Words from Kate McQueen & Kimberly Koo
Week 5
Hello! We’re Kimberly and Kate, and we’re very excited to share with you our 5th week in the experiential program.
Day 1: Duke of Edinburgh intro & Through Their Eyes project
Monday, our class worked with Ms. Gardiner, our school’s Service and Community Engagement Coordinator, to set up goals and log hours as first steps towards our impactful completion of the bronze level of the Duke of Edinburgh award. We also continued working on our Through Their Eyes project, a project that we both love participating in.
Day 2: Fleming Beach Climbing Day
It was beautiful on Tuesday with good weather. We were able to conquer our fears and push ourselves to new heights with the support of my belayer, Mr. Daly, and all our classmates! We were fortunate to have the opportunity to put the rock climbing skills that we’ve accumulated over the past weeks to the test. We can’t wait to come back next week and challenge ourselves again!
Day 3: Through their eyes project
On Wednesday, we continued working on our Through Their Eyes project on our characters. We have been looking at the war through the eyes of St. Michaels school boys who fought in WW1. It has been a few weeks since we started the project and it is coming to an end. We also completed a perspective-shifting simulation that reflected what life was like in the trenches of WWI. It was an eye-opening experience that will be remembered for years to come
Day 4: Summit day Mt Finlayson & fire building
Summit day on Mt. Finlyson was an astounding experience that required physical endurance and pushing ourselves to the max. The push to the summit was worth it, as the view from the peak was breathtaking. At the base of Goldstream, the other group was mastering the Tuckers hitch and bowline knot, necessary for setting up camp and putting up tarps. Our guide Carter taught us safety precautions, and we learned how to chop blocks of wood and build fires.
Day 5: Mustard Seed Christmas Cards
On Friday, we spent the experiential block writing Christmas cards for families through Mustard Seed. The Mustard Seed Church is a local organization that has been fighting hunger in Greater Victoria since 1975. The Christmas cards we wrote will be distributed to families in need alongside food and gifts provided by the center. We enjoyed being able to give back to our community and taking part in this meaningful role.
It has been a successful week of trying new things, learning valuable life lessons, and growing inside and outside of the classroom. All these skills and experiences will be applied in the future and will be great assets! This is all for week 5. Stay tuned for the final week of our first term of the experiential program!
