Re: [Paddlewise] Teaching Kids: Looking for sources

Jack,
this is probably a longer reply than you wanted but I have taken kids on
week long sea kayaks trips on a number of occasions and put together the
following notes. These notes were in  the form of a letter to the other
leaders. Also it was a Christian camp so some of the ideas refect that.
keep what you like and delete the rest.

Bob

THOUGHTS ON SAFETY
Safety begins with the leadership
Leadership roles ;
-Decide how  decisions will be made among leaders? (see Thoughts on
Leadership
below)

-Decide who has what responsibilities and how will those responsibilities be
shared.

-Establish a willingness to listen between the adult leaders and adults /
youth. intend to use some problem solving games/activities when we first
gather the group together to work on group building and communication)

-Establish  early on that our concern for the safety of every one on the
trip means that rules will be enforced.  I'm not suggesting we be dictators
but my experience is that we  need to establish that on the water and in
camp  when it comes to safety that our word is law. Also in an emergency
such as a capsize if we have already established ourselves as leaders we
will have cooperation  rather than confusion.

-Establish that decisions concerning how far to paddle and in what
conditions must be based not on the capabilities of the leaders but on the
limitations of the youth.

Trip format
-Keep the group together on the water is important in the event of:
 medical problems
 weather change
 personality conflicts
 emergency
 change in plans or route
 capsize
 This means one adult runs lead boat  and one adult runs "sweep" (last
boat). This will insure the proper pace and direction plus keep the group
closer together. It also prevents the strongest boat from getting too far
ahead and the weakest from dropping too far behind.
 The leaders need to chose paddle partners for the entire group in order to
balance both strengths and personalities.
 We need to establish on water signals. Between the noise of the wind and
the
distances voices cannot always be heard. Signals either with whistles or
paddles can be made to communicate:
stop
go/catch up
medical emergency
wildlife sighting
go ashore/bathroom break
recheck your course
group the boats together (raft up)


COVENANTS
Be Christ like to one another
 no name calling
 no put downs
 Do not mess with other peoples gear / no pratical jokes with people’s gear.
 leave someone else’s snacks alone

Basic paddling covenants (rules):
Wear your lifevest at all times on the water
Stay together
Cooperate with your paddle partner
Do your share of the paddling
In the event of a capsize stay with the boat
Do not pursue/harass the  wildlife

Rules of conduct on land
Stay together, do not wander into the woods, this is bear country!
Designated bathroom areas will be assigned male and female.


THOUGHTS ON LEADERSHIP
 The old school thought on trip leadership was that what ever the most
experienced person said was how things would be done and that was that.
There are now many wilderness graves marking this philosophy.
  I discovered several years ago a  method that works better  in situations
where
the leader all have a certain level of expertise. When confronted with a
major decision the leaders gather to first analyze the situation and then
begin to propose options. After discussing the various options the group
then chooses the best option. This simple method works well provided  that
nobody brings their egos along on the trip. In otherwords it does not matter
who came up with the idea what matters is that we come up with the best
idea. This decision making process obviously requires mature leadership and
good communication. This system does however need to also recognize that in
certain areas the decision needs to rest on the person with the most
experience. For example medical decisions need to be made by the person with
the most medical training
or a rescue needs to be handled under the direction of the person with the
most
experience.
 Unfortunately in sea-kayaking one does not always have the luxury of
standing on shore around a campfire making decisions. At times decisions
sometimes need to be made quickly, for example if the weather takes a sudden
turn for the worst or you awake to see the nose of a bear nuzzling your
tent. The best way to handle these decisions is for the leaders to  prior to
the trip have a lot of "what if " conversations. What if the weather turns
bad, what if a bear comes into camp, what if we are swallowed by a whale?

EMERGENCY PROCEDURES
Capsize-(we will practice this in the SJC pool)
-Immediately signal all leaders.
-Insure that the capsize paddlers are out of the boat and are o.k.(be
careful not to hit them with your boat, in waves and swells this is easy to
do.)
-Watch for signs of hypothermia
-Right the kayak.
-secure rescue rigging
-hold boat while paddlers climb back in ( it may be necessary for one team
to stabilize the boat while another team physically assists them in.)
-assist them in bailing the kayak and reattaching spray skirts
-get them moving as soon as possible (this will warm them up.)
-keep watching for signs of hypothermia
-survey for floating gear (Murphy's law says only vital equipment floats
away.)


BEARS
First let us discourage people "crying wolf" otherwise when a real bear
shows up
everyone will think it is a joke until it is too late.
If the bear is far away quietly let everyone know so we can all watch it.
If the bear is close yell 'bear' and have everyone make a lot of noise.
(kids are usually  good at this)
Only an adult may handle the bear spray .
Do not run from the bear/stand your ground and talk/yell at it.
If the bear charges hit the ground and roll up into a ball with your hands
covering your neck and repeat after me ,Our Father who art in Heaven.....

SEA KAYAK TRAINING
  First we need to establish early that yes this trip is about see Glacier
Bay and
sea-kayaking but more importantly this camp is about experiencing God in the
midst of God's creation. We should do vespers/bible study the first night in
Sitka and every night on the water.
 The second  step will be to teach the youth that sea-kayaking is group
activity and not a solo endeavor. Each paddling team needs to work together
and we all need to work together as a group. In the past I have used
initiative games to built cooperation, communication and trust. These games
will also help the youth and leaders get to know one another better.
 The third step will be to establish safety covenants for land and water.
 The fourth step is to teach paddling skills.

POOL SESSION
At the Sheldon Jackson pool we need to teach
How to enter and exit a Kayak
The basic paddle strokes
How to do a wet exit
Practice  rescue techniques
Hopefully this will begin to give them some confidence with the boats.

OPEN WATER PRACTICE
 A short run with unloaded boats should begin to give the youth the feel of
sea-kayaking. Also it will give us the opportunity to do more instruction in
paddling technique and safety. At this time the adult leaders can begin to
evaluate the paddling skills and temperaments of the youth and begin to
select paddle partners





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