indoor kayaking Archives - Waypoint Adventure MA

Wilson is in a red kayak in an indoor pool. He is wearing a red life jacket and blue and yellow swim shirt. A staff member is in the water next to the kayak. Both of them have big smiles on their faces.

Embracing the Unknown: Wilson’s Journey of Growth

May 3, 2024/in Achievements, Kayaking

Wilson first joined a Waypoint indoor kayaking program with his Boston Public School autism classroom at CASH back in 2022. Wilson came to the pool with curiosity, but had reservations about entering the water. Along with the encouragement from staff and peers, Wilson made the choice to step out of his comfort zone, strap on a life vest, and slowly entered the water. Timid at first, he felt most at ease when holding the hand of a staff member. As the season progressed, Wilson started to find himself reaching for someone’s hand less and less. He learned to challenge himself in the pool — at his own pace.

This year, Wilson’s class returned to Waypoint for another season of indoor kayaking. Waypoint staff framed the series with the theme of Growth: Any time we open our minds to challenge ourselves to learn a new skill, we are growing! After a quick paddle tutorial, Wilson did not just dip his toes in the water, he hopped right in the kayak, with a smile from ear to ear! It was clear to everybody at the pool that day that his confidence in the kayak had blossomed! But most importantly, it was clear to Wilson.

At Waypoint Adventure, we believe in letting folks choose their own adventure, just like Wilson did! He started with small steps and slowly cranked up his exposure to the water. Wilson proved to himself that the courage to try something new and unfamiliar – one step at a time – can lead to triumph! Wilson showed the power of starting small and building up to something great. Throughout this spring season, we are so excited to see Wilson continue to challenge himself and experience growth on his terms!

Wilson is in a yellow kayak, in an indoor pool. He's smiling and holding a paddle. He is wearing a red life jacket and wearing a blue and yellow swim shirt.

Wilson paddling with confidence this indoor kayaking season.

It’s A Wrap! Somerville 2019

June 12, 2019/in Hiking, Kayaking, Past Programs, Rock Climbing, Ropes Course, Schools, Series

24 Programs! Our biggest partnership ever! What an awesome year it has been with the thriving Special Education Department of Somerville Public Schools. Thanks to a Cummings Foundation grant the Somerville SPED Department received and the tireless efforts of Wellness Coordinator and friend, Caitlin Kelly, Waypoint was BACK in Somerville for the 2018-2019 school year designing and facilitating quality adventure-education programs for 19 different classes across the district. Social-Emotional Learning was happening on these programs: students immersed in problem solving scenarios, supported by the process of learning and community, and given the right to take on challenging experiences and we saw it in action – the perfect recipe for character building come to life.

These programs were not just work for us. The buy-in from teachers and administrators made this series a joy to facilitate. We even had volunteers come out on one program and come back again and again and again because of how much fun they had just being a part of these days! Shoutout to Jim Bradley, Sylvana Weinstein, and some awesome repeat groups from Definitive Cares and The Shady Hill School. This community is vibrant and excelling because of your support!

You HAVE to peruse some of the pictures below. It felt like a family photo album putting these together and laughing about ridiculous things that happened on programs and awesome students, teachers, and volunteers we met along the way. Here are some snapshots from all of the programs we ran with Somerville during 2018-2019:

10/25/18 Ropes Course at Hale Reservation

11/14/18 Hike in the Middlesex Fells

12/19/18 Indoor Rock Climbing at Central Rock Watertown

1/9/19 Indoor Rock Climbing at Central Rock Watertown

1/11/19 Hike at Prospect Hill in Waltham

1/15/19 Indoor Rock Climbing at Central Rock Watertown

1/23/19 Hike at Ward Reservation in Andover

1/30/19 Indoor Kayaking at the Kennedy School in Somerville

2/5/19 Hike at Ward Reservation in Andover

2/13/19 Indoor Kayaking at the Kennedy School in Somerville

2/27/19 Indoor Kayaking at the Kennedy School in Somerville

3/19/19 Hike at Harold Parker State Forest in Andover

3/27/19 Indoor Kayaking at the Kennedy School in Somerville

3/28/19 Indoor Rock Climbing at Central Rock Watertown

4/2/19 Outdoor Rock Climbing at Hammond Pond in Newton

4/10/19 Hike at Breakheart Reservation in Wakefield

4/24/19 Hike at Lynn Woods in Lynn

5/1/19 Indoor Rock Climbing at Central Rock Watertown

5/15/19 Hike at Lynn Woods in Lynn

5/16/19 Hike at Prospect Hill in Waltham

5/23/19 Outdoor Rock Climbing at Hammond Pond in Newton

5/24/19 Hike at Breakheart Reservation in Wakefield

5/29/19 Indoor Kayaking at the Kennedy School in Somerville

6/5/19 Kayaking on the Charles River in Allston

We can’t thank our site partners from Central Rock Gym, Paddle Boston – Charles River Canoe and Kayak, Kennedy School Pool, and Massachusetts DCR enough for supporting this programming. THANK YOU!

And THANK YOU to all the students for participating, and the teachers and administrators that helped coordinate transportation, get forms filled out, opened the pool, and made sure adventure programming fit seamlessly into your curriculum. We believe it’s so important and it’s encouraging to see others agree. Looking forward to next year!

Shady Hill School and Somerville Public Partner

April 30, 2019/in Uncategorized

It all started with a call from Waypoint volunteer, Ross Fitzgerald. Ross is an 8th grade teacher at Shady Hill School in Cambridge, and with his years of experience volunteering with Waypoint, he wanted to bring the two communities together. We couldn’t have been more psyched. Shady Hill is an innovative, creative, mission-driven school and their students are respectful and helpful. Over the course of 3 adventures this winter-spring (and hopefully more), Shady Hill students joined in on our Adventure Programming with Somerville Public Schools – coming out with one class twice!

It was incredible to watch these kids interact and get along – Developing a deeper understanding of the diverse world we live in, fostering relationships with kids just a few towns away, and creating a common bond while overcoming a challenge together like kayaking or hiking. Mr. Fitzgerald and his class have been an incredible addition to the Waypoint Adventure series with Somerville Public Schools and we can’t wait to see where this partnership goes.

That’s A Wrap! Somerville 2017-2018

June 26, 2018/in Kayaking, Schools, Uncategorized

Another school term in the books! Over the past year, Waypoint Adventure has had the privilege to work with over 13 special education classes from all over the Somerville Public School system. Seven program types were run (ropes course, indoor/outdoor rock climbing, indoor kayaking, hiking, snowshoeing and team building), which gave over 100 students the opportunity to experience adventure!

For most of participants, this was their first time ever going on a hike or rock climbing or to a ropes course. Roughly 92% of the students from Somerville that came out on an adventure program with us were experiencing that type of adventure for the first time. There is a real need to get more kids out in nature, on adventures and into their local community!

We are so grateful to have worked with such incredible students, facility, and administration this year at Somerville Public Schools. Thank you to all the volunteers and coordinators that made these programs possible and so successful. But…It’s not over yet!!

Thanks to a very generous grant given by the Cummings Foundation to the Somerville Public Schools, we are excited about the potential of continued programming with SPS!”

Here are some pictures of the last program we ran with Somerville Public Schools:

April 2018: Indoor Kayaking; Thanks for volunteering Definitive Cares!

To see our other posts about Somerville Public Schools, click the links below:

Beginning-year Somerville Programs

Mid-year Somerville Programs

A Community in Newton that cares about adventure-learning

June 7, 2018/in Kayaking, Schools, Uncategorized

It’s encouraging to discover a community that embraces new opportunities so whole-heartedly. Teachers at Newton North High School have fully bought into the idea of adventure-learning and are pulling the strings to make it happen. From allowing us to bring kayaks into the pool to providing life-guards for the program, to going into the community to seek funding, Newton North impressed us and the students followed cue. Nine students from the Community Connections program came to the pool to fully embrace the exciting but scary experience of trying something new – kayaking in a pool!

This group challenged themselves in major ways. There was even a moment where each student was put on the spot to try to flip their boat over and do a “wet exit” while everyone watched and cheered. And everyone did it!

A huge thanks to Village Bank for funding this program and the volunteer team from Liberty Mutual’s “Serve with Liberty”. You’re helping make life-learning opportunities happen and contributing to a community that embraces adventure for all!

Arlington Boys and Girls Club opens it’s doors

May 2, 2018/in Kayaking, Schools

For the second year in a row, students from Dallin Elementary School sought out a big adventure with Waypoint and the first time ever, we got to host it at the Arlington Boys and Girls Club. The Dallin School, part of Arlington Public Schools, values experiential education at it’s core. And especially in the Dallin’s Supported Learning Center, teachers, parents, and administrators have fought to make adventure-learning part of their curriculum. They see the power it has on their students! Even just one adventure creates opportunities for learning and growth that translate back in the classroom!

When Waypoint approached the Arlington Boys and Girls Club’s Aquatic program, their staff was all on board. We’re all grateful for a new place to run Indoor Kayaking programs and a space that students can come back to that’s in their own back yard.

Check out these students as they learned how to kayak in the pool. All while focusing on the importance of taking courage (one of the Dallin Core Values). We’re thankful for partnerships like these!

Custom Designed Curriculum

March 13, 2018/in Kayaking, Schools, Series, Uncategorized, Volunteer

If you know anything about HOW Waypoint Adventure programs take form and shape, hopefully the words “custom-designed” come to mind. Our adventures are adapted to meet the needs and goals of the particular individual or group we’re working with. And while there’s a whole lot of individualized instruction that takes place on the day of the program, sometimes the themes or big concepts stay generally consistent to the tried-and-true concepts we’ve found work really well for certain age groups. At the Mario Umana Academy in East Boston, for example, we’ve been working with their 2nd through 8th grade classes for 7 years and we’ve kept generally the same curriculum running: When it comes to the 4th & 5th grade class, they get a curriculum centered on Teamwork every winter. Through an adventure-education model that balances their academic work, they discover how to work together with one another.

But when we met with Ms. B, the teacher of this 4th-5th grade group, she said, “Actually, I’d rather not do Teamwork this year. My students don’t need more ‘working together…’ I’m trying to get them to NOT work so closely together.” And just like that “custom designed” took precedence. We threw out the playbook and started from scratch. This group had a unique set of needs! And their adventure-education curriculum needed to capitalize on that. Their goal was PERSEVERANCE. Things that are hard for us, can actually be GOOD for us. And in order to do things that are hard, we need perseverance! We need the ability to stick through a task, not give up, call upon strategies like asking for help, and develop resilience and grit.

So through a series of adventures and team-building sessions at school, this class got chance after chance to show perseverance. Check it out:

It started with an activity identifying (personally) what’s easy vs what’s hard. Even things in the “HARD” column like doing chores or brushing our teeth are GOOD for us. Hard things require perseverance.

The next week we went for a hike in the Blue Hills and MAN WAS IT COLD. We packed extra clothes and kept moving – not even stopping for a lunch midway through. It definitely put perseverance into action!

The next week, we started talking about specific strategies. When things get frustrating, what can we do instead of “giving-up”? Asking for help, taking a break, or positive self-talk are all good strategies. A challenging but exciting cup-stacking competition was the perfect illustration.

For our last adventure, we took perseverance to the pool – learning kayak skills like how to make the boat go where we want it to go and not giving up! This day was possible thanks to our valued corporate partner, Definitive Cares! A huge thanks goes out to 11 volunteers that met us in East Boston and did a fabulous job working with this group.

And lastly, we recounted all our hard work. We discovered that hard things really are good for us. Perseverance is a crucial skill to have when it comes to conquering challenges and sticking with important tasks. Through perseverance we can learn, have better patience, maintain better relationships, and develop skills we didn’t have before.

It was an awesome series with this class and an important reminder to all of us that “custom-designed” curriculum is valuable.

Kayaking Made Accessible

June 9, 2017/in Uncategorized

Waypoint Adventure makes kayaking programs accessible by utilizing state-of-the-art equipment, selecting accessible locations, recruiting & training volunteers, and creating an environment conducive to all styles of learning and socialization. We couldn’t do this without the team effort of a Boston community passionate about creating opportunities for adventure learning accessible to everyone. Thank you community partners and volunteers for long term dedication to renovating docks and put-ins, funding the purchase of adaptive equipment, taking Waypoint kayaking trainings, and more. Scroll through pictures below of kayaking made accessible through Waypoint’s three main ingredients: Community, Access, and Preparation.

COMMUNITY

All of our programs are based on the belief that individuals and teams perform to be best of their ability when people feel a sense of belonging. We strive to create community on every program by stressing the importance of knowing names, discouraging use of cell phones, and relying on our staff’s combined decades of experience in group-forming, and so much more.

ACCESS

Our equipment supplier and partner, Creating Ability makes universal seats, stabilizing outriggers, cushions, transfer benches, and several different types of paddle adaptations. Thank you Creating Ability for your work in this field!

Universal seat-backs have adjustable width, tilt, and cushioning:

Outriggers provide stability and support. The boat virtually can’t tip over:

We can custom fit a paddle to meet your needs through the several designs we own made by Creating Ability. Check out all paddle adaptations here.

Paddles can be indexed and partners can work together to accommodate individuals with sensory differences. Check out one man’s experience who has a visual impairment: “Steering My Way Toward Boating Accessibility” by Bob Hachey.

PREPARATION

People learn when they meet the intersection of challenge and support. When they step out of their comfort zone yet have the help to do so, people discover new strengths and abilities, learn, and grow. We find that individuals get to this intersection by feeling thoroughly prepared to do so. Preparation at Waypoint is all about setting goals and providing context. From written schedules so everyone knows what’s coming next, to sending a “How to Prepare for a Kayaking Program” video ahead of time, to checking in throughout the program – our goal is create a sense of trust in our participants so that everyone can fully engage to however they desire.

Sign up for a kayaking program today! Check out our upcoming Open Enrollment programs.

Making a Splash in Somerville

May 31, 2017/in Kayaking, Past Programs, Schools, Series, Uncategorized

If the pool could talk, The Kennedy School Pool in Somerville would tell you about a lot of adventure-learning that has happened there this winter/spring. Our partnership with Somerville Public Schools has taken students all over greater-Boston (hiking, rock climbing, snowshoeing, etc), but it’s time to highlight our Indoor Kayaking adventures in Somerville.

Five classes of students on five separate occasions came to school with their bathing suits and towels packed and ready to learn… Not about math, reading, or science, but about challenging themselves, working with others, asking for help, following directions, and being a friend. Kayaking is not just about paddling, pivoting, or balancing; It’s about the opportunity to experience things outside of our comfort zone with others who support us. And we think kayaking (right in their own school!) is the perfect “challenge-tool” for these students.

A huge thanks to Rich Cheney, the Aquatics Director, for helping make these programs happen. And to everyone at the Kennedy School – teachers, paras, Special Ed Department, Recreation Specialists, and more – We’ve loved having you pop in and see the skills being learned and challenges being overcome. We’re glad you’re talking about it too!

Check out our kayaking adventures by class:

Ms. Berkwitz 4th & 5th Grade

Check out our Snapchat story!

Ms. Pacheco 3rd – 5th Grade

Ms. Sweeney 7th & 8th Grade

The SKIP Program – Specialized Kennedy Intensive Program

Click for Ms. Messer 4th & 5th Grade

Liberty Mutual serves the Waypoint community

May 11, 2017/in Kayaking, Special Events, Support

Waypoint Adventure was honored to participate in Liberty Mutual’s 2017 community service program, Serve With Liberty. This annual world-wide initiative places LM employees into service opportunities around their community and Waypoint had the benefit of rubbing shoulders with some AWESOME, dedicated individuals over these past three days.

Two out of the three days, we met volunteers at a Somerville Public School pool for indoor kayaking programs. Volunteers partnered with students, talked through basic kayaking skills, helped everyone get on life-jackets, get in and out of their boats, paddle around the pool, and even helped some students tip their boat over to practice the skill of capsizing! There’s a lot of work that goes into these half-day programs and each and every volunteer contributed in a big way.

Lastly, the grunt-work-award goes to the Tuesday crew who came to Waypoint’s office and helped clean and prepare our entire fleet of kayaks for the upcoming summer season! These boats are stored outdoors throughout the winter and need to be thoroughly washed and inspected before they transport hundreds of Waypoint participants throughout New England’s beautiful lakes, rivers, and coastline. Equipped with a power washer, soap, and sponges, this group washed 22 boats, inventoried gear, archived files, and organized supplies.

Thank you to all who participated in these service days. You don’t realize how much you’ve impacted Waypoint’s programming and the participants we serve. Come back again soon!