Over the course of semester 2, I participated in the Muir outdoor education course, which has taught me many things that I hope will help me in the future. In Muir, we focused on three main areas orienteering, archery, and snorkeling. Along with learning some life skills, I was able to grow my capabilities, by being physically and mentally challenged. During this, we had the opportunity to visit locations like Jorgensen, Manning Park, Piney Lakes, North Coogee, and Rottnest.
GOALS
When I first started doing Muir, I had two very specific goals in mind. One of my objectives was to learn the proper techniques for snorkeling and earn to hold my breath for longer. The other one was to take advantage of any chance that presented itself and make the most of my time. I utilized my love for the outdoors and design thinking skills to my advantage.
ORIENTEERING
I enjoyed the orienteering unit of the Muir course. To begin, I had to learn how to use a map this skill isn’t only useful in orienteering but will also be beneficial in future adventures and in an emergency. Learning how to read a map meant we needed to know the essential features. We used the acronym BOLTS to remember:
- B: Border
- O: Orientation
- L: Legend
- T: Title
- S: Scale
We then learned how to use a compass, which involves finding bearings, to go in the correct direction. In the first few weeks of the training, we played a lot of practice games, one of these activities was when we walked around the oval with cones and found bearings to make sure we were precise enough to go someplace else. Once Mrs. Stieber was convinced that we were capable, we were able to go to different parks. These include parks like Manning park and Piney Lakes, there were both easy courses and hard courses. We did these courses in groups of three so it allowed us to support one another. At the end of Term 3, every doing this course went to Jorgenson Park, which consists of harder courses in a more bushy area. Although it was difficult and my group and I got a bit lost on our first course, we got better.
ARCHERY
I’ve always enjoyed being outside and camping, so I believe archery would be a fantastic course for me to take. We had an archery instructor, Mary comes and teach us every week on Mondays and Thursdays, and occasionally our double on Tuesdays. During archery, I learned how to shoot a bow and aim. We were quite near to the aim when we started, and we recorded our results each time. From there, we progressively got further away from the target. Towards the end of the course, we got to take part in many challenges such as cloud shooting, blindfold shooting with assistance, and shooting to win chocolates. Overall archery was very fun, and Mary the instructor was so nice.
SNORKELING
Snorkeling was one of the activities we learned in Muir for 2022; starting at the end of term 3 we began to learn or improve our snorkeling skills. During the snorkeling course, my Muir class learned how to effectively swim with fins, dive with a snorkel and empty the water out after, clear our mask underwater, and equalize to clear water from our ears. We started learning in the pool but then got to visit Coogee. In the pool, we had to complete a swim test that was 14 laps but we also got to play many team-building games, to build our confidence in the water. Before you can snorkel you have to make sure that you are as safe as you can be in the water, we used the acronym SAFE SNORKEL. This stands for:
- S: Safety
- A: Accidents
- F: First Aid
- E: Emergency
- S: Sun
- N: Nutrition
- O: Ocean
- R: Reef
- K: Keep Safe
- E: Environment
- L: Leave no Trace
*snorkeling buddies*
I preferred this part of the course because, despite the fact that it was always cold in the water, I was able to get outside and explore underwater.
ROTTNEST CAMP
In Muir, there is a day trip to Rottnest Island, but this year it got changed and we got to stay there for two days and camp overnight. Despite the fact that it was cold, we still had a good time as we were spending time outdoors. During the camp, we got to snorkel at both The Basin and Little Parakeet Bay, complete an amazing race across the island and spend our free time with friends. To get to Rottnest we took the Sealink ferry, when we arrived there, we walked 3km to our first snorkeling spot Little Parakeet Bay.
At Little Parakeet Bay we got the opportunity to snorkel twice, some people didn’t do it both times because it was cold but I went both times. In the first round, we got to do a swim-through since there was an opening in the coral. Not everyone went through but I was so glad I did because there was a school of fish at the bottom and the coral was beautiful. For the first snorkel I was with Kyle, but for the second I was with Zoe and Salma.
The leave no trace emu bob was the second step of snorkeling. We need to leave no trace because we want to preserve the land we utilize for future generations of visitors. It’s also crucial to protect native animals, which we all appreciate. I set a goal for myself during this activity to pick up as much trash as I could carry. By staying in a small area, I was able to accomplish this rapidly. I discovered that the more trash I picked up, the more I was able to view. I found many small bits of plastic and foil left by previous people swimming there at the end of the emu bob.
Since we were staying overnight we got to tent at the campgrounds. It was a 2km walk back from Little Parakeet Bay to the campgrounds. When we got there we set up our tents and got changed into warmer clothing for the amazing race. Once everyone was ready Mr. Stevens explained the rules we got into groups and started. I was with Eliza, Ruby, Lara, and Jess. Because it was Halloween we got lollies from two houses, overall though it was very fun.
When we got back to camp, the other girls realized that they left their tent open, so a quokka had gotten in. We all had to figure out how to get the quokka out after it had entered and devoured Jess’s chips. After some free time for us to do as we pleased, we had a barbeque for supper.
The following morning, we got up and packed our tents and belongings so they could travel on the boat. After that, we had some free time till we had to leave to go snorkeling at the basin. It was a 0.4km walk that was enjoyable because we just got to talk with everyone. the basin was very nice because we got to see an octopus and the scenery was lovely.
At the Basin, the water was warmer which was good, but we only got to go in once since we had to leave at 1 pm. The coral was pretty and all different colors, and I also found a really nice shell. After my class came back there was an otional swim for anyone who wanted to do i but i chose to rinse of and dry downbefore we headed to the bakery.
Town was a 0.85km walk from the Basin. Before the ferry, we had one hour and thirty minutes to have lunch and unwind. We had the choice of Bakery, Subway, or Simmos. We then boarded the ship and headed back home.
LEAVE NO TRACE
When going camping or just traveling around the world, knowing how to leave no trace is essential. Leave no trace contains seven key concepts that aim to preserve the area you’re in as good as it was when you arrived, if not better. These are the guiding principles:
- Plan Ahead and Prepare
- Travel and Camp on Durable Surfaces
- Dispose of Waste Properly
- Leave what you Find
- Minimize Campfire Impacts
- Respect Wildlife
- Be Respectful of Others
We accomplished many of these procedures during the camp; for example, We took care not to drop any trash, and if you did, then we would clean it up so that it doesn’t harm the coral or any wildlife. We also showed respect for wildlife and others by not being too loud and not chasing, feeding, or following any of them. We completed an emu bob before leaving an area we used, this is when the entire group lines up tightly and moves forwards looking for any trash. This is an effective approach for collecting trash because it is difficult to miss any and a large area can be covered rapidly. We also set up our tents in the allocated spaces, not in areas where it could harm the plants.
CAPABILITIES
This elective required us to use the ASC fundamental skills to challenge our thoughts and explore new avenues of thought. We have to be well-organized, collaborative, innovative, curious, and communicative. These considerations aided in enjoying the course while helping us push our boundaries in order to learn new skills.
Taking part in the 2022 Muir – Outdoor Ed Course was an excellent opportunity to build on my capabilities. Different sections of the course challenge me with new thinking and allowed me to grow specific capabilities.
Teamwork
During the emu bob, we utilized the capability of teamwork as we were able to search a larger area for trash by creating a continuous line rather than working individually. This not only cut down on the time it took to scan the entire area but also ensured that we grabbed all of the trash we could see.
Effective Communication
During the course, effective communication was essential otherwise it wouldn’t have run as smoothly as it did. During the archery section we had to work as a team and communicate clearly with each other, otherwise, someone could have gotten seriously injured by the arrows. To figure this out, my group and I had to go about what was going on and do things like advising each other when we could collect or shoot the arrows.
Organization
The organization was key during my time in the Muir. You needed to know where you were going and what you had to bring, otherwise, you were not prepared and you could let your group down or just make it difficult for yourself. Snorkeling was part of the course where the organization was especially needed since you were working in pairs. You needed to remember to bring everything and have swimming gear prepared before the lesson so you wouldn’t let down your swimming buddy.
Problem Solving
During orienteering problem solving was essential. if you got lost you would have to try to find your way back so you could keep going. It was also useful during snorkeling, sometimes you would get to a dead end so you would have to figure out where to head next.
Taking part in the 2022 Muir – Outdoor Ed Course was an excellent opportunity to build on my capabilities. Different sections of the course challenge me with new thinking and allowed me to grow specific capabilities.
