Mohican

[patty harkenrider]

Was wondering what other parents think about the decision to cancel the Mohican Outdoor Program for the Lakewood City Schools effective this Fall.

[Jim O'Bryan]

Was wondering what other parents think about the decision to cancel the Mohican Outdoor Program for the Lakewood City Schools effective this Fall.

Not familiar with the program what is it about?


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[Robert Bobik]

Hi Patty, We are wondering why it is not being offered after this session. Was it Mohicans decision or Lakewood schools?

Jim, here is a link that describes Mohican Outdoor School. Our daughter went and had a great time. Very dated information, but it gives somewhat of an overview.
http://www.mohicanoutdoorschool.org/

[patty harkenrider]

The Mohican trip is a 3 day outdoor school at Mohican, in Loudonville, Ohio. The kids stay in cabins and do different activities and programs concerning the outdoors. It is a really neat program that schools have been doing for years. Ask around, just about any parent that grew up around here went as a 5th grader. The kids meet kids from other schools, and do things they can't in a school setting. A great opportunity, and one that is looked forward to by most students!
The reasons for the program being cancelled are as follows:
Not all kids go because of money.
Some parents don't want their kids staying overnight.
There are field trip opportunites close by that don't require strict scheduling and offer great programs.
And the Mohican program doesn't cover all the 5th grade standards as put forth by the state.
If kids can't afford it, the PTA's should be there for them. If parents don't want their kids to stay overnight, then that is on them. No reason to cancel the trip for all.
I know there are plenty of great trips near by, but field trips are few and far between. My daughter went on 1 this. The orchestra.
And as far as teaching to the standards. If that is all we are teaching our kids, we are in trouble.There is so much more to life than the state standards.

[patty harkenrider]

Bob-

Judging by the letter, I would have to say it was Lakewoods decision. Someone correct me if I am wrong.

Patty

[Danielle Masters]

I am not familiar with this program either. It isn't offered at Grant.

[Heidi Hilty]

Danielle,
Our daughter was in the GT program at Grant and the entire 4th/5th grade attended "School of the Outdoors" in 1994 or 1995. My son was in the GT programs at both Lincoln and Grant and they also attended in either 1997 or 1998. Can't say what happened with any of those schools since then but at the time, they were all participating. A terrific program from which the kids seemed to truly benefit.
Heidi

[Danielle Masters]

That's unfortunate Heidi, it does sound like a wonderful opportunity for the kids. I remember that growing up we went to sixth grade camp. I grew up in southern California and our camp was near the Palomar observatory. We hiked and sang and just had a lot of fun with our friends. I think that kids really should have the opportunity to do something similar and it's too bad the district and/or schools aren't doing any sort of camp experience any longer.

[Suzie Dean]

In Lakewood if I remember corectly, we do the 3 or 4 full day field trips to Look About Lodge instead of the over night camp trip. I was told from a fifth grade teacher that it was an expense thing and they do just as much in those couple of days as they would on the over night trip.
Our now eighth grader went on an over night camp trip in the fourth grade when we had lived in Rocky River. It was a wonderful experience for her and I would love it if they brought it back to Lakewood.

[marklingm]

I asked the Administration for some feedback on this topic. In response, the Administration suggests that parents who have concerns speak to their building principal as the principals can best explain the barriers experienced by families in their buildings and the reasons for the decision. I hope this helps.

[Danielle Masters]

suzie, thanks for posting about look about lodge. I went on one of the day trips with the kids and it was a lot of fun, cold but still a lot of fun.

[Dee Krupp]

I was able to send my daughter on the Mohican trip after only paying $20 thanks to the all the fundraisers. And this trip really isn't THAT expensive. I think $130 a child, at the most. While I realize not every family can swing that, there are measures to offset the cost and the whole program shouldn't be canned based on this issue.

Now the Washington Trip is another story. Neither of my girls participated in that trip because they don't give you any heads up on the fees until right before the deposit is due...and absolutely no fundraisers.

I'm glad my kids were able to participate in the Mohican trip. I hope the schools change their position and decide to continue it.

[Dave Mechenbier]

The Outdoor School at Mohican is a GREAT program. Our three oldest kids attended and all would say it was the highlight of their Lincoln days. I heard from our third grader that a petition of sorts was circulated on the school playground before the end of the school year. She thinks it was created by the fourth graders.

As a bonus (for me) I was honored to attend in 2007 as our youngest son's aid. I couldn't believe everything the kids were exposed to in a few short days. Sure most of it will never be tested on a state or federally mandated test, but when was the last time you were asked to name the atomic weights of the elements, used trig to solve a problem or diagram a sentence? There is so much more to learning than textbooks.

The kids worked as teams with students from other schools, were responsible to keep their dorms clean, given chores in the dining hall, animal pens etc. They even had some free time to spend in an all electronic FREE rec center. I wish I could have recorded the sights and sounds of all these kids playing ping pong, marble games, cards and just hanging out and talking . Heck they even improvised and made up their own activities.

I'm going to look for the materials from the school and if I can find them post some of the activities that were taught. I really doubt the same experience can be gained from a few day trips.

One more thing. The program only works when there are a number of dedicated teachers to attend with the kids. All from Lincoln fit that bill. They were great too.

I hope that this decision is reverseable, or at least the school is open to discussing it openly. This is an opportunity our daughter wants to have just as much as her brothers.

[Mary Breiner]

My kids all attended the Mohican program through Taft School. Taft would go every other school year and take all the fourth and fifth graders. They had fund raisers...like selling candy bars to help defray the costs. All three of my kids really loved it. It's only 2 nights away, but they did a lot. They went in the winter and in spite of the cold, they did most of their activities outdoors. So sorry to hear that they have discontinued this.

I have friends who have children at Taft and Hayes this year and they just went at the end of the school year. The reasons for stopping the program were all very vague. They don't seem to mind when gifted programs take trips when the rest of the school stays behind. But I guess if all 5th graders can't go on this trip that seems to be considered unfair.


Mary Breiner