One of KidsCan’s projects is the KidsCan Youth Council. It is a year-long scholarship programme which supports young people towards success, leadership and community
engagement.

The Youth Council is made up of ten students (aged 16-18) from all around Aotearoa New Zealand, who have been under-privileged or come from resilient backgrounds or who have benefitted from KidsCan programmes themselves. They are young people who have a desire to help others and want the opportunity to have a leadership role in their communities.

KidsCan partnered with us to create a 3-day outdoor adventure programme which focused on supporting the Youth Council students in gaining confidence and leadership skills, plus developing individual goals for themselves.

Our instructors, Nat and Joel, took the group kayaking and hiking around Waitākere Ranges Regional Park.

They also led the group in some leadership activities which focused on understanding different values and different comfort levels within a group. For example, they were asked questions like “How comfortable do you feel in deep water?” or “How much do you value time alone by yourself?” or “How connected do you feel to your culture?”

Seeing everyone’s different answers helped the students to understand how we all have different values and experiences, which, in turn, helps develop self-awareness as well as empathy and understanding for others.

After the programme, the students gave us some feedback:

“The group activities have helped me be able to talk and communicate with people I don’t know.”

“I’ve learned to be ambitious [with my goals]. It could pay off.”

“Our hike was so hard. It felt good to complete it, though.”

Ray, the KidsCan co-ordinator, gave this feedback:

“Kayaking was a youth fav. There was a good balance of education, skill, ease, exploration and playfulness. The hike was incredible and a great challenge for the youth. [The instructors] both had a very relaxed nature which made it easy for youth to feel comfortable and safe around. Good safety and risk management. I look forward to working with Adventure Specialties Trust again!”

This article is taken from our December 2023 Christmas newsletter.

Click here to read the rest of the newsletter.

The post KidsCan Youth Council appeared first on Adventure Specialties Trust.

The post #kayaking appeared first on Adventure Specialties Trust.

Some stunning photos by Instructor April from a 3-day sea kayak trip with Rangiora College, Canterbury. April says, “We left from Cass Bay, stayed on Ōtamahua (Quail Island) for two nights, then paddled to Ripapa Island. Ripapa Island is tapu so you can’t eat on the island, so we had lunch on this unnamed beach on the mainland near Ripapa.”

The post Sea kayak with Rangiora College appeared first on Adventure Specialties Trust.

Seven-day Girls Journey

Here is a reflection, written by the young women who went on the recent 7-day Journey through Marlborough Sounds with our Christchurch instructors, Grace and April.

“We really enjoyed spending a week in the outdoors as a group and had an awesome time in a new environment (Marlborough Sounds).

“We have learnt so much about ourselves and in particular how we can manage ourselves and others most effectively in a positive manner. We have grown in confidence, whether that was mountain biking, kayaking or just being more comfortable in the outdoors, but also with our collaboration skills, communication, adaptability and resilience over the course of the week.

“P.S. Thanks Grace [instructor] for saving Lexi from losing her front wheel while mountain biking.”

Paul Ferguson, their Outdoor Education teacher at Hillmorton High School, Canterbury, added a few extra thoughts:

“Congratulations to Lexi Phillips, Bethan Edwards and Noelani Ritchie on their successful seven-day leadership journey to the Queen Charlotte Sound.

“These three girls (along with four other Canterbury secondary school students) made the most of this amazing opportunity to sea kayak and mountain bike the beautiful Queen Charlotte Sound over the recent holidays. A massive thanks to Adventure Specialties Trust for providing this rich experience for Horomaka [Banks Peninsula] students.

“These opportunities are another example of the huge range of experiences available to Horomaka students. It reminds me of a smorgasbord with a wide variety of delicious food and dishes. Our students are so fortunate! It is so good to see students making the most of these opportunities!”

Thanks for sharing your reflections with us, Lexi. Bethan, Noelani and Paul.

Here are some more photos:

WANT TO COME ALONG NEXT TIME?

SOUTH ISLAND:

We have another girls programme coming up: IGNITE South Island. Six days of adventure in Queen Charlotte Sound during the July school holidays.

Check out our website for more info: https://www.adventurespecialties.co.nz/programmes/ignite-south-island/

NORTH ISLAND:

We also have a North Island IGNITE youth camp, also during the July school holidays, for young men and women.

Find out more:

https://www.adventurespecialties.co.nz/programmes/ignite-north-island/

GET IN TOUCH:

If you have any questions about either of these programmes, please don’t hesitate to get in touch! We’re happy to chat with you about any questions you might have.

Flick us an email (office@adventurespecialties.co.nz) and our lovely office lady, Kerryn, will pass you on to the relevant person.

Or call us (Auckland 09-837-6033 or Christchurch 03-348-4547).

Or just pop in any time for a cuppa!

The post 7-day Girls Journey through Marlborough Sounds appeared first on Adventure Specialties Trust.

Sea kayak adventure with Cashmere High School, Christchurch.

The post Sea kayak adventure with Cashmere High appeared first on Adventure Specialties Trust.

A whole bunch of Adventure Specialties Trust staff (including instructors, adventure therapy clinicians, contractors, interns and our Safety and Training manager) went on a 5-day “Kayak Block Course” where they got a chance to practice a wide range of kayak-related skills and also programme-related skills (like leading groups, facilitating conversations, etc.). But it looks like they had way too much fun to call it work, don’t you think?!?

The post Photos from Kayak Block Course appeared first on Adventure Specialties Trust.

Our IGNITE Adventure Therapy Youth Camp last week was a rip-roaring success! Next one coming up on the Term 2 school hols (3rd-7th July) so sign up now!

What is the IGNITE camp? It’s five days, four nights of outdoor adventure activities (kayaking, zip line, high ropes, hiking) mixed with group therapy activities (facilitated discussions, group activities, one-on-one chats with our qualified mental health professional, etc.).

IGNITE is perfect for young people (15-18 years old) who might be struggling at the moment, maybe dealing with anxiety or depression, stress at home or school, etc.

__________

Below is one of the updates that we received during the camp last week from Emily, the qualified mental health professional on the programme.

“Our campers have really challenged themselves over the last couple of days. They have been paddling down the Puhoi river, where they had some great conversations with both the instructors and each other. Today we hit the high ropes course and each person had a go at Jacob’s ladder [a giant wooden ladder that you climb up in pairs], and the zip line.

“We headed off into the bush this evening and everyone set up their own tents and joined in on group conversations around the fire.

“Alongside the activities we have held space for conversations about self-worth, self-acceptance and strategies for coping with difficult feelings/emotional regulation.

“Connections have been made amongst the campers and they are enjoying (device-free!) spare time playing card games, chess and chatting with each other.

“We are looking forward to going coasteering tomorrow!”

_________________

If you’re interested in finding out more about IGNITE, then check out our website (www.adventurespecialties.co.nz/programmes/ignite-north-island) or contact Brenda the programme co-ordinator (email office@adventurespecialties.co.nz attention: Brenda or call 09-837-6033).

The post Video: Ignite youth camp appeared first on Adventure Specialties Trust.

The Christchurch team went on a “work” kayaking trip. Do you think they can call it work when they look that happy?!?? The actual purpose of the trip was so that our new instructor Rebecca could get deployed for white water #kayaking (she needed some ‘participants’ to manage). She aced it and is ready to head out on our upcoming kayak programmes. Welcome to the team, Rebecca!

The post Can you really call this ‘work’?!? appeared first on Adventure Specialties Trust.

“It was a teambuilding exercise,” says Peter the instructor. “The brief was that each team had to make a rigid raft using both kayaks and come up with a team plan, before racing to the Avon River, paddling downstream, getting out on the far side, opening an envelope and completing the challenges on it, before paddling back upstream to their start point, ensuring that the envelope stayed dry the whole time.”

“Afterwards we talked about leadership – who showed it and how and then tried to define what leadership, in essence is. We talked about how it’s essentially an influence on an individual/group and this influence can be positive, negative, or sometimes we can even have no influence. We discussed how that means we could show leadership/influence through simple things like encouragement or support and how this could translate into other areas of life and their future careers as youth workers.”

This was an ABL [adventure-based learning] session with some first- and second-year Praxis students. Praxis is an education provider specialising in youth development. Each year, our interns study youth work through Praxis, then they come and do their practical work experience with us. Win-win!

The post A team-building exercise with Praxis appeared first on Adventure Specialties Trust.

The post #paradise appeared first on Adventure Specialties Trust.