Going on class retreats are a great way for a group of students to get to know each other better. You can learn a lot in one night, like who is a good student, who is a potential leader in a group, who is there to learn, and who is there to have fun. On my class’s retreat, we went to Camp Capilano for one night where we stayed in two dorms which held bunk beds. We spent a lot of time together having fun and we were given three projects in the process. These projects were designed to bring our class closer together as a team, which in the end they did.

 

 

For the first project, we had to use our body language to tell a story about each of the ten characters that we created. In my group, I had Izzy, Hannah, Kate, and Spencer. We made our iMovie (Gone Wild) about five teams of pairs who had to live in the woods and complete challenges.

 

Our group decided to create a couple of:

-Athletes

-Nerds

-Frat boys

-Hippies

-Clumsy siblings.

 

These teams are shown doing the things that make them unique, for example the hippies are picking berries and the frat boys are taking selfies with their arms crossed. We used specific body language to imply what our charters personalities were like without using words, which ended up being very challenging. While we were filming this project, we had to find out quickly what each group members skill sets were to make the most of our time. Each member of my group had a talent that was useful for this project, for example the set designer, the producer, and the actors.

 

 

Our second project during our retreat was similar to the first project but this time, instead of using body language we were only allowed to use audio. When we were filming this video, we found that it was easier to change our voices than it was to change our outfits and body language. Although that aspect of the project was easier, it was hard to show where the characters were and what they were doing. My group kept our original characters from the last project which saved us a lot of time so that we could focus on the script and music. I felt like I got more and more comfortable around my group members as we all got to know each other while contributing to the project.

 

 

The last project that we did was a combination of both assignments, using the skill of storytelling from the first project, and the use of audio from the second. This project, however, was much more difficult than the last two because we had harder guidelines that needed to be met. My group stayed up late at night to complete our project and try our best to make the audio clear and the story easy to follow. I got the chance to learn what the apps on my iPad were and how to use them which was a valuable lesson for me, considering I am now in classes that use iPads everyday. Overall, this project was very useful for me and made my learning experience better. Although my group, along with a few others, had some audio problems due to the weather and curfew, we completed our video and handed it in on time for class critiquing.

 

 

In the end, the trip that my PLP class took was essential to me becoming a part of the class. I got to know so many of my classmates, not just for their work ethics, but for their personalities too. We made jokes, and with those, memories too. Now that I have gone on the trip to Camp Capilano I feel more comfortable with my iPad, the PLP students, and the teachers. Although there was a lot of work to be done in two days which made to the experience challenging, I think that the trip was really important for my class and was a lot of fun!