Outdoor Education
This year, we have a record number of trips planned to enrich your student’s educational experiences. We believe that education is not confined to the four walls of the classroom, and from K through 12; our sequential Outdoor Education Program offers a wide variety of experiences. Whether your student spends an overnight at our own Cedar Lake Camp, travels to AstroCamp, sea kayaks in the Channel Islands, explores Washington D.C. and Williamsburg, or visits east coast colleges —each experience provides a safe, inspiring, and holistic educational experience.
During these adventures, friendships are forged, memories are made, and students come back taller, more confidant, and ready to be their best selves. As a consequence, student participation on these trips is essential for their intellectual, physical, and social development. All trips are designed with safety as the primary concern and even when we contract with experienced outdoor companies, all trips will be chaperoned by Pilgrim faculty. So fasten your seatbelts as Pilgrim School students hit the road!
Elementary School trips:
5th grade students will participate in a Pilgrim right of passage to AstroCamp from Monday, April 30th, through Friday, May 4th. Sure to be one of the highlights of a students’ elementary experience, AstroCamp gives students a hands-on experience in science education, group dynamics, and problem solving. For more information, visit www.astrocamp.org and watch your 5th grader’s jaw drop! (Detailed information will be mailed home in February.)
Middle School trips:
6th grade students will travel to Catalina Island from Monday, April 16th through Friday, April 20th.
6th Grade
Where: Catalina Island
Dates: Monday, April 16th through Friday, April 20th
Cost: $695.00 Deadline: Friday, January 27th 2012 to turn in money to the front office, Mrs. Coley or Mrs. Gasca.
7th grade students will camp in Joshua Tree National Park from Monday, March 26th through Friday, March 30th. Under the guidance of Peak Performance instructors, students will learn how to pitch tents, cook food, navigate with a compass, and study the stars under a crystal desert sky. They will also learn the fundamentals of day hiking, rock climbing, and wilderness safety. All tents, stoves, and food will be provided.
7th Grade
Where: Joshua Tree
Dates: Monday, March 26th through Friday, March 30th
Cost: $695.00
Deadline: Friday, January 27th 2012 to turn in money to the front office or Mr. Molnar.
8th grade students will coordinate their study of United States History with a trip to Washington D.C. World Strides—an organization with decades of experience leading trips to D.C.—will run this trip along with Pilgrim faculty. As of now, students will leave on Tuesday, May 15th and return on Saturday, May 19th. These dates are flexible due to scheduling through the Smithsonian, which has not confirmed the exact dates yet. A notice will be sent out to all 8th grade parents and guardians as soon as the dates are confirmed. They will visit the Air and Space Museum, the Natural History Museum, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, and other hallowed places on the national mall. They will explore Ford’s Theatre (site of the 1865 Lincoln Assassination), enjoy Colonial Williamsburg and Jamestown, tour Mt. Vernon, and visit Arlington National Cemetery—including the eternal flame at Kennedy’s gravesite. Parents and guardians should sign up their students on the website. Here is the link: http://www.smithsonianstudenttravel.com/parents.aspx Parents and guadians will need to enter tour number: 1093508 to enroll. Please feel free to email Hans Molnar at hmolnar@pilgrim-school.org if you have any questions or diffiulties registering.
High School trips:
High School Retreat: All 9th through 12th graders will travel up to Camp Cedar Lake for a winter snow adventure from Thursday, January 26th through Saturday, January 28th. This will be a chance to forge friendships, discuss the challenges of adolescence, build snowmen, and escape the pressures of high school life. (Detailed information was mailed home in November.)
9th grade students will participate in a Retreat at Camp Cedar Lake from Sunday, October 16th through Thursday, October 20th. Pilgrim faculty will lead students through a week of self-discovery by exploring the social & academic challenges of high school, gender differences, interpersonal communication, stereotypes, and personal growth through service. Students will also “give back” through camp service projects and participate in High and Low Ropes course led by professionals from Lodestone Adventures. (Detailed information was mailed home in late August.)
10th and 11th grade students will be investigating some of our nation’s premier colleges and universities on an East Coast College Tour run by Campus Excursions from Sunday, October 16th through Friday, October 21st. As selecting a college is arguably the most important decision facing your student at this age, we have developed this trip as a key component of Pilgrim’s comprehensive and individualized College Counseling Program. By the end of this trip, our sophmores and juniors will have a more comprehensive understanding of the types of schools that may match their interests. We will be visiting colleges in Boston, New York, and Washington D.C.
