Week Without Walls - 8th grade

Every year our middle school students go into rural India and for a week and work on team building and adventure.  For the last two years, I went with the 6th graders to Matheran.  This year I went with the 8th graders to Sajan and Dabhosa.   We left Monday morning for the 2.5 hour drive to Sajan.  The kids slept in 4 person tents and all but two adults slept in cabins



This is an opportunity for kids to learn to share a space and work out differences with their friends.  The tent area also had big areas for them to do team building games etc.  In the mornins I inspected the tents with another teacher and we gave awards for cleanest tent and best greeting.  Kids sang to us, danced, and hugged us.  Best duty to have!!







This camp was a place for them to practice there skills before we went on our big expedition.  The kids were broken up in animal groups.  I was a cobra with another teacher and 14 kids.  The food was a lot better at this place than the 6th grade place!  They did a Fox line, built a raft, used compasses and GPS devices to orienteer, kayaked, went to a village to paint, and rapelled down a dam wall.

Fox line - good thing Nilendra and I are working on my arms. 

They had to build a raft and float it in the pool. - test run for expedition

We went to a local village and painted a school. 

All geared up for rapelling. 

stepping over the wall was the hardest part!! 

I actually let Go!!

On Wednesday we took the two hour bus drive to Dabhosa - long bumpy drive!  On thursday we had an all day expedition - The cobras and I started with the fox line and kayaking, then we had to hike up a huge hill to the bunks.  A jeep took us to the raft building site.  They had to get all 14 kids on the raft and ride it down the river and back.  We had lunch there then used the compasses and GPS to find clues.  The last even of the day we rapelling down a 220 ft waterfall.

You can see the person on the fox line under the waterfall.  It was so loud and the spray soaked me. 

building a raft

It floated!

Here is how big the waterfall is.  220 ft. I think.  Getting over the big hump wasn't too bad,but about 1/3 of the way down you had to take your feet off the wall and free fall.  As soon as I let go, I spun around facing out and squealed.  AT the bottom you landed on a floating raft right near the waterfall and they kayaked us to the edge. 

You can see someone coming down. 

Our group had to hike this massive hill (it's about 5 or six time this height) twice.

On Thursday night we had skit night, talent show, and s'mores.  On Friday we packed up and took the 4 hour drive back to Mumbai.