Back to Nature is a class that wants to bring its students back into the world. Many students don’t see the value in the environment around them and are just stuck to their phones or video games. It includes things such as rock climbing and fishing. Back to Nature will have you thinking about what you are missing out on in our community in Pennsylvania.
The teacher of this class, health and physical education teacher Mr. Joshua Diehl, has a soft spot for the outdoors and wants students and faculty members to embrace what nature has to offer.
“Back to Nature was designed to give students the opportunity to learn about outdoor recreational activities that they may never have the chance to do. All too often students get wrapped up in their TVs, phones, or computers and forget to utilize the beautiful land our state has to offer for free,” Mr. Diehl said.
On trips, he has helped students learn many new outdoor skills that can be useful in future aspects of students’ lives.
“Students learned how to cast a fly rod as well as fishing with a fly fishing rod. They also had the opportunity to learn water and boater safety while kayaking,” Mr. Diehl said.
He also stands by the fact that learning can be taught in and outside of a school setting and not just in a classroom with four binding walls.
“This trip was important to the class because fly fishing and kayaking are two recreational activities that anyone can do for a lifetime. The trip to Bald Eagle State park was also necessary because these two activities are not able to be taught/learned at the school building,” Mr. Diehl said.
He loves to see his students experience new things that bring a smile to their faces. Especially when it comes to the class activities. He wants students and everyone in the district to know that doing regular activities that are learned can lead to a “lifetime” of possibilities.
“As always, it is rewarding to see people smiling and enjoying themselves. These activities can be done alone or with a group. Either way, they are fun and you get exercise while doing it. Give a man a fish and he eats for a day, teach him how to fish and he eats for a lifetime! Sustainability matters,” Mr. Diehl said.
Senior Hope Martin was one of many students on the trip. She was able to learn new experiences while also having a fun and relaxed time.
“The field trip was a great experience and I was able to learn some new things while there, specifically how to fly fish,” Hope said.
She got to do many different things on the trip, but she overall picked one thing. The water was what called her name the most out of the trip.
“One of my favorite parts was easily getting to kayak. We played a game of sharks and minnows out on the water which was an interesting way to show off the skills that some students had known before or had just learned,” she said.
She found the trip to be enlightening and refreshing compared to being at school for most of the day. Getting to be in nature made her feel calm and relaxed.
“By going on this field trip it gave us the opportunity to to spend a nice day outside by moving and learning interesting things instead of being stuck in a classroom.”
Sophomore Isaac Gall enjoyed his time on the trip and all of the activities students were able to do as a group learning activities.
“My favorite part was the kayaking, we kayaked, fly-fished, and used a GPS to find a spot at the park,” Isaac said.
He also learned a lot on this trip that will be valuable in future activities or experiences.
“The trip helped me learn how to flyfish and how to use a GPS. This trip was important because it taught me new skill sets,” Isaac said.
Senior Tristen Packer really enjoyed the trip and had many favorite memories.
“My favorite part was kayaking. We started with learning the electronic GPS system, we then went kayaking, and then learned fly-fishing. Afterwards we were allowed to fish on our own,” Tristan said.
Packer also appreciated this trip because it allowed him to relax and spend time with those he cares about.
“I learned about more gsp tracking like we started in the beginning of the class. This trip was important because I got to have more time with friends fishing which with football I don’t get much time for,” Tristan said.
Junior Kaylin Hackenberry, soaked up all the knowledge while learning about fishing since it was her first time doing such a thing.
“My favorite part of the trip was probably fly fishing because it was my first time and it was cool to learn how to do it,” Kaylin said.
The Back To Nature trip brought many students together, and taught many of them a new skill set to use in the future. They have the knowledge to use those skills correctly. The students can now achieve great lengths of outdoor activities by themselves.
