The Mount Pleasant Junior High Outdoor Adventure class has been working diligently on a practical application project that could come in handy in the real world. Students were put into groups with the task of building a shelter from things they found in the woods behind the junior high. Each group had a leader who assigned jobs to group members. The shelters had several requirements including a solid foundation, good structure for water runoff, a roof with leaves and pine straw to prevent leakage, at least one wall on the north side, and a floor or drainage system so they would not be sitting directly on the floor or in water.

“The goal of the project was to not just build a shelter that could get them out of the elements if they were stranded or if they were out hunting, but it was to promote peer leadership and how group members responded to peer leadership,” said MPJH Outdoor Adventure teacher, Travis Buchanan. “The biggest thing we wanted the kids to learn out of the project was leadership and job responsibility from peers. The overall goal of Outdoor Adventure is to get the kids outside as much as possible and use hands-on skills for life outside.”

Outdoor Adventure is a fun and exciting co-ed physical education course. Students are taught life-long skills by using integrated curriculum of science, math, writing, critical thinking skills, and computer technology. The focus is on outdoor activities such as archery, orienteering, survival skills, first aid/CPR, trip planning, angling, tackle crafts, hiking, backpacking, camping, outdoor cooking, conservation and environmental issues with certifications offered through the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department (TPWD) and the American Heart Association.

Photos: MPJH Outdoor Adventure students in their shelters

1 – (front)Seven Duffey, (back left to right) Ayden Martinez, Andraus Woods, Hector Zuniga

2 – (front) Jaylan Garcia, (middle left to right) Oskar Nieto, Adrian Ayala, (back left to right) Nathan Zavala, Alfredo Ramirez

3 – (left to right) Andrue Newman, Xzavien Howard, Trisha Easley, Luis Mata, Jose Olivares, Elijah Flanagan

4 – (front left to right) Landry McPeters, Andres Aguilar, Kendall McCoo, (back left to right) Hayden Harvill, Lincoln Dyke, Ales Rios, Kyen Morgan