ADVENTURE. 2021 is about being adventurous in the outdoors, as well as in the classroom for me. With a sense of irregularity surrounding us all, I think it’s important now more than ever to get outside and explore new methods of teaching via walking curriculum, etc. First and foremost, for myself personally I think it’s important to have intentions with this word. Adventure to me is self care. Having adventure in my life has been extremely therapeutic over the past month, exploring the backcountry of Powder King, two hours from Prince George:

While the hike was extremely taxing and draining of my energy, the satisfaction of riding down on snowboard allowed me to venture into a feeling of freedom and self-care that I have never really experienced before. As you can see the view here is truly remarkable, worth the physical capacity it took to hike to three different peaks to begin with. However, had I not endured a little bit out of my comfort zone in a rural setting, the opportunity to adventure into nature would have been lost, therefore a lack of creativity and sense of liberation would have been tarnished.

Within the classroom, I think this personal adventure can directly translate. Though taking a class of thirty young students may be too much a safety risk for a practicum experience, students can begin to explore the introduction/foundation of the effort and energy required to go into an adventure like this. While I always thought I would stand at the front of the class, quoting from shakespeare discussing his use of language in a foreign time in my first time teaching a class, I can now see my intentions need to be more broad, adaptable, and variable in order to breed success in my students with whom I have so little times with. Instead of always getting into a novel study, perhaps a walking activity is in order with the use of discussion about what the experience was like, questions about the environment and how we can do our part to preserve it, and potentially lead into a project that details points about their experience and how important the environment is to us. Ultimately, combining the former with the ladder is my goal to lead 2021. As a person who is notably urban growing up, I would like to inquire about concepts of adventure and exploration and bring those learning opportunities into my classroom in a year of new practicum experiences, and get creative with how my practicum classrooms can learn in different ways outside of text.