DVFriends Adventure Learning goes to Galapagos Islands
The ABLE (AdventureBased Learning Experiences) program has been a unique aspect of DVFriends’ upper school (grades 9-12) curriculum since the school’s founding 35 years ago.
The program enhances critical skills and self-concepts such as self-esteem, confidence, teamwork and leadership that contribute to success within academic classes and outside of the school environment.
The courses are group oriented, experiential programs that are customized in-house for DVFriends students. Some are extended trips such as sailing in the Chesapeake Bay or Bahamas, hiking the Inca trails in Peru, bike touring in Maryland and hiking or cross-country skiing in upstate New York.
Others are a series of individual days closer to home, including rock climbing, trail biking and local ropes courses.
Most ABLE trips are covered by tuition, however, there are additional costs for trips with air travel. Need-based financial aid is available for school trips that involve an additional fee. One ABLE course is required for graduation.
The program debuted a brand new trip to the Galapagos Islands over winter break this year. Ten DVFriends students and two teachers spent a week traveling to the area and exploring the highlands.
They saw giant tortoises in their natural habitat, explored lava tunnels and took a boat to San Cristobal, where they snorkeled and saw a sea lion colony. The trip included an environmental science component, which chaperone and upper-school science teacher Megan Duntzee developed and began teaching before their trip. Once they arrived in the Galapagos, they were seeing and experiencing in person what they had learned about in the classroom.
The trip was an incredible experience for the students. The natural beauty and environmental diversity of the area made a deep impression on the students, and, for many, drove home the importance of conservation and environmental protection.
Upon their return, the students also talked about the bonds they made with each other by stepping outside their comfort zones and sharing this unique experience.
When asked why the school chose the Galapagos and what was most memorable about the trip, ABLE Director Ken Sinapius said: “Students experiencing wildlife in such abundance installs a sense of global citizenship that is hard to instill any other way. Why should we avoid single use plastic water bottles? Why repurpose, reuse and recycle? Why do we need to protect wildlife habitat?”
“Our students have a much better answer to these questions after this experience,” he said. “Add to that the Spanish language immersion component, that brings home the need to learn a second language, and you can’t get much more impact in a seven-day experience.
“The students were almost as excited as their teachers, and that speaks to how remarkable the students thought each day’s experience was. Being able to snorkel in an area where sea turtles are abundant.
Having juvenile sea lions swim up to the group and seem to be as curious about us as we were of them was remarkable for the students. There were so many life changing experiences that these students will never forget.”
DVFriends serves bright students (grades 1-12) with dyslexia, dysgraphia, dyscalculia, memory and processing difficulties, ADHD and executive functioning challenges. Our Quaker community recognizes and honors the inherent worth of all people. Students embrace the courage to try, establish the confidence to reach farther, and build resilience to succeed.
For more information, visit dvfriends.org or call 610-640-4150.