A few essential quotes/ideas that help guide our learning:
We'll protect what we love, but we cannot love what we do not know.
"We do not learn from experience, we learn from reflecting on experience." - John Dewey
We are part of an ecosystem, not masters of it.
"No significant learning takes place without a significant relationship." - James Comer
We'll protect what we love, but we cannot love what we do not know.
"We do not learn from experience, we learn from reflecting on experience." - John Dewey
We are part of an ecosystem, not masters of it.
"No significant learning takes place without a significant relationship." - James Comer
ROAMS aims to provide students with varied experiences that will enable them to develop a meaningful relationship with the land, with their peers, and with the content in our studies. We do this by exploring and experiencing the beauty of the land and water found in Treaty 7 territory. We view the course content through the lens of the outdoors, our desire to contribute to a healthy community, and our role as environmental stewards.
Essential Skills
The Conference Board of Canada surveyed 400 Alberta employers and developed a list of essential skills that they desire in their employees - the top four are: 1) Critical thinking and problem solving skills, 2) Communication Skills, 3) Being adaptable, 4) Working with others (Kachulis, 2019). These are skills we look forward to developing through meaningful and authentic experiences. These desirable skills, and many others, are skills that can be naturally fostered when significant time is spent outdoors, especially during the planning, preparing, execution, and reflection phases of overnight trips.
Will students still study core courses?
In this program, these students will encounter all the same curricular objectives as all other 10th graders in Alberta - these students will be prepared for 11th grade and beyond! Additionally, as we meet the program of studies outcomes from the ELA 10 and Social Studies 10 curricula through our outdoor experiences, we’ll develop the essential skills that employers/universities seek in their applicants. Our advantage will be that we have the flexibility and natural occurrences where our learning will be naturally connect between subject areas; meaning, our ELA, Social Studies, Outdoor Education, PE, CALM, and Photography/Video courses will naturally have significant overlap that we will embrace and will allow us to dive deeper into the content. Due to all subjects being instructed by Mr. Talen and students remaining with the same group of students, we will have tremendous flexibility. This means that we won’t be controlled by a bell every 77 minutes and that students will not miss classes for our many field trips!
So, how does it all work?
This program will run during all of Semester Two and will follow the same calendar schedule as the rest of Cochrane High. After completing this semester, students will receive credits for 10th grade ELA (5), Social (5), PE (5), Outdoor Education (5), CALM (3), Photography (3-5). During the first semester, students will take regular classes at CHS in science and math and various options they choose. Students enrolled in J-Block courses will continue these courses for the remainder of the year (Band, Art, Musical Theatre, Leadership, etc) and could finish their 10th grade year with over 60 credits (100 needed to graduate if you're playing the credit game...)! We’ll be out of the school building often on trips to various natural areas in Alberta, most of these will be during the school day (9:00am-3:40pm). The students will also plan and participate in several overnight trips - these will take place during the school week. The cost of this experiential course will be apox. $1200 - this will cover all travel, food for overnight trips and many day trips, a ROAMS hoodie, accommodations, and service providers for the semester - there will be no additional fees for the semester. If there were to be a surplus, funds will be returned to the families. Please let us know if finances are a barrier for your child’s participation in this course. (And if you're interested in helping us reduce this cost, please see our support us page!)
What type of student would fit best in this program?
This program is open to anyone! From someone who has no experience in the outdoors to seasoned outdoor students. Likewise, in terms of academics, we’re looking for a diverse student population; just as we would find in any other class at CHS. The only expectations are that the student is interested/excited about what ROAMS offers, is curious, is willing to try something different, and willing to embrace frustrating/difficult situations when they arise (this does happen when we're with the same people all day every day!).
Please note that this is not an outdoor only school. We do spend significant time indoors (especially in the winter months) when it is most practical for completing our course work with the use of computers, warmth, desks, etc. This is one aspect of the challenges students will embrace through ROAMS; all day with the same students and same teacher and often in the same classroom.
Kachulis, E. (2019, June). Building Skills Connection Series - Perspectives of Alberta Employers. Retrieved Feb 11, 2020, from https://www.conferenceboard.ca/docs/default-source/education/23091_albertaemployers_rpt.pdf?sfvrsn=184b4b13_2&AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1
Essential Skills
The Conference Board of Canada surveyed 400 Alberta employers and developed a list of essential skills that they desire in their employees - the top four are: 1) Critical thinking and problem solving skills, 2) Communication Skills, 3) Being adaptable, 4) Working with others (Kachulis, 2019). These are skills we look forward to developing through meaningful and authentic experiences. These desirable skills, and many others, are skills that can be naturally fostered when significant time is spent outdoors, especially during the planning, preparing, execution, and reflection phases of overnight trips.
Will students still study core courses?
In this program, these students will encounter all the same curricular objectives as all other 10th graders in Alberta - these students will be prepared for 11th grade and beyond! Additionally, as we meet the program of studies outcomes from the ELA 10 and Social Studies 10 curricula through our outdoor experiences, we’ll develop the essential skills that employers/universities seek in their applicants. Our advantage will be that we have the flexibility and natural occurrences where our learning will be naturally connect between subject areas; meaning, our ELA, Social Studies, Outdoor Education, PE, CALM, and Photography/Video courses will naturally have significant overlap that we will embrace and will allow us to dive deeper into the content. Due to all subjects being instructed by Mr. Talen and students remaining with the same group of students, we will have tremendous flexibility. This means that we won’t be controlled by a bell every 77 minutes and that students will not miss classes for our many field trips!
So, how does it all work?
This program will run during all of Semester Two and will follow the same calendar schedule as the rest of Cochrane High. After completing this semester, students will receive credits for 10th grade ELA (5), Social (5), PE (5), Outdoor Education (5), CALM (3), Photography (3-5). During the first semester, students will take regular classes at CHS in science and math and various options they choose. Students enrolled in J-Block courses will continue these courses for the remainder of the year (Band, Art, Musical Theatre, Leadership, etc) and could finish their 10th grade year with over 60 credits (100 needed to graduate if you're playing the credit game...)! We’ll be out of the school building often on trips to various natural areas in Alberta, most of these will be during the school day (9:00am-3:40pm). The students will also plan and participate in several overnight trips - these will take place during the school week. The cost of this experiential course will be apox. $1200 - this will cover all travel, food for overnight trips and many day trips, a ROAMS hoodie, accommodations, and service providers for the semester - there will be no additional fees for the semester. If there were to be a surplus, funds will be returned to the families. Please let us know if finances are a barrier for your child’s participation in this course. (And if you're interested in helping us reduce this cost, please see our support us page!)
What type of student would fit best in this program?
This program is open to anyone! From someone who has no experience in the outdoors to seasoned outdoor students. Likewise, in terms of academics, we’re looking for a diverse student population; just as we would find in any other class at CHS. The only expectations are that the student is interested/excited about what ROAMS offers, is curious, is willing to try something different, and willing to embrace frustrating/difficult situations when they arise (this does happen when we're with the same people all day every day!).
Please note that this is not an outdoor only school. We do spend significant time indoors (especially in the winter months) when it is most practical for completing our course work with the use of computers, warmth, desks, etc. This is one aspect of the challenges students will embrace through ROAMS; all day with the same students and same teacher and often in the same classroom.
Kachulis, E. (2019, June). Building Skills Connection Series - Perspectives of Alberta Employers. Retrieved Feb 11, 2020, from https://www.conferenceboard.ca/docs/default-source/education/23091_albertaemployers_rpt.pdf?sfvrsn=184b4b13_2&AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1