Fifth Grade Suvival Camp

This is now a bit out of date, since Jeremy and James went on their overnight campout at the end of September. Still, I recently got some photos shared by other parents, and thought you might like seeing their fun. They built their own shelter out of sticks and leaves. Then, the boys did get a plastic tarp over the top, out of pity, since it was 40 degrees and pouring rain most of the time. Jeremy even said it was the worst weather he has ever camped in, so not ideal for no tent. Fortunately, the boys stayed warm and dry in their "squirrel hut." It was so sturdy that they couldn't knock it down the next morning, even with all four 5th grade boys jumping on top of it. Jeremy said he was also comfy in the shelter that he rigged with another dad using a tarp and some sticks.

James loved this trip. He still talks about it a month later. Fifth grade is really agreeing with him.

Here they are enjoying a fire. This was the most challenging, given the weather. Jeremy couldn't get it started with the provided flint tinder, because the rain was pouring down too heavily - it put out every spark. This inspired Jeremy to later write this haiku for James's writing project:

No fire for us

Tried and tried and tried again

Next time, gasoline

James (on the left) with the other boys assigned to his campsite, standing in front of their constructed shelter. Notice that James was better prepared for the weather in terms of clothing. I was proud of him that he volunteered without prompting to give his extra jacket to the poor kid who came in shorts, with no dry change of clothes. Apparently, this was a warmer, drier moment in the weekend.

Helen's new favorites

Keeping up with a baby's changing tricks is a fun but fast-moving game. This week, some of Helen's favorite things include:

• Nodding her head "yes" in response to anything someone says to her. She does it while wearing a bit agreeable grin. Not very confident that she knows what she is agreeing to, but if you ask the questions correctly, it can be lots of fun to have her smile along with you and nod. Only occasionally will she decide to shake her head "No" instead - but she still grins so you can't really hold it against her.
• Waving hello and goodbye. She actually seems to be starting to understand this one. She appropriately waves her arm as people arrive or depart at the front door. And a few other random times, too, because it is so much fun.
• Swinging. She already started getting into the cupboards a few weeks ago. Now, for variety, she likes to pull herself up on the cupboard door (like a chin-up) and swing back and forth on it. She grins about this one, until she accidentally shuts herself inside the cupboard with her fingers pinched on top. 
• Climbing. Our baby safety gate at the top of the stairs has a bottom and top rail between which the vertical rails are hung. The bottom rail is about 3-4 inches off the floor. Helen hoists herself up to stand on the bottom rail, then shrieks with delight that she is that much closer to figuring out how to scale the gate to freedom. She especially loves it when she finds the gate unlatched, because then she can swing (like a cupboard door but better!).

Favorite trip quote

While driving to Massachusetts, the kids were all quietly listening to their own headphones/MP3 players in the back of the van, each loaded up with their own audiobooks. Suddenly the stillness was broken by John's voice, booming with excitement:

"James! I just learned a new word! ALACK!"

The word apparently really tickled his fancy, because for the whole week since, I have overheard him muttering it over and over to himself, under his breath. "Alack alack alack alack ...."

Trip to see Jeff

We had a great, if whirlwind, trip to visit Jeff & Shannon last weekend. We left at 5:30 PM Friday, only an hour or so later than we had hoped/planned. We stopped for dinner in Davison with great-grandparents, then drove another three hours to stop at a hotel in Ontario. Since neither James nor Maggie were falling asleep in the car, despite it approaching midnight, and Mom and Dad were falling asleep, it seemed prudent to stop short of our original goal of Niagara.

We didn't get a very early start in the morning. We woke at 7:45, but getting everyone organized, fed and out of the hotel took until 9:30 AM. Then, another hour down the road, we reached Niagara Falls so of course we had to stop. We kept the stop to an hour, but hustled the kids from the parking lot down the viewing sidewalk, and back again. Maybe a future trip will allow for more sightseeing.

Since I didn't have any Canadian quarters, the kids couldn't use this gadget, but they still had fun trying.

Back on the road, we crossed back to the US around noon and were dismayed to realize just how wide New York really is. Finally pulled into Jeff's and Shannon's a bit after 8 PM. Ready to be done driving.

We went out for an evening walk around campus and the kids had a blast. Other faculty families were out and about, and the kids made quick friends with an exuberant young dog named Friday. They also discovered the piles of outdoor kids' toys left as semi-communal property by other staff families. They tore around the quad on the scooters, played chase and fetch with the dog, and generally ran 14 hours of car time out of their bodies before a late bedtime.

Sunday, Jeremy and Jeff took John and Maggie on a short  hike while James and Helen slept in. After a nice brunch, courtesy of the dining hall, we all took a longer hike up Mount Sugarloaf. Jeff had been told it was "90 minutes maximum, round-trip." Apparently his informant wasn't walking with 4 young kids going in different directions at all times. Also, not sure that we found the most direct route to the top. Still, had a nice walk and enjoyed the views from the top - 270 degree panoramas from the observation tower. Was good exercise and pretty scenery, but felt a bit wrong to call the peak a "Mount" when it was less than 900 feet elevation.  :)

Next, we went to a corn maze. Good fun for all, though John and Maggie were more excited about getting pony rides. I didn't have my camera out for that stop, so maybe Jeff will supply photos later. Finally, we stopped at Bub's BBQ  for dinner. It's tagline was "Pig out in style" and it was exactly the kind of hole-in-the wall you might imagine from those two  pieces of information. Still, food was pretty good. Uncle Jeff must be slowing down as he gets old, because after that, we called it a day, and had the kids tucked in bed before 9 PM!

Monday, we spent a long time touring campus with Jeff. We helped him water plants in his student lab, saw the old cemetery, mooched a ride on the groundskeeper's golf cart for John and Maggie, and other fun stuff. We had a late lunch in the dining hall again. (A person could get used to having someone else cook and clean up after every meal - it was like the best parts of college living.)

James really liked the campus tour, especially what he saw in Uncle Jeff's lab, which included some biology, physics, and engineering special projects. He asked me when he would be able to enroll here as a student. ("Um... sorry, but ... true answer is - never. Unless, perhaps, Uncle Jeff can adopt you to get the faculty rate.")

Denise was a very friendly groundskeeper,

The kids love posing for photos when they can clown around.

John's attachment to the scooters on campus was a bit unnatural.

Jeff tried to show the kids how the sundial worked. Would have been easier if we had seen any sun. James was still pondering it, apparently.

On the "green roof" of the newly built,m LEED-certified science building where Jeff works.

A dormitory on campus.

A different style building - another dormitory.

Finally we got organized to tour a couple of the museum homes of historic Deerfield. As far as I can tell, the  entire town/village consists only of museum buildings, school buildings, extra homes for faculty housing, and the post office, church, and inn (closed for renovations after floods). Very quiet place. We toured a house restored to styles of mid-1700s to late 1800s (different eras in different rooms). We weren't the best tourists; the poor docent became a bit flustered by the kids' unique style of zone offense. Their questions and comments were rapid-fire and apparently random in order. At least the were engaged. The docent remarked when we finished that our 30-minute tour had somehow lasted for 60 minutes.

Next the kids got to try carding and weaving at the hands-on shop. All went well until the 60-ish woman bully pushed John out of line - twice - leading to him not getting a turn with the coping saw before closing. I was really quite proud of him for handling it well - to a point - but a 4-year-old has his limits. The inevitable tantrum was stemmed by a quick cell-phone call to Grandpa Glen who promised to bring his coping saw for John to try when we got back. Whew! 

Maggie carding wool

and James, too

Maggie tries weaving at the loom

And there is a glimpse of the bully, top right

Jeremy helps John in the woodworking shop

Intent on their work. John has the rasp while waiting (in vain) for a turn with the coping saw that Maggie is using. Ooh, look, in the background, behind Jenny, there is the bully again.

The restaurant we enjoyed Monday night.

We wrapped up the visit with a nice dinner out at The People's Pint - good local food with unique but tasty menu items. Since it was a brewery, the adults tried the house beers, and the kids got the house-brewed root beer. We finished with expensive but very tasty desserts (flourless chocolate cake; chocolate peppermint cloud cake; apple crisp). The real icing on the cake, though (so to speak) was when Jeff & Shannon told the kids about a new baby expected in April. They were very excited! Then back for bed (for the kids) while we packed up the car and Jeff had dorm duty.

Tuesday morning we crept away in the dark, on the road by 6:45 AM. The kids were understandably a bit grumpy at the early departure. John complained that we never got a chance to go swimming, even though we brought suits. Maggie complained that we never got to out to an ice cream shop, even though I had said we could on the way out. (We did just run out of time in our 2 fun-packed days.) James immediately piped in with his own gripe, though I can't recall  now what it was. 

Fortunately, the moods improved with a few hours and breakfast. Maggie told me at the first rest stop, "Mom. this was the best vacation I have ever had!" Not a bad rating for such a quick trip! I asked her why and she reeled off all the good things (I believe in her increasing order of importance): "I got to go to [through] Canada for the first time, it was my first time ever in New York or Massachusetts, I got to see Niagara Falls, I got to take TWO hikes in the mountains, I got to ride a pony, I got to play with the dogs and scooters, I got to see Uncle Jeff and Aunt Shannon, and I got to find out that we are getting a new cousin!" (Without a doubt, this last item pushed this trip into rock star status for her.)


We pushed hard all day, and the kids were troopers. The MP3 players loaded up with audiobooks helped. We arrived home at 9:15 PM, even despite a wrong turn at Port Huron that cost us a half hour or so. (Better signs definitely are in order there!)

A great time was had by all. We were gone 100 hours, and spent only about 28 of those in the car!

Kids love their baby sister

From 9/13/2011 (I am slow to get it published):

Today as I drove the kids home from school, John, who has been a bit of a 4-year-old pill lately, warmed my heart all the way through. All three of the older kids beg/fight to sit next to Helen in the car. John rarely wins since I tend not to intervene on his behalf. To  be honest, she doesn't always appreciate the enthusiasm of his company.

But lately, James and Maggie have been busy with their books in the car, and even if they fight to sit next to Helen, they rarely interact with her. John, although a bit in her face, usually plays with her the whole time, which she adores.

Today, he simply sang quietly to himself as he held her hand: "Helen is the world's best baby. Helen is the world's best  baby." Over and over again, he sang. Pretty endearing from a mom's point of view.

John develops fashion sense

We had a relatively new babysitter to the house. Apparently, John liked Constance pretty well. As she was leaving, he ran to the door to hug her leg. Then, to add to her startled state, John said, "I really like your clothes! Where do you get them?"

"Umm, I don't know. At the store, I guess, just like where you get your clothes," came Constance's slightly bewildered reply.

John's face lit up. "Oh! You have a Goodwill, too?!"

Selected Survival Writing by James

I have enjoyed reading James's writings. He has an active, imaginative voice in creative writing, and a bluntly honest personal voice. I have selected a few of my favorites from the collection that he wrote over the long weekend.


Assignment 1: Write about your survival book (Hatchet) as if you were a person reporting on the book just after the survival incident occured. (James chose a newspaper article format.)

Plane Down, Presumed Fatal


Last night a one-engine plane carrying Brian Robinson and a forty-year old pilot went off its flight path and crashed in the Canadian wilderness. Searchers have been working all night but to no avail. His parents are horror- struck and so are officials. Brian, who lives in New York with his mother, was on his way to visit his father in northern Canada.


The first reports came in yesterday afternoon. “I heard a crazy call from the crashing plane and he said something about a dead pilot and not knowing how to fly,” said a nearby pilot. Even if Brian survived the crash, he will be hit with hunger, cold, and wild animals. Yet still his parents are convinced he is alive and well and are eager to find him.



This is like somewhere Brian may have crashed.


Assignment 2: Write about your survival book (Hatchet) as if you were a person reporting on the book after the person was rescued from the situation. (James again chose a newspaper article format.)


Amazing Survival!
Last night, after a pilot heard an emergency radio, he landed on an L-shaped lake in the Canadian wilderness where 13-year-old Brian Robinson had survived a plane crash. Brian had been surviving alone on this lake for 3 months with only a hatchet, a windbreaker, and the clothes he was wearing. We have his personal story here.


I was on my way to visit my dad who lives in northern Canada, when the pilot had a heart attack. When the pilot jerked he hit the rudder petal which made the plane jerk to the right. Then after about an hour the plane claimed that it was low on fuel. So, I tried to land the plane by the lake. Instead I crashed into the lake and nearly killed myself. After my “landing” I was hurt badly enough that I went straight to sleep. Upon waking I was so thirsty that I drank straight out of the lake which made me barf. The next thing that I did was, naturally, find food. I followed some birds to a gut cherry [choke cherry] bush.


After eating my fill, I set to work on a shelter. I found a cave on a high rock ledge with a natural path up to it. I would have hit the ledge if I had crashed 10 feet to the right. There was a wide opening to the cave with a hole in the roof (perfect for the smoke of the fire I did not have) and a nice flat place to sleep! So, I went to work with my hatchet to make a little wall to cover most of the opening.

I had many times when self-pity and despair kind of overtook me. So, to keep myself busy I worked very hard. For example, I made a fire with a hatchet, made a bow and arrows to hunt rabbits, birds, and fish, and made an improved shelter.


All of these things were destroyed when a tornado hit, leaving only the hatchet, the wind breaker, and me. I thought that this was a bad thing but this was really what led to my rescue. This was because the tornado moved the tail of the plane up out of the water. That tail had a survival pack in it. With the tail of the plane out of the water I was able to get to the survival pack. So, I made a raft and got the survival pack, which included a sleeping bag, a cooking set, a water-proof container with matches and 2 lighters, a sheath knife with a compass in the handle, a first aid kit with scissors, a hat, fishing kit, a rifle, an emergency radio, two bars of soap, and dozens and dozens of food packets. I had just put a beef and potato diner on when the emergency radio called in a pilot who saved me. So here I am.

Brian's Fire

Assignment 3. Reflect on a time when you were afraid. What scares you as you prepare to go to survival camp?
Fear and Why We Need It


When I was 7 my dad fell out of a tree and had a concussion. He had been trying to tie up a rope swing while we were camping. I thought he was dead. I went and hid behind a woodpile after I saw him fall. Then, when the ambulance came I figured out that they would not call an ambulance if he was dead. I am afraid of losing loved ones. My fears for survival camp are that I will not survive.


Surprisingly, fear is a good thing! Fear keeps us in check and it helps us know when not to do something. Fear is like a guide keeping us from danger. Fear keeps us close to God. Fear of God is even better! Fear of God keeps us from rebelling because we are afraid of His power. It helps us to trust Him. Fear may not be a bad thing after all.


Assignment 4. Write about your chosen survival book from the perspective of an animal witnessing the human in that situation.
 
Strange New Creature



By W. Olf


Last week, as we all know, a strange being came into our presence here in the Canadian Wilderness. Here, as your local newspaper, we have all of the details of his doings. Most of these aren’t very interesting, such as building shelters or collecting berries.


We have collected comments from all of the animals that have seen some of his extremely interesting doings.


“Well, I was just flying through the air, minding my own business, when this strange metal bird came out of nowhere, crashed through the trees, lost its wings, and plunged into the lake,” said Mr. Hawk.


Mr. Stink Y. Skunk commented, “I was crawling around on the Ledge when I noticed some nice turtle eggs just sitting there. As I began to eat them, he [the stranger] popped up and started yelling at me. Naturally, because it is my instinct, I sprayed him. He backed off while I finished the remainder of the eggs.”


And, the most interesting of all comes from Mr. Porc U. Pine. “Well, I just came around the same cave as Mr. Stink Y. Skunk. Because it was my duty, as a policeman, I walked into the cave and looked around. Because of my rattling, I woke the creature and he got scared and started shaking. Then, he threw an immensely sharp stick that nearly cut off my head spikes. Because I was frustrated at nearly losing my head spikes, I gave him some of this,” he said, rattling his spikes at me. “


In addition to these reports, he has been walking around with a stick and a string, launching the sticks at poor, unfortunate fish, birds, and rabbits. On page A3, we have listed all of the unlucky animals that have perished for his eating.


For anyone who does not feel safe living in their burrow or cave, they may contact Mr. Grizzly.

Assignment 5. Poetry. James composed about a dozen poems in various styles that the students were learning. I have included a few here, though I can't reproduce the fonts that he painstakingly selected to match the mood of each poem.
 
Survival camp is brown



It tastes like bad food


It sounds like crackling fires


It smells like unwashed people


It looks like woods


It makes me feel independent



Running through the woods



We need to get to the lodge


For a small drizzle

 
 
 
Camp



Warm, wet


Sleeping, surviving, smoking


Happy to be there


Fun



Orange



Orange is my poncho


Orange is the glowing char cloth


Orange is the sparks that fly


Orange is the dying flame


Orange smells like smoke


Orange tastes like burnt hot dogs


Orange sounds like burning logs


Orange looks warm and inviting


Orange feels warm


Orange makes me happy


Orange is our fire

James is writing

With the rush of the school year, both for Jeremy and I and for the kids, I was really looking forward to the kids' fall break - a 4-day weekend. I envisioned unhurried time to just enjoy the kids. Sure, I still had to work. But in between, no time spent driving kids to school; no after-school activities; just calm. I know many families at this school use the weekend for a mini-family vacation. Obviously we won't do that,  since we can't get out of work for ourselves. But, I certainly wasn't picturing what happened.

First, a few hours before picking the kids up from thei last day at school, I received an email from James's teacher. It was short and cheery - just "I have attached a few files that James was working on at school that he will need to finish up at home. Clue number One. Then, James came home with a piece of poster board. Clue number Two. Then, James informed me later that evening that he needed to get started on his homework. Clue number Three. (He is never eager to do homework and certainly not in the habit of telling me when he has it, or starting it on the first of a 4-day break.)

I pretty much ignored all of this for the first 24 hours, but then James was busy working on it and asking me for assistance. I could proofread individual writings that he put before me, but I couldn't get from him a coherent description of what he was trying to do. I didn't know the purpose of each short writing piece, or the assignment. I couldn't even get a consistent answer from him about the total amount of work that he had to do. I honestly don't believe he was being evasive; I think he just didn't have a very good idea of the whole project himself. Or, maybe I could better say, he couldn't quite hold the whole project in his mind at one time to be able to explain it to me.

Unfortunately, the project morphed many times, and grew like a cancer. First it was "just a little while" that James thought he would work on Thursday afternoon. That turned into several hours. Friday also required multiple hours of work. Saturday was an even longer stretch of work. Sunday as James sat down to finish, he assured me he could wrap it up in an hour or so. He then took over 7 hours. To his credit, he stayed in good spirits. He seemed to be enjoying the project, if not all of the time. He wanted to do a good job.

 When I contacted his teacher on Monday, she assured me that James wrote aa much greater length than she had expected, but did a fine job. Still, what he did write shouldn't have taken him that much time, in my opinion.

It was hard to sit by and watch him struggle so much to get this done, but I tried really hard to be supportive without hovering or interfering. I proofread (his spelling always needs help). I offered editorial advice when he asked for it. I typed for him as he dictated, after he lost a computer file for the 2nd time and had to rewrite yet again.  (Surprisingly, this file loss didn't seem to phase him much - he could repeat his work nearly without pause from memory. Aah, to have a memory like that again!)

In the end, I don't know why he had such a struggle to get the whole thing finished, but I was pleased with his work. His grade just completed a month-long reading unit on survival themes, culminating in an overnight survival campout which James loved (and Jeremy tolerated). This project turned out to be a variety of writings for the unit - both about the books the read (James focused on 1987-Newberry winner Hatchet by Gary Paulsen) and the camp experience. (Other books that they read included My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George and Island of the Blue Dolphin by Scott O'Dell).

I will post some of his writings separately.

Amusing phone call

The babysitter just called me at my office, barely15 minutes after I arrived.

"Um, I just wanted to check... is it normal for Helen to spit up a lot? She just spit up about three times in a row, quite a lot..."

I could barely suppress my laughter. Normal, in general, for an 8-month-old to spew more than Old Faithful? I suppose probably not. But for Helen? I am definitely not concerned. But, it is nice that the sitter is at least checking, I suppose.

Uh oh...

With a split level house, there are lots of places with steps, where we might put up a baby gate. But likewise, we couldn't stand our house with that many gates, so we have to install them judiciously. We have elected to block only the downward fall from our main level, out of the kitchen. We figure that if we have Helen up or down a flight of stairs, we will just keep her under closer watch and away from the steps.

That all works fine and dandy, until she gets ambitious. I left her alone in the kitchen this morning, and went up to the boys' bedroom with John to get something. I heard a squawk, turned around, and there she was, grinning at me from the 2nd step.

Now, she has been there before, because John, despite our warnings of severest physical punishment, will sometimes lift her up there. But he was with me today. Which means the obvious problem for us, of course. Bored with pulling up on furniture, and now apparently bored with the one-hand-on-furniture stand and balance ("so last week, Mom") and even the cruise a few steps along the furniture ("so yesterday, Mom"), Helen has decided to learn how to climb steps.

We really can't put another baby gate in at the bottom of that staircase.  So, we will just have to hope that she also gets quickly bored with idea of climbing. Maybe she will get distracted by learning a different skill - like actually making consonant sounds? Nah. Speech is over-rated. Locomotion is apparently where it's at.