For students at the school, camp is about much more than spending a few nights away from home.
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Each year, the senior students from Grades 3 to 6 head off for a camp, with the destination alternating between an outdoor adventure and a city experience.
This year, the students will head to 15 Mile Creek, where they will take part in activities including canoeing, orienteering, rock climbing, a flying fox, bike riding, nature walks, team challenges and a ropes course.
Senior room teacher Natalie Gaffy said the camps gave students the opportunity to try things they may not normally have access to and, in many cases, push themselves outside their comfort zones.
“We did have an overnight camping experience where the kids got to actually camp outside. That was interesting,” Natalie said.
“A lot of the kids were quite nervous about that, but once they did it, they loved it.”
For many students, it is also their first time spending several nights away from home, making the experience a big step for both children and their families.
While the outdoor camps provide plenty of adventure, the alternate years see students head to Melbourne for a very different experience.
The city camps give the country kids an opportunity to explore some of Melbourne’s major attractions, with past trips including visits to IMAX, the Arts Centre, the MCG, the Eureka Skydeck, the aquarium and the zoo.
Natalie said the city could be an overwhelming experience for students who did not regularly travel to Melbourne, but that was part of the value of the trip.
“There’s a lot of personal stretching and personal growth on those camps,” she said.
One of the advantages of attending a small school is that students can experience these adventures as a close-knit group.
“It’s interesting going away with a smaller group of kids,” Natalie said.
“It is like taking your family away for a week.”
The smaller group also means students can visit places and take part in experiences that can be more difficult to manage with a much larger cohort.
For Natalie, seeing students overcome their nerves and discover they are capable of more than they thought is one of the most rewarding parts of the experience.
Whether it is sleeping outside for the first time, tackling a ropes course or looking out over Melbourne from the Skydeck, the school’s camps are creating memories and confidence that students can carry with them long after they return home.
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