Moreland week 7 2018

Its week 7 and our second last week for the program!

We started off this week a bit differently as we went straight into caving. We picked up everyone from Collingwood station and headed straight for Brittania creek caves. On the drive everyone had a lot of questions about what we were doing as only a few of us had been caving before. When we arrived at Brittania we answered those questions, covered the safety tips and geared up to get into the cave. Caving is a great activity as it requires us to work in a team and to act calmly. A lot of us worked on our bravery with this activity too as some of the positions we were in were tight and confronting. It was great to see everyone take this challenge in their stride and step up into a leadership role. Likewise it was warming to see everyone work together to encourage each other and get through the cave. All of our program values and all of the young peoples character strengths really shined through on this day. This day was a challenging one both physically and mentally for everyone, especially for those who were 'scared half to death' by Brendan's daffy duck impression in the dark cave! Overall caving was a great day that challenged everyone and pushed them out of their comfort zones a little.

Thursday was another great day for the young people as it was their second day at REACH for their grounded workshop. Much like last time the young people go into REACH and leave the Newstart coordinators behind. Because of this we never quite know exactly what they get up to. All we do know is that the young people always come out energized and with a smile on their face. After discussion with the them we were told that they had moments of reflection, story sharing, physical activities and of course, free food. REACH work hard to work with the young people to be comfortable at opening up or listening to others stories and I believe they achieve this greatly. Through this discussions it was clear that they got a lot out of this second workshop and had a good day overall.

Friday was an education day for the young people as we headed to Kangan Batman TAFE to participate in some TAFE tasters. Due to this group being organised and so well equip with public transport, we met them at Kangan and took them straight in to get started on their day. Some of the tasters that the young people participated in were Vet animal studies, engineering, carpentry and baking. This was a great day for the young people as it allowed them to get a hands on taster into what it can be like to study at TAFE. They also were able to explore different options that could lead to a job. I know with a few of the young people that this day clarified their thoughts on if they want to study at TAFE or not, and what they want to study. It was also nice for the young people to split up and work with other students in the taster. Everyone got a lot out of this day and walked away having made something (ranging from wooden framing, metal figures and even pizza!). This is a day that was worthwhile for the young people and that they got a lot out of.