Rising Hawks

Yes and No… 70% of our time together will be outside, rain or shine, in all seasons! This immersive outdoor experience is directly linked to the increased physical and emotional resilience developed in Rising Hawks.

Hawks families also register with a public online school that is a ministry funded blended learning program. This supports learners in satisfying grade-level outcomes while being fully immersed in nature.

The online school’s model is a blended-learning public education service. They provide funding for a certified teacher to deliver and oversee academic curriculum integration and issue our students regular report cards and parent-teacher conferences, meeting the same curriculum goals as any other public or private school in the province. The school has about 650 students across the province who participate in outdoor education programs or homeschool programs.

Technically speaking, the students are enrolled in an "online” program, and the certified teacher takes on the responsibility of creating a Personalized Learning Plan which includes academic classes led by them in person, learning with parents at home, and learning on wilderness days with Thriving Roots. They will help keep your child on track with BC curriculum standards (reading, writing, math, etc.) and leverage their learning through this unique place-based experiential model. At-home parent support is still required to supplement learning and report academic outcomes through an online portfolio model.

Students are divided into groups, based on grade level and abilities, in order to target specific learning needs.

The Certified Teacher attends Mondays and Thursdays and is able to schedule “office hours” so families can connect for one-on-one support.

At Rising Hawk, we see learning as an integrative, full-sensory and multi-disciplinary experience! Much of what we learn and experience is embedded in the BC Elementary Curriculum. Subjects covered indirectly are: Science, Language Arts, Social Studies, Applied Skills & Technologies, Physical Education, Art, and sometimes even French and Math!

Students registered in Rising Hawks also follow a home schooling curriculum and reporting process, co-designed with the academic teacher to ensure curriculum areas not covered Mon-Thurs can be covered at home on Fridays during their home learning day.

With enough parent support and communication with the academic teacher, students will fulfil and even excel with grade-level ministry academic requirements.

Generally, no. When providing feedback we aim to reflect students’ personal strengths and growth areas, as well as encourage self validation. In our mentoring approach we focus on inspiring motivation from the intrinsic rewards of pursuing a passion or project instead of external rewards of letter grades. To provide a quantitative way to track progress, we sometimes allocate “challenge levels” to certain activities.

Term Report Cards are still provided through the online school and written by the academic teachers.

One of our favourite parts of WOLF is the close community that develops between families. Family events include:

• Seasonal gatherings:

  • September: Welcome Potluck,

  • November: Ancestor Feast,

  • December: Winter Celebration,

  • April: Fire Sit (Rite of Competence) Event, etc.

• June: Year-end Camping Trip – a 3 day excursion to celebrate the year with parents and siblings!

A Rite of Passage is an event that marks a transition from one life stage to another. It often includes overcoming physical and emotional challenges in isolation, but held and supported by community. We provide a one-time Rite of Passage for teens 13 years or older, called “Fire Quest.”

We also provide annual events that we consider “Rites of Competence.” These are events that require youth to undergo physical and emotional challenges that push them to the edge of their comfort zone and demonstrate to their community an increase of competency and responsibility. Because these events happen every year, they are not designed to mark a life stage transition, but more so demonstrate increased skill and ability. Examples of these vary from year to year, but generally include a Fall Shelter Overnight Event or a Spring Fire Sit.

Students must register and attend all four days. We generate a level of connection and emotional safety at Rising Hawks that is unique from other education experiences and this requires regular attendance and commitment to the group.

Youth must be ready for a full grade 7 academic curriculum to register for Rising Hawks, in which case students must be 12 or 13 years old by September 1st. Our WOLF Kids Program is our full time program for children ages 8-12 and serves as a wonderful introduction to Rising Hawk. Check out our Forest Scouts weekly program too.