(Mallorytown) - Students at Front of Yonge Elementary School are learning to climb rock faces, ride zip lines, and ascend to new heights – all in the safety of their school gymnasium.
More than 200 students at Front of Yonge are attending mountain school this week through Junglesport – an Ottawa-based business that has brought an indoor climbing gym to the school, teaching students basic mountaineering skills that build confidence and impart the importance of teamwork.
Emmanuel Bogras and Rene Gonzalez, two instructors from Junglesport spent Monday teaching students from grades kindergarten to 8 how to use harnesses, helmets and other safety equipment, as well as the basics of rope climbing. Over the next four days they will learn how to ascend “spider webs”, scale rock faces, ride zip lines and master other advanced techniques.
The five-day session with the company was sponsored by the school and its parent council, ensuring that students were only required to pay a nominal fee of $8 to participate, said Carolyn Raby, a grade 8 teacher at the school who arranged for the program.
“It provides an experience that many of our students might never get,” explained Raby of why she organized the five-day session. “It gives them quality daily physical activity that is unique.”
The experience is good for students because climbing ropes to heights in excess of 20 feet, and making their way up a rock climbing wall, challenges students to re-examine personal boundaries.
“It challenges them to go outside their confidence zone and that’s a good thing for students because they learn what they can accomplish,” said Raby. “It’s a confidence builder.”
The program also teaches cooperation, as students rely on each other to secure themselves against falls by holding safety lines during rock climbs.
Students such as Caitlyn Neild, a 13-year-old grade 8 student, were jazzed by the opportunity.
“I like the fact that we get the opportunity to do this,” she said. “It’s very exciting and it seems easy once you get the hang of it.”
The Junglesport team will be at the school until Friday.
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For more information, please call:
Carolyn Raby
Grade 8 Teacher
Front of Yonge Elementary School
613-923-5284