western pa field trips?

[pinetar10]

Most of the kids need sent to a place like you were at, but thats not how it is nowadays. some of the worst kids at our school get sent away, but most just go to our school and are babied. Little Johnny (who's 17 years old) needs a time out when he's mad. Give me a break, whats he gonna do when he has a job and wants time outs when he's mad and swearing at people. thats ridiculous. they need their dad to take them behind the shed and give them a whoopin.
but, i do teach there, and we are encouraged to take the students on enriching field trips, so any more suggestions are welcome. i especially like outdoor stuff.
thank you for the suggestions, i will definately look into some of the ideas given and am going to check out the caves and mines (and maybe accidentally leave a few kids in the cave or mine, ha ha ha)

Originally Posted by sealerpal

I was a juvenile delinquent when I was a teenager. I was sent to a reform school for two years as a result. The only field trips we got were to the infirmary
after we got our lights knocked out for breaking the rules. My how times have changed. That was only 15 years ago. Now they call it "alternative school". Gimmie a break.

[sealerpal]

Ic4444, is it Adelphoi?

[pinetar10]

yes it is. any opinions about the organization?

Originally Posted by sealerpal

Ic4444, is it Adelphoi?

[sealerpal]

It would be difficult for me to forge any opinions about Adelphoi Village, since it's
been 15 years since I last walked through the "day treatment" doors. I'm more than certain that the entire program (both in group homes and day treatment) have evolved quite a bit since then.

I will say this, however. The system at Adelphoi did nothing for me. In fact, I was much worse when I was "released". I just learned it wasn't a good thing to get caught. Maturity finally kicked in for me around the age of 17 and that was the end of my "bad days". I think it was a combination of maturity and understand my own mortality which led me in the "right" direction.

I'm 30 now. I'm a homeowner and a business owner. I've never been in any "trouble" since I was a teenager. However, I don't attribute any of that to Adelphoi. In hindsight all Adelphoi did for me was waste two precious years of high school for me with dummied-down curriculum, temporarily brainwash me with it's twisted form of social engineering (the confronting thing...Don't know if they still do that), and shoot me back into public school two years behind everyone else.

One last thing about Adelphoi. My formal charge from both my school and my parents was incorrigibility. I wasn't charged with breaking the law, however many other kids in the day treatment were charged with breaking laws.
Felonies in fact, including one for murder. The kid who was in there for murder
had spent about 4 years in various facilities. He worked his way into a group home where he spent nights, but during the day he came to day treatment. Evidently he blew his best friend's head off, but claimed it was accidental. Nobody ever figured out the truth, but I think he did it on purpose. Anyway he sat next to me. Nice, huh?

[slugger44]

from what i have seen, the system doesn't really seem to help the kids. those that want to change their behavior do, and those that do not want to change do not change. yes, the confronting thing is still there. all that really seems to do is make kids mad at the teachers and caseworkers when they confront them. i'm pretty new there, but i try my best to teach the kids to the best of my ability. it is difficult teaching a class with 15 kids who all got kicked out of their regular school

Originally Posted by sealerpal

It would be difficult for me to forge any opinions about Adelphoi Village, since it's
been 15 years since I last walked through the "day treatment" doors. I'm more than certain that the entire program (both in group homes and day treatment) have evolved quite a bit since then.

I will say this, however. The system at Adelphoi did nothing for me. In fact, I was much worse when I was "released". I just learned it wasn't a good thing to get caught. Maturity finally kicked in for me around the age of 17 and that was the end of my "bad days". I think it was a combination of maturity and understand my own mortality which led me in the "right" direction.

I'm 30 now. I'm a homeowner and a business owner. I've never been in any "trouble" since I was a teenager. However, I don't attribute any of that to Adelphoi. In hindsight all Adelphoi did for me was waste two precious years of high school for me with dummied-down curriculum, temporarily brainwash me with it's twisted form of social engineering (the confronting thing...Don't know if they still do that), and shoot me back into public school two years behind everyone else.

One last thing about Adelphoi. My formal charge from both my school and my parents was incorrigibility. I wasn't charged with breaking the law, however many other kids in the day treatment were charged with breaking laws.
Felonies in fact, including one for murder. The kid who was in there for murder
had spent about 4 years in various facilities. He worked his way into a group home where he spent nights, but during the day he came to day treatment. Evidently he blew his best friend's head off, but claimed it was accidental. Nobody ever figured out the truth, but I think he did it on purpose. Anyway he sat next to me. Nice, huh?

[sealerpal]

When I was there, the kids actually "confronted" each other. It was bizarre. The staff could confront too, but rarely did so. There were numerous cases of staff misconduct like punching, slapping, etc. Nothing ever came of it though.

You are completely right though. The kids who wanna change do, the ones who
don't, don't. All kids are bad to some extent. The ones who wind up in Adelphoi just planned their evil deeds poorly and got caught.

[mams1559]

I just wanted to throw out Seldom Seen Coal Mine in Patton, PA.
Also, Johnstown National Flood Memorial in St. Michael. They have a "nature hike" that covers the remnants of the dam that broke in 1889.
Also, along the lines of the Allegheny Railroad Historic site is the Staplebend Tunnel trail in Mineral Point (just north of Johnstown). It's a 2 mi "rails to trails" hike and you go through the first railroad tunnel of the Alleghenys. If you continue on the trail, I believe it can take you all the way to Franklin (a boro of Jtwn), but not positive.

[summergal]

I know it's a bit father than you wanted to go, but Gettysburgh is an awesome fieldtrip for this age group! They have lots of events and re-enactments throughout the year and it's a really neat educational experience especially considering the rich history PA has in the settling of our country.

[kathintheussa]

How about Fort Ligonier or Fallingwater?