Education United States Project #8945

Change the Trajectory of Our Youth

by Hidden Villa

Project Report | May 11, 2015
Youth Become Farmers at Hidden Villa

By Farm Academy | Hidden Villa

Lessons in our Outdoor Classroom

Each summer our Youth Development team takes some time to work with youth in our community who are interested in becoming farmers for the season. These youth take on the responsbilities of our farm crew, learning about the stages of vegetable, fruit, and flower production. They learn various techniques of soil augmentation, irrigation, planting, training plant growth, pest management, harvesting and culinary preparations during morning crew work and afternoon experiential workshops. This opportunity is especially valuable as it gives young people the opportunity to learn where their food comes from and builds on the empowerment that comes from raising food, cooking it, and nourishing themselves and the people that they love.

Some of these young people go on to work in urban or home gardens, some continue on to study earth science or biology in college, and some simply return back to school in the fall with a greater appreciation for food, farmers, farm laborers, and our natural environment. Each of these paths is different, yet important for our future generations to hold on to the knowledge of the richness of our culinary palates.

Thank you for supporting our work to engage youth in our farm and wilderness space!

Check out this blog with updates from our program last year :https://hvfarmacademy.wordpress.com. There are still spaces availiable in this program and if you would like more information, email apprentice@hiddenvilla.org.

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Jan 30, 2015
Trying New Things

By Ephraim Abocado | Hidden Villa Youth Development Intern

Ephraim (Center front) with Youth Development Team

As a Youth Development intern and a youth worker I often tell the youth and students to 1) have fun 2) have supportive language and actions and 3) try new things as our agreement during their time at Hidden Villa. However, I recently questioned myself, “Have I been trying new things lately? Have I been using supportive language and actions in my life? Most importantly am I having fun?” As I reflect on my mid-year experiences and opportunities of growth here at Hidden Villa, I realize that I have how much I have been trying new things, consciously utilizing supportive language and actions, and undoubtedly having lots of fun.

1) Have Fun. I see myself as a very serious and concentrated hard worker when it comes to scheduling programs and putting together activities and initiatives for the coming youths. I always try sprinkle in some calm and fun when it comes to the projects and programs that come my way. We are definitely serious about the work that we do here in youth development but we cannot always be serious, we always try our best to have fun whether it be a long stressful day or challenging opportunities are ahead of us, we HAVE FUN!

2) Supportive language and actions can get you anywhere and everywhere you go. I became more conscious about my body language and the words I use when I became part of the Hidden Villa Community in June. We support each other, hand-in-hand, in challenging ourselves to develop the kind of community that we want. I definitely did not notice that I have been using supportive language and actions even before I came to Hidden Villa. I just became more aware and deliberate of these things. I believe that I am a better mentor and educator to the youth when I fully embody and engage with these agreements.

3) Trying New Things. Every day I try to step outside my comfort zone to grow and develop new skills as an aspiring educator and individual. I take on projects and programs to be able to fully engage myself in my community and provide my fullest capacity to the youth and students that come to Hidden Villa. Puzzles and problems become great opportunities for us to develop our skills and become autonomous thinkers and moral agents of the society that we live in. As educators, leaders and mentors we propose trying new things to their level of comfortability allowing themselves the opportunity to grow and learn a lot about themselves and their communities. Trying new things is an opportunity for us to understand each other and to become conscious of the impacts we have, big or small in the communities and people that we serve.

Thus, we have fun, enforce positive language and actions, and try new things in proving a supportive, cooperative and reflective environment for the students, youths and adults to be inspired for a just and sustainable future.

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Nov 12, 2014
Meet Ephraim, our new Youth Development Intern

By Ephraim Abocado | Time spent in Community and Nature

The Chickens are a Hit!

Here in the world of Youth Development a lot of what is happening is in preparation for our upcoming programs. I often find myself learning new curricula activities and team building initiatives. For the most part I create new curricula relative to the different themes that we teach about such as; Farms to Food, Identity, Social Justice and the Environment. I always feel excited when I look at the calendar of events and find programs scheduled the following week

Recently, we hosted a group of students from Sequoia High School in Redwood City who are on the health care track and they had a wonderful time here at Hidden Villa. They got to interact with the different animals in the farm, challenged themselves on the Ropes Course Challenge, and developed their communication, listening and cooperation skills through team building initiatives.

Each student got the chance to interact with the animals on the farm. They tried new things like feeding the chickens, and felt the different textures of animal fur or feathers and bodies. They had to slow down and relax if they wanted to catch a chicken. This level of comfortability allowed them to present the chicken to their peers. Their excitement was contagious as they taught each other how to hold the chicken so that it felt safe and cared for. When I asked their favorite part of the day almost all of them said catching the layer chickens.

The students were really inspired by the connection that they made with the animals, nature and their peers. I think that they left with stronger relationships to each other. They really enjoyed their time here that they asked their teacher when they are coming back to camp. We are looking forward to seeing these students soon to experience camping and exploring more of the wilderness with some fun!

Ephraim is Hidden Villa's Youth Development intern. This past summer he served as a Hidden Villa camp counselor and says that he was impacted by the social and environmental justice concepts that came up in reflections and activities. He's excited to develop his skills as an educator this coming year and explore some of his passions.

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