PAWPAW'S MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS 63 - My Sixth Grade Week In The Woods

PAWPAW'S  MESSAGES TO MY GRANDSONS

Pawpaw loves Connor, Bryson and Archer!

I miss you guys so much. I hope you find these messages some day. I want you to know that I love you. I never left you. I was no longer allowed to visit you. I hope these messages help you know your Pawpaw and your family better. All my love forever, Pawpaw

My Sixth Grade Week In The Woods

   Sixth grade was a high point of my elementary school experience.  Why?  Because sixth grade was the year that one week of in-class instruction was replaced with a week at Camp Tippecanoe. It is pronounced Tip A Canoe. Someone had a sense of humor, it seems.

   Camp Tippecanoe is an amazing campground of 1100 acres on Clendening Lake with miles of hiking trails and plenty of rolling hills. After being bused to Camp Tippecanoe for the most magical week of school ever, we were split into small groups and assigned to the log cabins where we would be sleeping. The showers and toilet facilities were in another building. We all gathered in a huge dining hall for hot meals.

   Our week of classes in the forest included learning the skills we might need to survive if we were ever lost in the woods. One day, we were given a hook and a piece of fishng line and taught how to fish for food. One day, we were split into teams of five. We were given a length of twine and after some instruction we were left alone to gather fallen tree branches and try to build a shelter to protect us from the weather as if we were lost in the woods overnight.

   We also were taught archery. I already had a bow and arrows at home but it was fun learning again and shooting at targets attached to bales of hay. It was so much better than sitting in class and reading a book. We sang funny but educational songs about potential energy, kinetic energy, a sneaky snake and more. I wish that I could remember them all. There was a lot of laughter involved in singing them at camp.

   We also received firearm use and safety. We received a firearm safety certificate proving that we had received instruction. In Ohio, where practically every home had at least a shotgun, this class was perfectly relevant. For safety, we practiced our gun handling and shooting skills with BB guns. I remember firing from multiple stances. I shot my BB gun standing, kneeling down on one knee and also flat on my stomach. We aimed at targets attached to bales of hay.

   Our week of school at Camp Tippecanoe was education at its finest. We learned things that were relevant to real life. We experienced the wonder and beauty of nature first hand. We developed deeper relationships with our fellow students by being together twenty-four hours a day. I wish that every school student got the chance to experience the kind of week that I did at Camp Tippecanoe. I wish that I could go back in time and experience it all again.