Safety First

Outdoor activities present perceived dangers, and some real ones, as well. While preparing for each activity, group leaders teach safety systems that minimize the risks. Teachers always start with attaining a comfort level with safety equipment.

“As a result of attention to risk management, outdoor education nationwide is statistically less dangerous than playing many high school sports,” says program director and science department faculty member Matt Bingham. Milton’s Outdoor Program has never had a significant injury

“. We want students to be able to recognize risks and learn to manage them effectively. This is a particularly crucial skill in an activity such as rock climbing, but it is just as important a skill in negotiating adolescents’ academic and social lives of.”

Outdoor Program leaders are faculty members and other adults who have first-aid training and years of first-hand experience outdoors, as well as certifications from leading outdoor organizations such as NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School), AMGA (American Mountain Guides Association), the ACA (American Canoe Association), and the Appalachian Mountain Club.

Courses emphasize teaching about the safety equipment requisite for hiking, climbing and kayaking. Students move through a progression of skills, learn different techniques, and increase their levels of power and endurance, with the goal of preparing for each season’s culminating activity.

For example, the hiking curriculum begins with how to dress and stay hydrated, and a recent end-of-term trip took students backpacking in Franconia Falls, in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Faculty members stress concepts of group cohesiveness and its importance throughout each course.

Parental permission forms are required for program participation.