THIS Community Building Trip to Shiyuan Park-Tsinghua International School 清华大学附属中学国际部

Ropes – mud – walls – water. Run – climb – crawl. Cooperate – persevere – accomplish. This was the secondary division of THIS’ community building trip to the Beijing Expo Park (Beijing Shiyuan Park) in the Yanqing district on August 27, 2024. Unlike the years in the past, the entire 6th – 12th grade students went together to experience the Spartan Challenge and the Tough Mudder challenge.

Students began the day working with their homerooms to complete the Spartan Challenge, a series of walls to climb over, under and through. While others were waiting their turn to begin the Spartan Challenge, they practiced the rope climb, monkey bar swing, 2-meter high wall climb and spear throwing. The physical demands of these activities pushed students to their limits, while also fostering teamwork and resilience.

The Tough Mudder Challenge sent students into the woods for a series of cooperative tasks which tested students’ physical endurance and mental strength. The muddy terrain and challenging obstacles provided a unique opportunity for students to push themselves beyond their comfort zones.

The first challenge was Pitfall, three trenches partly filled with water that students needed to pass through by jumping in and climbing out. Teammates helped those in the water by lending a hand to pull them up and out and on to the next trench. It was a great way to start the Tough Mudder Challenge!

Other tasks included the Devil’s Beard net crawl, the Cage Crawl, the tunnel Tipping Point crawl, the Lumber Jack log carry, the Berlin Wall, Texas Hold’em bridge crossing, the Mudderhorn net climb, the Lumber Jack hurdle, the Hero Carry, Everest Wall climb and Kiss of Mud crawl. Through all these obstacles homerooms worked together to get their classmates up, over, under or through the different challenges. And there is no better way to bond with one another than when each student must push past some fears or hurdles but has the rest of the group cheering, encouraging and helping.

Beyond the physical challenges, the trip also offered a valuable chance for teachers to build bonds with students outside of the traditional classroom setting.

The sunny weather added to the positive atmosphere, making the trip even more enjoyable. Overall, the community building trip was a resounding success, leaving a lasting impression on all participants.

Student and Teacher Comments:

Emily-Davis Hamre, College Counselor:

I had such a great time getting to know the students better during the community building trip! The obstacles were fun (and exhausting), but my favorite part was actually walking in between the obstacles. That was when students would tell me about their summer, their future plans and everything in between. They were such easy and natural conversations that we don’t get to have during the normal school day. No one was worried about assignments or college applications, and so we got to have fun, relax, and get to know each other better. After all, nothing brings students, faculty, and staff together like helping each other out of a mud pit.

Troy Mc Adams,

G6 ELA Teacher & 6P Homeroom Buddy:

Grade 6P Homeroom had two goals: support each other and no one alone. These two principles guided our team throughout the Tough Mudder course as smaller Teams formed based on communication & speed. Each obstacle was not impossible, rather it became an opportunity to collaborate toward collective success & shared experience.

Jasmina Djurovska Blazheska, Math teacher

The community building field trip was such a surprising experience for me as a math teacher. As I only see my students in the classroom, it was wonderful to see them in another light. To see their other talents, perseverance, team spirit, foing the best they can and even more. They were talking to each other as a homeroom, planning, helping each team member. They showed no fear. I learned so much from my students that day, taking responsibility for each other, going beyond what was asked of them, going back to each obstacle until the success was guaranteed. They bonded more, they behaved like serious adults, but yet… Had so much fun. I gained so much respect for my students, much more than seeing their math test scores. They are the students any teacher would love to have so it’s my privilege to call them mine.

Unforgettable experience!

Paul Moon, STEAM Teacher and 11W Homeroom Buddy:

I had an amazing time participating in this year’s community building trip with the 11th-grade students. Swimming, climbing, and crawling through the challenges of the obstacle course together was not only a fun and unique experience but also a fantastic way to build teamwork and camaraderie. The 11th-grade students also put together a potluck lunch, which was a delicious way to demonstrated our community spirit!

Bart Mingielewicz, PE Teacher:

The Tough Mudder was absolutely memorable due to its physical demands and the sense of accomplishment students felt upon completing the obstacle course.

Sofia Liu, 6W Student:

At first my friend Olivia was scared and very nervous. She got a lot of courage from the students and our homeroom teacher and Olivia went through all three mud challenges.

Filip Blazheski, 8P Student:

The fieldtrip was nice, I had fun overcoming obstacles used to train soldiers even though I couldn’t do any of them except throw a spear. The kids were fun and nice and when we were at the kiss of mud obstacle, I was the first one to cross it then other people gained courage after seeing me cross and crawl through the muddy lake.

Jolin Tong, 9W Student:

This experience was totally underrated, and it was much more enriching than I expected. It really challenged my perseverance, and I would definitely recommend it to others!

Jeremy St. John, 10W Student:

The field trip was really fun. It helped us a ton with teamwork because we needed each other. We carried our class flag through all of the obstacles!

Celina Kong, 12L Student:

You have to try things out in order to know if you like it or not. I used to have bad impressions about the mud. So when I noticed that we had several blocks that required us to get into the mud, honestly, I strongly resisted that. However, by the time I actually got into it, I got the joy of those blocks also. I sunk myself in the muddy water even though the consequence was a pants and a pair of shoes and socks that were impossible to clean. Overall, this is a joyful community trip with some challenge exercises that I never did before.