Through close consultation with your school, Outward Bound will design and develop a creative and high impact outdoor education, personal development program that is integrated with the school’s curriculum and student development program for the selected year group(s). Utilising wilderness based activities and a careful use of facilitation techniques to aid learning, Outward Bound programs provide a wealth of opportunities for students to discover, develop and achieve their potential. 

Outward Bound programs are a powerful means of teaching students about themselves, others and the community they live in. They are unique in their ability to empower students, to offer high levels of responsibility and ownership and to allow students to rise to the challenges inherent in confronting and adventurous environments. 

NATURE OF THE PROGRAMS

Each of the programs is a journey. This means that the groups do not stay at a centralised 'camp' but rather set out on expedition. Along the way they undertake the various outdoor activities available in the wilderness they are journeying through. All groups move independently of each other and in most cases rarely see anyone else. 

This creates an incredible sense of self-reliance and adventure. This feeling of being independent, on a self-directed journey, forces students to use initiative, resourcefulness and the group's diverse skills and attributes.

While the groups will learn or reinforce bushcraft skills such as navigation, building a fire, choosing and setting up a campsite, food preparation and safe hygiene practices, the real learning is from the challenges faced. The students will learn about each other, their own strengths and weaknesses and how to support each other in a setting that is beautiful, but challenging. The emphasis will be on learning in a safe and fun environment, where the students are willing to take on new experiences.

The program provides intellectual, physical, mental and emotional challenges that will stretch the students well beyond what they know.  The students will be able to take on more complex and challenging leadership and problem solving tasks. The programs help equip students for the transition from youth to adulthood and assist in preparing them for their final years at school, entry into the workforce and life ahead.

Each group is accompanied by an Outward Bound instructor and a teacher from the school.

 Years 9, 10 & 11 Example Programs

The following suggested program sequence that builds on previous experience and allows students to continue their personal journey in the development of self-awareness, resilience and leadership. This program sequence is not prescriptive. It is a base-point for collaboration with partnering schools to ensure that the Outward Bound experience best meets the individual and school learning needs.