Naure and Youth at Risk ~ Part Three

I sometimes find that the adults are the problem, no right no wrong, simply because they come with their conditions attached and they experience the kids in a different way for example. This is Johnny watch him he will play you up all day, he is completely out of control and unmanageable.


In my experience when you are out in nature with the kids the reverse is true, once you get them over the shock and horror of being in the woods with all the creepy crawlies etc. One day we had a group of boys one of which had been pointed out to us as being the one to watch. How right the teacher was but not for the reasons he thought.


Charlie was his name and we were doing Bow Drill with them during the briefing which my partner was giving Charlie pipes up, "How are we going to get fire in the rain"? My partner replied you are going to show us "But I do not know how to do this" Our response was that we are going to help them to remember how to do it, "What he said, I have never done it before" don't worry all will become clear was our reply.


Well suffice to say Charlie was the only one to get fire that day and in the rain as well, what an achievement, her was one happy boy. The teacher came up to us at the end of the day and said "I am sorry about Charlie, I won't bring him back again, he is already exclude from school except for Thursday mornings".


As one both I and my partner turned to face the teacher and in one voice we said Charlie is the very one we want back, can you not see what he has achieved today...

Nature and Youth at Risk ~ Part Two

Was it because he was here against his will, was it because he believed no one would give him the time because he could not read or write or was it because he was always told he was unless and was a no good for nothing? Whatever it was he would not get involved, refusing to take part in everything.

The day started at 09:00 and ended at 16:00, time was running out and I was not about to give up on him, so I sent the group off with my partner to play some nature awareness games while I stayed with him and a member of staff.Sitting on the log, he was silent as I tried to encourage him to try his hand at the Bow Drill, I reminded him that no one was around to see him, after sometime he agreed to make an effort and he half heartily tried to bow from the bench he was on. I suggested it would be better if he tried it on the ground, during his attempts at bowing I kept saying to him that it was OK to ask for help.

He did not respond to this, in the end I asked him if he would like me to help him, if he would like me to show him how you can bow in tandem, he agreed and so I got down on the ground with him. We bowed long and hard, the air was damp but we kept going, time was running out for us, the end of the day had come. However we were so close to getting a coal, I extended the time a bit. Offering further encouragement while the rest of the group watched we started to get smoke, boy did we get smoke lots of it. Unfortunately we did not get fire and the day had come to an end and the kids had to go. I shook his hand and gave him lots of positive reinforcement by summarising what he had achieved and how close he was to getting fire the way our ancestors did and how there were very, very few people in the world could what he had just done.

Some days later we received feedback from the organisers, at the end of their two week course with the kids (who were all excluded from school), the only feedback he gave them about the course was a wonderful drawing he did of himself doing the Bow Drill, my partner, myself and Merlin my Eagle Owl and of course there was a fire with plenty of flames coming from it.

I found this very interesting and encouraging in that while we did not get fire on the day, a part of him believes he can do it and that for me bolds well for his future. I can only trust that he has found his way safely in life and that the power of the bow drill and the fire will give him the encouragement he needs in times of trouble.

Swift as a Swallow...

Whilst out driver training one day in Germany I found a swallow roost in a maize field, I contacted my German friends to let them know where it was. And a few nights later we all went out to set up the mist nets in readiness for when the swallows would come to roost, the tape recorder was placed in the middle of the field which was boxed in by nets on all four sides, it was a small field.

All five of us then stepped back to the road that ran parallel to the field, we had a drink and bite to eat while waited for the swallows to do their thing. As the swallows started to come into roost we prepared ourselves for action by lining the road, each with our own area of net to work on.

Suddenly they all took off again moving as one, this could only mean that there was a bird of prey close by, as we looked around to see what it was, I got a shock as a Hobby flew at a fast rate of knots between my legs, it swooped up and reached out for a swallow which it duly caught.

I was amazed and had never experienced this before, a bird of prey using us as cover in order to get closer to its prey without being observed.

Nature is just quite wonderful...

Photo: Clive Newcombe

Nature and youth at risk. "I was at first sceptical..."

How does nature and wilderness-living-skills affect our youth of today. Here is some feedback from a one day course Hannah and I ran together when we were Natural Pathways. I think you will find the letter speaks for it's self.

Diana Packer
Opportunities Plus
Kent


TO WHOM THIS MAY CONCERN,

My name is Diana Packer; I am a Team Leader with ‘Opportunities Plus’. This is a programme funded by the ‘European Social fund’ and the ‘Learning Skills Council’. The program focuses on building Confidence, Self Esteem and Motivation towards a positive personal progression for these Young People. Progression may include Basic/Life skills, further Training or Employment.

When hearing about ‘Natural Pathways’, we as team leaders were slightly apprehensive about taking our groups into an environment that encourages people to engage once again with their natural survival instincts. However, it didn’t take us long to realise that this activity and environment was exactly what we as team leaders were trying to achieve as a ‘Learning Experience’ for these Young People that (It was a day to remember).

With this in mind I will try to share just some examples of the many experiences that I have observed during one of ‘Natural Pathways’ activity days. Due to the dampness of the day, I was informed that lighting a fire could be a time consuming task for these Young People, however it was not impossible with time and effort.

Having been shown how to create embers with a Bow Drill, some Young People gave up after a short period of time, however, a small group continued. Hannah’s encouragement and further instruction towards perseverance was highlighted when they achieved their goal. “This small group actively encouraged each other to carry on, once achieving a glowing fire, this group of Young People were held in high esteem by the rest of the team. (This affected the group dynamics as a result)”

Once highlighting this incident towards the group, on our return journey back to the Centre, the remarkable effects of encouragement towards positive rather than negative natural growth emphasised the ability ‘that each of these Young People could achieve their aims and objectives facilitated by positive encouragement’. One Young Person even went on to say that. “This experience was better than the buzz of Burglary”.

Hannah’s ability to engage with these Young People is an asset that enhances her natural teaching qualities. Hannah’s natural skill of ‘emphasis on the positive rather than the negative self-attributes’, encourages confidence, dynamics and exploration of the ‘inner self’ which will facilitate a positive personal progression for these Young People. Encouraging them to explore their personal capabilities and their natural Survival instinct helps these Young People begin to trust adults within their environment, which in turn enhances confidence and self-belief for many of these Young People.

Geoffrey’s ability to engage with Young People became very apparent when ‘Boundaries’ were being challenged. (These Young People have perhaps very little structure within their lives some see ‘Boundaries’ as something to constantly challenge or kick against). Geoffrey’s patience and empathic understanding encouraged them to look towards personal progression rather than the negativity, which could be felt within the team as a whole when asked to accomplish a task.

Geoffrey’s positive support and encouragement emphasises ‘a need to succeed’ within working with these Young People. Drug/substance abuse is widely used within this ‘Youth Culture’ and is seen as ‘Cool’. When questioning Geoffrey about ‘Drug Culture’ (a misconception of the Young Person is that Geoffrey’s long hair implies drug use).

The Young Person began to take in a discussion of ‘harm Drugs/substance abuse can be to your body and the effects they can cause, when to actually ‘get back to nature’ can give you all the buzz you need without all these drugs. For instance, over hearing one Young Person describe their feelings, after an activity called ‘The Drum Stalk’, they described the experience as ‘better than being on Drugs’.

The Drum Stalk is an activity where the team divide into pairs, one will wear a blindfold whilst the other will guide their partner with the sound of a drum and their support, this activity enhances trust and relying on others, confidence and self-reliance.

I was at first sceptical of whether this activity would achieve the required affect for these Young People, however as I previously mentioned, this activity definitely achieved what it set out to achieve. Geoffrey and Hannah's ability to engage, encourage trust and support these Young People towards a ‘Positive progressional insight’ is not an easy task to achieve in just one day’s activity, however it has proved to be achievable and a highly enjoyable day which is discussed throughout the whole ‘Opportunities Plus’ programme.

Both Geoffrey and Hannah bring the male and female aspect into their workshop, providing a balanced role reversible, for example string making is often seen by the young men to be for women until they learn that without these skills they would not be able to string their bows set their traps etc. This is only a small example of ‘the natural teaching abilities’ that Natural Pathways facilitates towards our groups of Young People, however, the effects this has towards their personal positive progression is immeasurable.

Natural Pathways has become a firm favourite with all Team Leaders within the ‘Opportunities Plus’ programme. Therefore I would highly recommend this activity for anyone who would like to ‘get in tune with ones positive self’.

Please do not hesitate to contact me at the above address for any further information in which I may be of help.


Yours Sincerely,

Diana Packer ~ Team Leader ~ ‘Opportunities Plus’