I was in K3 this week, meaning that on last Friday I began my 3 days of Scuba training and on Monday I left for my 3 day kayak trip. The first day of Scuba was tough, we practiced basic skills in girl’s dorm cut and tried unsuccessfully to avoid the hordes of jellies which live there.
The next couple days were much better, though, as we watched ourselves improve exponentially. We explored beautiful dive sites like Tunnel Rock and Something to Sea, saw barracudas, lionfish, and sharks, and mastered difficult skills like swimming without a mask underwater and breathing using your buddy’s alternate air source. Now we are proud and certified scuba divers and we can’t wait to keep seeing new sites and getting better.
Photo by Jake AtwoodPhoto by Jake AtwoodPhoto by Jake Atwood
After scuba my group set out on our 3 day kayak trip.
K3!
We paddled miles and miles and ended up getting as far away as the Rock Sound airport. The days were sunny and beautiful and my group didn’t even get that sunburned. We also took breaks during the day to snorkel and free dive some blue holes where we saw a 12 foot nurse shark, 40 inch barracuda, and too many sting rays to count. When we got to camp we enjoyed hanging around on the beach and at night we heard some great ghost stories around the campfire from Braden and Vienna.
Overall, it was a great trip and I can’t wait for the 8 day kayak later this semester.
Yesterday we all loaded up the four vans and headed over to Deep Creek Middle School to meet our buddies and learn about our community outreach projects. My buddy, Tallia, and I bonded over having the same birthday, July 18th.
Community Outreach Buddies!
We went around to three stations to play games and get to know our buddy a little more. The first station a character or thing was put on our back without us seeing and we had to figure it out.
Meeting our Buddies
At the second station we played drama games like the mirror game where we had to make slow movements so the other can follow.
Playing games!
The third station was where we all got a map of the others country and showed them where we live and talked about the different activities in our towns.
One thing I learned was that my buddy was a Miami Heat fan so we had a little spat because the Celtics are clearly the best!
After going to all of the stations our buddies got into their groups and explained the service projects they came up with and were passionate about. Some of them were about stray dogs, child abuse, lack of food and cutting down the invasive Casaurina tree. Each ninth graders plans a project and gets the help of an eighth grader and a seventh grader.
Learning about our community outreach projects
After bonding with our buddies they had to get to advisory so the Island School students stood in a circle and went around saying what was the most special part of our time with our buddies. As hard as it was to leave we were excited to go on a trip to the beach!
Early in the morning we all said goodbye to our family, friends, and old way of thinking. Waving goodbye to our parents from security was something many found to be extremely hard. For several, this was the first time they would fly alone or be away from home. Luckily, most of us found other students on the planes and befriended each other with ease and excitement. Abby was lucky to make the flight since she caught it with only ten seconds to spare. Although some of us were a little awkward and nervous getting through the airport we all eventually made it here safe and sound with all of our bags. It took some peoples bags a few days to arrive, like our dear friend Gretta . When asking students about their arrivals the common theme was stressful, but everyone said it was 110% worth it and they are ecstatic to be here.
One of the first experiences at The Island School was gathering around the flagpole.
Now, we’re here! Arriving to the Island School has been an unreal experience. There’s been so much going on since we stepped off the plane. Everyone is so fun and friendly! It’s been quite hectic with orientation starting up as soon as we got here. The first night we arrived, we all gathered in the boathouse to hear the head of school, John Schatz, introduce The Island School and give us a glimpse into our 100 day semester. He told us that The Island School is a place where we shouldn’t have many expectations but to expect that it’s going to be an incredible experience. He said that one of his primary roles here as the head of school is to confuse us, which confused us. During his talk he also said that The Island School and its faculty are here to help change our perspective and that it’s going to be a mentally and physically challenging 100 days. It was nerve wracking to hear but exciting at the same time.
We spent a lot of time getting oriented in the presentation room.
Every morning we’ve been getting up before 6:30am to meet for morning circle and do morning exercise. The first morning we snorkeled Boys Dorm beach and got our first marine ecology class. We saw and learned about sea urchins, starfish, brittlestars, sea cucumbers, a big hermit crab, a stingray, and a GIANT barracuda. After a busy first 24 hours we started an even more busy orientation getting introduced to classes, meeting our advisories, exploring around campus, hearing many rules and expectations, and preparing for SCUBA and Kayak Week.
We got a tour of The Island School campus and stopped here at the floating gazebo. This outdoor classroom is located between the IS campus and The Cape Eleuthera Institute.Yesterday we toured Cape Eleuthera on our bikes with our advisory groups. (Teschna, Olivia and Carlos)
One of the introductions was to the student update blog, which is what you’re reading right now! Every two weeks a new group of students will be responsible for writing blog posts and sharing stories from our experience on the student blog. We ended the introduction with an activity that asked us to write down three words that came to mind when reflecting on our journey here so far and three words that best described our first impressions of this place that would be used to create two word clouds. Check them out!
Compilation of words describing our journey to campus.Compilation of words describing our first impressions.
Written by, Abby Gordon, Tess Bialobrzeski, and Catherine Argyrople
Earlier this week, a number of urban school leaders visited The Island School to get to know our campus, as well as brainstorm ways to provide this type of transformative experience for their students. Brad Zervas, current Executive Director of Boys Hope Girls Hope (BHGH), and past Executive Director of Boys’ Club of NYC, Malick Fall, Principal at BHGH, and David Banks, Founder and Director of Eagle Academy, who has started 5 public schools for boys in and around NYC and most recently in Newark, NJ, were all in attendance.
These leaders are focused on the critical challenge facing young men around the planet, many of whom are growing up without fathers. In collaboration with the International Boys’ Schools Coalition, The Island School is working to help develop a summer leadership expedition to bring young men from schools around the globe. Zervas recognized years ago that Island School place and philosophy helps forge leaders through authentic physical and emotional challenges. Mallik and David took the initiating plunge off High Rock and after their visit are strong believers that the Cape is a good place to launch this new initiative.
We are selling t-shirts to commemorate The Island School’s 15th anniversary. But we need your help to choose a t-shirt design! Visit our website to vote for your favorite design this week. The poll closes at the end of the day Saturday, January 25 so be sure to vote today! http://www.islandschool.org/alumni/the-island-school-15-year-celebration/
Thank you to all our friends, families, alumni, and supporters who joined us this past weekend to celebration 15 years of The Island School at the New England Aquarium in Boston, MA! Check out photos from the event here. We are also selling 15 year books on our website. If you are interested in purchasing a book to commemorate the past 15 years, click here.
Right now it almost 6:45am and I’m staring at the pinks and oranges of the rising sun over the clear and shallow waters of the Caribbean. It didn’t hit me until this morning that I would only have maybe two more sunrises on or flying above the island, not many in the scheme of the one hundred we’d already almost had.
Two days ago, even earlier than right now, most of us ran Farther than we’ve ever thought we were capable of. Waking up at 4:30am, we mentally prepped for the thirteen mile stretch to Mount Zion Church next to Peter’s house and back. We gathered around the flagpole in pitch black with only the stars illuminating the outlines of people laughing. The race would begin with shooting stars overhead, at least Summer and Gretchen saw them, and us not knowing where our feet were. We were flying. Every few miles and with the sun a little higher in the sky, there were crowds of swimmers passing out water and applause. Vans drove by with crowds cheering and I’d swear I’d never seen my friend Alliea get so excited. Kiley and Olivia gave me high fives as I neared the turn around and they had already made it. I was so proud of them. When I reached the halfway mark, saw Will, Morgen, and a few others dancing and ready to handoff oranges, Gatorade, and further encouragement. I was the last one to the finish line, and running over the CEI Bridge had never felt so satisfying. My hero Edie Widder was even taking my picture! Everyone had lined up, and I sprinted as fast as I could through the roaring tunnel of cheering and adrenaline. I’d never felt so much at home. I touched the flagpole and the noise just erupted as the 2013 half marathon was over. I fell over, but landed in a pile of hugs as people reminded me I did it. Little Krissy who could barely half walk/half run a mile in the beginning, had ran a half marathon, without stopping and with a smile on her face the entire time. And it was all before my sister had probably rolled out of bed.
During the super swim, the runners got the chance to cheer on their bunkmates as the faced choppy waters and currents running both ways for four miles. There was some confusion when we shouted “Go!” but once underway, they looked like the ocean was their natural habitat, gliding gracefully through the seemingly impossible waters. I was on the sweep boat, so we went up with the back, and then back with the front. We couldn’t identify people as well with swim caps, googles, and swells of waves, but regardless we cheered until we were hoarse for anyone we went by. We later anchored at the finished line, and push them through the final, and most mentally exhausting strokes until they touched the boat. Leigh killed it in under two hours, and Anita was not far behind. From our greatest to our most improved swimmers, we so equally, incredibly proud. They were all heroes and I am so blessed to consider them a part of my Island School family.
Hey everyone! I hope Thanksgiving was a time for relaxation and feasting on amazing food, like it was here. The past twenty-four hours have been a blast for Island Schoolers, along with some bitter sweet feelings as this semester draws to a close. We have finished our last Human Ecology block working on our Change Bombs and prepping for our final presentations. My group, underwater sculpture, is putting together our last clips from our dive and installation of our project Wednesday morning. We have made a 9 by 4 by 1 pyramid out of square blocks which we have assembled in the Saddle, right off sunset beach. Seeing all the other Change Bombs that other groups have made is exciting, and people, including me, are starting to get butterflies in their stomach as presentations loom ever closer.
After lunch, we headed over to Deep Creek Middle School for the annual Basketball Jamboree. It was cooler and there were showers here and there setting a huge contrast from our normally blazing hot Community Outreach days. However, once we were with our buddies and everyone was settled on their respective team, the fun began. There was food, drinks, basketball, dodgeball, football, and dancing. Music was blaring and spirits were high. Coupled with the excitement and festive atmosphere from this holiday, I saw that everyone was enjoying themselves and bonding with their buddies, who we will be saying bye to for the last time today. This sad thought only added to the festivities and we played and ate till 4:30. After our ‘goodbyes’ and see-you-tomorrows’ we went back to Campus for advisory were we worked on our upcoming DOL’s and Portfolios.
All the day’s events were leading up to our Thanksgiving feast. We moved the tables on the deck into horseshoe formation, so we could sit family-style and filled our plates with turkey, ham, cranberry sauce, gravy, stuffing, and mashed potatoes (or clouds as I call them at home). People were laughing and having fun throughout the meal and talking about the days to come. The meal ended with a delicious pumpkin pie to rival any grandmother’s special recipe topped with frosting. An amazing end to an amazing day. Thanksgiving might have been different this year for many of us students as it was, at least for me, the first time being away from home on this holiday. This did not stop us however from having one of the best days this semester enjoying this holiday from afar.
