While out sailing on a beautiful day, we were able to let the Harbor Explorers sit on the bow of the boat and enjoy getting their feet splashed, featured here.
Having the opportunity to meet a new group of kids every week keeps this job fun and fresh. Every student that joins us comes in with a new personality, but all our students come ready to have fun and learn new skills. Some skills that we try to pass on to our students ranges from knots to the basics of sailing. Every student learns differently, and so the learning experience extends to us instructors, who find the best way to teach so that they can develop that skill further in the future.
Not only do we provide our students with skills related to sailing, but we teach them the importance of safety and respect. Safety on and off the water is very important, alongside having fun and enjoying the program, as well as being aware of their surroundings in addition to their own actions. This awareness helps students to have interactions and exchanges with others in a way that may benefit them. Their respect allows them to learn from instructors and peers, while also freely expressing their own ideas, knowing they will receive the same level of respect.
Although we may only spend a week with some of the Harbor Explorers, we know that by the end of the week they each can leave knowing they have had fun making new friends and learning new things. The new friendships they’ve made based on their respect for one another will carry on with them. Their time in the program may lead to them coming back with their friends and joining our sailing program to further their skills or meet people with a common interest.
The Harbor Explorer program was never boring, with new faces coming in every week, all new creativity, energy and eagerness to try new things always surprised me. One activity we have done with the kids is creating their very own sea creature. They had the option to make a creature from scratch or combine parts of existing sea animals. Almost immediately, everyone would be coloring away, making some of the most dangerous of animals to could-have-ever swam the oceans to the most cute and friendly of water companions. After making their creations, most students would proudly stand up in front of the group and present their masterpieces.
Thank you to all the staff and all the students for a great summer and I hope to have the opportunity to continue to work with Piers Park Sailing Center and its community. It was a great experience to support the youth program and I am very excited for what may come the following year. I would also like to take opportunities that may take me on a career path that involves me working more on the water, whether is be teaching or helping on larger boats, and expand this amazing community.
–David Moreno
