Thursday, October 13, 2022

MORE FLASHLIGHTS

       Over my 37 years of teaching I had many different and interesting assignments. One of those assignments was to teach outdoor Ed. I had been going along with other Outdoor ed. teachers when they went on field trips. So I was given a couple of classes to teach. 

      We had in class instruction and then went on field trips to apply what the kids learned. We hiked, cross country skied and snowshoed. All field trips were over nighters. The kids were given a list of equipment they needed. For most overnights we stayed in youth hostels. The huts were small so kids slept on the floor.

     For one or two field trips a  year we tented. One field trip in November we tented under winter conditions. 

     Now when you take 35 kids on a 2 or 3 day field trip, the kids just don't go home at 3:30 PM to their home. We had those kids until it was bed time. Something had to be done to keep them occupied. We just didn't turn on the TV. 

    So I'm finally getting to the flashlight. One of the things they were to bring was a flashlight. Yes the flashlight was used in the tent. However, there were many games of tag or whatever they did using the flashlights. They hid from the light. They played tag. They ran all over the place.  They kept themselves occupied for an hour or two. 

     So , I'll bet the only kids playing with a flashlight were my Outdoor ed. classes.