By Daniel Chmielewski | Volunteer and Public Relations Manager
Thank you for continuing to support Hidden Villa’s Youth Development and Summer Camp Programs. This fall season has been lively and full of new experiences and your support has been a big part of our success. At the beginning of the school year (August), the Youth Development and Summer Camp staff was recertified as Challenge Course Facilitators, enabling them to design and provide programs that challenge students and campers in new ways. A new, big focus within the curriculum is around social emotional learning and being outdoors provides us with the space to give teens a way to interact with each other socially and emotionally. Here’s a look into one of our partnership programs from this fall season.
During the current school year, Hidden Villa worked with students from Redwood High School in Redwood City, CA that participate in the REAL program. The Redwood Environmental and Academic Leadership group’s coordinator and teacher, Mr. B, had this to say about his students’ experience, “REAL’s partnership with Hidden Villa is truly a cornerstone for our program’s success. It allows students to experience concepts and themes in a non-traditional educational setting – this is quintessential for many of our student’s success since the mainstream educational system has failed them as a rule.”
Mr. B continued on to say, “Hidden Villa’s compassionate teaching and mastery of exploratory and project-based learning experiences allows REAL’s students to re-ignite their spark for curiosity and passion for learning. The Team-Building exercises Hidden Villa staff lead do truly liberate students from the multitude of challenges they face at home and in the school setting. Students walk away from their time at Hidden Villa with a different appreciation for the outdoors, increased self-confidence and collaboration skills, and a newfound excitement for their educational experiences, since the paradigm has been so thoroughly shifted.”
Hidden Villa’s Youth Development program inspires young leaders to become agents of change by encouraging respect, empathy, stewardship, critical-thinking, and community engagement. Middle and High School aged students in our programs engage with our farm, wilderness, and each other in ways that nurture a thriving adult. Thank you for supporting our program!
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