On Friday I wearily returned from our double class camp, suffering a bit of dehydration and sunburn (I was drinking water and had sunscreened myself but a few urgent issues took precedent on the Friday morning so my own continuing needs took a back seat to student welfare at that time) but very satisfied at how the three days away had turned out. In general, the students had a great time earning praise from our outdoor education instructors for their involvement, their willingness to try new things and their support of each other. One instructor even said that our students were more like country kids - a compliment in her eyes as country kids are generally less concerned with image, more likely to be willing to try outdoor challenges and make their own fun. I thought the campsite facilities were magnificent - there were so many great options for the kids from the Tarzan swing to the flying fox (described as "the thing that moves" by one of my class members) to the trampolines to the gym with its sports equipment, pooltables and air hockey table. If you are a South Australian teacher looking for camp options, I would highly recommend the site.

My co-teacher in this venture, Maria, and I pushed this as a chance for students to detach from their digitally enhanced world, coming to an agreement that mobile phones and Nintendo DS systems were not needed for the three days. We agreed that portable music players were fine to bring and that digital cameras were actively encouraged. We took two Flip cameras along as well and for the first time since 1998 when I first took a Sony Mavica and five boxes of floppy disks to our Flinders Ranges camp, I spent more time grabbing video footage in preference to digital stills. We're still not at the stage of this innovative school in New Zealand (tweet via hooked_on_think) but playing the assorted videos back on the classroom IWB will be a great way to relive the highlights and see how the camp was from different points of view. 

And eventually, I'll upload the video of myself on the giant swing...