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